China Best Of 2026
The Top 30 China Game Makers of 2026
The China movers and shakers of the last 12 months revealed!
Accolades
Articles featuring Moonton
Collaborations Roundup
July's Collabs Corner: Monopoly Go meets The Simpsons, Brawl Stars partners with Adidas, and more
The latest crossovers in mobile games, all in one place
New Partnerships
Qiddiya City signs five-year partnership with MPL MENA
The partnership will focus on fan engagement, community initiatives, and youth-focused activations
Podcast | Episode 87
Was Epic's app store battle worth it? | 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 87...
Hot Five
Hot Five: GDC 2026, ByteDance to sell Moonton, and Candy Crush’s "incredibly valuable" feedback loop
Our quick-fix roundup of the hottest stories on PocketGamer.biz
Acquisitions
ByteDance to sell Moonton to Savvy Games Group in $6bn deal
The move marks another major expansion for Savvy Games Group
Ramadan Kareem
Ramadan festivities unfold across mobile with themed events and seasonal rewards
We’ve rounded up a selection of the most engaging and inventive in-game events and promotions currently live
Possible Acqusition
Report: ByteDance in advanced talks to sell Moonton to Savvy Games Group for up to $7bn
Sources say the transaction could close as soon as this quarter, with broad terms already agreed
Milestone
Moonton Games' Magic Chess: Go Go has surpassed 30m downloads
MCGG garnered more than 20m pre-registrations before launching globally on May 28th
New Offerings
Moonton has soft launched MLBB Lite in Algeria, Egypt, Nigeria, and South Africa
A streamlined version of the developer's popular Mobile Legends: Bang Bang
Publising Deal
Skystone Games takes US publishing rights for Mobile Legends as TikTok ban looms
ByteDance has been forced to relinquish publishing rights to the MOBA and Marvel Snap by US lawmakers
Gone In A Snap
US TikTok ban takes Marvel Snap and Mobile Legends offline
Mobile games by ByteDance-owned companies go dark following Supreme Court's decision to reject company's appeal against ban
Esports Integrity
Moonton Games teams up with Esports Integrity Commission to promote fair play
The partnership aims to enhance esports integrity through information sharing, education, policy development, and risk management
Game (still) On
Moonton not for sale as Bytedance stays in the game with new CEO
Rumours of Moonton being cut adrift following Bytedance's reversal out of the games biz seem to have been premature…
Dance The Blues
Crunch time for ByteDance's gaming ambitions
Big tech pulls back from gaming again
Sale Rumour
ByteDance is reportedly in talks to sell Moonton
After its massive 2021 acquisition, ByteDance is supposedly looking to roll back and focus on "core business"
Monopoly Money
The biggest gaming acquisitions of all time
From Activision Blizzard and Zynga to Bethesda and Playdemic
July In Review
July 2023 was a massive month for new releases and crossovers
GameRefinery analyses the performance of the mobile gaming market throughout the month
Licencing
China's game regulator approves 86 new games including Mobile Legends: Bang Bang
The game is immensely popular in Southeast Asia
2022 Highlights
2022 In Review – June’s Best Bits
As the year draws to a close, we take a look back with our pick of the stories that shaped the last twelve months. Here's June
2022 Highlights
BIG Stories of 2022 - The rise and fall of China’s mobile market
The world’s biggest mobile-first market saw a tumultuous year
Riot Vs Netease
Riot aims at NetEase in latest copyright infringement claim
The suit points out similarities between Valorant and NetEase title Hyper Front
Tencent On Trial
Tencent to stand trial in copyright infringement suit tomorrow
The company has been accused of infringing on the rights of Mobile Legends: Bang Bang by Moonton
Tencent Vs. Moonton
Tencent to pay $31 thousand to Bytedance subsidiary Moonton following defamation dispute
The court found in Moonton’s favour, but the legal battle continues between the two companies
Likely More Than 5v5 Lawyers
Riot Games sues Moonton over sustained Wift Rift copyright infringement
Riot Games is again suing Shanghai Moonton Technology Company (Moonton), but this time is alleging infringement on its mobile MOBA, Wild Rift
Aspiring Aspirants
Moonton launches Mobile Legends: Bang Bang NFTs on Binance
Featuring popular MLBB characters Layla and Fanny
Master The Meta
Master the Meta: Why Bytedance is acquiring Moonton for $4 billion
Owen Soh breaks down the latest M&A
Bang Bang Into The Bank
Moonton's Mobile Legends crosses $500 million in gross revenue
281.3 million downloads since 2016, says Sensor Tower
Moba
Mobile Legends bucks the US MOBA decline by growing revenue to $5.8 million in Q1
But the bigger picture proves that the competitive genre just isn't landing in the region
Best Of 2018
The Top 50 Mobile Game Developers of 2018
Revealed: the movers, shakers and moneymakers!
Legendary
Moonton’s popular MOBA Mobile Legends plunders $200m in global revenues
$25 million of that comes from the US
Fight Fight Fight
Mobile Legends is quietly out-grossing Arena of Valor in many countries
Tencent's MOBA mega-hit isn't winning everywhere