Namco Bandai Games today announced on its Japanese Web site that it is selling its majority interest in developer Monolith Soft to Nintendo. According to the publisher, Nintendo has acquired 80 percent of the company's shares.

Namco Bandai is considering the sale as a way to strengthen its relationship with Nintendo and is not entirely ending its involvement with Monolith Soft. Namco Bandai will retain 16 percent of the developer's shares and will continue to count the studio among its partners.

Best known as the developer behind Namco Bandai's Baten Kaitos and Xenosaga series of role-playing games, Monolith Soft is also currently at work on Nintendo's Disaster: Day of Crisis for the Wii.