In October 2019, the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia Malaysia announced a partnership with Sony Interactive Entertainment Worldwide Studios (SIE WWS) to establish the latter’s first South East Asia studio in Malaysia in 2020. SIE WWS currently has 15 studios in Japan, England, the US and Netherlands.
The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Ministry is working with SIE WWS to uplift the talent pool in Malaysia through close partnerships with the local educational partners, while SIE WWS Malaysia will provide art and animation services to develop global exclusive titles for its PlayStation platforms. Its President and CEO Jim Ryan said SIE WWS selected Malaysia because of the country’s talented human resources, vibrant game ecosystem and government support. Communications and Multimedia Minister Gobind Singh Deo stated that this showed a strong recognition of Malaysia as the heart of the games industry in the region.
This development is in line with the country’s Digital Creative Ecosystem (DICE) policy that aims to boost the digital content industry and attract local and foreign investments. The DICE policy is expected to be formally introduced by early 2020. According to the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA), in 2018 the gaming industry contributed USD100 million to the Malaysian economy and the sector is expected to show an annual growth rate (Cumulative Annual Growth Rate for 2018-2023) of 10.9%, which will result in a market volume of USD 168 million by 2023.
Additionally, Belgian Larian Studios announced that it is also setting up its branch in Malaysia to develop its high-profile role-playing game (RPG) Baldur’s Gate 3. The new branch will be part of the company’s larger expansion in Canada, Ireland, Belgium, and Russia.
(Sources: The Edge Market; Digital News Asia; The Star)
