Bandai Namco Is Investing $140 Million Into an 'IP Metaverse'

gamerant.com:

Bandai Namco has revealed it is working on a new development project, one that could see characters and settings from Dark Souls, Dragon Ball Z, andElden Ring all collide in a single shared universe. The project also hopes to be a way for fans of these games to connect as well.

Bandai Namco is one of the most prolific video game publishers in the world, with a large back catalog of IPs from Pac-Man andSoulCalibur, to the soon-to-be released Elden Ring, it also holds the game publishing rights to many famous non-video game franchises likeDragon Ball Z.

Bandai Namco Working On Its Own Game Engine

On Tuesday the company revealed it was planning to invest ¥15 Billion, around $130 Million, in an “IP metaverse” known as the «All Bandai Namco Concept.» The concept would see all Bandai Namco’s IPs connected in virtual spaces. The announcement came through an investors' presentation that shared the company’s mid-term plan for the next 3 years. This project hopes to be a “new framework for connecting with fans” as well as “maximise IP value over the medium to long term” with the money going into “data foundation” and the “development of content.”

«Metaverses» are becoming a popular trend in the entertainment industry, with companies like Disney and Microsoft reportedly planning to jump on the bandwagon headed by Meta, formerly Facebook. A company like Bandai Namco might lack the resources of these industry giants but focusing on IPs could be the way forward. A virtual space inspired by the world of a beloved game could prove more enticing to that game’s fans than an empty social space. Using the more popular games likeDark Souls orElden Ring as an «in» could also lead players to pick up more Bandai Namco games they might not have