Nintendo has acquired 100% of the shares of the Japanese studio Monolith Soft, known for the Xenoblade Chronicles series. This information appeared on the Monolith Soft website, as noted by Automaton Media.
Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition
Recall that Nintendo first acquired shares of Monolith Soft back in 2007. At that time, they purchased 80% from Bandai Namco Entertainment, which was the largest shareholder of the developers at the time. In 2011, Nintendo increased its stake in the studio to 96%.
When Nintendo acquired the remaining 4% of Monolith Soft shares is unknown. According to data from the Wayback Machine web archive, as of October 1, 2024, the studio's website still indicated that Nintendo controlled 96% of its shares, with the remaining securities owned by three Monolith Soft executives: Hirohide Sugiura, Tetsuya Takahashi, and Yasuyuki Honne.
Neither Nintendo nor Monolith Soft has made any public statements about the new deal.
Monolith Soft was founded in 1999 in Tokyo. It is currently working on a remaster of Xenoblade Chronicles X, which is set to be released on March 20, 2025.