Global Top Five
BIGO Ads marks five-year streak in IAB Tech Lab certification programme
BIGO Ads Achieves Five Consecutive Years of IAB Tech Lab Open Measurement SDK (OM SDK) Certification, Setting New Global Ad Transparency
Showdown Shutdown
Sword Art Online Variant Showdown will end service on October 30th
Bandai Namco Entertainment is closing down the troubled title after almost three years
Strategic Move
Savvy eyes multibillion-dollar deals in China and Asia amid US-China tensions
Currently ranked 8th globally, Savvy is pushing to climb the publishing charts
Acqusitions
Qiddiya acquires Evo operator RTS to expand its role in global esports
The acquisition supports Evo’s vision for original content and deeper live event experiences
Genre Strategies
FreePlay talks 2bn downloads and hybridcasual's rapid growth
"We consider creatives production to be one of our core strengths," says head of publishing Ivan Spijarskiy
Destiny Downloads
Destiny: Rising surpasses 1m installs on Apple’s App Store
NetEase Games’ latest release ranked as the third most-downloaded game on launch day on iOS
Changing Times
Navigating payment freedom: Gaining a lead in the new app store landscape
Ben Cousens shares on monetisation strategies in the new app store economy
Romantic Revenue
Anime-style dating sim Love and Deepspace surpasses $750m
Infold Games’ departure from the Nikki series has proven fruitful, three-quarters of the way to $1 billion
Job News
Microsoft names Rare's Louise O’Connor as chief of staff at Xbox Game Studios
She will focus on driving collaboration across Xbox Game Studios while supporting its leaders and teams
Strategic Move
Nintendo rebrands Warpstar as Nintendo Stars to spearhead its transmedia strategy
Nintendo Stars will oversee merchandising, licensing, and events tied to the company’s film projects
Pgc Helsinki
Why your boss should send you to Pocket Gamer Connects Helsinki 2025
Compelling reasons why attending PGC Helsinki October 7th to 8th is a must
New Offerings
Rooter launches AI-powered adtech tool rStream to allow creators monetise content
“For brands, it’s a matter of keeping that attention and not jolting gamers out of it,” said Rooter founder and CEO Piyush
Pgc Helsinki
PG Connects Helsinki 2025 more expert speakers revealed
Explore the excellent lineup of speakers sharing key industry knowledge on October 7th to 8th
Inside Look
Scaling Screw Master 3D from WeChat to global markets
The CEO of EOGAMES discusses how its partnership with Supersonic and new strategies helped to scale the game
Podcast | Episode 65
Gamescom insights and India's shock real-money gaming ban | 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 65...
Story-driven Games
Female-first UGC platform Dorian partners with Women’s Game Fest
The Boost Track gives developers the chance to compete for a $500 gran, 1:1 coaching and game promotion
Market Growth
Player spending on games in China grew to $49.2bn in 2024
Revenue is forecast to reach $54.8bn by 2029
Funding News
Classy Games raises $300k to fuel growth and accelerate development of SillySuspects
Funding will also support team expansion and community-building initiatives
Leadership Change
Coffee Stain Group prepares for Embracer spin-off with new board
Coffee Stain co-founder and CEO Anton Westbergh exits Embracer’s management team amid restructuring
Layoff News
MPL to lay off 60% of its India staff after government ban on paid games
About 300 of 500 employees will be cut
Hot Five
Hot Five: Uma Musume: Pretty Derby’s overseas victory, Destiny: Rising’s mobile launch, and India's games companies hit by real-money ban
Our quick-fix roundup of the hottest stories on PocketGamer.biz
Week In Views
Real-money ban hits India's growth, Destiny lands on mobile and Uma Musume shines overseas | Week in Views
The Pocketgamer.biz team pick their highlights from the headlines this week and deliver the stories behind the stories
New Games
New release roundup: Destiny: Rising, Acecraft, Hello Mario, and more
We highlight the latest new games that have broken cover over the past week
Marvellous Mena
Saudi Arabia’s games market projected to reach $1.64bn by 2028
Savvy Games Group's 2024 annual report shows the MENA region generated $5.62bn in 2024 and is estimated to reach $6.94bn in 2027
New Offerings
Duet Night Abyss removes all gacha elements just weeks before its October launch
The upcoming RGP has amassed nearly seven million pre-registrations across all platforms
Shifting Market
What next for Finland's games industry?
