Sony and Namco Bandai ally to jointly make games for PlayStation 3

[Elios83]

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?p...d=as2Ppv1.jUjQ

Sony, Namco Bandai Ally to Jointly Make Games for PlayStation 3

By Pavel Alpeyev

Jan. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Sony Corp., the world's largest maker of game consoles, said its PlayStation unit will develop games with Namco Bandai Holdings Inc. to help take share from Microsoft Corp. and Nintendo Co.

Namco Bandai will own 51 percent of the venture, named Cellius Inc., with Sony holding the rest, Sony said in a faxed release today. The venture will begin operations on March 6.

Cellius will use Sony's Cell chip, which powers PlayStation 3, to create games for the console and content for mobile phones and personal computers, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. spokesman Satoshi Fukuoka said today. He would not give earnings forecasts or other details.

The alliance may help Sony recoup the 200 billion yen ($1.65 billion) it spent developing the Cell with International Business Machines Corp. and Toshiba Corp. Sony is expecting the chip, which makes the PS3 about 35 times faster than the PS2, to attract gamers with sharper graphics and more complex play.

The Cell chip is also part of Sony's strategy to beat Microsoft and Apple Computer Inc. in controlling the digital home, a future network linking televisions, music players, game consoles and other appliances to the Internet.

Namco Bandai's ``Ridge Racer 7'' and ``Mobile Suit Gundam'' were PlayStation 3's best selling games in Japan last year, according to researcher Enterbrain Inc. Sony's ``Resistance: Fall of Man'' was third.

The games business generated 918 billion yen in sales for Sony in 2006, 12 percent of total revenue.

[tribal24]

is this good news?or bad news?

[Luckyman]

what?

[Blimblim]

Interesting.

[TTP]

is this good news?or bad news?

it's a no-news

[jj984jj]

it's a no-news

The news is about the company they made together to make more games together.

[SnakeXs]

Well, amen because Namco really needs the help. I just don't know what the hell is wrong with them.

That said, it'll be interesting to see exactly what sort of relationship this is, and how it affects stuff already in development, and stuff of the future.

*is prepared for OMG NAMCO 2ND PARTY posts*

:)

[drohne]

"The programming expertise Namco Bandai showcased in the bestselling 'Mobile Suit Gundam: Target in Sight' makes them an ideal partner for PlayStation 3 software development," said Dille. "Next gen am here total."

:o

[nelsonroyale]

lets hope sony, manage the important aspects of design.

peace

[Zefah]

So its a Namco / Sony owned venture named Cellius. I assume this means that anything from Cellius will be PS3 exclusive and will be getting a lot of monetary support from Sony during the development process.

Hopefully this doesn't mean that Namco Bandai games will not come to Xbox 360 (read: Tekken 6) and Wii. Then again, a lot of the recent Namco Bandai games have been pretty bad.

[Scalemail Ted]

This is going to thoroughly confuse those 1st party/3rd party lists.

[Steroyd]

Other than Tekken, Soul Calibur, DBZ Boudakai 3...

Okay lets start again.

Other than Namco's fighting games I havn't been much interested in their games much.

[RaijinFY]

wth does this mean?

[The Innocent X]

Strange choice of partner, Namco Bandai have been really poor recently

[DarknessTear]

So its a Namco / Sony owned venture named Cellius. I assume this means that anything from Cellius will be PS3 exclusive and will be getting a lot of monetary support from Sony during the development process. Hopefully this doesn't mean that Namco Bandai games will not come to Xbox 360 (read: Tekken 6) and Wii. Then again, a lot of the recent Namco Bandai games have been pretty bad.

Well there's the Tales series from Namco which is great. But Bandai games in general are terrible.

This may give them some power in Japan though because Japanese people like to buy shitty anime games and they actually play them too. It's kinda freaky.

[Lobster]

wth does this mean?

That Sony can't backstab Namco Bandai cause they're only 49%.

[Zefah]

Well there's the Tales series from Namco which is great. But Bandai games in general are terrible. This may give them some power in Japan though because Japanese people like to buy shitty anime games and they actually play them too. It's kinda freaky.

Yes. Tales can be cool but its a little to bit too "extreme-anime" for me. I couldn't even touch Legendia or Abyss because of the super loli cutesy alien pal crap. The recent Tales of Destiny remake is rather good, though.

[DarknessTear]

Yes. Tales can be cool but its a little to bit too "extreme-anime" for me. I couldn't even touch Legendia or Abyss because of the super loli cutesy alien pal crap. The recent Tales of Destiny remake is rather good, though.

Bah, I don't see how many people could hate Abyss, it's one of the best RPGs out there. Legendia on the other hand... was not made by the original Tales teams and I don't really like it myself. I have a feeling Shouta will appear now D:

[LizardKing]

seems like probably nothing huge. didn't nintendo do something similar with konami like 5years ago? mobile21 or something like that? what did they ever do?

[starship]

So its a Namco / Sony owned venture named Cellius. I assume this means that anything from Cellius will be PS3 exclusive and will be getting a lot of monetary support from Sony during the development process. Hopefully this doesn't mean that Namco Bandai games will not come to Xbox 360 (read: Tekken 6) and Wii. Then again, a lot of the recent Namco Bandai games have been pretty bad.

