Level-5 joins Entertainment Software Association

Level-5 is increasing its Western presence. The Entertainment Software Association today announced that the company has become a member of the United States trade organization.

Level-5, most famous for developing the Professor Layton series, was founded in 1998 in Japan. The company opened an office in the United States in 2010, in Santa Monica, California.

On top of Level-5, the ESA added startup digital publisher Rubicon Organization and Young Justice publisher Little Orbit to its ranks today. With the addition of the three new publishers, the ESA's total membership stands at 36.

Other companies that are part of the ESA include console makers like Nintendo of America, Sony Computer Entertainment America, and Microsoft Corporation, as well as smaller firms like 38 Studios, Natsume, and 505 Games.

The ESA recently made headlines when California was forced to pay the group $950,000 over its failed Supreme Court battle. The ESA also made a splash in January when over the course of three weeks it proclaimed support for the controversial Stop Online Piracy Act before backing away from it.