Game outsourcing services provider Gameshastra on Tuesday opened a 1,000-seater game design studio in Hyderabad to cater to the growing demand for its services worldwide including from Sony Computer Entertainment Europe.
The 50,000-sft facility will focus on a full range of game development, game art, animation and quality assurance services for console, PC and online gaming platforms.
“We are currently 220-people strong and expect to reach 1,000 headcount by the end of this year to support new projects,” Prakash Ahuja, chief executive officer of Gameshastra, told mediapersons here.
Stating that Gameshastra had invested $7 million (approximately Rs 33 crore) in its operations over the last three years, Ahuja said the company was developing an Indian mythological game, Ekalavya, for Sony Computer Entertainment’s PlayStation3 (PS3) platform.
“The prototype is ready for the PS3 game and will be launched by the middle of next year,” he said, adding the company had so far published 18 games and would launch 16 more by the end of this calendar year.
Gameshastra today announced the launch of Desi Adda in PS2 and PS3 formats on the PlayStation Network (PSN) Store, an online virtual market available to users of Sony’s game consoles. Desi Adda is already available on the PSP (PlayStation Portable) platform and the company has sold 10,000 units so far.
It is also expanding the scope of its relationship with Sony Computer by developing ‘Cart Kings’, a bullock cart racing game on dusty rural tracks, for the Indian diaspora.
“We are excited about the new innovation Gameshastra is creating in India and can provide us the competitive edge globally,” said Jim Ryan, chief operating officer of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, adding the game would be launched during this Christmas.
