Slitherine targets US with History Channel backing

Ambitious UK outfit Slitherine Strategies hopes to crack the US market with the backing of The History Channel, as it expands from its niche PC market to tackle home and handheld consoles.

The company has established a dedicated following with its PC titles, and now plans four DS games and a move onto the Xbox 360 to capture elusive success in North America.

"The Xbox 360 market is our way into the US," said marketing manager Marco Minoli, speaking to GamesIndustry.biz at Game Connection last month.

"It's becoming very mass market. I can't say the same for Europe as apart from the UK the market for Xbox 360 is quiet, but it's the right time for us to establish this brand on the next-gen consoles, and it's more of an investment for us.

"The History Channel is huge in the US. Our big weakness at Slitherine has always been the US, we've never found a way into that market. We really need to tackle that market and the History Channel brand will help us achieve that," he added.

Following the successful release of The History Channel: Great Battles of Rome on PSP and PlayStation 2 last year, Slitherine acknowledges that without the strong TV branding it would struggle with a genre not traditionally associated with home consoles.

"Many big publishers have tried porting strategy games to consoles and it just doesn't work," commented Minoli. "Without the History Channel backing we wouldn't have been able to try Great Battles of Rome on the PS2. It's opened the door."

It's not just Slitherine's dedication, but The History Channel's commitment to helping create quality products that Minoli believes will push the company to success on consoles.

"The History Channel really sees this as there product. I've worked with many licensors and all they do is approve the game and that's it. They really see it as a brand extension, the realise how videogames can increase their target audience," he said.

The first DS title from Slitherine, The History Channel Pocket History: Rome is due in the second quarter of 2008, with the Xbox 360 title The History Channel: Great Battles of the Middle Ages due in the third quarter.