Compared to industry leaders Sony and Microsoft, who frequently utilize mergers and acquisitions to fuel expansion, Nintendo has historically demonstrated a greater preference for independent development within its gaming organization. The company revealed today that it will be incorporating Next Level Games, the studio responsible for Luigi’s Mansion 3, into its operations through an acquisition.

This announcement marks Nintendo’s initial studio purchase since 2007, when they acquired Monolith Soft, the creators of Xenoblade Chronicles.

For approximately the last ten years, Next Level Games has concentrated its efforts on developing games based on Nintendo’s established franchises. Their portfolio includes several titles centered around some of Nintendo’s secondary properties, such as the Super Mario Strikers franchise, alongside mobile versions of both Metroid Prime and Luigi’s Mansion.

The Vancouver-based studio’s latest release, Luigi’s Mansion 3 for the Nintendo Switch, has proven to be a significant achievement for Nintendo, particularly considering the relatively limited number of first-party titles available since the console’s introduction. Nintendo recently reported in its financial statements that Luigi’s Mansion 3 has achieved sales of close to 8 million units, establishing it as one of the Switch’s best-performing games.