Xbox News: Microsoft is Working on 4 Free-to-Play Games for Consoles, Phones, and Tablets

Microsoft has announced that one of their studios in London will be developing four free-to-play games for tablets, phones, and consoles.

The studio is named Lift London, and is headed by ex-Rare developer Lee Schuneman. Gamestop reports that at the Develop game development conference in Brighton, Schuneman stated that the four titles will work across all of Microsoft's platforms and will be "powered by the cloud."

Schuneman also made a point of stating that his studio is looking to redefine what audiences see as "AAA titles." The term is generally associated with huge studios producing multimillion dollar game franchises, but Schueman believes that "AAA is not about team size, or budget, or what device it's on," but is instead "about quality and audience scale."

"Clash of Clans is AAA. Halo is AAA," he stated. It's "about how you represent your audience and generate content that's culturally relevant."

Schueman's 40 person studio was unveiled by Microsoft executive Phil Harrison in January. The team's mission is to create new IPs that can be accessed from multiple Windows devices such as phones and tablets.

In January, Schueman stated that, "We're here to deliver entertainment as a service."

"Where, when and how you want it," he continued. "We're going beyond the box with great games and experiences on tablets, mobiles and TVs, powered by Microsoft."

Schueman himself is a longtime industry veteran, with a career at Rare that spanned 16 years. He's worked on games such as Diddy Kong Racing and more recently, Kinect Sports.

So far, no other details on these four games have been revealed.