Bandai Namco Wants To Create A 'Metaverse' For Each IP They Own--Here's What It Means

Bandai Namco is looking to venture into the metaverse, but it's not in the way you think.

Eurogamer reports that the famed "Resident Evil" publisher and developer wants to create a "metaverse" for each IP it owns, and it plans to spend a total of ¥15 billion (roughly $130 million) to do so. Many people are now calling this project the Bandai Namco IP metaverse.

The company made the announcement during the reveal of its mid-term plan, which spans April 2022 to March 2025. In it, their official goal is stated as follows: to "build deep, broad, multifaceted connections among a wide range of stakeholders, with a focus on the quality of connections."

If you want to check the entire mid-term plan, you can read it at Bandai Namco's website.

What will basically happen is that each company IP (i.e. "Resident Evil," "Soul Calibur," "Dark Souls," and even "Pac-Man") will have its own "metaverse" of sorts. All of these individual metaverses will then be joined under a so-called ALL BANDAI NAMCO concept, which is an interconnected universe.

According to the publisher/developer (via their mid-term plan), their decision to create their own IP metaverse is in anticipation of "virtual spaces that will enable customers to enjoy a wide range of entertainment."

VideoGamesChronicle reports, however, that the company's metaverse plans aren't just about helping fans interact with its biggest game franchises. It is also intended to enhance the value of all Bandai Namco IPs, as well as help their projects sell better all over the world-not just in Japan.

The ¥15 billion budget they announced will reportedly go to building the "data foundation" of their own IP metaverse, as well as creating content for it in the long run. They've also explicitly stated that it will be their main focus for the next three years.

Bandai Namco And Other Game Companies 'Shaping Up' The Metaverse

As you should know, Bandai Namco isn't exactly the first game publisher/developer to reveal their plans for the metaverse (granted they're basically creating their own, though). It is still not clear whether they want their own to be a part of the "larger" metaverse out there, but one thing is for certain: game companies like them are influencing it in a big way.

According to VentureBeat, this is all evident in how companies like Meta approach their own larger vision of the metaverse. Mark Zuckerberg started by saying that people almost always associate the metaverse with gaming, mainly due to how the medium of video games as a whole is all about creating immersive experiences.

Those people would be right. In a bid to join the metaverse, many non-gaming companies are actually making deals with game makers to help create the tech. The answer is simple: they know that video game companies know immersive, fully interactive entertainment technologies like the backs of their hands.

This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by RJ Pierce