RebelPlay formed by ex-Sony men

Two former Sony development stalwarts, Leo Cubbin and Phil Gaskell, have joined forces to create a new digital publisher that offers indie teams an alternative route to market.

RebelPlay has already signed up two products – although no firm details have yet been announced. These projects are being aimed at either XBLA or PSN, or both. One will be released in December, the other next year.

The company has appointed digital investment bank IBIS Capital to advise on fundraising.

Cubbin played a key role in the evolution of the LittleBigPlanet franchise at Sony, whilst Gaskell was responsible for content on the PlayStation Network. Both operated out of the firm’s Liverpool studio.

They believe that their new firm’s full capacity might be up to eight products per year and that it will explore the possibilities of all digital platforms, not just console-related eco systems. Their overriding goal is to provide a new way of working with developers who want to swerve traditional corporate culture and established business models.

Cubbin told MCV: My background is in music, and what happened in the mid-70s was that you had all these big publishers who dominated – EMI, CBS and so on. Then this whole punk scene started and suddenly these labels sprang up that were prepared to spend a decent amount on bands.

That brought through a load of bands who did go on to sell millions of records. I see us as being one of those labels for the games industry.”

A statement read: "With 15 games already at various development stages to be released over the next 24 months, RebelPlay is well placed to be an attractive destination for developers looking to take advantage of the fast growing digital gaming market.

"Publishing across the major formats could expose RebelPlay games to an audience of over 150m gamers globally and plans to work across social media platforms such as Facebook could offer another 500m potential consumers."

The firm is currently looking to hire producers and marketing staff. It is now aiming to build a team of around 15 based in the North West.