According to preliminary estimates, in the first half of the current year, the publicly listed game developer and publisher increased revenues by 62%, reaching PLN 21.6 million, generating an operating profit of PLN 8.2 (PLN 5.8 million the year before) and a net profit of PLN 6.5 million, (PLN 4.8 million in the first half of 2020). Artifex Mundi’s dynamic increase in revenues and profits is made possible thanks to the development of free-to-play games, whose revenues from commercialization increased by PLN 10 million YoY.
The Group’s operating result, stripped of the influence of one-time items (write-downs on games and incentive plan costs recognized in 2021, which were included in the results achieved in the first half of 2020), increased by 18%, reaching PLN 8.3 million. Recurring EBITDA increased from PLN 10.2 million in the first half of 2020 to PLN 11.2 million after 6 months of 2021.
“The dynamic increase in sales, achieved in the first half of 2020, which was exceptionally successful for the global online entertainment industry, is another proof that Artifex Mundi chose the right development path. The Group’s driving force is the free-to-play segment, with the Unsolved application at the forefront. Our goal for the second half of the year is to achieve a high double-digit sales growth dynamic, as well as a substantial improvement of last year’s EBIT and net results,” says Przemysław Błaszczyk, President of the publicly listed company.
Unsolved is a mobile application that offers players the chance to play some of the HOPA games available in Artifex Mundi’s portfolio for a limited time (based on usable energy, which is slightly renewed every day and can be purchased in the application). The app, available on Android and iOS, offers access to 14 recognizable HOPA titles. Since the beginning of 2021, Artifex Mundi has been regularly acquiring players for Unsolved. In the first half of the year, the Group spent nearly PLN 6.4 million for that purpose by running campaigns on social media. “The plan for Unsolved for the second half of 2021 entails both its further development, including the introduction of a premium currency, and intensive works on player acquisition. In the face of the changes in the iOS environment in the current quarter, we temporarily reduced the scale of UA investments, which will have a beneficial impact on the segment’s profitability in a short period of time. In the next months, we’re planning to increase investments in that regard, which will result from the expansion of advertising channels, as well as the gradual intensification of undertakings directed at the users of iOS devices,” explains Przemysław Błaszczyk.
The Group’s second pillar is the premium game segment. It’s based on the monetization of the already published games (mostly HOPA) on PC platforms, mobile devices and consoles. At the moment, the portfolio includes nearly 90 games, most of which are characterized by long tails.
