Capcom recently faced a massive hack of confidential company plans and assets. Capcom's data was then ransomed by the hacker group and ultimately shared online. Resolute, Capcom has continued forward despite the serious intrusion, which included a detailed schedule of the studio's upcoming game releases. Further, while addressing the topic in a recent quarterly earnings report, Capcom makes one point clear. Capcom's not going to change any of its plans due to the leak.
Capcom was asked directly during the question and answer portion of its fiscal reporting just how much the hack and leak had impacted the company moving forward. Capcom responded determinedly, saying that there was "no significant impact," at least at this point. Further, development within Capcom has "largely returned to normal," which perhaps insinuates that there was a disruption but that it wasn't consequential.
It's also possible that Capcom has changed its plans dramatically due to the leak, but that since the leak's contents were never official Capcom doesn't feel the need to treat it like a significant change. That could mean that games are being delayed, reprioritized, canceled, or otherwise. There's no real way to make sure, short of Capcom confirming the leaked game release schedule.
What's important, however, is that Capcom itself feels like it's back to its normal development pacing. A leak like this can have a significant influence on developer morale. It's hundreds of people's work being leaked online, after all. Hopefully, in saying that Capcom has returned to normal, it's also saying that it has engaged with its employees and has helped everyone reach a healthy place again. That may seem like a lot to ask a game developer, but the situation doesn't fit game development norms either.
Fans will be able to tell if Capcom remains on-track within the year. After all, the leak revealed what Capcom's planning to launch over the next few years. In the fiscal year 2022, Capcom's set to release Dragon's Dogma 2, Street Fighter 6, a Resident Evil 4 Remake, and a new Onimusha game. If everyone's going to plan, those games should be announced before too long.
Suffice to say, if Capcom isn't able to deliver on its leaked release schedule, it'll be understandable why. Games have been canceled in the video game industry for less. And Capcom deserves to take as much time as necessary to ensure its data and employees are safe and secure going forward. Hopefully, another leak like this doesn't happen again.
Source: IGN