Creative agency, Waste, connects entertainment brands with their fans in Europe and North America. From now, it will also be doing that job in Japan. The agency has opened a new office in Tokyo.

Waste, which became part of international technical and creative services provider to the entertainment industry, Keywords, at the end of 2021, will join forces with Tokyo’s Wizcorp marketing team, also part of the Keywords family, under the Waste Japan banner. The combined agency will provide a full-service marketing to the entertainment industry, covering cover strategy, creative, social, community management, experiential and TV, using its gaming expertise to help Japanese and other Asian publishers launch their products in the Western markets. Waste sits within Keywords Studios’ marketing service, Engage.

Mike Petricevic, co-founder and creative partner, Waste, stated, “Asia has always been a dream for us, and we look forward to bringing our expertise to the Japanese gaming sector, one of the largest in the world. Our ambition is to use our fan-first approach to grow our Japanese presence and service more local clients, while also helping bolster our services throughout Asia.

“Waste is in a unique position where we can take our experience launching video games in Europe and North America and use this knowledge to help support Eastern video game publishers to launch their products in the West. We’re excited to see what opportunities will develop.”

Tony Grigg, managing director, Engage, Keywords Studios, added, “This exciting move means we are moving ever-closer to delivering on our vision, where Engage sits at the heart of the next generation of connected companies that surround the marketing, communications, and player-centred aspects of the games industry. Bringing together Waste’s fan-first approach and Wizcorps production capabilities under The Waste Japan banner is a big step towards this vision.”

Christophe Briant, account director & regional lead of Waste Japan, said: “Japan is one of the world’s most significant game development hubs and has a long history in this industry. We welcome Waste into our Asian team, and are looking forward to seeing the new possibilities their presence will bring about for our local clients.”

Waste already works with clients such as mobile gaming giant, Supercell (Clash of Clans, Brawl Stars), Nintendo, Epic Games, Riot Games (League of Legends), Warner Brothers Games, Sega, Verizon Media and Zynga.