Life is Strange dev Dontnod working with Bandai Namco on new narrative adventure IP
Existence is peculiar.
Bandai Namco has announced a new strategic partnership with Life is Strange developer Dontnod Entertainment which will see the creation of a brand-new IP based on a new narrative adventure experience.
Bandai Namco told MCV the game had been in production since 2016, and will take place in a fictional city within the US and include "a fair dose of investigation". More details about the game, including platforms, a release date and format, will not be announced until 2018.
The new IP's storyline is still being finalised but Bandai Namco assured the project would not get in the way of Dontnod's development of Life is Strange 2 as the new title is being created by a separate team of senior developers.
For Bandai Namco it's a continuation of the 'release something a little different' partnerships we've seen with recommended creepy platformer Little Nightmares and not-so-recommended overwrought psychodrama Get Even.
"Dontnod was a kind of rough diamond - very much a rising star," said Bandai Namco VP of marketing Hervé Hoerdt, "and with the success of Life is Strange, it's the first big player in terms of quality business model, vision, and we think that's a good strategy that fits. It was the right moment, so we decided to partner [with them]."