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Nintendo Acquires ‘Death Stranding’ Animation Studio Dynamo Pictures To Adapt Games Into Films

In a move to enter the entertainment business, Nintendo announced that it will be acquiring Japanese CG animation company Dynamo Pictures. The company will later be renamed Nintendo Pictures once the deal closes on 3 October.

In its announcement, Nintendo states that the new subsidiary will “strengthen the planning and production structure of visual content in the Nintendo group”. It wil also “focus on development of visual content utilising Nintendo IP”.

This announcement comes as the video game company gears up for its most significant cinematic release in years – the animated Super Mario Bros movie starring Chris Pratt. The film is currently scheduled to release on 7 April 2023, a delay from its initial September 2021 release date.

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This acquisition is a smart move for Nintendo, especially since there is a spike in interest in video game turned movie adaptations in recent years. In 2022, gamers and moviegoers saw the release of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Uncharted. Mortal Kombat, Monster Hunter and Detective Pikachu were released in 2021, 2020 and 2019 respectively.

As for the small-screen, an adaptation of Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us starring Pedro Pascal is currently in the works at HBO. Paramount+ released a Halo tv series in March 2022 whereas Netflix’s Resident Evil: Infinite Darkness, developed by Dynamo Pictures, was released earlier in July.

Other CG works by Dynamo Pictures include Ghost in the Shell, Studio Ghibli’s Earwig and the Witch and Death Stranding. Fans will likely have to wait until the deal closes to hear more of Nintendo’s plans.