Motorsport Games Revenues Jump 76% Following Le Mans Ultimate Early Access

Motorsport Games Revenues Jump 76% Following Le Mans Ultimate Early Access .jpg
Images: Motorsport Games
The company is still posting losses and is burning cash, but its recent release has stemmed the flow somewhat.

Revenues for Motorsport Games jumped 76% to $3.0 million in the first quarter of 2024, compared to $1.7m this time last year.

The main progenitor of the swing came from the release, in early access form, of Le Mans Ultimate – the official simulation of the FIA World Endurance Championship.

It also received a follow-up payment from iRacing for the NASCAR game licencing agreement this quarter of $500,000.

“Higher digital game sales were primary drivers for this increase, primarily as a result of the result of the Le Mans Ultimate game for PC in February 2024,” said Stanley Beckley, interim Chief Financial Officer at Motorsport Games.

LMU Bahrain.jpg


Despite this, the embattled racing game developer still posted a net loss of $1,683,398. While still in the red, the results pale in comparison to the $5,259,192 posted (a 67.99% change) in same period last year. It’s also the smallest loss it has reported since 2020.

Similarly, it reported an average monthly cash burn of $1.1m per month in 2023 and $1.9m in that Q1. Whereas, so far in 2024 that is down to $0.3m.

As of 31st March, it has cash and cash equivalents of approximately $1.3 million remaining. Of note, a month later (30th April), its cash equivalents remained valued at $1.3 million.

Its total accumulated deficit to date is a staggering $88,665,020. It has not reported any net debt.

Shares rose 32 per cent during trading on Tuesday.

While these are the most optimistic figures reported by the Miami-headquartered outfit in several years, it remains circumspect.

“The Company does not believe it has sufficient cash on hand to fund its operations over the next year and that additional funding will be required in order to continue operations,” reads the report – as Motorsport Games reports have done now for quite some time.

Le Mans Ultimate Glick.jpg


“We’ve worked hard over the last 12 months and the result is an upturn in our Q1 results," said Motorsport Games CEO Stephen Hood.

“We still have some way to go but I hope you agree we have turned the page and have positive momentum.

“We’re excited about the remainder of this year and in particular the upcoming Le Mans event in June.”

“We are feeling very positive about this Q1, we see it as a stepping stone.”

Le Mans Ultimate is set to expand across the year, with a notable update expected next month to time with the real-world 24 Hours of Le Mans race.
About author
Thomas Harrison-Lord
A freelance sim racing, motorsport and automotive journalist. Credits include Autosport Magazine, Motorsport.com, RaceDepartment, OverTake, Traxion and TheSixthAxis.

Comments

From a developer's and publisher's veiwpoint it actually makes a lot of sense to make individual games, and is almost certainly more viable than just releasing DLC for an existing game.

Releasing a dedicated BTCC game is likely to sell way more than the BTCC content for rF2 did. There are hell of a lot of people who would be interested in a BTCC game who are not hardcore simracers. In fact I'd say most of these people probably don't know much about rF2, let alone know that there's BTCC content available for it.

By producing a standalone BTCC game the publisher can reach a far far wider audience than just through rF2 DLC alone, and therefore sell a lot more copies.

From my personal point I've view I'd much rather have separate sims that are focused on particular disciplines of motorsport than a sim where everything is just lumped together. I have rF2 and all of the content, but I never use it because despite it being an excellent sim and driving experience the rest of it is just a disparate disorganised mess. Therefore LMU was a no brainer for me, as will be a BTCC title based on rF2.
Your problem is that rFactor 2 and indeed the original one are simulators intended primarily for online races in closed league communities. Playing rF offline is nonsense and a console release would completely kill the spirit of this simulator. There are plenty of games sold for kids to play, so why focus on this type. Unfortunately, the number of real league simulator drivers is very limited, so in today's money-driven economy, releasing a new pure simulator does not make economic sense. Today's young generation of players needs the game quickly and successfully, otherwise it won't work. Well, that is excluded with the simulator.
 
