Is FromSoftware profitable?

Yes. FromSoftware reported FY2024 revenue of ¥23.50 billion, operating income of ¥10.08 billion, and net income of ¥6.62 billion, an operating margin around 43 percent, according to Kadokawa's consolidated disclosure as of 2024.

Who owns FromSoftware?

Kadokawa Corporation holds roughly 69.66 percent, Sony Interactive Entertainment about 14.09 percent, and Tencent's Sixjoy Hong Kong about 16.25 percent as of 2024-2025. Sony and Tencent's combined stake rose to about 30 percent by August 16, 2025.

Could AI replace FromSoftware's game designers?

Unlikely soon. FromSoftware's value rests on hand-crafted boss and level design led by Hidetaka Miyazaki; no evidence shows AI used in core creative pipelines as of 2026. A July 22, 2026 Kotaku report even noted AI chatbots spreading false rumors about unreleased title Duskbloods.

Is Kadokawa, FromSoftware's parent, in trouble?

It faces a governance fight. Activist investor Oasis Management held 15.25 percent of Kadokawa by June 23, 2026 and nearly ousted CEO Takeshi Natsuno on June 24, 2026, arguing FromSoftware loses over 90 percent of Elden Ring profit to publisher Bandai Namco.

Who is FromSoftware's biggest competitor?

Team Ninja's Nioh 3, released February 6, 2026, drew inspiration from Lies of P and scored 85 on OpenCritic with 93 percent recommending it, but FromSoftware still dominates with over 30 million Elden Ring units sold as of April 2025.

When does Elden Ring come to Nintendo Switch 2?

Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition, bundling the base game and Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, releases on Nintendo Switch 2 on August 28, 2026, following the June 9, 2026 announcement.

Gaming companies · subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation · Japan

FromSoftware

fromsoftware.jp ↗

Japanese studio behind Elden Ring and Dark Souls, owned by Kadokawa.

Hard to displace

Assessed 23 July 2026 · Evidence as of 23 July 2026

Strong structural protection; the business model survives ai pressure.

On the recordSince 23 July 2026 · Checkable from June 2027 · Every call on the record Checkpoint: Kadokawa shareholder AGM, likely next round of activist pressure from Oasis Management

The call

FromSoftware's games face no real competitor and no AI substitute, so the open question is who controls the money, not who can copy the games.

FromSoftware is a video game studio that makes extremely popular and profitable games like Elden Ring, which has sold over 30 million copies. The company is hard to replace because players love its style, it owns valuable game worlds, and competitors who have tried to copy its tough-but-fair game design over the past 15 years have not succeeded. The real risk is not that another studio will steal its customers, but that an activist investor pushing for changes at FromSoftware's parent company, Kadokawa, could disrupt how the studio operates or who runs it, especially if key creative leader Hidetaka Miyazaki were to leave.

Why

AI pressure: None apparent. AI generated games and mod tools have not touched FromSoftware's design-heavy, hand-crafted world building at all. Could AI do the core job? Unlikely.

Bigger players: Bandai Namco Entertainment / Kadokawa parent dynamics. Activist investor Oasis says Bandai Namco keeps over 90% of Elden Ring profit and wants FromSoftware to self-publish instead. Could a giant copy it? Probably.

What protects it. Miyazaki's design reputation and a 30 million-unit Elden Ring franchise that no rival has matched in 15 years.

What would change this call

Kadokawa reveals or delays a FromSoftware self-publishing plan after Oasis pressure. Shows whether governance fight changes who captures Elden Ring profit.
The Duskbloods release date and reception after its 2027 slip. Tests whether Nintendo exclusivity and new IP can match FromSoftware's usual commercial success.
Miyazaki names or promotes an internal creative successor publicly. Reduces key person risk tied to his singular creative role.

