Sony Creates New Division to Make Smartphone Games in Japan

Sony has formed a new company that will be dedicated to making games for smart devices. The company is called ForwardWorks Corporation, and it will official open its doors on April 1, 2016 (not a joke).

No specific games were announced, but in a statement, Sony said ForwardWorks will leverage PlayStation franchises and characters for this new effort. Right now, these games are planned for release in Japan and Asia only; it's possible they'll be extended to the west in the future, but this was not announced.

The games will be made for iOS and Android devices. No release dates were announced.

"The company will aim to deliver users with opportunity to casually enjoy full-fledged game titles in the new field of the smart device market," Sony said. The company added that it formed ForwardWorks so as to meet the demands of the "ever-expanding smart device market."

ForwardWorks, based in Tokyo, is getting started with ¥10 million in capital, which comes out to around $89,000. Among its board of directors is Andrew House, the president of Sony Computer Entertainment.

Speaking of Sony Computer Entertainment, Sony also reiterated today the company is changing names, and will become Sony Interactive Entertainment on April 1.

Sony isn't the only platform-holder pushing into the smartphone market, as Nintendo is working with DeNA for its new line of mobile games. The first of these, Miitomo, was released on March 17 and was a big hit.