Why Zynga and Glu are focusing on their past, Ilkka Paananen talks further acquisitions, and Armada Interactive gets $10 million in seed funding
Raising money for mobile game development can be tricky, so it's always good to celebrate the big wins that some developers get.
It's little wonder, then, that the news of Finnish developer Armada Interactive securing $10 million in funding from two seed rounds was our most read article of last week.
Second up is Supercell's Ilkka Paananen re-confirming that the studio is looking to acquire more developers, having already bought a majority stake in Badland developer Frogmind.
Beats, bugs and buying
Third on the list is Jon Jordan's breakdown of why Zynga and Glu Mobile are both looking to their evergreen titles to keep them growing in the future.
And finally, a bug on the App Store causes the Top Grossing charts to go haywire and drop a number of its big games down the list, and strategy game developer InnoGames acquires the IP for Wooga's midcore title Warlords.
Click the link below to find out more about the stories that caught our reader's eye during the last week.
#5: Strategy specialist InnoGames snaps up Warlords IP from Wooga
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Strategy specialist InnoGames snaps up Warlords IP from Wooga »There aren't many games that have had a rough ride as Warlords, a promising strategy title developed by a Wooga spin-off studio that was closed down shortly after the game came out.
But it may have a future yet, as strategy studio InnoGames has now snapped up the IP and plans on keeping the game alive for years to come.
"Warlords is already a great game, but we still have some ideas to further improve it and build additional content for the players," explained InnoGames CEO Hendrik Klindworth.
"But it really fits into our portfolio, it's really like one of our games and this will help us to continue our growth in the strategy segment. We'e very happy to have this game, and then of course we'll also use the expertise we have for live game operations."
#4: App Store bug causes top grossing ranks to drop Candy Crush Saga for driving theory test app
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App Store bug causes top grossing ranks to drop Candy Crush Saga for driving theory test app »Bugs happen, things go wrong and God laughs at our plans - all these things are true, but always surprising when they happen nevertheless.
So imagine our surprise when a bug on the App Store caused the Top Grossing charts to push perennial games like Candy Crush Saga down to be replaced by driving test apps.
The problem started on Friday 17th February and persisted over the weekend, with camera apps and Construction Manager Pro eventually worming their way into the top 20 somehow.
It was eventually fixed on Monday 20th, but it has led people to wonder whether it was a bug at all, or if Apple was simply trying out a new algorithm to give different apps a better shot at rising through the charts.
#3: Why Zynga and Glu Mobile are focusing on the past for future success
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Why Zynga and Glu Mobile are focusing on the past for future success »Times are tough for mobile developers, especially the older companies that are struggling to compete with bigger releases that no one could have predicted.
Both Zynga and Glu have decided to fall back on their "evergreen" titles as they look to grow in the future, and Jon Jordan has busted out some graphs to show why.
"The point for both companies is clear: the mobile games market in the West is mature," he writes.
"It’s still big - $13 billion annually - but it’s not growing much, there remains massive oversupply in terms of new titles, yet players (especially payers) are sticking with the games they know and love."
#2: Supercell's Ilkka Paananen says "it's no secret" that the studio is looking at further acquisitions
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Supercell's Ilkka Paananen says "it's no secret" that the studio is looking at further acquisitions »Supercell is a giant among men in the mobile gaming industry, so the idea that it would look to acquire other developers isn't too far-fetched.
Indeed, CEO Ilkka Paananen has said before that the studio was looking to work with other developers, and now he's said again that "it's not secret" the studio is looking to make further acquisitions.
It already made on in 2016, having acquired a 51% stake in fellow Finnish dev Frogmind, best known for the Badland series.
He also stated that Pokemon GO took a number of Clash Royale's players when it first launched, and remarked at how much harder developers have to work to earn their players every day.
#1: Armada Interactive secures $10 million from two seed funding rounds
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Armada Interactive secures $10 million from two seed funding rounds »Making core games for mobile is a relatively tough thing to do, but the benefits of getting it right are huge - or so Armada Interactive and its backers seem to think.
The Finnish studio has clearly gathered some attention since it opened its doors, and now it's closed a $10 million seed fund after two rounds of funding.
Korea Investment Partners led the second round, which also saw increased funding from a number of investors who initially offered up a total of $3 million.
"This investment enables us to bolster our international team with exceptional talent and provides significant resources for future game launches," said Samuli Syvähuoko, co-founder and CEO of Armada Interactive.