THQ announced a new partnership today with Innovative Leisure, a studio focused on digital games and headed up by several industry veterans. The agreement gives THQ the rights to publish Innovative Leisure games on mobile, social, and downloadable platforms starting this year.

The studio's members include Seamus Blackley as studio president, who's best known for assembling the team behind the original Xbox. Several Atari luminaries include Van Burnham (Supercade), Ed Logg (Asteroids, Centipede Gauntlet), Rich Adam (Missile Command), Tim Skelly (Rip Off, Star Castle), Owen Rubin (Major Havoc), and Ed Rotberg (Battlezone). It seems like a good start for building bite-sized experiences.

"It's a great honor (and a lot of fun) to get the opportunity to work with so many of the designers responsible for the gameplay mechanics that form the basis of our whole medium," said Blackley in the announcement. "We're excited about getting to make and release a bunch of awesome games."

This announcement comes in the midst of financial troubles for THQ. The company has reported a string of layoffs, studio closures, and a recent stock delisting notice in the past year. The company's plan moving forward is to focus on strong core games and cut out much of its kids licensed products.