I don't think this Cellius company makes games based on Namco Bandai IPs. Its a new company and most likely will develop new IPs for PS3.

[gofreak]

According to one @ Beyond3D:

Today Bandai Namco Games, Inc (NBGI) and Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc (SCEI) has announced that they'd establish a new joint company CELLIUS to create new entertainment contents enabled by Cell Broadband Engine (Cell/B.E.) in March. The press release makes no mention of PS3 and the main business of this company is "development/sales of audio/visual software and computer software".

Of course, that could include games, but they're apparently not explicit about it. Maybe it's an R&D effort to help Namco come up to speed on Cell/PS3 and/or help Sony understand the needs of developers w.r.t. Cell development better. Or maybe it's just two partners finding a common interest in general Cell development, not necessarily just in games.

edit - though I see a spokesperson has said that it will develop games for PS3, among other things, so..

[Kafel]

We'll see their first games in late 2008.

[Pachael]

In sum:
More Namco games :)
More Bandai games :(

[Nibelung Valesti]

Shame if this alliance means less RPG for 360 and Wii... :(
I don't want to spend 600+ € just to play N-B rpgs, damn it!

[Zefah]

Bah, I don't see how many people could hate Abyss, it's one of the best RPGs out there. Legendia on the other hand... was not made by the original Tales teams and I don't really like it myself. I have a feeling Shouta will appear now D:

I have heard nothing but praise for the story / gameplay of Abyss, but the characters and overall look are just kind of repulsive to me. It almost looks like one of those "Dojin" games that gets sold in the "adult anime" section of Japanese computer game stores.

[llTll]

Interesting.

what does that mean. most of namco bandai games now are on sony systems only?

[llTll]

Shame if this alliance means less RPG for 360 and Wii... :( I don't want to spend 600+ € just to play N-B rpgs, damn it!

sucks to be u. on the other hand. i am gona kiss my ps3 till no tomorow if this is true

According to one @ Beyond3D: edit - though I see a spokesperson has said that it will develop games for PS3, among other things, so..

well u r right, according to this anyway. also. i PMed 2 days ago gofreak. got any man?

Sony Corp., the world's largest maker of game consoles, said its PlayStation unit will develop games with Namco Bandai Holdings Inc. to help take share from Microsoft Corp. and Nintendo Co

[DarknessTear]

I have heard nothing but praise for the story / gameplay of Abyss, but the characters and overall look are just kind of repulsive to me. It almost looks like one of those "Dojin" games that gets sold in the "adult anime" section of Japanese computer game stores.

Yeah well the art is done by a well known artist, mainly known for the Ah My Goddess series, and I like his work outside of AMG.

[Zefah]

Honestly it probably just means that Namco Bandai made a studio to focus exclusively on the PS3. Didn't EA make a studio to work exclusively on Wii games a while back? Its not like EA is going to stop selling things on other systems.

Considering that Eternal Sonata (Xbox 360 RPG) seems to be coming along quite nicely and there are rumors of Gundam Musou and Tekken 6 360 releases as well, I doubt Namco will be pulling support and going straight PS3.

[ninge]

it means sony had to pay namco to make games for ps3...

or

it means namco like making games for ps3 so much they teamed up with sony!

take your pick and enjoy the thread ;)

[Kafel]

it means sony had to pay namco to make games for ps3... or it means namco like making games for ps3 so much they teamed up with sony! take your pick and enjoy the thread ;)

The PS3 is that difficult to develop for that they have to team up with Sony to keep their release rythm.

[icecream]

Or it means there's a joint venture between Sony and Namco to make totally new IPs for the console, mobile phones and personal computers.

Wake me up when they actually reveal something.

[ninge]

The PS3 is that difficult to develop for that they have to team up with Sony to keep their release rythm.

that kinda falls under catagory one..

personally i dont care as long as it means more ridge racer! there can never be enough ridge racer :)

[Borys]

It's not a takeover a la Microsoft and Bungie but it is a step in the right direction.

PS3 needs exclusives like fish water.

[Pud]

Well, this according to Joy-stiq:
http://www.*******.com/2007/01/24/ke...an-of-cellius/

BandaiNamco and SCEI today announced that they are forming a new Tokyo-based subsidiary company, Cellius, in a bid to develop fresh content for Sony's Cell Broadband Engine. Cellius will be in the hands of "PlayStation's dad", Ken Kutaragi, who will be appointed as the new company's Chairman. Initial investment from BandaiNamco and SCEI is approximately US$824,000; SCEI will have a 49% stake in Cellius, with BandaiNamco controlling a 51% share. Although there are no plans for Cellius to work directly on PS3 games, the new outfit will be producing "interactive entertainment" and "business contents" when its doors open on March 6. What those terms actually entail, we'll just have to wait and see, but perhaps Ken Kutaragi will now have a fair opportunity to show us what he was talking about at last year's Tokyo Game Show conference.

[radioheadrule83]

seems like probably nothing huge. didn't nintendo do something similar with konami like 5years ago? mobile21 or something like that? what did they ever do?

