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Lockwood Publishing is expanding its development operations to iOS, Android and browser.
Having previously worked primarily on titles and content for PlayStation Home, the studio is set to release avatar-based platform Avakin on mobile and the web within the next month.
The platform allows users to create their own 3D customisable avatar, similar to that seen on Xbox Live and PlayStation Home, and then use their characters across multiple platforms and titles.
The first release in a planned series of games is Avakin Poker, set to be launched within the next month.
As well as a soft launch in the UK, Lockwood has plans to launch the Avakin platform to Latin American consumers through the Boacompra network during the summer, and is also exploring releasing it in other territories.
“The changes we are seeing at Lockwood are reflective of the changes most developers are seeing within the wider games industry,” said Lockwood Publishing COO Joel Kemp.
“Lockwood has been fortunate to have gained so much knowledge of social games, virtual worlds and goods through working on PlayStation Home. We also have a well-established and vibrant community as a result of our association with the Home platform. Now we hope we have applied that expertise to mobile platforms and believe that Avakin offers mobile gamers something that is genuinely new and ground breaking.
“It’s satisfying to know that Avakin will ultimately be available globally through partnerships such as the one we have with BoaCompra. We are excited that Lockwood Publishing is expanding its horizons both creatively and geographically and see this as a new era for us.”
Lockwood has previously worked on a number of titles for PlayStation Home, including MMO title Sodium One, free-to-play racing game Sodium2 and F2P RPG Mercia: Fractured Realms.
