Sanrio launches in-house game brand, debuts Switch title in 2026

Sanrio is no longer content to let Hello Kitty and its other characters live mainly through outside studios. The company said it has launched Sanrio Games, its first official self-published game brand, and plans to release about 10 titles over the next three years, starting with Sanrio Party Land on Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2.

That first game is set for a worldwide simultaneous release in fall 2026. Sanrio said the party title will let players create original avatars and move through a town built around minigames and board games with Sanrio characters. The company is also keeping its licensing-based game releases in play, but the new brand shifts more planning and development control back inside the business instead of leaving it entirely to partners.

The move matters well beyond one character brand. Sanrio said it expects to spend about ¥10 billion, or roughly $62.9 million, on development and marketing during the period, a sign that it sees games as a core business rather than a side licensing stream. That fits with its May 2025 long-term plan, which casts the company as a Global IP Platform Provider and places the game business among its central pillars. Sanrio said it has created more than 450 IPs over time, and the new push suggests it wants those brands to work harder across software, retail, and live experiences.

For Nintendo employees, the shift is another reminder that Japanese entertainment companies are trying to pull game-making closer to the center of their own IP strategy. Nintendo has long shown how games can drive merchandise, parks, and films; Sanrio is now trying to invert that logic by using games to deepen the value of a larger character empire. The Nintendo Switch 2 store already lists Hello Kitty Island Adventure - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition from Sunblink with a Nov. 13, 2025 release date, underscoring how firmly Sanrio-related software is already tied to Nintendo platforms.

Sanrio’s balance sheet gives it room to make that bet. In FY2024, the company reported net sales of ¥144.904 billion, operating profit of ¥51.806 billion, and cash and cash equivalents of ¥102.293 billion. It also said Sanrio+, retail shops, and Sanrio theme parks will sit inside the broader ecosystem around the new games, pointing to a strategy built on repeat customer touchpoints rather than one-off software sales.