Wikipedia

D3 Publisher

D3 Publisher Inc.
Native name
株式会社ディースリー・パブリッシャー
Kabushiki-gaisha Dīsurī Paburisshā
Formerly
  • CM Japan Co., Ltd.
  • International Signal Co., Ltd.
  • D3 Publisher Co., Ltd.
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryVideo game
FoundedFebruary 5, 1992; 34 years ago (1992-02-05)[1]
HeadquartersChiyoda, Tokyo, Japan
Area served
Japan, North America
Key people
Products
Increase¥342.828 million (2020)
Total assetsIncrease¥3.783 billion (2020)
Number of employees
21 (2020)
Parent
Websited3p.co.jp

D3 Publisher Inc.[a] 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

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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 they 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 their video games in Japan.[8]

International expansion

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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 their 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

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In February 2009, Bandai Namco Holdings gained a 70% controlling share of D3 and announced that they 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, they would also be expected to release some games from D3 Publisher Inc.[28]

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

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Japanese: 株式会社ディースリー・パブリッシャー, Hepburn: Kabushiki gaisha Dī Surī Paburissha

References

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  1. ^ https://web.archive.org/web/20030130130512/https://www.d3p.co.jp/
  2. ^ "D3 Publisher". Retrieved July 27, 2024.
  3. ^ a b 低価格の 'SIMPLE' シリーズで業界の隙間を突いた，元D3パブリッシャー社長・伊藤裕二氏の生存戦略　ビデオゲームの語り部たち：第33部. 4Gamer (in Japanese). November 30, 2022.
  4. ^ "D3 Publisher Inc". d3p.co.jp (in Japanese). Archived from the original on October 29, 2004.
  5. ^ "3D Ages". Gamespy. September 3, 2025.
  6. ^ Niizumi, Hirohiko (August 26, 2004). "D3 Publisher acquires Entertainment Software Publishing". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on May 30, 2020. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
  7. ^ Gantayat, Anoop (August 26, 2004). "D3 To Purchase ESP". IGN. Archived from the original on March 22, 2016. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
  8. ^ "Buena Vista Games to Release Titles in Japan". Los Angeles Business Journal. April 27, 2005.
  9. ^ Niizumi, Hirohiko (October 13, 2004). "D3 Publisher to launch American subsidiary". Gamespot.
  10. ^ Maragos, Nich (January 31, 2006). "D3 Publisher Opens Europe Branch, Signs Flushed Away". Game Developer.
  11. ^ Adams, David (May 19, 2012) [June 9, 2005]. "Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi Tickles GBA". IGN. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
  12. ^ Maragos, Nick (January 31, 2006). "D3 Publisher Opens Europe Branch, Signs Flushed Away". Game Developer.
  13. ^ ディースリー、D3パブリッシャーとESPを吸収合併 [D3 merges with D3 Publisher and ESP]. GameBusiness.jp (in Japanese).
  14. ^ Gibson, Ellie (February 5, 2007). "D3Publisher unveils new budget range". GamesIndustry.
  15. ^ "Q&A;: D3 - Not Just a Simple Company?". Gamasutra. February 1, 2007. Archived from the original on November 12, 2007. Retrieved January 22, 2026.
  16. ^ "D3 Publisher Acquires Vicious Cycle Software". Gamasutra. June 20, 2007. Archived from the original on August 30, 2015. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
  17. ^ Sinclair, Brendan (February 12, 2009). "Namco Bandai to acquire D3Publisher". Gamespot.
  18. ^ Randy Nelson. "Namco Bandai announces intent to purchase D3 Publisher". Joystiq. Archived from the original on February 13, 2009. Retrieved February 12, 2009.
  19. ^ Glasser, AJ (March 18, 2009). "By The Way, Namco Bandai Owns (Most Of) D3". Kotaku. Univision Communications. Archived from the original on March 6, 2019. Retrieved December 1, 2018.
  20. ^ Lee, James (March 18, 2009). "Namco secures 95 per cent stake in D3P". GamesIndustry.biz.
  21. ^ Lee, James (March 18, 2009). "Namco to acquire complete D3P business". GamesIndustry.biz.
  22. ^ 当社は2010年4月1日付で株式会社ディースリーと合併し解散いたしました。. www.esp-web.co.jp (in Japanese). Entertainment Software Publishing. April 1, 2010. Archived from the original on September 23, 2010. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
  23. ^ "D3 Publisher Producer Says There Are Opportunities With Namco Bandai Titles". Siliconera. April 15, 2010.
  24. ^ "Namco Bandai's gamescom line-up" (Press release). Cergy-Pontoise, France: Namco Bandai Games Inc. August 11, 2009 – via GamesIndustry.biz.
  25. ^ "D3PUBLISHER OF EUROPE LIMITED overview - Find and update company information". gov.uk.
  26. ^ "Little Orbit Acquires Vicious Cycle Software" (Press release). Little Orbit. September 4, 2014. Archived from the original on October 6, 2015. Retrieved August 1, 2015. The acquisition occurred in Spring of 2014...
  27. ^ "D3Publisher of America rebrands as D3 Go!". May 11, 2015.
  28. ^ "How D3Publisher Became D3 Go!". May 11, 2015. Archived from the original on March 24, 2017. Retrieved March 23, 2017.
  29. ^ "505 Games parent acquires D3 Go". June 27, 2022.
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