Shoot 'em up maker Cave hits hard times, gives social games a shot

Hey, Street Fighter creator Capcom gave it a shot, and look at the fun they're having. Andriasang reports that Cave, Japanese creator of popular shoot 'em games--think far more modernized takes on Galaga--will change its focus to social games. The company made the jarring decision following a poor earnings forecast of 1.3 million yen compared to an expected 1.4 million.

In the Japanese fiscal year of June 1 through Nov. 30, Cave now expects an operating loss of 31 million yen. When compared with its previous July 2011 forecast of a 10 million yen gain for 2012, that's quite a difference. Cave cited difficulties in consumer (i.e. traditional) games markets as reason for both the unsavory forecast and its upcoming shift to social games.

However, it's important to point out that Cave's games, commonly referred to as "bullet hell shooters," served an incredibly niche audience of gamers both in Japan and abroad. And while the company has released some critically-acclaimed games in the sub genre, even on arguably casual gaming devices like the iPhone, it seems that Cave simply isn't casting wide enough of a net to support the costs to make such games.

Enter social games, which cost significantly less money and time to make, with even small companies making serious bank. Nothing has been said of exactly what type of social games the company will craft nor whether they'll appear on mobile devices or strictly social networks. But as we've seen with even the most successful casual franchises, social is not synonymous with success.

[Via TouchArcade]

Have you ever tried a "bullet hell shooter?" What do you think of companies that resort to social games after hard times in the traditional games world? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment.