April 27, 2007 - Nintendo may have just become a major player in the RPG field. Bandai Namco Holdings issued a press release today announcing that it will transfer 80% of its 96% stake in Monolith Soft to Nintendo, effective May 1.
As reason for the move, the firm cited considerations involving the future growth of the Monolith studio and the desire to strengthen its relationship with Nintendo in the console software business.
Monolith is known primarily for its work on the Xenosaga series, which has been mostly a PlayStation franchise. On Nintendo platforms, the developer brought Xenosaga I&II to the DS and also supported the GameCube through Baten Kaitos and its sequel.
This isn't the end of relations between Monolith and Bandai Namco, though. In addition to retaining a 16% stake in the developer, Bandai Namco says that it will continue to make use of the studio for planning and development. What this means for the Xenosaga series is anyone's guess at this point, but we'll let you know if we hear anything.
