Studio sets up subsidiary in California
Level-5 and Japan’s top advertising firm Dentsu have formed a new company, Level-5 Abby.
Located in Santa Monica, California, Level-5 Abby aims to bring Level-5’s video games and anime to a global audience, promoting popular brands like Yo-Kai Watch and the upcoming Snack World with a multi-pronged approach, launching games, television shows, toylines, comics, and more.
While the company is officially headed by Level-5 founder and president Akihiro Hino, Level-5 Abby’s day-to-day operations will be overseen by Yukari Hayakawa, the subsidiary’s COO.
Next week, Disney XD will begin airing the Yo-Kai Watch anime in North America. A month later, hoping to replicate the success of Pokémon, Nintendo of America will publish the first entry in the multi-million-selling Yo-Kai Watch role-playing game series for Nintendo 3DS on November 6.
Oh, and in case you were wondering, Abby is a portmanteau of “all” or “anything” and “hobby.”
Level-5 Abby [Level-5]