Nintendo has acquired Luigi's Mansion 3 developer Next Level Games.

As confirmed by the Japanese games giant, the Canadian studio will become a wholly owned subsidiary with the deal expected to close on March 1st, 2021.

"Completion of the Acquisition will serve to secure the availability of NLG development resources for Nintendo, including development expertise, as well as facilitate an anticipated improvement in development speed and quality by enabling closer communication and exchange of staff with the Nintendo development team," reads the announcement.

"The Acquisition is expected to close on March 1st, 2021, pending satisfaction of all relevant terms and conditions, including shareholders' approval, regulatory approval under the Investment Canada Act and other customary closing conditions."

To the next level

Based in Vancouver, Next Level Games has made several titles for Nintendo hardware over the past 20 years. It created Mario Strikers, Mario Strikers Charged and Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon.

However, the Canadian devs latest release, Luigi's Mansion 3, was released on Nintendo Switch in October 2019.

The haunted house title proved to be a hit at launch, as Luigi's Mansion 3 became Nintendo's biggest launch of 2019. Moreover, the game picked up the Best Family Game accolade at The Game Awards 2019.