I haven't turned it on since then, and in fact I won't until it hits the league event servers.
And this might never happen as they never said they're going to release a dedicated server program. Only rented servers on Race Control (or as they call them "hosted servers").
 
And this might never happen as they never said they're going to release a dedicated server program. Only rented servers on Race Control (or as they call them "hosted servers").
if so they are done.
 
76% revenue increase is great. That it still means a net loss is not, and that they are bound to run out of cash again is worse. The good sign is that the budget left remained constant for the last month, so maybe the current path can turn into an upswing and the project can keep on going.
 
S397 is the studio that is owned by motorsport games.

Also still no idea why this forum continues to report on this financial situation when they don't report on anyone else's. Clearly just like stirring up BS.
Maybe because MSG is a publicly traded company, therefor their financial reports are available, while other devs are not. Digital Bros, the parent company of Kunos, does publish their reports and news about it are posted, sometimes on this very site. As the AC franchise continues to generate constant high revenue and numbers are good, it becomes a no-news topic.
 
if so they are done.
No, no not all, the whole sim racing landscape has changed since rF2 was released, and S397 needs to move to adapt.

I get it, you’re an rF2 purist, as demonstrated by your previous comments and replies, but there’s a far bigger world outside the bubble you and your league teammates inhabit, and if S397 are to survive they need to move beyond that bubble. Working solely on rF2 is simply servicing a niche of a niche of a niche, and that’s unlikely to be paying the rent and putting food on the table for the devs.
 
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Maybe because MSG is a publicly traded company, therefor their financial reports are available, while other devs are not. Digital Bros, the parent company of Kunos, does publish their reports and news about it are posted, sometimes on this very site. As the AC franchise continues to generate constant high revenue and numbers are good, it becomes a no-news topic.
It's a no news subject on this. Just this dump of a site has a vendetta against them. It's a joke. Even if the game were perfect everyone here would cry about it because "ms games are the worst thing ever" get a life.
 
It's a no news subject on this. Just this dump of a site has a vendetta against them. It's a joke. Even if the game were perfect everyone here would cry about it because "ms games are the worst thing ever" get a life.
No, no not all, the whole sim racing landscape has changed since rF2 was released, and S397 needs to move to adapt.

I get it, you’re an rF2 purist, as demonstrated by your previous comments and replies, but there’s a far bigger world outside the bubble you and your league teammates inhabit, and if S397 are to survive they need to move beyond that bubble. Working solely on rF2 is simply servicing a niche of a niche of a niche, and that’s unlikely to be paying the rent and putting food on the table for the devs.
sure, i'm not contradicting that. But if they want to survive, they have to adapt it, and that is equivalent to getting closer to arcades that work even outside the use of FFB steering wheels. And of course it's an arcade. It should not be forgotten that rFactor was developed by the ISI studio producing the professional rFactor PRO. So in DNA it's a pure simulator.
Of course, the number of pilots driving on an uncompromising simulator does not satisfy any manufacturer. No debate. The problem is where to find the penetration.
 
It's a no news subject on this
If it was just about RF2, I would agree, I could not care less if MG/S397 was on the brink of bankruptcy, except for being sad for anyone working there.
As RF2 is (probably) at the end of its life cycle and has already served well the people who bough it and enjoyed it for all this years. So sad, but not the end of the world.
But, in the perspective of EA (very Early} LMU, then it is news worthy, for anyone interested in this title obvious potential, potential that will never be fulfill, if MG/S397 have to cease operations because their are bleeding money.
Again, if LMU was a full, mostly finished, full fleshed offering, then what happens next to the people who are supposed to be there to support it, would not be that interesting.
I get that RF2 and LMU are worth defending, but the few recent post in this thread, are more showing irrational denial than true constructivism.
 
