Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc.[a], formerly Bandai Namco Games until 2015, is a Japanese multinational video game publisher, and the video game branch of the wider Bandai Namco Holdings group. Founded in 2006 as Namco Bandai Games Inc.[b], it is the successor to Namco's home and arcade video game business, as well as Bandai's former equivalent division.[3] Development operations were spun off into a new company in 2012, Namco Bandai Studios, now called Bandai Namco Studios.
First logo as Namco Bandai Games (then Bandai Namco Games) was used until 2015.
In January 2006, Bandai Namco Holdings Inc. announced the establishment of Namco Bandai Games Inc. In March 2006, to be formed by merging Bandai and Namco’s home console game content, arcade game, mobile contents business and part of its new business division.[2]
Both companies in a joint statement cited Japan's decreasing birth rates and advancements in technology as the reason for the merge, and to increase their relevance to newer audiences. Both companies worked independently under the newly formed Bandai Namco Holdings until 31 March 2006, when their video game operations were merged to form Namco Bandai Games.[1]
On 1 April 2008, Banpresto's video game operations were absorbed by Namco Bandai Games.[4] On 1 April 2009, Bandai Networks, Namco Bandai's mobile phone business, was dissolved and absorbed into Namco Bandai Games.[5]
Just prior to the release of Afro Samurai at the end of 2008, the company announced the Surge publishing label.[6] The new label was an attempt at creating a separate identity for the company, aimed at a Western audience desiring more mature themes in-game content.[7] Following Afro, early press materials indicated that Dead to Rights: Retribution and Splatterhouse would also be released under the Surge label, but neither game ultimately did; both were released with a retro Namco label instead to reflect the series' legacy, the Surge branding would be phased out following the release of Afro Samurai.
In 2010, Namco Bandai Games entered the Guinness World Records as the company that released the most TV commercials for the same product, a Nintendo DS game called Solatorobo: Red the Hunter. They created 100 versions of the ad as the game consists of 100 chapters.[8]
In early 2011, Namco Networks was absorbed into Namco Bandai Games America, effectively consolidating Namco Bandai's American console, handheld, and mobile video game development operations.[9]
On 2 April 2012, Namco Bandai Games spun off its development operations into a new company called Namco Bandai Studios. The new company was spurred by Namco Bandai's interest in faster development times and tighter cohesion between disparate development teams. It comprises approximately 1,000 employees, who were already part of Namco Bandai.[10]
In March 2013, Namco Bandai Games established two new game studios. The first, Namco Bandai Studios Singapore, is Namco Bandai's "leading development center" in Asia and develops game content for the Asia Pacific market.[11] The second studio, Namco Bandai Studios Vancouver, works on online social games and game content development for North America and Europe, and is part of the Center for Digital Media (CDM).[11] In July 2013, Namco Bandai Partners (NBP), which used to oversee the PAL distribution network since September 2012, merged with Namco Bandai Games Europe (NBGE) in order to push distribution and publishing into one entity, Namco Bandai Games Europe (NBGE), which is now known as Bandai Namco Entertainment Europe (BNEE).[12] The Australian subsidiary of BNEE, Bandai Namco Entertainment Australia, aside from acting as the publisher and distributor for Bandai Namco titles in Australia, also publishes and distributes titles in the ANZ region for Square Enix and NIS America amongst others.
Previous logo was used from 2015 to 2022.
