Neon Genesis Evangelion is widely recognized as one of the most influential anime franchises in history. Its collaboration with Goddess of Victory: NIKKE, a popular smartphone game, promised to be a major success. However, according to Shift Up’s recently released Q3 2024 financial report, the collaboration fell short of expectations.
Financial Decline Despite High Expectations
The collaboration with Evangelion briefly boosted NIKKE’s download rankings in Japan during August 2024. However, Shift Up’s financial results for the third quarter revealed a revenue decline of 4.3 billion South Korean won (approximately $3.2 million USD) compared to the previous quarter.
- Q2 2024 revenue: 38.5 billion won.
- Q3 2024 revenue: 34.2 billion won.
This represents an 11% decrease in revenue, which Shift Up partially attributes to the collaboration’s lackluster performance.
Event Highlights and Player Reception
The Evangelion collaboration, launched on 22 August 2024, introduced iconic characters such as Rei Ayanami, Asuka Langley Soryu, Mari Makinami Illustrious, and Misato Katsuragi as playable characters. Despite the excitement surrounding their inclusion, the collaboration did not attract significant numbers of new players or drive higher spending from the existing user base.
Why Did the Collaboration Underperform?
Several factors may have contributed to the underwhelming financial results:
- Conservative character designs: Shift Up CEO Hyung-tae Kim revealed that the original Evangelion designs were altered to be less revealing, which could have reduced their appeal to NIKKE’s existing audience, accustomed to more provocative designs.
- Short duration: The event’s limited time frame may not have been sufficient to generate sustained interest or revenue.
Ayanami Rei in NIKKE
Lessons for Future Collaborations
Despite the financial setback, Shift Up is taking a proactive approach. The company plans to analyze player feedback to improve future collaborations. With previous successes in partnering with high-profile franchises like Chainsaw Man, Re:Zero and NieR: Automata, fans can anticipate more impactful events in 2025.
What do you think went wrong with this collaboration? Do you think more faithful designs or a longer event period would have made a difference? Share your opinion in the comments!
