Industry Insights
Why simple puzzle games keep players hooked and how to advertise them
Alexandra Pulinets explores why simple mobile puzzle games are so effective at driving engagement
Done Deal
EA’s $55bn buyout complete in deal led by Saudi Arabia’s PIF
A consortium of PIF, Silver Lake and Affinity Partners has taken EA private
Jobs Roundup
August 2026's Movers and Shakers: Nazara, Netflix, AppMagic, Cypher Games, Kabam, Lil Snack and more
Our regular roundup of the mobile games industry's movers and shakers
Latest
Egg Hatching
Raptor PR launches EGG platform for early stage games tech companies
Raptor will work to help founders and next-gen companies accelerate growth and build credibility
Pgc Summit Montreal
Why Canada’s games industry matters: A proven test market, talent and tax breaks
From soft launches to major development hubs, Canada has become an increasingly important part of the North American games ecosystem
Milestone Arrival
Time travel RPG Reverse: 1999 surpasses 19.99m players
The title first released in China in May 2023 before expanding globally that October
Broadening The Brand
Sega and Black White Orange partner to expand Angry Birds’ presence in India
The brand is expected to get new merchandise, collaborations and even food in India
Pgc Nordics
PG Connects: Uniting the Nordics in Helsinki this October 20th to 21st
Expanding across borders and platforms, 2026 is a special year for the biggest games industry event in the Nordics
Roblox Recruits
Jars AI co-founders join Roblox’s Foundation AI team
Steffen Holm and Chris Kruger have already helped ship Roblox’s Build in New Zealand
Editor's Picks
Hot Five
Hot Five: Palworld 1.0, puzzle’s H1 2026 performance, and Ubisoft’s mobile net bookings share almost doubles
Our quick-fix roundup of the hottest stories on PocketGamer.biz
Creator Platforms
Most gaming companies aren't building creator platforms - they're building ecosystems
New research finds only five of 23 major gaming companies operate as true creator platforms, with hybrid ecosystems emerging as the industry's dominant model
China Best Of 2026
The Top 30 China Game Makers of 2026
The China movers and shakers of the last 12 months revealed!
Opinion
I wouldn't even be able even to name a single department in the company that doesn't use AI in its work.
My.Games CEO Elena Grigorian on live ops, new game R&D, D2C and why AI is a game changer
I think the game has made such a real difference in people’s lives that they have a loyalty to it that’s really special.
Scopely's Kim Adams on how Pokémon Go became a forever franchise
#Pocket Gamer Connects
Pgc Nordics
A peek behind the curtain of triple-A games, with Epic Games' Ari Arnbjörnsson
At PGC Helsinki, Epic Games' Ari Arnbjörnsson lifted the lid on how triple-A games really get made, from duct-tape fixes to the hidden headaches of shipping worldwide
Pgc Nordics
InnoGames' Zoran Gjorgiev joins PGC Nordics speaker lineup
From QA to product lead: InnoGames' product manager, Zoran Gjorgiev joins Pocket Gamer Connects Nordics this October
Pgc Summit Shanghai
PG Connects Summit Shanghai: back, bigger and better!
More than 1,000 registrations across all activities from 400 companies and 40 countries
In The Hot Seat
In the Hot Seat: The ex-Riot producer betting mini-games will be China's next big export
Ex-Riot and GoodDay Solution's Bo Mei on the East-West mistake everyone's making, mini-games' next big leap and the Chinese monetisation myth he wants everyone to drop
Industry Voices
Industry Insights
VFX optimisation in midcore games: Commonly overlooked techniques and advanced methods
Azur Games lead VFX Stanislav Stabrov shares practical techniques for optimising visual effects in midcore mobile games
Ai Agents
How AI agents could impact mobile gaming monetisation
Jonas Martins explores how agentic commerce could reshape mobile game monetisation
China In Your Hands
China is not a translated market: How global game publishers can prepare for growth
Kash Ismail of MStars.ai outlines how publishers can lay the foundations to test, learn and scale with control in China, long before the media budget is deployed
Week In Views
Meaningful collaborations, Arknights: Endfield's first six months and AI in China | Week in Views
The Pocketgamer.biz team pick their highlights from the headlines this week and deliver the stories behind the stories
Studio Strategy
Burny Games CEO Anatolii Henis on building a repeatable mobile games business
Anatolii Henis discusses restructuring the studio as well as expanding into publishing and why building a repeatable success matters more than chasing hits
#China
Pgc Summit Shanghai
Tips for navigating China's enormous games market
Tips on choosing a local partner, user acquisition and player behaviour
Pgc Summit Shanghai
PGC Summit Shanghai begins with talks from Habby, Thatgamecompany, Mattel163, Kingsoft and more
A day of networking and industry insights kicks off ahead of ChinaJoy
Global Influence
Black Myth: Wukong was a inflection point for China and its pay-to-play market
Publishers, developers and investors are said to be turning their attention back to the country's development scene
Pgc Summit Shanghai
