Sammy president and CEO Hajime Satomi has told Bloomberg Japan that he wants Sega to concentrate on the arcade games business and be more strict about pouring money into loss-making home console releases, news which is likely to further inflame Sega"s loyal fanbase at the end of a tumultuous week for the venerable games publisher.
Not only does Satomi-san hope Sega will increase its arcade output, but he also hopes Sega will make use of Sammy"s Atomiswave system, a low-cost, cartridge-based, JAMMA-compatible arcade setup that runs on the same CPU as Sega"s Dreamcast console and Naomi arcade systems. "It"s low cost enough that even a single play at 10 yen a game can turn a profit," he said this week. "We can sell it in third-world countries as well."
Although the news will have Sega fans up in arms, it"s only a reflection of Sammy"s own focus on profit. As a business decision, the logic is plain to see. In its last reported six-month figures, Sega posted a massive loss - 2.5 billion yen - in the home console business, which was only offset by a similarly gigantic 5.6 billion yen profit in the arcade sector. Its home console titles continue to review relatively well, but Sega has clearly struggled to harness that critical momentum.