Sony is reportedly in talks to acquire Kadokawa, the Japanese parent company of Elden Ring and Dark Souls developer From Software. Kadokawa Corporation is a much larger media powerhouse beyond the gaming industry, especially the anime industry and platforms like Aniplex, Crunchyroll and Funimation, which could also be a big factor in Sony’s decision to acquire the company.
The report comes from Reuters which claims that talks are currently ongoing between Sony and Kadokawa, though neither side could provide comments at the moment. If the talks are successful, a deal could be signed in the next few weeks, according to the report. Interestingly, Sony already owns a 2% stake in From Software.
As for what this means, if the deal goes through then Sony will likely have some form of exclusivity rights to future From Software titles. Sony made two From Software titles exclusive to PlayStation in the past: 2009’s Demon’s Souls and 2015’s Bloodborne. However, From Software decided to team up with publishers like Bandai Namco and Activision and stick with multiplatform releases for its other games like Dark Souls series, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice and the award-winning RPG, Elden Ring.
Per an article from November 2022, From Software expressed interest in becoming an independent publisher of its own games. Whether these plans are still in motion or not is unknown.
As pointed out in the report, the bigger focus for Sony is getting a grip on anime, which has since become vastly more accessible worldwide thanks to streaming services like Crunchyroll, a dedicated anime streaming service, as well as anime being readily available to watch on bigger platforms like Netflix and Disney Plus. The move to purchase Kadokawa is likely fueled by Sony’s push into the anime world, though the buyout will also result in the acquisition of From Software, it seems.
In related news, From Software scored big during the recent nominations for The Game Awards. The Elden Ring expansion, Shadow of the Erdtree, managed to grab several nominations including Best RPG and Game of the Year. Check out the full list of nominees right here.
Source: Reuters
