Famed game studio Monolith Soft, the developer behind the acclaimed Xenoblade Chronicles series, is now under 100% ownership of Nintendo. Previously, Nintendo simply owned the majority of Monolith Soft’s shares, with a recent update confirming that they have taken total ownership of the company.
As reported by Automaton, Monolith’s Soft’s official company overview page (which is written in Japanese) was recently updated, confirming that Nintendo now owns all 2400 shares in the prestigious game developer. Previously, Nintendo owned 96% of Monolith Soft’s shares, with studio co-founders Hirohide Sugiura, Tetsuya Takahashi, and Yasuyuki Honne owning the remaining 4% in a “symbolic” gesture.
Further reporting by Automaton confirms that the three cofounders still had shares in the company up until at least March of this year according to a company brochure for 2024.
Xenoblade Chronicles, Monolith Soft’s Most Famed Series
Monolith Soft is best known for its work on the Xenoblade Chronicles series, which began with the original Xenoblade Chronicles back on the Nintendo Wii in 2010, three years after Nintendo bought 80% of Monolith Soft’s shares from their previous holder, Bandai Namco.
Almost a decade and a half later, Xenoblade Chronicle is a flagship RPG series for Nintendo, with Monolith Soft becoming a bedrock first-party developer who helped work on several critically acclaimed and beloved Nintendo titles. That list includes both The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and the Splatoon series. Before its acquisition by Nintendo, Monolith Soft was best known for its Xenosaga and Xenogears games, as well as the Baiten Kaitos series, which were developed under Bandai.
SOURCE: Nintendo Now Owns 100% of Monolith Soft + Monolith Soft Homepage
