Chinese gaming giant Perfect World, known for titles like Persona 5: The Phantom X and One Punch Man: World, is undergoing a major leadership change. Following significant layoffs affecting over a thousand employees and underwhelming financial results, CEO Xiao Hong and co-CEO Lu Xiaoyin have resigned, according to a Game Gyroscope report on WeChat. However, reports suggest they will remain on the board as directors.
Gu Liming, a long-serving senior vice president, has been appointed as the new CEO. This transition signals a potential strategic shift for the company as it seeks to recover from recent setbacks.
Perfect World Faces Headwinds
The company's recent struggles include substantial job cuts and declining revenue from existing games. Even the highly anticipated One Punch Man: World underperformed in international beta testing and has remained inactive on app stores since April.
Perfect World anticipates a significant financial loss in the first half of 2024, projecting a net loss of 160-200 million yuan, a stark contrast to last year's 379 million yuan profit. The gaming division is expected to bear the brunt of this loss, with a projected net loss of 140-180 million yuan. Further compounding the challenges, the middle office team has been drastically reduced.
Despite these difficulties, there's a glimmer of hope. The upcoming update for Tower of Fantasy, Hotta Studio's open-world gacha RPG, aims to revitalize the game and potentially improve its financial performance. The August 6th, 2024 release of version 4.2 is anticipated to generate excitement.
Furthermore, Perfect World's newly announced game, Neverness to Everness, has generated considerable pre-registration interest. With nearly three million pre-registrations within a week of its announcement, the urban-themed open-world RPG demonstrates potential, although revenue generation is not expected until at least 2025.
The success of Perfect World's turnaround hinges on the new management team's ability to navigate these challenges. The coming months will be crucial as they implement strategic initiatives, streamline operations, and strive to regain financial stability.
For more gaming news, read our article on Wang Yue, the open-world ARPG nearing its testing phase.