Publishers are returning to China and not just for "quick wins"
Companies no longer expect to enter a market that makes up 30% of global industry revenue with 3% of the effort
Deals, Mergers & Acquisitions
Deals Underway
Nazara revises terms to acquire Bluetile and Bestplay in all-cash deals
The board has granted its in-principle approval
Acqusitions
Razer acquires StreamElements assets to expand creator ecosystem
StreamElements will continue operating without changes for creators
New Partnerships
Esports Foundation partners with adidas for Esports Nations Cup
More than 2,000 athletes and coaches will receive bespoke competition apparel
New Partnerships
Monopoly Go teams up with Looney Tunes for Happy Harvest Season
The collaboration introduces Infinite Harvest and Porky's Cafe
Collaborations Roundup
July's Collabs Corner: Spider-Man in PUBG Mobile, David Beckham in Fortnite, and more
The latest crossovers in mobile games, all in one place
Funding News
Ash Games Studio secures $1.5m seed funding for Saudi-inspired games
The studio is building games inspired by Saudi stories and history
Funding News
Neon raises $13m Series A to expand direct-to-consumer commerce platform for game publishers
The company focuses on giving publishers control over commerce, payments, and player data
Jobs News
Ceo Change
Nazara CEO Nitish Mittersain to step down in September
Effective September 1st, Nitish Mittersain will continue as managing director but no longer serve as CEO
Loads Of Layoffs
Refactor Games reportedly lays off 85% of staff
The layoffs have followed less than two months on from the release of FIFA World Cup: Launch Edition on Netflix Games
Job News
Wizards of the Coast president John Hight to step down in September
He will remain with the company as an advisor after leaving the role
Job News
Epic Games taps Martin Keely to lead Epic Games Store and Epic Online Services
He will help deliver new capabilities for players, creators and developers
Job News
Lil Snack appoints former Supercell executive Bill Kang as COO
Kang spent 12 years at Supercell before joining the company
#Regulation
Regulations
Apple pushes back against proposed UK App Store rules
The CMA wants developers to steer users to alternative payment options
In The Hot Seat
In the Hot Seat: Three ways Western developers are leaving a fortune on the table in China
We speak to Kingsoft's Claire Yang about making cross-border deals work, the hires that can mean 10x to 100x the revenue and why China's giants don't hold every advantage
Podcast | Episode 98
Epic and Google withdraw their US settlement and Pokémon Go revenue skyrockets | Week in Mobile Games podcast
The PocketGamer.biz podcast team give you the state of play every week. Here's where to get it and what's inside this week's episode 98...
Opinion
UKIE's Nick Poole: "The social media ban will change the rules of engagement"
The UKIE CEO on the UK's planned social media ban for under-16s, how games could get tangled up and what the industry can do about it
More News
Content Creation
FirstLook’s Creators.gg platform launches with a "battle pass" model for streamers
The platform aims to offer developers a new way of reaching audiences via content creators
Big Indie Pitch
INFERIUS wins the Big Indie Pitch sponsored by Xsolla at NAGIS 2026
Find out who took the top three spots in our popular indie game developer pitching contest
Mobile Games Awards
Early Bird prices ending for the Mobile Games Awards 2026
Presented in association with Samsung Gaming Hub, the live gala ceremony takes place in Cologne on August 25th, during Gamescom week
Palworld Partnership
Garena is developing Palworld Online, launching this year
The mobile game will "expand the narrative" of PocketPair’s popular IP
Roblox Results
Roblox revenue rises 36% Y/Y, but young North Americans see falling per-hour monetisation
Roblox saw an increase in DAUs on a yearly basis this Q2, but the figure is down three quarters in a row
Closure Announcement
Reforged Labs shuts down as CEO says AI is closing its market opportunity
Co-founder Robert Huynh said the market for its product was too small
Digimon Data
Digimon Up makes $7.9m in player spending during first two weeks
Daily spending peaked at $1.1m, but fell to $187,000 by the end of the fortnight
Latest Videos
Podcasts
Podcast | Episode 99
Google's €890m EU fine and why Netflix's gaming figures mean nothing | Week in Mobile Games podcast
The PocketGamer.biz podcast team give you the state of play every week. Here's where to get it and what's inside this week's episode 99...
Podcast | Episode 97
Xbox's big reset | Week in Mobile Games podcast
The PocketGamer.biz podcast team give you the state of play every week. Here's where to get it and what's inside this week's episode 97...
Pocketgamer.biz Podcast
The truth behind mobile gaming's $17bn D2C market
We speak with Appcharge CMO Gil Tov-ly about its D2C estimates, the true value of the market and whether the trend is actually growing the industry
In The Hot Seat
In the Hot Seat: Mattel163 COO Devin Nambiar on Uno, the East-West divide and life after the NetEase deal
Mattel163's COO Devin Nambiar gets candid about cross-border publishing and the NetEase acquisition