Ahead of Pocket Gamer Connects Helsinki on October 7th to 8th, we take a look at a transformative time for the sector
Html5 Games For All
How H5 games are driving faster monetisation for publishers
No download & instant play - How HTML5 games are the emerging bridge between traffic and content
Growth Engines
2025’s unexpected games industry disruptor (clue it’s not AI)
Checking the state of the games industry by revisiting Matthew Ball’s 2025 growth engines
Funding News
Copa Fantasy raises $300k to scale football gaming platform in MENA
“We aim to become the region’s first true football super-app”
New Partnerships
Merak Capital signs MoU with HP to boost Saudi Arabia’s games and esports economy
Partnership to deliver events, workshops, and mentorship to build a sustainable talent pipeline
Pgc London
What to expect as the games industry gathers for the UK’s top B2B games event
Join more than 3,000 professionals to connect, discover, meet, learn, and gain visibility for two days at Pocket Gamer Connects London 2026
Franchise Insights
The first year of Zynga's Game of Thrones: Legends from launch to $24 million
Zynga’s Director of design Joe Canose discusses lessons from Game of Thrones: Legends first year
New Game Launch
NetEase Games launches Destiny: Rising globally on iOS and Android
Pre-registrations topped 10 million ahead of launch
Regulations
Apple warns UK’s proposed “EU-style rules” will harm both users and developers
The iPhone maker cites delayed features in Europe under similar laws as a cautionary example
Pgc Barcelona
AI vs art and the evolution of creative campaigns
PGC Barcelona panellists discuss user acquisition and the battle against "average" results
Audience Choice
PGC Helsinki returns with the Big Indie Zone Audience Choice Award sponsored by Jam City
The October conference offers developers several opportunities to showcase their games
New Partnerships
Saudi Esports Federation and Merak Capital sign MoU to accelerate Saudi Arabia’s games and esports sector
Partnership expands training, certification, and global collaboration while attracting international studios
Loads Of Layoffs
Rec Room lays off "roughly half" of staff as priorities shift away from broad UGC
Rec Room’s mobile creation tools have struggled to produce "impactful" experiences
Revolutionising Mobile Monetisation
GeeMee GamePlay: Revolutionising mobile monetisation with playable ads
Find out how GeeMee's playable ads integrate engaging game mechanics directly into the advertising experience across different industries and campaign objectives
Industry Outlook
India launches Game Publishers and Developers Association to drive its gaming and esports ambitions
Backed by the Online Gaming Bill, IGPDA champions Made-in-India IP, skills development, and game production
App Store Changes
Google to require identity verification for all Android app developers from next year
Developers in Brazil, Indonesia, Singapore, and Thailand face new verification rules from September 2026
Office Opening
Lightspeed Japan opens Osaka office to recruit talent, including Capcom veterans
This is Lightspeed Studios’ second office in Japan after a Tokyo office was established in 2024
Pgc Summit Korea
SAVE up to $200! PGC Summit Korea 2025 Super Early Bird discount ends tonight
Super Early Bird prices end at midnight Thursday, August 28th
Big Screen Gaming Summit
Big Screen Gaming Summit: Unpacking the future of PC, console, XR, blockchain and UGC
Half-day multi-track event filled with talks and panels coming to Pocket Gamer Connects Helsinki on October 7th
Triumphant Trot
Uma Musume: Pretty Derby picks up 57% of mobile revenue outside Japan in two months since global launch
Cygames’ horse girl racer has earned $46.8m overseas since June 26th, 2025
Roblox Rising
Roblox’s peak concurrent user count hits record 47.4m as Steal a Brainrot and Grow a Garden compete
Steal a Brainrot has become the platform’s second experience to hit 20m concurrent users
Seismic Shift
India's games companies scramble as real-money ban wipes billions off market
The legislation has seen companies and investors lose hundreds of millions of dollars from a previously fast-rising industry
Jobs Roundup
August 2025’s Movers and Shakers: Playtika promotions, Appcharge's senior hire, SayGames' new head of PR, and more
Our regular roundup of the mobile games industry's movers and shakers
Marvellous Mena
17 MENA game studios graduate from the first Exel by Merak accelerator cohort
Each startup secured $300,000 in funding plus access to global mentorship
Funding News
FitNot Games secures $300k to expand development on culturally-inspired titles
Funding will accelerate work on ALI, a story-driven 2D isometric stealth game set in Egyptian folklore