Two of Japan’s biggest mobile phone game platform providers recently announced that they’re expanding to open new development offices in the west. GREE and DeNA are both looking to North America for expansion.
GREE International Inc. are moving into a new office in San Francisco’s China Basin, which is already home to other social and mobile games companies. Their new San Francisco studio will aim to develop high-quality free-to-play games. These titles will be released on the global GREE Platform, scheduled for release sometime in Q2 2012.
Meanwhile, Mobage provider, DeNA Co. Ltd, have opened a new subsidiary in Vancouver, Canada, in order to bolster their own first-party game output.
DeNA Studios Canada Ltd will provide design and operation support for other companies under DeNA. It will be headed by Gameview CEO, Irfan Virk. Gameview, known for developing Tap Fish, were acquired be DeNA in 2010.