Revenue Race
Uma Musume: Pretty Derby trots to $6.6m outside Japan after 18 days
Cygames’ flagship was Japan’s top-grossing mobile game in 2021 and 2022, and expanded into the West on June 26th, 2025
Marvellous Mena
MENA-3 games market set to reach $2.8bn by 2029
A Niko Partners report found that the region had 72 million gamers at the end of 2024
Expansions
Side signs deal with Savvy Games Group to open Riyadh office
Firm plans to not only support Savvy’s initiatives but also launch its own training programmes in Saudi Arabia
Pgc Summit Shanghai
Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Shanghai 2025 agenda revealed
Connect with and learn from leading games industry experts in Shanghai, July 30th
Strategy Spending
Whiteout Survival hits $3bn in player spending in under 2.5 years
Century Games’ strategy title has been among the five highest-earning mobile games every month this year
Hot Five
Hot Five: Pokémon Go’s ninth anniversary, Clash Royale’s Merge Tactics mode, and China's domestic licence changes
Our quick-fix roundup of the hottest stories on PocketGamer.biz
Age Of Casual
Tencent gives Age of Empires the Last War treatment on mobile
Age of Empires: Survival brings hypercasual gameplay to the longstanding strategy franchise
Acqusitions
Azerion sells Whow Games to DoubleDown Interactive in deal worth up to $76m
The advertising firm said the sale is part of its broader portfolio optimisation strategy
Region Focus
State of play: Inside China's increasingly influential games industry
Ahead of the debut Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Shanghai on July 30th, we speak to industry executives and take a look at the rise of China's games sector
Chinese Games Market
Why understanding Chinese games and gamers is crucial to global success
Expert insight on the Chinese games market ahead of PG Connects Summit Shanghai, July 30th
Pgc Aqaba
What to expect at Pocket Gamer Connects Aqaba 2025
Ready to network, learn and pitch in Aqaba, November 8th-9th
Elevator Pitch
A step-by-step guide to a successful elevator pitch
How to pitch your game product efficiently to secure future support
Development Journey
Inside mobile hitmaker Lilith Games
Lilith Games' Vincent Ou guides us through the Chinese company's company culture, development strategy and live ops tactics it's used to create billion-dollar hits AFK Journey and Rise of Kingdoms
Marketing Merge Mansion
How Metacore cracked Japan's mobile market with Merge Mansion
Shuhei Watanabe discusses advertising campaigns, cultural differences in Asia, and Merge Mansion’s successful marketing strategy
Funding News
Grand Mobile raises $750,000 to grow flagship title Grand Mobile
The deal closed with the company valued at $75m
For The Throne
Game of Thrones: Kingsroad surpasses $1m on mobile after 36 days
Netmarble’s action-adventure RPG has taken a slower road to seven figures than Legends, Slot Casino or Conquest
Discover Shanghai
First speakers announced for Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Shanghai
A first glimpse into the lineup of expert speakers coming to Shanghai, July 30th
Tiktok Sale
Trump: Potential US TikTok buyer will be revealed in next two weeks
The US president described the buyers as a group of “very wealthy people", but that the deal would need China's approval to close
New Offerings
Meta launches gaming accelerator to empower Indian developers
Program will support 20 to 30 emerging Indian game developers and studios in its initial phase
Pocket Gamer Connects
A pocket guide to Pocket Gamer Connects 2025
Supporting the global games industry one conference at a time
Horse Girls Are Here
Uma Musume: Pretty Derby launches globally today after racing to $2.6bn on mobile in Japan
Cygames’ horse girl game has launched in English more than one year on from reveal, and four years after release in Japan
Discover Shanghai
Why game publishers come to Shanghai
Discover the Chinese game sector's new talents and opportunities, July 30th
Gateway To Chinajoy
ChinaJoy 2025 to break records, now with one-day industry access via Pocket Gamer Connects
Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Shanghai on July 30 includes one-day entry to ChinaJoy
Nominate Now
Last chance to nominate for Pocket Gamer Mobile Games Awards 2025
Submit your favourites across 22 categories before Friday, June 27th
Uk Best Of 2025
The Top 50 UK Game Makers of 2025
The UK movers and shakers of the last 12 months revealed!
