Bandai Namco Aces
- "Achieve an emotionally moving quality that makes people around the world happy!"
- ― Mission statement[1]
Bandai Namco Aces Inc.[a] is a Japanese video game development studio jointly owned and operated by Bandai Namco Entertainment and ILCA. The company was founded in 2022 during the development cycle for the next Ace Combat game. Takuya Iwasaki—CEO of ILCA and director of Ace Combat 3: Electrosphere—is the current President and CEO of Bandai Namco Aces, while Kazutoki Kono—brand producer for the Ace Combat franchise—is the Executive Vice President.
History
- "Each company had its own way of thinking, so it was difficult to communicate with each other ... we thought it was important to strengthen the ties between the companies and create a system that makes it easy to consult with each other."
- ― Takuya Iwasaki[3]
Production on the next Ace Combat game and ILCA's involvement with its development were announced in August 2021.[4][5] ILCA had previously assisted on the cutscenes and programming for Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown, but they and Project Aces found it difficult to communicate due to being from different companies with different ways of thinking. In an interview in November 2021, Iwasaki stated that the studios intended to create a system to make inter-company communication easier. Manabu Shimomoto added that this partnership was not intended just to develop one game but to set up for "the next game and the next game" for "the next 25 years" (in reference to Ace Combat's 25th anniversary the year prior).[3]
Bandai Namco Aces was officially founded on June 1, 2022[1] and announced one month later.[2] The company was revealed to be 51% owned by Bandai Namco and 49% owned by ILCA.[1] On its launch, the company's website used the same image of the International Space Elevator seen on the Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown Original Soundtrack and the Japanese cover of Aces At War: A History 2019.[1]
Footnotes
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Bandai Namco Aces Inc.". https://www.bnaces.co.jp/en/. Retrieved on 30 June 2022.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Bandai Namco Entertainment [@bnei876] (30 June 2022). https://twitter.com/bnei876/status/1542697430432370688. X.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "『エースコンバット』新プロジェクトはどうなる？ 必要とされている人材とは？ 8人のキーマンによるスペシャル座談会！". Famitsu. Published on 27 November 2021. Retrieved on 28 January 2024.
- ↑ Romano, Sal. "New Ace Combat game in development with ILCA". Gematsu. Published on 18 August 2021. Retrieved on 18 August 2021.
- ↑ Nelva, Giuseppe. "New Ace Combat Game in Development as AC7 Has Shipped Over 3 Million Copies; New Content Announced". Twinfinite. Published on 18 August 2021. Retrieved on 18 August 2021.