In 2014, Namco Bandai Games and Namco Bandai Studios became Bandai Namco Games and Bandai Namco Studios, respectively. The change unified the brand internationally in order to increase the "value" and "appeal" of the name.[13] The full company name was changed to Bandai Namco Entertainment on 1 April 2015.[14]
On 1 April 2018, the amusement machine business division of Bandai Namco Entertainment was transferred over to sister company Bandai Namco Amusement.[15][16][17]
In September 2020, Bandai Namco Entertainment Europe and Oceania acquired Canadian video game developer Reflector Entertainment.[18] The company acquired minority stake in Limbic Entertainment in February 2021[19] and became the majority stakeholder in October 2022.[20][21]
In March 2021, Bandai Namco Amusement announced that withdrawal of the arcade game facility business in North America due to closure of various gaming facilities from the COVID-19 pandemic.[22] Despite the announcement, Bandai Namco Amusement America was not affected by this withdrawal.[23] In April 2021, Bandai Namco Entertainment America announced it would close its Santa Clara office and move to a new Southern California office.[24][25]
In June 2022, Bandai Namco Entertainment and ILCA. Inc announced the establishment of Bandai Namco Aces, with 51% of the shares owned by Bandai Namco and 49% of the shares owned by ILCA.[26] This new development company will be responsible for the development of AAA titles, including Ace Combat.[27]
On November 20 2024, Bandai Namco Entertainment announced the merger of Bandai Namco Online into the company, dissolving the subsidiary as a result with the employees joining the parent company. This came after the disappointing results of Blue Protocol and Gundam Evolution, games that performed below expectations with the dissolution set to be completed by April 2025.[28]
Corporate structure
Bandai Namco Entertainment was originally headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo, moving their operations to Minato-ku, Tokyo in February 2016.[29] The North American and European divisions respectively in Irvine, California, as Bandai Namco Entertainment America, and in Lyon, France, as Bandai Namco Entertainment Europe. Divisions have also been established in mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. Most of the Non-American and Japanese divisions were formerly distribution arms of Atari until the company sold them off to Bandai Namco in July 2009 alongside their Distribution Partners unit, which was effectively renamed Namco Bandai Partners[30][31] until being folded in 2013.
Bandai Namco Entertainment is the core development division of the Bandai Namco Group's "Content Strategic Business Unit" (Content SBU), and the main video game branch of Bandai Namco Holdings.[32]
Software development and subsidiaries
Bandai Namco Studios: established in April 2012 as a separate company[33] — Bandai Namco Studios creates video games for home consoles, handheld systems, mobile devices and arcade hardware, while Bandai Namco Entertainment handles the managing, marketing and publishing of these products.[10] Bandai Namco Studios also produces music and videos based on its properties and has development studios in the European, Asian, and Americas offices.[11][34]
Bandai Co., Ltd. is a Japanese multinational toy manufacturer and distributor headquartered in Taitō, Tokyo. Its international branches, Bandai Namco Toys & Collectables America and Bandai UK, are respectively headquartered in Irvine, California, and Richmond, London. Since 2005, Bandai is the toy production division of Bandai Namco Holdings, currently the world's second largest toy company measured by total revenue. Between 1981 and 2001, Bandai was a manufacturer of video game consoles.
Namco Limited was a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company founded in 1955 which operated video arcades and amusement parks globally, produced video games, films, toys, and arcade cabinets. They were one of the most influential figures in the worldwide coin-op and arcade game industry; Namco produced several multi-million-selling game franchises, such as Pac-Man, Galaxian, Tekken, Tales, Ridge Racer, and Ace Combat. In 2006, Namco merged with Bandai to form what is now named Bandai Namco Holdings; the standalone Namco brand continues to be used for video arcade and other entertainment products by the group's Bandai Namco Amusements division.
Galaxian is a 1979 fixed shooter video game developed and published by Namco for arcades. The player assumes control of the Galaxip starfighter in its mission to protect Earth from waves of aliens. Gameplay involves destroying each formation of aliens, who dive down towards the player in an attempt to hit them.
Ace Combat is an arcade-style combat flight simulation video game series by Project Aces, an internal development team of Bandai Namco Entertainment, formerly Namco. Debuting in 1995 with Air Combat for the PlayStation, the series includes eight mainline installments, multiple spin-offs, and other forms of media, such as novels, model kits, and soundtrack albums. Since 2012, the series has been developed primarily by Bandai Namco Studios through its internal development group, Project Aces.
Bandai Visual Co., Ltd. was a Japanese anime, film production, and distribution company, established by Bandai and a subsidiary of Bandai Namco Holdings. They focused mainly in international distribution of anime properties in North America.
Sega Sammy Holdings Inc. is a Japanese global holding company and conglomerate formed from the merger of Sega and Sammy Corporation in 2004. Both companies are involved in the amusement industry.
Whac-A-Mole is an arcade game. It was created in 1975 by the amusements manufacturer TOGO in Japan, where it was originally known as Mogura Taiji or Mogura Tataki.
Banpresto Co., Ltd. was a Japanese video game developer and publisher headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. It had a branch in Hong Kong named Banpresto H.K., which was headquartered in the New Territories. Banpresto was a partly-owned subsidiary of toymaker Bandai from 1989 to 2006, and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bandai Namco Holdings from 2006 to 2008. In addition to video games, Banpresto produced toys, keyrings, apparel, and plastic models.
