UPDATE: Things are "business as usual" at Atlus.
http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/34786
Index, the parent company of Atlus, has announced that they are filing for bankruptcy.
While it's still too early to know exactly what's going to happen to Atlus, it does appear that Index is looking for a company to purchase it.
This is after recent news that Index has been under fire from authorities for "fabricated and inflated business practices," earlier this month.
Atlus has developed many franchises for Nintendo platforms including Trauma Center and Etrian Odyssey. Their most recent game, Shin Megami Tensei IV, is set to release next month on the 3DS. They have, among other things, been instrumental in bringing many Japanese RPGs to Western shores.
There has currently been no official word from Atlus, but we will update this story as new information is revealed.
UPDATE: Atlus has released a statement to Kotaku that their day-to-day operations are unaffected by the financial troubles of their parent company, Index.
They also told fans that Shin Megami Tensei IV will still release on time, and that things are still "business as usual."
given Atlus' history of creative risksThat's why they are releasing Etrian Odyssey IV, SMT IV and have re-re-released Persona 4.
If Nintendo were to buy Atlus, the best way to go about it would be to leave them largely autonomous. They could only develop for Nintendo hardware, but would be free of Nintendo micromanagement. Atlus USA's marketing team could be absorbed into the company and used for their games, or even for others as well.
I'm not sure Nintendo would be okay with that arrangement, but I think it would be in the best interests of both companies.
Umm...While Atlus has worked with Nintendo in the past, the company honestly has more history with Sony. That said though, I cannot quite see either company necessarily buying them up.The overwhelming majority of Atlus games are released on Nintendo portables. That's how it was for many, many, many years now.
Umm...While Atlus has worked with Nintendo in the past, the company honestly has more history with Sony. That said though, I cannot quite see either company necessarily buying them up.The overwhelming majority of Atlus games are released on Nintendo portables. That's how it was for many, many, many years now.
... so they could make the kind of games Nintendo doesn't make. ...
Luigi Dude's comparison to Nintendo purchasing Monolith Soft is a good example of Nintendo acquiring a very different company and largely leaving them alone. And I'd really love to see what Atlus could do with the Disaster: Day of Crisis franchise.
I was thinking MarvelousAQL would be a more likely acquirer.
Square's a reasonable possibility since they could have interest in both games and their related anime (same as MarvelousAQL, but less niche). It didn't seem like Nintendo would have an interest -- Have they ever done an acquisition of a failing company? Usually, they just hire the employees away or just support a specific franchise. The Monolith Soft example isn't really relevant because the eventual acquisition was a collaborative and incremental process. Not sure about Sony; they have their own troubles.
Square's a reasonable possibility since they could have interest in both games and their related anime (same as MarvelousAQL, but less niche). It didn't seem like Nintendo would have an interest -- Have they ever done an acquisition of a failing company? Usually, they just hire the employees away or just support a specific franchise. The Monolith Soft example isn't really relevant because the eventual acquisition was a collaborative and incremental process. Not sure about Sony; they have their own troubles.
Square's a reasonable possibility since they could have interest in both games and their related anime (same as MarvelousAQL, but less niche). It didn't seem like Nintendo would have an interest -- Have they ever done an acquisition of a failing company? Usually, they just hire the employees away or just support a specific franchise. The Monolith Soft example isn't really relevant because the eventual acquisition was a collaborative and incremental process. Not sure about Sony; they have their own troubles.
Sony's already lost Monster Hunter and Dragon Quest, and Shin Megami Tensei has been good to the PlayStation brand. Sony will probably try to get Atlus just to keep Nintendo from getting them.
The worst case scenarios are if Square-Enix or Microsoft acquires them. Square-Enix would do to Atlus what they've done to every other company they've acquired: release a handful of games from their IPs, and then lock the franchises in a drawer, never to be seen again. And with Square-Enix's transition into the mobile space, at best that handful of games would be on iOS rather than handheld or console devices. As for Microsoft, they've been making stabs at getting into Japan for several console generations. It's unlikely, but they could purchase Atlus to establish a strong Japanese foothold for the Xbone.
Square's a reasonable possibility since they could have interest in both games and their related anime (same as MarvelousAQL, but less niche). It didn't seem like Nintendo would have an interest -- Have they ever done an acquisition of a failing company? Usually, they just hire the employees away or just support a specific franchise. The Monolith Soft example isn't really relevant because the eventual acquisition was a collaborative and incremental process. Not sure about Sony; they have their own troubles.
Sony's already lost Monster Hunter and Dragon Quest, and Shin Megami Tensei has been good to the PlayStation brand. Sony will probably try to get Atlus just to keep Nintendo from getting them.
The worst case scenarios are if Square-Enix or Microsoft acquires them. Square-Enix would do to Atlus what they've done to every other company they've acquired: release a handful of games from their IPs, and then lock the franchises in a drawer, never to be seen again. And with Square-Enix's transition into the mobile space, at best that handful of games would be on iOS rather than handheld or console devices. As for Microsoft, they've been making stabs at getting into Japan for several console generations. It's unlikely, but they could purchase Atlus to establish a strong Japanese foothold for the Xbone.
What's to stop the gamers of Japan from turning their back on Atlus if Microsoft were to buy them?
