Since its start, when it operated rides for children at a Yokohama department store, Namco grew into one of the top video game manufacturers in Japan, and one of the top video game companies in the world. Today, Bandai Namco Entertainment is the successor to Namco's legacy and continues manufacturing and distributing video games worldwide.
Initially, Namco distributed its games in Japan, while relying on third-party companies, such as Atari and Midway Manufacturing to publish them internationally under their own brands. Later, it would handle its own publishing worldwide.
Atari produced these Namco games for its own consoles and released them under the Atari name.
Even before its merger with Bandai, Namco produced games for Bandai's family of handheld video game consoles.
By the end of the 1980s, sales of Namco games on the Nintendo Entertainment System accounted for 40% of its annual sales. Today, Namco Bandai Games supports Nintendo's platforms with original content as well as classic re-releases for Wii's Virtual Console.
Namco was an early adopter of the Mega Drive/Genesis and Game Gear with many releases, but provided no support for the Sega Saturn, due to its heavy support for Sony's new PlayStation console. Namco, however, would release a number of title's for Sega's final home console, Dreamcast.
Namco released a number of launch titles for Sony's entry into the home console market.
Namco has ventured onto other platforms, either itself or through licensing agreements with other publishers.