Bandai Namco Entertainment, one of the gaming industry’s giants, celebrated its record profits last year, driven by strong internal collaboration and global expansion strategies for its intellectual properties (IPs). In an exclusive interview, Nao Udagawa, president and CEO of the company, detailed the challenges and achievements that shaped the company’s path, from the historic merger to future plans.
Udagawa joined Bandai in 1994, initially focusing on the network content business. His leadership trajectory led him to become Executive Director of Bandai Namco Entertainment in 2018 and, in 2021, President and CEO of BANDAI SPIRITS, assuming his current position in April 2023.
The company, known for successful titles since the Famicom era, aims to expand its IP globally, taking advantage of the ability to work together. Udagawa discussed the previous year’s balance, the new launches planned and the prospects for the future of the market.
The union of Bandai and Namco and the initial challenges
When reflecting on the trajectory of Bandai Namco, which completed 20 years since the merger in 2005, Udagawa remembered the great impact that the event had on his career. The executive, who at the time had around a decade of experience at the company, described the merger as an unexpected surprise.
Subsequently, in 2010, the company faced a period of great financial difficulties, with a considerable deficit. The restructuring plan implemented to reorganize the business was, according to him, a formative experience, which required deep reflection on how the company could better serve its customers.
Despite the initial challenges of integrating two distinct business cultures, Udagawa assesses that Bandai Namco was able to successfully merge the strengths of both organizations. As the years passed and new employees arrived in the post-merger era, cultural differences naturally became diluted, transforming the company into a cohesive organization.
Collaboration and recognition from Famitsu magazine
Famitsu, which celebrated its 40th anniversary on June 6, has had a long-standing partnership with Bandai Namco Entertainment. Udagawa congratulated the magazine, expressing his respect for the team’s weekly dedication and gratitude for the thoughtful way they capture and convey developers’ passions in their stories.
The president of Bandai Namco highlighted that, from a management perspective, Famitsu articles often reveal the creators’ deepest feelings, providing new perspectives and insights into the development process. He recalled a detailed report about a solo concert by Chihaya Kisaragi of “The Idolmaster,” which treated the characters as “real-life idols,” demonstrating an admirable level of dedication.
2025 Performance and Blockbuster Titles
Bandai Namco is distinguished by its dual approach to the market, investing in both mobile and console games. In 2025, the company achieved notable successes in both areas, with the release of “SD Gundam G Generation Eternal” on mobile, which benefited from the release of an anime.
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The game “SD Gundam G Generation Eternal”, which has an encyclopedic concept covering the entire story of “Mobile Suit Gundam”, was an immediate success and continues to perform excellently one year after its release. With this title, Bandai Namco managed to reach Gundam fans of all ages, overcoming the franchise’s historic challenges in the gaming sector.
In the console segment, “Digimon Story Time Stranger” also stood out, selling a million copies worldwide and winning the Future Division award at the Japan Game Awards 2025. The combined success of the digital game and the card game resulted in the highest profits for the Digimon franchise in the Bandai Namco Group, even surpassing the profits from the anime’s airing in 2000.
The game “Digimon Story: Time Stranger”, released in July for Nintendo Switch and Switch 2, has a major DLC planned for 2027, indicating continued growth potential. Additionally, the new smartphone RPG “Digimon UP” was recently released on July 15, with pre-registrations approaching one million, promising the distribution of Taichi and Agumon as bonuses if the target is reached. It’s remarkable how franchises like “Gundam” and “Digimon” have managed to develop to be enjoyed by multiple generations.
IP remastering and reuse strategies
The company was also successful with the relaunch of franchises from other companies, such as “FREEDOM WARS Remastered” and “Patapon 1+2 Replay”, which generated great repercussion. Udagawa expressed pride in bringing these IPs back to life on current generation consoles, considering them a distinctive feature of Bandai Namco.
Bandai Namco is actively investing in remasters of its own intellectual properties, with the “Tales of” series being the focus for its 30th anniversary. The goal is to introduce classic titles, which are currently not playable on modern consoles, to a new generation of fans.
The SOL-AVES game engine and the power of collaboration
Collaboration with Bandai Namco Studios and partner companies, spanning diverse genres, is a crucial factor in the company’s success. The company has maximized the use of its proprietary game engine, “SOL-AVES”, developed by Bandai Namco Studios.
This engine is highly flexible and designed to support the company’s strengths in genres such as fighting, action and RPG. One of its great advantages is that it allows developers’ ideas to be quickly incorporated into games, establishing an ideal development cycle where innovations are continually applied to future titles.
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Marketing strategies and global fan acquisition
Approximately 90% of Bandai Namco’s home video game sales come from abroad. Bandai Namco Entertainment has 30 offices in 18 countries and regions, allowing the development of personalized marketing strategies for each location.
The company’s strength lies in its ability to adapt marketing methods and promote products based on detailed observations of how platforms are used and how IPs are perceived in each region. One example is the popularity of Pac-Man in North America, where the “Pac-Man Snack Breaks” animated series on YouTube has been well received. The company plans to further strengthen Pac-Man’s promotion globally, especially in light of its upcoming 46th and 50th anniversaries, by also expanding into licensed products.
Focus on emerging markets and e-sports activities
Bandai Namco has focused special attention on Southeast Asia, with a focus on the Indonesian market. The company hosts on-site gaming experience events to increase awareness and engagement, recognizing a vast population of potential gaming and anime fans. The main challenge is how to take your games to this audience.
Franchises like Dragon Ball and One Piece are especially popular in Southeast Asia. Bandai Namco plans to develop the market flexibly from an IP-driven perspective, integrating not only games, but also the strengths of the Bandai Namco Group into products and stores (Bandai Namco Cross Store).
This integrated approach, which connects the launch of games and products to the popularity of IPs, was one of the factors in the group achieving record profits last year, demonstrating the effectiveness of collaboration between the various departments. The company has also intensified its activities related to e-sports, including its main IP, Tekken.
Regarding Tekken, the goal is to continue organizing tournaments in close collaboration with the community in the long term. Udagawa, after visiting the Esports World Cup in Saudi Arabia, highlighted the size and value of the event’s prize pool, but highlighted the importance of tournaments organized by the company itself, such as the “TEKKEN WORLD TOUR”.
Fighting games are attractive due to the speed of results, ease of visual understanding and the excitement of dramatic turns. The challenge for the future is to attract new users while maintaining a high level of competitiveness. Udagawa drew a parallel with his experience watching games of the professional basketball team Shimane Susanoo Magic, which the group manages, and the feeling that fan support drives the team, something he sees as similar to e-sports. The company seeks to develop new operational methods and technical approaches, increasing the number of tournaments that can be experienced both online and in person.
Releases scheduled for 2026 and continuity of events
For 2026, Bandai Namco has a series of anticipated releases. Recently, the company released “Echoes of Aincrad”, the newest title in the “Sword Art Online” series, and “Digimon UP”, a new smartphone game in the “Digimon” series.
In addition to these, the diverse range of games includes the popular franchise “Captain Tsubasa 2 WORLD FIGHTERS” and the internationally published title “The Blood of Dawnwalker”. The company also announced that the newest title in the “Ace Combat” series is in development, promising new features for fans.