Docomo’s subsidiary NTT Docomo Ventures has also made a minority investment in Hatch. Hatch will undergo as a soft launch in Japan on Feb. 13. The application will appear on Android phones and Docomo’s Android TV-based set-top boxes automatically.

Users in Japan will be offered a 90-day trial membership of Hatch Premium. The game will be available with or without a Docomo subscription. Hatch will also coordinate with D Point Club, Docomo’s points program, for consumer products and services.

“We are excited to work together with Hatch, a great example of the new type of consumer services which can bring out its potential towards the 5G era,” says Takanori Ashikawa, director, consumer business department, Docomo. “Hatch’s vision for cloud gaming changes the way people play and discover games, and our shared goal to enrich the everyday lives of our customers makes Hatch an excellent strategic partner for the long term.”

Hatch will also explore esports opportunities with Docomo in the region. To begin, Hatch and Docomo will participate in EVO Japan 2019 together. The major esports event is set to take place in Fukuoka Feb.15-17.

EVO Japan visitors will be some of the first users in Japan to interface with Hatch’s live online multiplayer features as part of the service’s Hatch League casual esports platform.

“Japan is the world’s third-largest games market and where the video games industry as we know it was born,” says Juhani Honkala, founder and chief executive officer, Hatch. “In this extremely competitive market, we couldn’t be happier to work with a partner like Docomo to help take our vision of cloud gaming mainstream. Docomo’s leading contributions to 5G technology and infrastructure and commitment to amazing new 5G-enabled services make the company an ideal strategic partner in Japan, and we look forward to a long and fruitful collaboration.”