Key numbers

Elden Ring sold 30M+ units (2025-04)
Operating margin roughly 43% in FY2024 (2024)
Oasis Management held 15.25% of Kadokawa (2026-06-23)

Named risks

Kadokawa activist governance fight could force restructuring or publishing change. Severity: high
Miyazaki key-person dependency with no named creative successor. Severity: medium
Duskbloods release timeline slipping past 2026 with no confirmed date. Severity: medium
Elden Ring Nightreign Steam concurrent players declined from 26,334 (Feb 2026) to 18,588 (July 2026). Severity: low
Tencent stock volatility and portfolio review could affect minority-stake sentiment. Severity: low

Rivals, as read in July 2026

Rival	Direction	Evidence
Team Ninja (Nioh 3)	gaining on	Nioh 3 scored OpenCritic 85, 93% recommend, released Feb 6 2026
Round8 Studio/Lies of P	contesting	Cited by rival devs as genre-defining 2023 soulslike inspiring Nioh 3
Moon Studios (No Rest for the Wicked)	gaining on	Sold almost 2M copies in Early Access, briefly topped Steam charts, June 2026
Bandai Namco Entertainment	contesting	Activist Oasis alleges it takes over 90% of Elden Ring's overseas profit, May 2026
HEXWORKS/Lords of the Fallen II	losing to	Delayed to Q1 2027 while FromSoftware ships Tarnished Edition Aug 2026

Questions people ask

Is FromSoftware profitable?: Yes. FromSoftware reported FY2024 revenue of ¥23.50 billion, operating income of ¥10.08 billion, and net income of ¥6.62 billion, an operating margin around 43 percent, according to Kadokawa's consolidated disclosure as of 2024.
Who owns FromSoftware?: Kadokawa Corporation holds roughly 69.66 percent, Sony Interactive Entertainment about 14.09 percent, and Tencent's Sixjoy Hong Kong about 16.25 percent as of 2024-2025. Sony and Tencent's combined stake rose to about 30 percent by August 16, 2025.
Could AI replace FromSoftware's game designers?: Unlikely soon. FromSoftware's value rests on hand-crafted boss and level design led by Hidetaka Miyazaki; no evidence shows AI used in core creative pipelines as of 2026. A July 22, 2026 Kotaku report even noted AI chatbots spreading false rumors about unreleased title Duskbloods.
Is Kadokawa, FromSoftware's parent, in trouble?: It faces a governance fight. Activist investor Oasis Management held 15.25 percent of Kadokawa by June 23, 2026 and nearly ousted CEO Takeshi Natsuno on June 24, 2026, arguing FromSoftware loses over 90 percent of Elden Ring profit to publisher Bandai Namco.
Who is FromSoftware's biggest competitor?: Team Ninja's Nioh 3, released February 6, 2026, drew inspiration from Lies of P and scored 85 on OpenCritic with 93 percent recommending it, but FromSoftware still dominates with over 30 million Elden Ring units sold as of April 2025.
When does Elden Ring come to Nintendo Switch 2?: Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition, bundling the base game and Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, releases on Nintendo Switch 2 on August 28, 2026, following the June 9, 2026 announcement.

Timeline

2026-07-22Kotaku reports AI chatbots spreading false rumors about unreleased Duskbloods
2026-07-22Tencent Hong Kong shares fall about 7.1 percent amid China gaming selloff
2026-06-24Kadokawa CEO Natsuno survives Oasis-led shareholder ouster vote
2026-06-23Oasis Management raises Kadokawa stake to 15.25 percent
2026-06-12Miyazaki teases unannounced new FromSoftware titles
2026-06-09Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition announced for Switch 2, Aug 28 2026
2025-08-16Sony and Tencent combined FromSoftware stake rises to about 30 percent
2025-07-24FromSoftware reports Elden Ring 30M+ units, Nightreign 5M+ shipped
2025-05-30Elden Ring Nightreign releases, ships 2M units day one
2025-01-07Sony completes ¥50 billion purchase of about 10 percent of Kadokawa

Revision history

23 July 2026

First assessed. Hard to displace. The text above is fixed as of this date and is not edited afterwards.

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