Nintendo Buys Next Level Games, B.C.-Based Maker Of 'Luigi's Mansion' Games

A well-known British Columbia video game studio is about to become an official part of gaming giant Nintendo.

Japan-based Nintendo has announced it’s buying Vancouver-based Next Level Games, which employs more than 100 people and is known for games such as “Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon,” “Luigi’s Mansion 3,” “Super Mario Strikers” and “Captain America: Super Soldier.”

Nintendo will buy 100 per cent of the company’s stock for an undisclosed price. NLG was a privately held firm whose stock was controlled by company directors and staffers, who decided it was time to sell, Nintendo said in a statement.

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NLG was founded in 2002 and, since 2014, it has been working exclusively on Nintendo console games.

Owning NLG outright will allow Nintendo to improve the speed and quality of game development, the company said. It expects the deal to close on March 1, 2020.

Other video game console makers have also been bulking up on game studios. Microsoft, maker of the Xbox, bought a slate of video game developers from ZeniMax Media last year, including id Software and Bethesda Game Studios.

Sony, which makes the PlayStation, owns 14 studios and says it is looking at buying more.