Super Smash Brawl Stars
Brawl Stars becomes first new mobile game to break into top 10 worldwide revenue chart since June 2018
Fighter has generated $110 million in two months
Job Losses
Huge layoffs strike staff at Australian studio EA Firemonkeys
As many as 50 staff could be affected
International
Chinese publisher East2West opens its USA branch in San Francisco
"Our current lineup, which will be announced shortly, is already impressive"
Tencent Rules
Tencent brings in new broadcasting rules to police hurtful content across its products
These updates prohibit discussions or behaviour that could cause offence to the company’s home market of China
Job Losses
Razer lays off 30 staff as mobile future is put in doubt
Rumours suggest Razer Phone 3 cancelled
Yes It Actually Folds
Samsung unveils first foldable phone Galaxy Fold
Unity also shown for new Galaxy S10
Redo
An underwhelming Q3 sees Square Enix streamline its business units
11 reduced to four, won’t result in any workforce reduction
$$$
Report: Tencent's 2018 was the firm's best ever for investments
122 of the 700-plus companies the Chinese tech and entertainment giant has invested in worth over $1bn
Game Freeze
China blocks new game approvals again as it strives to clear extensive backlog
As many as 5,000 games could be awaiting the greenlight
Rip Ps Vita
PlayStation Vita shipments to end soon in Japan confirming end for handheld
Vita Island is no more
Acquisition Strike
Japanese developer Mixi partners with XTech to accelerate M&A plans
Partnership could see expenditure of up to $271 million
Nexon-marble
Netmarble on Nexon acquisition: "With some leverage we could do the funding ourselves"
Been execs remain coy on exactly how a deal might be structured
Financials
Netmarble profit tumbles 72% year-on-year in Q4 due to slowing sales and lack of new releases
Publisher appears to be struggling to fill the hole from fading Lineage 2 and Harry Potter revenue
Mark Zuckerberg Likes This
Facebook top apps publisher for mobile downloads in Q4 2018
800 million downloads in three months
Slice Of The Pie
Com2uS acquires 51.9 per cent stake in South Korean developers Day7
Developer is known for story-based games
Charts
Weekly global mobile games charts: Coin Master overtakes Candy Crush Saga in Great Britain and Ireland for top grossing
Charts from February 4th to February 10th
The Crowd Goes Wild
China officially recognises esports as a profession
Esports professional and operator roles recognised as of January 25th
The Saga Continues
Tencent joins Netmarble consortium in bid for Nexon
Deal could be made official as soon as February 21st
Human Stand Tall
Human: Fall Flat coming to mobile in China as 505 Games partners with X.D. Network
Going back to 505
From This Moment On
Amazon launches new reward scheme Amazon Moments
Tailor-made discounts
Maple
Maplestory M’s massive success is only part of Nexon’s record-setting financial results
Nexon’s highest full-year performance across both PC and Mobile made FY2018 one of the publisher’s strongest years to date
External Funding
Rovio looking to sell over 30 per cent of its stake in streaming service Hatch
To stream or not to stream that is the question
Let It Go
Disney collaborates with Kuato Studios for new storytelling app Disney Story Realms
The genie is out of the bottle
Keys To Success
How JoyPac delivered a top 10 success in China
China can be tough to break into, yet the right strategy can make it a reality
Switch's Awakening
The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening remake set for Nintendo Switch 2019 release
Classic gets new lick of paint
We're Serious
Nintendo reveals Tetris battle royale game for Nintendo Switch
...what?
Mario Maker
Nintendo reveals Super Mario Maker 2 for Nintendo Switch
Set to release in June 2019
We Like Ike
Fire Emblem Heroes has grossed over $500 million in two years
More than all other release for mobile combined
Report
Mobile grows while PC declines in NCSoft’s Q4 financial results
The Lineage M publisher’s financial results paint a mixed picture for the MMO publisher
New Clan
Supercell staffing up China game development studio
CEO Ilkka Paananen discusses his evolving vision for the company
Charts
Weekly global mobile games charts: Coin Master continues to dominate Great Britain and Ireland
Charts from January 28th to February 3rd
Back In Business
GungHo breathes new life into Puzzle & Dragons as MAUs and sales increase in Q4
Sales and profits up quarter-on-quarter and year-on-year
Sales Lost
CyberAgent president “regrets relying too much on a single game title” as Dragalia Lost underperforms
Sales fall below expectations and aren't enough to recoup costs in other areas of the business
Nintendo
Nintendo wants to break beyond its existing fanbase despite multiple franchise successes
The Mario-maker’s recent Q&A also touched on keeping players online and the rapidly-declining 3DS
New Plan
Square Enix mobile games underperform as publisher signals it’ll rebuild business
Lowest sales quarter in 2018 and 2019 financial years for smartphone and browser sectors
Rune-ing To The Bank
Summoners War exceeds 100 million global downloads
Five-years after launching
5g By 2020
Hatch partners with DOCOMO to bring cloud gaming to mobiles and TVs in Japan
UNESCO agrees deal to publish games for Hatch Kids
Financials
Dragon Ball Legends drives a strong Q3 2019 performance for publisher Bandai Namco
Mobile brawler success sees expectations raised for the publisher’s end-of-year results
Stream Or Summon
Iron Man and Spider-Man writers join Summoners War TV series
Robert Kirkman helming the project
Financial Report
Animoca Brands ends a record year with Q4 revenue of $4.6 million
Continued blockchain partnerships and investments secure a strong year for the Chinese publisher
Doctor Doctor
Disney Tsum-Tsum’s $1.5 billion success story bodes well for Dr. Mario World
Plush puzzler has grossed at least $10 million monthly since March 2014
Learn
Indian learning platform Byju’s buys out US games firm Osmo for $120 million
Osmo will help the online education firm craft learning content for younger students
China Vs South Korea
South Korea’s Kakao considers $9bn Nexon bid
Potentially one of the companies biggest acquisitions
Toasty
Dragon Ball Legends surpasses $140m in revenue
Over $100m made in the US and Japan alone
Charts
Weekly global mobile games charts: Western developers find premium success in China
Charts from January 21st to 27th
Sports Stars
Sports games score big sales for Konami as revenue tops $1.76 billion for last nine months
Yu-Gi-Oh Duel Links set to launch in China on mobile
Nintendo Tokyo
Nintendo set to open its first official store in Japan
Set to open its doors in autumn 2019
Partner Up
Nintendo partners with Line and NHN for Dr. Mario World mobile game this summer
Will launch across 60 countries including the US and Japan
Indie Spotlight
Mountains' Ken Wong on moving on from Monument Valley to Florence
"I felt like I wanted to grow on my own and I wanted to see what they could do without me"
Nex-marble
Netmarble forming consortium to acquire Nexon
Serious contender for $9bn-valued publisher