Fearless Studios Developing Project For HP's WebOS

Fearless Studios, the independent developer studio founded last October by former LucasArts employees Haden Blackman and Cedrick Collomb, is developing its first project for HP's WebOS platform, the company revealed today. "We love the TouchPad and the webOS platform for game development," Fearless CTO Collomb said in a statement. "It's built from the ground up for seamless connectivity between devices and it’s an open platform, which makes development that much easier." WebOS, which HP acquired when it purchased mobile specialist Palm for $1.2 billion last year, enjoys less than 2 percent of the global smartphone market dominated by iOS, Android and Blackberry, according to analyst reports. Still, the platform has attracted support from major mobile developers including Electronic Arts, Rovio, Glu Mobile, and Gameloft. Fearless' announcement comes in advance of the July 1 launch of HP's webOS-powered TouchPad tablet, and alongside the announcement of a new digital monthly magazine caled Pivot, which HP says will highlight selected WebOS apps. HP has also promised a new discount structure for its WebOS Developer Program, offering developers reduced rates based on how long and how prolific they have been on the platform. Speaking with Gamasutra shortly after forming the company, Fearless co-president and COO Blackman said he wanted everything the company did to "sit on a bed of smart tech decisions," and that he was leaning towards a "big, story-driven action game" or a horror game for his first project.