Tekken series producer on why he thinks Nintendo chose Namco Bandai for Smash Bros.
Nintendo has a very good relationship with Namco Bandai. You may not hear about their comradery on a regular basis, but Tekken series producer Katsuhiro Harada says that the two “have established a very good working relationship” behind-the-scenes.
That’s one factor behind Nintendo’s choice to team up with Namco Bandai for the next Smash Bros., Harada believes. He also thinks that Namco Bandai’s extensive experience with fighting titles contributed to the decision.
“I think Nintendo chose us just because Smash Brothers is a fighting game. We have over 17 years of continuously developing titles in our franchise [Tekken], I think they felt we were a choice for that. Also, we’ve continually developed a very good relationship with Nintendo. Maybe not necessarily in the public spotlight but kind of behind the scenes. We have established a very good working relationship with them. Not just Nintendo, but as a company, we have a very good relationship with Sakurai-san at Sora as well. I think that we are in very good position to make a great game for the Smash Brothers series.”
