Bandai Namco has acquired a majority stake in the German game developer Limbic Entertainment. The company’s branch based in Europe has invested in Limbic Entertainment as part of the Japanese company’s recent strategy to improve their reach outside of Japan.
Limbic Entertainment is a small development studio based in Langen Germany who have only begun to become known within the past 10 years. Their previous work includes a partnership with Ubisoft on the Might & Magic franchise, and more recently Tropico 6 alongside Kalypso Media. Bandai Namco was announced as the publisher for the company’s latest game Park Beyond, a partnership that may have encouraged the recent investment.
Bandai Namco Entertainment is an industry veteran and one of the largest multimedia companies in Japan. The company is the result of a merger between Bandai and Namco in 2005 which brought popular franchises like Mobile Suit Gundam, Pac-Man, and Taiko no Tatsujin under one umbrella. The company continues to produces both video games and toys related to various multimedia franchises.
CEO of Bandai Namco Europe had this to say about the merger and its ramifications for the company: “This investment is much more than a strategic move for Bandai Namco. With Stephan, Alex and their teams, we share the same values and passion for games. For the past 3 years, we have worked together on the creation of new IPs… The first game Park Beyond will be released in 2023 but there is much more to come. This investment is just the continuity of our existing relationship, and we will help Limbic become the new reference in strategy and simulation games.”
In recent years, Bandai Namco has been implementing a strategy to diversify their assets outside of Japan and improve their ability to both create and market games globally. The acquisition of Limbic Entertainment furthers that goal and provides Bandai Namco with an experienced team of developers based in Europe.
Limbic Entertainment benefits from being acquired by one of the largest gaming companies in the world. While Pac-Man and Ridge Racer are familiar names from the company’s past, Bando Namco remains active as both a publisher and developer with titles like Scarlet Nexus, Tales of Arise, and as the global publisher for the Dark Souls series including Elden Ring.
Stephen Winter, the co-founder of Limbic Entertainment praised the company as a “partner who shares our goals, values and commitment to develop amazing titles“; and explained that the deal would give them “the opportunity to up our game – to plan even more ambitiously and bring Limbic Entertainment to the next level.”
Park Beyond, the latest game from Limbic Entertainment and published by Bandai Namco is expected to release sometime in 2023 for Windows PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
