Aiming Inc. posted a dramatic financial turnaround in its second quarter, reporting operating profits of ¥1.84 billion ($12.3 million) compared with a ¥748 million loss a year earlier, as the mobile game developer capitalized on alternative payment systems to boost margins.
The Tokyo-based company said revenue climbed 11% to ¥8.99 billion ($59.9 million) for the quarter ended June, exceeding its initial forecasts by ¥222 million. Net income reached ¥827 million after posting a ¥934 million loss in the same period last year.
Chief Executive Tadashi Shiiba cited the implementation of external payment systems across all of the company’s mobile titles as a key profit driver, allowing Aiming to bypass the traditional 30% fees charged by Apple and Google’s app stores. The systems now contribute what Shiiba described as a “respectable scale” of additional profits annually.
The company’s Dragon Quest Tact, developed in partnership with Square Enix, has consistently exceeded performance expectations since late last year, according to Shiiba. This marks a notable achievement for a title that launched in Japan in 2020, particularly as Square Enix shuttered the global version in February due to weak overseas revenue.
Aiming’s operational improvements included reduced outsourcing costs and platform fees, alongside dividend income from anime production committee investments and government subsidies for its Kumamoto office.
The company announced that DanMachi Battle Chronicle will end service on September 29, though it plans to offer an offline version containing substantial free content—an unusual move in the mobile gaming industry where licensed intellectual property typically disappears entirely upon service termination.
For the third quarter, Aiming projects revenue of ¥12.64 billion with operating profit of ¥1.83 billion, though full-year guidance remains undisclosed. The stock trades at 13.5 times projected earnings per share of ¥17.72.
