Sony Corporation has created a new unit, ForwardWorks Corporation, whose purpose will be to bring PlayStation games to all smartphones.
As you probably know, in April 2016, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCE) and Sony Network Entertainment International (SNEI) are going to merge into Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE). Recent reports say that it’s not going to be the only April novelty in one of the leading video game company. Sony has announced plans to flood mobile markets with PlayStation games using new game studio ForwardWorks.
This announcement comes exactly a week after Nintendo unveiled a new social messaging mobile app called Miitomo, its first foray into smartphones. The app has already become very popular.
ForwardWorks is based in Tokyo. It will begin its operation from April 1 2016. The goal is obvious: to expand to the rich mobile market using well known PlayStation IP’s and characters. Sony promises “fully-fledged game titles that emphasize playability”. You may soon be able to play new, let’s say, Crash Bandicoot on your iOS or Android phone. The limits are endless.
“The mobile market has grown in size to rival that for traditional game machines,” said Masaki Tsukakoshi, a spokesman at Sony’s games unit, to Bloomberg.
According to Sony, initial focus is going to be on the Asian and Japanese mobile markets. These two are evidently financially attractive. It can be see on the sad example of Konami mobile, whose CEO Hideki Hayakawa said last year that “mobile is where the future of gaming lies.”
Thankfully, it looks like Sony is not going to be as radical as Konami.
Source: Bloomberg.com