Next Level Games (NLG) has been acquired by Nintendo in an move that’s big news for a nearly two-decades-old Vancouver gaming developer.
The company has been behind a number of popular Nintendo titles, including Luigi’s Mansion, before being acquired by the Japanese company – although the financial terms of the acquisition have not been disclosed.
The independent company’s shares are held entirely by its owner-directors and employees, with a number of them recently deciding to sell them.
MORE: the Vancouver-based studio has also worked on other gaming titles, like:
-Doc Louis's Punch-Out,
-Spider-Man: Friend or Foe,
-Super Mario Strikers,
-NHL Hitz Pro— Ria Renouf (@riarenouf) January 5, 2021
Recently, NLG worked on titles that are part of the Luigi’s Mansion suite, including the most recent title “Luigi’s Mansion 3” which came out for the Nintendo Switch in 2019. The group has also worked on games like Doc Louis’s Punch-Out, Spider-Man: Friend or Foe, Super Mario Strikers and NHL Hitz Pro.
“Working closely with Nintendo for over 15 years, we have developed award-winning titles for the Nintendo Switch, Wii, [and] 3DS. Prior to that, we developed award winning games on the Xbox and PS3,” says NLG on the ‘about’ page of its website.
The game stars Mario’s brother, Luigi, and has sold about eight million copies worldwide as of November.
Next Level was founded in 2002. The acquisition should be finalized on Mar. 1.
