Resident Evil 6 sold more than 4.8 million copies in 2012, Capcom revealed in its most recent financial statement. That isn't bad at all. But it's a few million short of the 7 million figure it predicted earlier in the year.
"[T]he flagship title "Resident Evil 6" (for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360), despite recording brisk sales when it debuted, subsequently lost its momentum, resulting in the failure to achieve planned sales and fulfill its role as a driver of sales expansion," Capcom's report read.
The series made survival horror into a thriving genre of its own when it debuted on PlayStation, but since then has strayed more into dramatic portrayals of over-the-top action. Resident Evil: Revelation's producer said last week that returning the series to its horror roots is important.
For now, Street Fighter II for SNES remains the company's best-selling title at 6.2 million.
The surprise success of Dragon's Dogma, which Capcom said sold more than a million copies, as well as growth across the Monster Hunter franchise helped keep Capcom in for a strong nine months ended on December 31, 2012. Capcom's digital division (as opposed to its arcade and casino machine divisions) sales grew by almost 40 percent compared to the same period of 2011, though its income ticked up only 0.2 percent.
