In an effort to slightly confuse a few gamers, Namco Bandai has announced that it would be rebranding itself as Bandai Namco and uniting all their labels under the one singular name moving forward. Except in North America (for the time being) where consumers apparently are too attached to their original branding even though their logo won’t change.
Official announcement below.
NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. today announced that the company will officially rebrand itself as BANDAI NAMCO Games America Inc. The BANDAI NAMCO Games corporate logo and name will be fully integrated in all of the company?s communications, product branding, and presences in digital and online spaces effective April 1, 2014.
On September 29, 2005, Bandai Co., Ltd. and NAMCO LIMITED implemented a management integration to form NAMCO BANDAI Holdings Inc. This step was taken to compete more effectively on the global stage in the fast-changing digital entertainment industry and to deliver further growth for the newly merged company. The resulting BANDAI NAMCO Group has become a premier global entertainment group involved in business sectors ranging from video games, toys, amusement facilities, mobile and digital game software, to apparel and sundries. As previous separate entities (Namco Hometek Inc. and Bandai Games Inc.) the companies were each known for creating some of the industry?s top interactive entertainment franchises.
?Since its merger in late 2005, BANDAI NAMCO Games has grown to be one of the largest and most successful game publishers in its native Japan, the United States, Latin America, and Europe,? says Nobuhiro Kasahara, Chief Operating Officer at NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. ?The BANDAI NAMCO Games logo has now become synonymous with great gaming products and services; it?s the perfect time for us to unify our corporate brand around the world and move forward together in a united front as a global company.?
The NAMCO BANDAI nomenclature continued to be used in North America and Europe post-merger due to the strong connection the Namco brand commanded in the video game space in these territories at the time. Today?s announced corporate rebranding will consolidate all BANDAI NAMCO Games subsidiaries under one cohesive logo and name for all communications, branding, and product labelling purposes.