Nintendo has revealed that making more studio acquisitions will form a key part of its business strategy in future, so it looks like we can expect to see more Nintendo subsidiaries popping up before too long.
In a supplementary document accompanying the Japanese gaming giant’s latest financial results, Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa sets out how he intends to strengthen Nintendo’s «business foundation».
Part of those efforts, Furukawa says, will be «acquiring development companies to make them subsidiaries», as well as «augmenting [Nintendo’s] development facilities», all of which is intended to help «strengthen the internal game development organization» within Nintendo.
Other initiatives Nintendo is putting into effect to strengthen its business end include «building software assets in non-game entertainment», i.e. pursuing opportunities related to other media, and «maintaining and expanding [its] relationship with consumers».
Some of Nintendo’s existing subsidiaries include the likes of Luigi’s Mansion 3 and Mario Strikers: Battle League developer Next Level Games, as well as Monolith Soft, the studio responsible for the Xenoblade series of RPGs.
The Japanese gaming giant also owns Retro Studios, the developer to whom work on Metroid Prime 4 was handed back in 2019. The hotly-anticipated first-person shooter is set to finally launch next month.
Some studios that technically aren’t Nintendo subsidiaries, despite frequently working with the publisher, include Kirby‘s HAL Laboratory, Mario Tennis developer Camelot Software Planning, and Masahiro Sakurai’s Sora Limited, all of which could be potential contenders for Nintendo’s next acquisition.
Nintendo’s pledge to acquire more developers comes after initial numbers indicate that the Switch 2, which was released back in June, is a roaring success for the company. Reportedly, Nintendo has asked its manufacturing partners to produce 25 million units of the console by March.
The news also comes after Doug Bowser, who was appointed as president of the company’s American division in 2019, will step down at the end of the year. His role will be taken by Devon Pritchard, who’s currently serving as NOA’s revenue and marketing executive VP.
