HB Studios, established in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, Canada back in 2000, has announced that it's expanding its operations with the formation of an additional development studio in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

HB Studios Halifax is scheduled to officially open on January 2nd with 20 staff and two projects in the pipeline. The HQ in Lunenburg currently employs 85 staff who are working on five projects across PS3, Wii, DS, PS2, PC and PSP.

HB has shipped 13 titles with more than 70 SKUs. Its most recent title was the latest iteration in EA Sports' NBA Live franchise on PS2 and PC. HB's global sales to date have exceeded 4.5 million units.

HB President Jeremy Wellard believes the opening of the new studio represents another crucial step in HB's growth. "We are at capacity in our Lunenburg HQ so the creation of this new studio provides us the with the necessary space to take on further development opportunities and also gives us access to another recruitment option in the broader region," he said.

HB was ranked 26th in Develop 100's international ranking of the top 100 "World's Most Successful Game Studios." This was up from 32nd in 2005 and 46th in 2004.