Computer games experts at the University of Bolton are leading a bid to make England's North West a centre for casual games development.

Casual games are the fastest growing sector in the games market according to the International Game Developers Association which estimates the casual games market was worth $600 million in 2004 and will be worth $2 billion by 2008 in the US alone.

Now the university has created a range of fully-funded business support packages focused on bringing the region's games, new media and web companies into the lucrative market.

Casual Games North West launches this month when the team will start to contact interested companies in the region. The first phase culminates in May with a major networking event. The university is preparing invites for its extensive industry contacts but wants any North West company interested in learning more to get in touch.

The university is a UK leader in computer games teaching, launching one of the first Computer Games Design degree courses in 2002.

Said Andrew Williams, Academic Leader for Games at the University of Bolton:

"This project promises to provide critical support to the games industry in the North West of England. By focusing on the casual games sector, we will tap into the fastest growing sector of the games market."

The project is partially funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the Creative Industries Development Service (CIDS) and the North West Development Agency (NWDA). The project is supported by the Game Alliance, the trade body for supporting the North West games industry.