Local officials in talks with Sony for game development incubator

Local economic development officials are in talks with Sony Computer Entertainment of America about a project that might be called PlayStation Louisiana. The program would offer budding game developers access to development kits, training and consultation, and would be housed at the Louisiana Technology Park. Games developed would have a chance to be published on Sony’s PlayStation Network. The program is said to be the first of its kind in the North America. The Baton Rouge Area Chamber, Mayor Kip Holden’s office and the Louisiana Digital Gaming Initiative have been involved in the project discussions. Local and state economic development officials have targeted digital media as a potential major growth sector for Louisiana, and the state provides significant incentives for digital media companies. Officials can’t publicly discuss the project yet, since it is still being developed and nothing has been finalized. BRAC mistakenly announced today that the project was being launched in its Insider electronic newsletter. —David Jacobs