Shanghai Summit
Why Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Shanghai is an ultimate gateway to the world’s largest games market
Explore our curated tracks offering insight on how to enter the regional market as well as grow globally
Mobile Games Awards
Celebrate the games industry at Pocket Gamer Mobile Games Awards live ceremony
Tickets are now available to our awards ceremony during Gamescom week in Cologne
No Deal
Tencent denies Nexon acquisition reports
The idea of a Chinese company purchasing South Korea-founded Nexon sparked backlash from the Korea Game Society
Funding News
Habby invests $2m in Istanbul studio Mavis Games
Casual games developer aims to expand its team as it looks to scale its portfolio
Call For Speakers
How you can make an impact by speaking at Pocket Gamer Connects
Grow your brand before an audience of games industry professionals
Pgc Summit Shanghai
Why developers choose Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Shanghai
A gateway for international companies to access the world’s largest games market
M&a
Korean games industry slams Tencent’s Nexon pursuit as threat to national security
It remains uncertain whether NXC is open to selling its Nexon stake
Trade War
Shenzhen targets 55% digital service trade by 2035 in new growth strategy
The strategy focuses on industrial support, IP development, infrastructure and more
Pocket Gamer Connects Aqaba
Tickets for Pocket Gamer Connects Aqaba 2025 now live
New name, new location - same unmissable two-day event coming to MENA
Pgc Summit Shanghai
3 key trends in focus at Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Shanghai
Highlighting Asian games market growth, global trends, and monetisation models
Squad Slump
Squad Busters makes $472,000 on Chinese App Store as version 2.0 is slow to ignite global fortunes
The global version has generated $1.8m in almost a month since the major overhaul
New Offerings
FunPlus launches new cross-platform publishing label Kingsglory with debut game Aniimo
The title is set to launch in 2026 for Xbox Series X|S, PC and mobile
Early Bird Tickets
One week left to grab Early Bird price offers for PG Connects Summit Shanghai
Save up to $120 (£90) by booking before midnight Thursday June 12
Market Report
Asia and MENA games markets hit $86.6 billion in 2024
Revenue is projected to reach $96bn by 2029
Ready To Launch
How to get your game published in China in 2025
MyGamez CRO Thorbjorn Warin discusses the rules and challenges of releasing a game in the country
New Games
New release roundup: Puzzle & Dragons 0, Game of Thrones: Kingsroad, Summoners War: Rush, and more
We highlight the latest new games that have broken cover over the past week
Million Milestone
Dunk City Dynasty achieves 1m downloads in first five days
This latest NetEase Games title has topped App Store charts in the US, the Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia and more
Square Settlement
Square Enix and HK Ten Tree settle copyright lawsuit over Metal Storm
The pair were previously working together on Front Mission 2089: Borderscape
Revenue Rise
Nazara’s FY25 revenue up 43% to $190m after pivot to "high margin" games segments
The publisher’s games revenue increased by 95% year-over-year in Q4
Pgc Aqaba
Pocket Gamer Connects Aqaba 2025 heads to the MENA region this November
The two-day event, taking place on November 8th and 9th will make a triumphant return to the MENA region
Week In Views
Supercell's AI ambitions, Clash of Clans gets a Netflix series, and Pokémon TCG Pocket hits $1bn | Week in Views
The Pocketgamer.biz team pick their highlights from the headlines this week and deliver the stories behind the stories
Unicorn Club
Pokémon TCG Pocket surpasses $1bn in just over 200 days
The trading card game has hit the $1bn milestone 78 days faster than Pokémon Go, based on player spending
New Partnerships
Tencent’s Level Infinite and Invest Qatar sign MoU to boost the country's games industry
Both parties will collaborate on talent development initiatives to drive long-term growth
Delivering Dragonfire
Game of Thrones: Dragonfire soft launches in Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines
The strategy title is based on the popular IP’s House of the Dragon spinoff
New Medium
Thatgamecompany fuses film and gaming in new Sky: Children of the Light animated feature
The developers’ transmedia project will explore the game’s origin story