Elden Ring owner's extra lives are running out

Sony

27/05/2026 02:45

The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist.  The opinions expressed are his own.
By Hudson Lockett

    HONG KONG, May 27 (Reuters Breakingviews) - In the notoriously difficult video game Elden Ring, a player can die as many times as necessary to learn how to make progress. But Takeshi Natsuno, CEO of the franchise's owner, Kadokawa 9468.T, might be on his last virtual life. Oasis Management, which recently became the $3 billion firm’s biggest shareholder by boosting its stake to 13.8%, is calling for his ouster after years of sagging returns. It’s the latest warning to C-suites across Tokyo that the clock is ticking on poor performance.
Released in 2022, Elden Ring has sold over 30 million copies worldwide to become a smash hit. Despite this success, Kadokawa's earnings per share have dropped more than 90% since Natsuno's first fiscal year at the helm in 2022, while return on equity has fallen to less than 1% from over 9% during the same period.
One big problem, according to the activist fund founded by Seth Fischer, is that Kadokawa relies on game publishers like Bandai Namco 7832.T and backer Sony 6758.Tto take on a title’s development and marketing costs, plus distribution in overseas markets, usually in exchange for a sizable cut of proceeds. That has resulted in "material profit leakage" for blockbusters like Elden Ring, per Oasis. The fund has urged Kadokawa to self-publish, among other measures, and in April told the firm it planned to call for Natsuno's dismissal.
Kadokawa’s board opposes that push and says it will stick with the current CEO. Last week, though, at the SOHN investor conference in Hong Kong, Fischer told attendees it was time to give Natsuno the boot after half a decade running the show before releasing a 133-page presentation arguing the case.
Whether other major stakeholders like Sony and Tencent 0700.HK, which combined own another roughly 18%, back Natsuno at the firm’s annual shareholder meeting on June 24 is an open question. But Oasis helped lead a milestone corporate putsch at Japanese chemical manufacturer Taiyo 4626.T in 2025 and has put out calls for dismissals at two other firms this year, reflecting a wider trend. Figures from Diligent Market Intelligence show a record 30 activist proposals to remove top personnel in 2025 in Japan, four of which succeeded. Intransigent executives in Tokyo should take heed — there are more boss fights to come.
     
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CONTEXT NEWS
Oasis Management is calling on shareholders in Japanese video game and multimedia firm Kadokawa Corporation to vote against the reappointment of CEO Takeshi Natsuno at the company's annual general meeting on June 24.
The fund run by Seth Fischer became the largest outside investor in Kadokawa with a nearly 14% stake, according to a statement on May 21, exceeding Sony Group's shareholdings of around 10%.

Kadokawa's return on equity has tumbled under CEO Natsuno https://www.reuters.com/graphics/BRV-BRV/gkvlkojkmpb/chart.png
(Editing by Antony Currie; Production by Aditya Srivastav)
((For previous columns by the author, Reuters customers can click on LOCKETT/ hudson.lockett@thomsonreuters.com))