Bandai Namco Holdings Inc. is a Japanese mass media and entertainment conglomerate founded in 2005 by the merger of Namco and Bandai. The company specializes in toys, video games, arcades, anime, restaurants, and amusement parks. They are also unofficially nicknamed as "Bamco" by some.
Pac-Man is a video game series and media franchise developed, published and owned by Bandai Namco Entertainment, a video game publisher that was previously known as Namco. Entries have been developed by a wide array of other video game companies, including Midway Games, Atari and Mass Media, Inc., and was created by Toru Iwatani. The eponymous first entry was released in arcades in 1980 by Namco, and published by Midway Games in North America. Most Pac-Man games are maze chase games, but it has also delved into other genres, such as platformers, racing, and sports. Several games in the series were released for a multitude of home consoles and are included in many Bandai Namco video game compilations, The franchise contains 2 animated series and an upcoming film.
Masaya Nakamura was a Japanese businessman and the founder of Namco. He was the company's president up until 2002, where he took a ceremonial role in its management. Following the formation of Bandai Namco Holdings, Nakamura would retain an honorary position in the video game division, Bandai Namco Entertainment.
Atari SA, also known under the Atari Group moniker, is a French holding company headquartered in Paris that owns mainly video gaming-related interactive entertainment properties. Atari SA's core subsidiaries include the publisher and marketer Atari, Inc., developers Nightdive Studios and Digital Eclipse, and publisher Infogrames, It also has a blockchain division, Atari X, and additionally owns the websites MobyGames and AtariAge. Through these divisions, the company owns the rights to many video game properties that originated from Accolade, Atari, Inc., Atari Corporation, GT Interactive, M Network, Intellivision and others. It is the sole owner of the Atari brand since 2001, through its subsidiary Atari Interactive Inc. which licenses the brand to other entities in the group.
Marvelous Inc. is a Japanese video game developer and publisher, and anime producer. The company was founded in 1997 but formed in its current state in October 2011 by the merger of the original Marvelous Entertainment with AQ Interactive, and Liveware.
Bandai Namco Studios Inc. is a Japanese video game developer headquartered in Kōtō, Tokyo and founded in 2012, with studios in Singapore and Malaysia. Bandai Namco Studios is a subsidiary of Bandai Namco Entertainment, which itself is part of the wider Bandai Namco Holdings group. The company works under its parent company as a keiretsu; Bandai Namco Studios creates video games for home, arcade, and mobile platforms, while Bandai Namco Entertainment handles the distribution, marketing, and publishing of these products.
Limbic Entertainment GmbH is a German video game developer based in Langen. The studio was founded in 2002.
Enterrium is a contemporary American restaurant and video arcade located at Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg, Illinois. The restaurant and entertainment destination was originally inspired by Pac-Man and the name refers to the famous kill screen, which occurs when the player reaches the 256th level of the original Pac-Man game, meaning "the next level of dining and entertainment". It was owned by Bandai Namco Entertainment from 2015 to 2021, which also owns all Pac-Man-related intellectual property. The restaurant celebrated its soft opening on March 2, 2015, and its grand opening in April 2015.
B.B. Studio Co., Ltd. is a Japanese video game development company. The company is a result of a merger between BEC and Banpresoft by their parent company, Bandai Namco Entertainment.
Namco Funscape, formally known as Namco Funscape County Hall, was a Namco amusement arcade located on the ground to basement levels of County Hall, South Bank, London. Originally opened as Namco Station in August 1997, it operated as one of the capital's leading family and corporate entertainment centres for 25 years, closing permanently in August 2021 due to redevelopment plans blocking a lease renewal.
ILCA is a video game development company based in Tokyo, Japan. The studio is most known for developing Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl (2021) and One Piece Odyssey (2023). The company also has offices based in Nagoya, Kyoto, and Kobe.
References
1 2 Karlin, David (1 November 2006). "Bandai and Namco Finalize Merger Details". 1UP.com. Archived from the original on 12 March 2014. Retrieved 21 November 2020. With around 1800 employees, Bandai Namco Games will be established on March 31st, 2006.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
¥240.3 billion (2020)
