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Red Robot Labs raises $5 million from Next Media for Asian expansion

Next Media Animation to make game for R2 platform

Red Robot Labs raises $5 million from Next Media for Asian expansion
Life is Crime developer Red Robot Labs has taken its first steps into Asian markets, announcing a deal with Taiwan-based Next Media that includes a $5 million investment.

The deal will see Next Media license Red Robot's location-based R2 platform, and subsidiary Next Media Animation will become the first third-party developer to create a game for the platform.

This will no doubt please Red Robot CEO Mike Ouye, who told PocketGamer.biz in January that his company was looking to open up R2 to selected partners, with Red Robot acting as publisher for a portfolio of location-based games.

Big in Japan

Another consequence of this deal is the release of Life is Crime in Asian territories.

A localised version of the game has launched on Google Play in Hong Kong,  and will be followed by an iOS version in the near future. Releases in Japan and Taiwan are also scheduled.

Discussing the deal, Ouye explained, "When we decided to expand and partner in Asia, we wanted a partner who has a big distribution presence and the creative talent to build games on our platform."

Red Robot has now secured more than $15.5 million in funding, an undisclosed amount of which was used to purchase Forever Drive developer Supermono in December 2011.

First-party

Supermono and Next Media Animation are now both developing games for the R2 platform, but Ouye is keen to stress that Red Robot Labs will be crafting its own titles for the platform too.

"I think it's important to lead with a first party game in the same way Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony push the boundaries of what's possible with Zelda, Halo and Gran Turismo," he explained.

"Life is Crime has taught us a lot, good and bad about what works and what doesn't in location gaming. Our next game is taking big leaps forward in a few ways that push that learning further."

[source: Marketwire]

Staff Writer

PocketGamer.biz's news editor 2012-2013