Hypercasual Evolution
What happened to hypercasual? The market’s evolution over the past year
Eugene Tatonkin explores how hypercasual games have changed over the past year and what the latest market data reveals
Africa Is Mobile
"If players are not consistently returning and genuinely enjoying the experience, no payment model will succeed"
Maliyo Games’ founder Hugo Obi on mobile monetisation in Africa, execution gaps and why retention matters more than pricing
Milestone
Torn RPG surpasses 100,000 daily players after 22 years of growth
The game’s daily player count has more than doubled since early 2024
Latest
Going Public
Modern Times Group confirms PlaySimple IPO filing targeting up to $335m in Mumbai
The Swedish firm will retain majority ownership post-listing
Pgc Barcelona 2026
Bigger than ever Big Indie Zone and Career Zone coming to Barcelona with support from Gameloft
Find your next big industry opportunity on June 15th-16th
Cloud Coins
Dissidia Duellum Final Fantasy makes $6.7m in first month
Cloud Strife and other fan favourites are appearing in Square Enix’s new gacha
Apple Attitudes
What a new era could bring for Apple
Apple CEO Tim Cook is stepping down, shifting to the role of executive chairman
Legal Proceedings
Papaya Gaming ordered to pay $420m in landmark false advertising verdict
Verdict marks largest Lanham Act award in history
Funding News
Metasports Interactive secures $20m non-dilutive user acquisition funding
Capital will be used to scale marketing and global user acquisition
Editor's Picks
Studio Strategy
Supercell president: "If we want to be one of the very best mobile game companies in the world, great live ops isn't enough"
We speak with Sara Bach about Supercell's new and live game challenges, lessons from China and how it's restructuring to adapt to the modern mobile market
Us Best Of 2026
The Top 30 US Mobile Game Makers of 2026
The US movers and shakers of the last 12 months revealed!
Surfer Spending
Subway Surfers City runs towards $2m in player spending in two months
The endless runner more than doubled the original Subway Surfer’s player spending over the same period, but the classic has far higher ad revenue potential
Opinion
We view direct-to-consumer as a meaningful growth driver.
Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick eyes a further push into D2C alongside other top games publishers
Ads remain the most common and viable monetisation model across Africa's gaming markets today.
Africacomicade founder Michael Oscar Esio debates Africa's monetisation landscape
#Pocket Gamer Connects
Pgc Ticket Offers
Unbeatable ticket discounts to Pocket Gamer Connects Malmö and Nordics
Start in Malmö, close in Helsinki, at the lowest rates you can get
Pgc Nordics
How Finland is reshaping its games industry
Explore the evolving Finnish games market at PG Connects Nordics, October 20th to 21st
Pgc Summit Shanghai
Why great games need the right partnerships to succeed in China
Take the leap into the world's biggest games market on July 29th
Pgc Summit Malmo
PGC Summit Malmö Mid Term prices end this week
Save now on new super-focused, networking-centric summit designed to boost your Nordic Game week
Industry Voices
Week In Views
Game Pass price cuts and Super Mario Galaxy’s box office dominance | Week in Views
The Pocketgamer.biz team pick their highlights from the headlines this week and deliver the stories behind the stories
Competing In Casual
King president Todd Green talks new game development, competition and "doubling down" on the casual market
As part of our tour of the London studio, we speak to Green about how King operates what its relationship with parent company Microsoft is like
Ai Gamechangers
"AI writes the code, but a human has to care"
Jonathan Bjerk of Curve Clash on how AI helped a non-coder publish a multiplayer game in under seven months
Mobile Mavens
“Government support has moved from a nice-to-have benefit to a priority”: The Mobile Mavens on where games studios choose to build
Our Mobile Mavens discuss whether government support has become essential for studios competing in the global games market
Government Backing
The UK's games hub gets a boost in the face of global competition
A look at UK and global incentives for the games industry and their impact
#MENA
Funding News
Soloband Games raises Series A led by Zubr Capital to scale flagship title
Funding will accelerate user acquisition and global market reach
Regulations
Türkiye passes sweeping digital law restricting social media access for under 15s
Meanwhile, foreign gaming platforms with over 100,000 daily Turkish users must now appoint a local representative
Africa Is Mobile
Deluxe Creation Studios’ Shola Edu on monetisation in Africa, global audiences and what actually drives revenue
“The goal is to build something that feels genuinely African and is good enough that the rest of the world wants in”
