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Angry Birds studio Rovio has announced the creation of a new development arm dedicated to massively multiplayer online games. The new team will be based in London and work on a new IP. Nothing has been revealed on this new game yet, only that it will not be set in the Angry Birds universe.
Former vice president product Mark Sorrell has been hired as head of this new London studio. He joined Rovio as senior product manager in early 2015 and was then appointed head of design later that year.
Rovio’s new studio aims to build a team of over 20 members over the next two years. The London office will be the Finnish developer’s fifth studio – the company currently has three in Espoo (Finland) and one in Stockholm (Sweden).
Head of studio Mark Sorrell commented: We believe that the best game experiences are those that you share with other people. So we’re starting a studio to do exactly this. We look forward to bringing a diverse team together to deliver unique MMOs that are creative, inclusive and delightful.”
SVP studios Antti Viitanen added: "Our business is profitably growing and London is the most logical place for us to found a new studio that will complement our overall global mix of internal and external developers. London is also a fantastically diverse talent magnet.”
Talking to MCV last May ahead of the launch of the Angry Birds movie, Rovio’s chief commercial officer Alex Lambeek shared his ambitions for both the iconic franchise and the company, saying that he wanted the firm to bigger than we have ever been before.”
