Steel Penny Games joins WiiWare dev pool with title coming mid-2008

As Nintendo probably hoped, independent gaming studios are lining up for Wii Software, gunning for the chance to make it big in the wake of the Nintendo Wii’s success. And like Nintendo of America announced, WiiWare games are definitely coming this year with Steel Penny Games’ latest addition to the WiiWare collection announced to arrive sometime before the second half of 2008. More details at the full story.

The official word is out, and the newly formed Steel Penny Games, an independent game studio, has joined up the ranks of developers for WiiWare. Through press wire, the company also announced that they will be releasing a new title for Nintendo’s third-party game publishing and distribution service by mid-2008.

Unfortunately, details on the game were very sketchy. Described as a challenging puzzle game for both casual and mainstream gamer alike, the yet unnamed game will feature dramatic settings and characters to complete the fantasy experience. The game will be based on an original IP, says Steel Penny Games, and will also take advantage of the company’s recent efforts to building an engine for the Nintendo Wii.

If you didn’t know already, Steel Penny Studios was actually founded by developers from Naughty Dog (Daxter, Crash Bandicoot) back in early 2007. Jason Hugues, formerly a senior graphics tools engineer, and Andrew Gilmore, formerly a senior background artist, are now frolicking in the independent gaming scene.

And with Nintendo’s WiiWare, developers such as Steel Penny Games can rest assured that even independent developers will be able to publish games on the Wii. More on this as they happen.