Acqusitions
Tamatem acquires ad tech firm Playable Factory in AI-first shift
The publisher recently raised $10 million in a new funding round, bringing total investment to $25m
Deals, Mergers & Acquisitions
Funding News
PvX raises $10.5m as user acquisition financing scales
The firm has now committed over $750m in user acquisition financing
Funding News
Spill Games raises $3.1m seed round to scale systems-driven mobile games studio
The studio plans to expand its team and test over 20 prototypes in the next 18 months
New Partnerships
Playtika expands into microdrama with Bingo Blitz and Shortical collaboration
An original short-form drama series will integrate Bingo Blitz directly into its narrative
New Offerings
VGW launches Monopoly Match as it enters match-3 puzzle market
The title is currently in phased rollout across North America
Investment Shift
Firstpoint VC launches $58m fund to back AI-driven gaming startups in emerging markets
The fund’s strategy is built on replicating Türkiye’s capital-efficient gaming success across Europe and Asia
New Partnerships
Sega and Rovio expand Angry Birds licensing with WildBrain
The expansion comes ahead of The Angry Birds Movie 3, set to drive a new wave of consumer products
Smash Out Of Stealth
Smash Games secures $2m UA financing to scale Animal Suika
PvX Partners led the round, supporting UA on mobile
Jobs News
Podcast | Episode 90
Week in Mobile Games podcast: Episode 90
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 90...
Roblox Revs Up
Roblox hires Joost Hagesteijn as first general manager for Europe
The newly created position has been established following significant growth in Europe
Staff Surge
Roblox workforce grows 24% to over 3,000 full-time staff
The platform had a "banner year" in 2025 with hits like Steal a Brainrot and Grow a Garden
New Era
Apple CEO Tim Cook to step down
Apple senior VP of hardware engineering John Ternus will replace him in the top job from September 1st, 2026
Settlement Reached
Ubisoft Halifax workers approve settlement following sudden studio closure
Terms of the deal remain confidential but mark a key outcome for affected workers
#Regulation
Regulations
India launches Online Gaming Authority with strict compliance mandates from May 2026
Online money games are explicitly barred from recognition as esports under Indian law
Mobile Mavens
"This is a fundamental shift in the way that games are rated": The Mobile Mavens on PEGI's new rules
Our Mobile Mavens share their insights on PEGI's updated age rating criteria and what it means for the wider games industry
Apple Troubles
German publishers urge antitrust fine against Apple ATT
Industry groups say Apple’s proposed ATT changes fail to resolve competition concerns
Security Review
Report: Trump administration reviews Tencent gaming investments over security concerns
Officials are assessing whether the company’s investments pose potential national security risks.
More News
New Offerings
Finland confirms stock option tax reform aimed at strengthening startup talent competition
Tax now applies only when shares are sold, not when options are exercised
Layoff News
Behaviour Interactive confirms layoffs amid declining external development demand
Declining mobile and casual development work cited as key driver of layoffs
Next Stage Game Challenge
Supercent launches Next Stage Game Challenge, open to all mobile games worldwide
“NEXT STAGE is designed to give both new prototypes and live games the opportunity to scale globally through Supercent’s publishing capabilities”
Strategic Move
Microsoft says Xbox mobile store “not dead” despite stalled rollout
Xbox also outlined a new strategy in a recent blog post
Game Closure
Niantic Spatial to shut down Peridot mobile as AR ambitions shift beyond smartphones
The game will be removed from app stores on May 14th
Acqusitions
Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders approve Paramount Skydance merger
The transaction is expected to close in Q3 2026
Layoff News
Meta to reportedly cut 8,000 jobs as AI spending surges to $135bn
Hiring freezes will leave thousands of roles unfilled
Latest Videos
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Podcasts
Podcast
Podcast: The state of the UK games industry with UKIE CEO Nick Poole
We discuss the challenges facing the UK's games industry and what developers need in the coming years to boost their success
Podcast | Episode 89
Week in Mobile Games podcast: Episode 89
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 89...
Podcast
PocketGamer.biz Podcast: Skillz, Beamable and the live ops shift
We unpack Skillz's acquisition of Beamable, what the future looks like for the two companies, and more
Podcast | Episode 88
Unity copies the AppLovin playbook with Vector | 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 88...