Smash Bros. lead breaks ground on new studio

Last month, Ubisoft announced TMNT Smash Up. The competitive multiplayer fighter is being developed by Game Arts, better known as a contributing studio to Nintendo's 2008 hit Super Smash Bros. Brawl for the Wii. Although TMNT Smash Up bears a striking resemblance to the best-selling Wii game, it won't benefit from Super Smash Bros. Brawl project director and Kirby creator Masahiro Sakurai.

Today, Nintendo announced that it has partnered with Sakurai's studio Sora Ltd. to form a new subsidiary development house, Project Sora. According to documents released alongside the announcement, Nintendo has taken a 72 percent stake in Project Sora. The studio, which was officially founded on January 22, is based in Tokyo and currently employs 30 people.

Naturally, along with the studio announcement, Nintendo revealed that Project Sora is at work on a new game. Unfortunately, the details are slim. However, a Project Sora job listing did indicate that the game is on a two-year development cycle, with work expected to begin this March.