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D3 Publisher

D3 Publisher Inc. (株式会社ディースリー・パブリッシャー) is a Japanese video game developer and publisher founded on February 5, 1992.[2] The company is known for the Simple series of budget-priced video games. Their games have been released for the Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation Portable, PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, GameCube, Wii, Xbox, Xbox 360, Wii U, Android, and iOS.

History

In April 1997, Culture Publishers, a movie and television distributor, formed a video game division, which was led by Yiji Ito. The division made a name for itself the following year when it introduced the Simple 1500 series of budget titles for the PlayStation, which by 2001 had sold seven million units.[3]

In 1999, Culture Publishers announced that it would exit the video game business, with Yiji Ito planning to purchase the division and re-establish it as an independent company.[3] In June, Ito purchased and renamed International Signal Co., Ltd., as D3 Publisher Co., Ltd. International Signal, originally formed in 1992 as CM Japan, was a real estate company, and after the purchase, its real estate operations were terminated. On July 12, Ito officially purchased Culture Publishers' video game division and merged it into D3 Publisher.[4]

In September 2002, D3 Publisher formed a new joint-venture development/publishing subsidiary with Sega called 3D Ages, with D3 Publisher holding a 49% stake in the new joint-venture unit.[5]

In August 2004, D3 announced it had purchased 100% in stocks of Japanese studio Entertainment Software Publishing for ¥120 million, becoming a fully-owned subsidiary.[6][7]

In April 2005, D3 signed a deal with Buena Vista Games to publish a majority of its video games in Japan.[8]

International expansion

In October 2004, the company announced that it would expand its operations into North America, founding D3 Publisher of America, Inc. in November.[9] The division, of which D3 held 99.5% of its shares, was intended to release and localise D3's budget titles but instead focused on the licensed children's game market.[10] with one of its first being a deal with Cartoon Network.[11]

At the end of January 2006, the company opened up D3 Publisher of Europe Ltd., which would release much of the same products as the North American branch.[12] In April, D3 Publisher Co., Ltd. was renamed to D3 Inc. and became a holding company, with the publishing and distribution portion of the Japanese business transitioning to a new company under the D3 Publisher Co., Ltd. name.[13]

In January 2007, D3 Publisher of Europe launched a budget label, Essential Games, which released several Simple 2000 titles for the European market aimed at younger audiences.[14][15] In June 2007, D3 acquired North Carolina–based game development studio Vicious Cycle Software and transitioned it to D3 Publisher of America.[16]

Purchase by Bandai Namco Holdings

In February 2009, Bandai Namco Holdings gained a 70% controlling share of D3 and announced that it would fully purchase out the company.[17][18][19] On March 18, Bandai Namco held a 95% share and announced they would acquire the rest of the company.[20][21]

On April 1, 2010, D3 Publisher Co., Ltd. and ESP merged and folded into D3 Inc., which was renamed to D3 Publisher Inc. on the same day.[22] D3 began a more straightforward partnership with Bandai Namco, with their US division publishing select Namco Bandai Games titles for the North American market.[23] Namco Bandai's European branch also began to publish D3's titles in Europe, with subsidiary Namco Bandai Partners handling distribution.[24]

In February 2012, D3 Publisher of Europe was dissolved.[25]

In September 2014, Little Orbit acquired Vicious Cycle Software from D3 Publisher of America.[26]

In May 2015, D3 Publisher announced that D3 Publisher of America Inc. would be refocused towards the mobile game market, and was renamed to D3 Go! Inc. The Japanese publishing division of D3 would remain as a console and handheld publisher.[27] While D3 Go! would semi-exclusively focus on mobile games, it would also be expected to release some games from D3 Publisher Inc.[28]

On June 27, 2022, 505 Games announced that it has acquired the assets of D3 Go![29]

See also

External links

References

  1. https://web.archive.org/web/20030130130512/https://www.d3p.co.jp/^
  2. D3 Publisher retrieved 2024-07-27^
  3. https://www.4gamer.net/games/999/G999905/20221121001/ 4Gamer, November 30, 2022^
  4. D3 Publisher Inc. d3p.co.jp^
  5. 3D Ages Gamespy, September 3, 2025^
  6. Hirohiko Niizumi. D3 Publisher acquires Entertainment Software Publishing GameSpot, CBS Interactive, 26 August 2004, retrieved 30 May 2020^
  7. Anoop Gantayat. D3 To Purchase ESP IGN, 26 August 2004, retrieved 30 May 2020^
  8. Buena Vista Games to Release Titles in Japan Los Angeles Business Journal, April 27, 2005^
  9. Hirohiko Niizumi. D3 Publisher to launch American subsidiary Gamespot, October 13, 2004^
  10. Nich Maragos. D3 Publisher Opens Europe Branch, Signs Flushed Away Game Developer, January 31, 2006^
  11. David Adams. Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi Tickles GBA IGN, May 19, 2012, retrieved November 29, 2021^
  12. Nick Maragos. D3 Publisher Opens Europe Branch, Signs Flushed Away Game Developer, January 31, 2006^
  13. https://www.gamebusiness.jp/article/2010/03/30/1380.html GameBusiness.jp^
  14. Ellie Gibson. D3Publisher unveils new budget range GamesIndustry, February 5, 2007^
  15. Q&A;: D3 - Not Just a Simple Company? Gamasutra, February 1, 2007, retrieved January 22, 2026^
  16. D3 Publisher Acquires Vicious Cycle Software Gamasutra, June 20, 2007, retrieved August 4, 2015^
  17. Brendan Sinclair. Namco Bandai to acquire D3Publisher Gamespot, February 12, 2009^
  18. Randy Nelson. Namco Bandai announces intent to purchase D3 Publisher Joystiq, retrieved 2009-02-12^
  19. AJ Glasser. By The Way, Namco Bandai Owns (Most Of) D3 Kotaku, Univision Communications, 18 March 2009, retrieved December 1, 2018^
  20. James Lee. Namco secures 95 per cent stake in D3P GamesIndustry.biz, March 18, 2009^
  21. James Lee. Namco to acquire complete D3P business GamesIndustry.biz, March 18, 2009^
  22. http://www.esp-web.co.jp/ www.esp-web.co.jp, Entertainment Software Publishing, 1 April 2010, retrieved 30 May 2020^
  23. D3 Publisher Producer Says There Are Opportunities With Namco Bandai Titles Siliconera, April 15, 2010^
  24. Namco Bandai's gamescom line-up Namco Bandai Games Inc., August 11, 2009^
  25. D3PUBLISHER OF EUROPE LIMITED overview - Find and update company information gov.uk^
  26. Little Orbit Acquires Vicious Cycle Software Little Orbit, September 4, 2014, retrieved August 1, 2015^
  27. D3Publisher of America rebrands as D3 Go! 11 May 2015^
  28. How D3Publisher Became D3 Go! 11 May 2015, retrieved 2017-03-23^
  29. 505 Games parent acquires D3 Go 27 June 2022^