Yep! Also - Project Q funded a joint Square-Enix venture, Game Developers Studio, to create FFCC.

[Borys]

Kutaragi got kicked out of Sony's Playstation Department ?

[Tekwar]

it's a no-news

Quote

[BlackNMild2k1]

Sounds kinda like when Square-Enix made a NEW studio with Nintendo to bypass the partial Sony ownership of S-E.

Now Bandai-Namco is forming an independent studio to bypass the partial Nintendo ownership of B-N.

I'm sure not too much will come of it, unless Sony is willing to put up alot of $$$$ to make it happen.

[fortified_concept]

Wow great news.

I wonder... Has this anything to do with the rumors that Namco lost many employees who went to work for Sony Japan?

[Scalemail Ted]

Oh! This is getting interesting!

[jj984jj]

Sounds kinda like when Square-Enix made a NEW studio with Nintendo to bypass the partial Sony ownership of S-E. Now Bandai-Namco is forming an independent studio to bypass the partial Nintendo ownership of B-N. I'm sure not too much will come of it, unless Sony is willing to put up alot of $$$$ to make it happen.

Nintendo and Sony could never prevent those companies from directly developing on rival platforms in the first place so this post doesn't make a lot of sense.

[Milhouse31]

Joint venture sucks

[Deku]

This has nothing to do with ownership. But it is reminiscent of the N64/early GC era when Nintendo had to create a number of shell companies, including their venture with S-E, but there was also one with Dentsu (Ndcube) and the now defunct Mobile21 with Konami.

Hindsight is 20/20 and all the aforementioned news were greeted with great fanfare in its time by unsophisticated net users and it turned out that they weren't that big of a deal, or even non-events as Mobile21 turned out. At this point in time, this news can be spun a number of ways.
-its good news because there will be one more developer potentially working on PS3 hardware and related content
-it could also be seen as bad news because it could potentially be a way for Namco-Bandai to outsource their projects, which is a neutral to negative and could hint at problems at developing games (budgets, human capital requirements etc.)

But the one overriding factor right now is that Namco-Bandai has traditionally been very enthusiastic about Sony platforms, so I'd say this is good news. But I think it will be interesting to watch how this develops in the near future.

[flipping_heck]

hmmm interesting..

[Scalemail Ted]

This has nothing to do with ownership. But it is reminiscent of the N64/early GC era when Nintendo had to create a number of shell companies, including their venture with S-E, but there was also one with Dentsu (Ndcube) and the now defunct Mobile21 with Konami. Hindsight is 20/20 and all the aforementioned news were greeted with great fanfare in its time by unsophisticated net users and it turned out that they weren't that big of a deal, or even non-events as Mobile21 turned out. At this point in time, this news can be spun a number of ways. -its good news because there will be one more developer potentially working on PS3 hardware and related content -it could also be seen as bad news because it could potentially be a way for Namco-Bandai to outsource their projects, which is a neutral to negative and could hint at problems at developing games (budgets, human capital requirements etc.) But the one overriding factor right now is that Namco-Bandai has traditionally been very enthusiastic about Sony platforms, so I'd say this is good news. But I think it will be interesting to watch how this develops in the near future.

I dunno, I think this news becomes immensely more interesting if the reports that 'Ken Kutaragi is the Chairman of Cellius' are true.

[Pud]

I dunno, I think this news becomes immensely more interesting if the reports that 'Ken Kutaragi is the Chairman of Cellius' are true.

What do you mean, if?
http://www.scei.co.jp/corporate/release/pdf/070124.pdf

[painey]

so does this mean from now on Tekken, Ridge Racer, Gundam, etc are now stone cold Playstation exclusives, or just that they have made a new studio to create just Playstation games?

[Deku]

I just reread the article. Nothing about PS3 development is confirmed so the thread title is incorrect. Only using Cell chip to develop for mobile and PC.

I dunno, I think this news becomes immensely more interesting if reports that Ken Kutaragi is the Chairman of Cellius are true.

It's moot. Kutaragi is now an upstairs person managing the big picture, and this start-up is tiny Sony is putting up ~$824k in start up capital and that's half of the total. Chairmanships are mostly honorary positions so I'm not sure what you can draw from it, certainly he has no game design expertise to be excited about. We'll have to see what happens as I noted.

so does this mean from now on Tekken, Ridge Racer, Gundam, etc are now stone cold Playstation exclusives, or just that they have made a new studio to create just Playstation games?

Just a new studio and it's not even working directly on the PS3 yet., Just on Cell applications.

[Scalemail Ted]

What do you mean, if? http://www.scei.co.jp/corporate/release/pdf/070124.pdf

all right scratch the if, it IS interesting. Can't wait for Ken to give his speech for his vision and direction of Cellius. I just know that he coined the name! :P


Edit:

It's moot. Kutaragi is now an upstairs person managing the big picture, and this start-up is tiny Sony is putting up ~$824k in start up capital and that's half of the total. Chairmanships are mostly honorary positions so I'm not sure what you can draw from it, certainly he has no game design expertise to be excited about. We'll have to see what happens as I noted.

Bah, who said anything about games?