It's a no news subject on this. Just this dump of a site has a vendetta against them. It's a joke. Even if the game were perfect everyone here would cry about it because "ms games are the worst thing ever" get a life.
Their reputation preceeds them. They began with lots of exclusive license agreements. Then BTCC license lost and regained in not exclusive way, Indycar game cancelled, NASCAR license sold to iRacing, and LMU still on Early Access with no actual release date planned AFAIK. Of course this is going to be talked about, and given that there was still money loss with a big increase on sales, it's not without reason.

When MSG is finally out of the woods and balances begin a constant upswing, then this will be no-news. We are not there yet.
 
I get that RF2 and LMU are worth defending, but the few recent post in this thread, are more showing irrational denial than true constructivism.
And this is why I've been posting less lately, the whole community seems to have gone toxic over the last few years, and stupidity abounds. I've always been an accommodating type, but it's become pointless. As my mother used to say - There's no point arguing with an idiot as they'll bring you down to their level and beat you with experience.

Honestly, in the last couple of years I've come to the conclusion that the reason why sim racers exist is because they're too bloody dumb to handle a flight sim.

There, I've said it.
 
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Premium
In any case I hope there is a business case for having 10-15 people in S397 work on rfactor 2 games and make money even if the whole of MGS goes belly up and the debt is wiped out hy bankrupcy.
Where did you get this number from?

"As of March 31, 2024, we have a total headcount of 65 people, made up of 46 full-time employees, including 51 dedicated to game development, to continue developing our expanded product offerings."
Makes sense as i counted 13ish outside game devs this morning when you posted this, had to ask for someone to look into the SEC filings :D
Its right there.
 
And this is why I've been posting less lately, the whole community seems to have gone toxic over the last few years, and stupidity abounds. I've always been an accommodating type, but it's become pointless. As my mother used to say - There's no point arguing with an idiot as they'll bring you down to their level and beat you with experience.

Honestly, in the last couple of years I've come to the conclusion that the reason why sim racers exist is because they're too bloody dumb to handle a flight sim.

There, I've said it.
Dammit, you blew my cover!
 
And this is why I've been posting less lately, the whole community seems to have gone toxic over the last few years, and stupidity abounds. I've always been an accommodating type, but it's become pointless. As my mother used to say - There's no point arguing with an idiot as they'll bring you down to their level and beat you with experience.

Honestly, in the last couple of years I've come to the conclusion that the reason why sim racers exist is because they're too bloody dumb to handle a flight sim.

There, I've said it.

The average sim racer picks a team and defends that team to death to the point of finding small issues with anything else as major reasons not to play the other titles... There's only a few that will call a spade a spade, I get caught up in it myself when there's something new because of the "new hope" that sim racers need because no one developer provides the full experience and there's enough to complain about in every title...

It's a sad state of people trying to defend why they waste time on a video game rather than spend time in real life trying to achieve something meaningful...

In short I completely agree... There's no point in arguing on here or anywhere about sim racing... It's the internet for one, there's always an idiot out there willing to drag you to their level... But it's also about video games, where even the worst things on offer to me have some idiot who loves them... It's like the Music industry where a lot of people love those who seem utterly talentless to others... It's just subjectivity on art, nothing more...
 
Where did you get this number from?

"As of March 31, 2024, we have a total headcount of 65 people, made up of 46 full-time employees, including 51 dedicated to game development, to continue developing our expanded product offerings."
Makes sense as i counted 13ish outside game devs this morning when you posted this, had to ask for someone to look into the SEC filings :D
Its right there.
not making money 1st to go are employees, they would not have covered the costs for the devs working on LMU yet.
 
rF2 and LMU vanished tomorrow I would go back to older ISIMotor, simple. :x3:
HI Durge it will end up like rf1 at worst good for sim racing in leagues & some fun. Lets just hope they are quietly considering selling off both rf2 and LMU as a package, as they have proven they cannot run 2 sims at once. RF2 has made near nothing since its been put on hold. I hear they want to charge for the RC of a sim that gets no content updates nothing are they dreaming? All i know is when it was under luminous/S397 the biggest changes were made, pity they sold it off.
 

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