Nintendo Fans Are Freaking Out About New Acquisition
It’s hard to miss MOMO’s appearance in the latest Xenoblade Chronicles 2 trailer for the Nintendo Switch 2, but the real talking point isn't the cameo itself. Instead, it’s a seemingly insignificant detail that fans realized, and it has led to one of the biggest discussions in the Nintendo community on Reddit this week.
Soon after the trailer went live, an eagle-eyed member of the community (on XCancel) highlighted that MOMO’s announcement in the trailer didn’t feature a Bandai Namco mark. This comes months after Bandai Namco had apparently removed Xenosaga, one of their most successful video game series, from their official Japanese license website last year between October and November. Together, these have led to fans speculating that Nintendo may have acquired the Xenosaga series from Bandai Namco altogether.
As exciting as that sounds, neither Nintendo nor Bandai Namco has officially commented on an acquisition of that sort. That said, it’s hard to believe Nintendo accidentally omitted a copyright notice, considering how strict video game companies are about their IPs. To top it off, Xenosaga's removal from Bandai Namco's licensing database only strengthens the theory further. It’s too strange a combination to ignore, even if it doesn't amount to hard proof.
Custom Image by: Tom WilsonOf course, the speculation made its way to r/GamingLeaksAndRumours on Reddit, where hundreds of fans debated if Nintendo had quietly purchased the rights to the beloved RPG franchise. Some users pointed out that previous appearances of Xenosaga characters in Xenoblade Chronicles 2 had a Bandai Namco copyright notice, so MOMO’s case is definitely special. While it’s a sweet, sweet theory to dream about, many fans aren’t ready to accept it that easily.
“Wouldn’t stuff like this go public real quick if true?” the most upvoted comment on the thread read. “It hasn’t leaked because it’s not real,” one of the replies argued. That said, one fan had an explanation for why this information may have been kept under wraps all this time:
“In terms of why this hasn't actually leaked (if it's the case that is), it could be because of story purposes. The next Xenoblade game, there are large hints that we’re in a new universe with strong connections to Xenosaga. I can see them pulling a Xenoblade 2-style twist in the Genesis that we’ve been in the Saga universe all along. This is also Bandai Namco we’re talking about, the same company that helped Nintendo make Smash and kept a lot of things leak-proof in that game/series.”
Let’s forget about the authenticity of this leak for a while and ponder what if Xenosaga was actually purchased by Nintendo. Well, fans are hoping this could be the key to a long-awaited Xenosaga remastered collection, modern ports for current hardware, or even a brand-new entry developed by Monolith Soft. Others think it could allow Nintendo to go all-in on the ties between Xenoblade and Xenosaga, which the studio has only been able to tease through references and cameos until now. Of course, these are all theories—for now.
Then again, a lot of fans are convinced the omission may have been an oversight or due to a different licensing deal, not evidence of an acquisition. “I don’t doubt that something is being planned for Xenosaga, but I don’t think Nintendo would acquire it outright,” one fan wrote. “Would be cool to see the series handed back to Takahashi, but Bandai also seems perfectly fine holding on to the license and just collaborating when needed.” Well, until either company makes a statement, fans will have to make do with poring over the minutiae of the trailer and waiting to see whether this curious discovery was a deliberate hint or an innocent oversight.