Podcast | Episode 67
The $55bn EA acquisition unpacked | 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 67...
Pgc Aqaba
What to expect as the games industry gathers in Aqaba
Discover one of the world’s fastest growing games markets and network by the Red Sea on November 8th and 9th
Speaker Spotlight
Speaker Spotlight: Sam Gaglani
"Make the game fun, the rest will follow"
Hot Five
Hot Five: EA’s $55bn buyout, Genshin Impact’s fifth anniversary, and Fire Emblem Shadows’ overshadowed launch
Our quick-fix roundup of the hottest stories on PocketGamer.biz
Podcast
Gaming Meets Beauty: Inside Henkel’s first brand activation
The PocketGamer.biz podcast team and guests give you the state of play, here's where to get it and what's inside this week's episode.
Pgc Helsinki
Showcasing the sponsors! Pocket Gamer Connects Helsinki 2025
You can connect and meet with these great companies at our 12th Finnish festival of games
Speaker Spotlight
Speaker Spotlight: Vera Manhoso
"I would recommend maintaining a strong balance between UA and RT, and integrating RT campaigns early, rather than waiting until your game is more mature"
Week In Views
From $1,000 Xbox handhelds and $30 Game Pass hikes to Fire Emblem Shadows’ $90,000 debut | Week in Views
The Pocketgamer.biz team pick their highlights from the headlines this week and deliver the stories behind the stories
Speaker Spotlight
Speaker Spotlight: Teemu Haila
"Too many teams underestimate how complex live service infrastructure becomes once a game starts to grow"
Web Shops
Epic Games launches global web shops for mobile and PC
As part of the rollout Epic has partnered with Codename Entertainment to showcase web shop functionality
Funding Round
Cypher Games secures $30m in series A funding
The funds will go towards its debut title Match Squad
A Good Cause
Supercell, Sybo, EA and more get involved in One Special Day mobile charity initiative
Games involved include Subway Surfers, Hay Day, Golf Clash, Angry Birds 2 and more
Major Milestone
TinyBytes surpasses 100 million downloads across its portfolio
Flagship title Massive Warfare makes up for a large portion of the downloads
Partnerships
BBC Studios brings Great British Bake Off to Roblox with Star Baker game
Star Baker will bring baking challenges inspired by the show to the Roblox platform
New Games
New release roundup: Hello Kitty Merch Match, MU: Pocket Knights, Two Strikes and more
We highlight the latest new games that have broken cover and are all set to do big business
Speaker Spotlight
Speaker Spotlight: Sara Antonelli
"Growth can no longer rely on a single channel or tactic. To stay competitive, gaming companies need to diversify"
Speaker Spotlight
Speaker Spotlight: Rafael Morgan
"Publish your mobile games on the web as well! It’s a low-effort, high-impact way to grow reach, extend a game’s lifecycle, and build resilience in a volatile industry"
Pgc Aqaba
How MENA is proving to be the next games powerhouse
Connect with one of the world’s fastest growing games markets at Pocket Gamer Connects Aqaba, November 8th-9th
Speaker Spotlight
Ilya Kuznetsov discusses “AI becoming a competitive necessity” ahead of Pocket Gamer Connects Helsinki 2025
"To succeed, studios need to dig deeper: focus on innovation, unique player value, and the hidden ingredients, not just the surface-level imitation"
Hall Of Fame
Hall of Fame: Maarten Noyons
The IMGA founder has long been a trailblazer in the mobile games industry, supporting and shining a light on developers around the world
Mobile Mavens
"Problematic for the industry" or "long-term investment"? The games industry reacts to EA's historic $55 billion deal: Part two
Our Mobile Mavens weigh in on the one of the biggest deals in games history
Inside Look
Inside Flamed: Scopely’s in-house creative agency
Naor Itzhak shares on how Scopely’s Flamed turns ideas into global game campaigns
Shadows Spending
Nintendo’s Fire Emblem Shadows makes just $90,000 in first week on iOS
Predecessor Fire Emblem Heroes earned $8.2m on iOS in week one
Company Spotlight
Company Spotlight: FastSpring
Meet FastSpring, the Californian company transforming direct-to-consumer payments for developers and publishers
Unstable And Unsustainable
39% of game devs are making mobile games, but layoffs make them "go numb"
Duamentes Gaming’s Making Games, Making Future report reveals most developers enjoy their work but wouldn’t recommend working in the industry
Applovin Axon
AppLovin rebrands consumer-facing ads offering to Axon
The app tech company has been expanding into web and e-commerce, moving away from its apps business
Cross Platform For Unreal
Unreal Engine 5 is making inroads in cross-platform mobile games
Find out how Unreal Engine 5 is optimised to help developers around the world take their games to multiple devices
Mobile Matters
The state of EA's mobile portfolio following its $55bn acquisition
EA’s mobile games generated 17% of all company revenue in Q1 FY2026
Finland Spotlight
Games & Leaves' Antti Kananen on why Finland's developers should keep sharing and learn from past mistakes
We speak to Games & Leaves head of games Antti Kananen about the state of Finland's games market
Ios Installs
Epic Games Store sees "stunning" rise in successful installations as iOS scare screen removed
The Fortnite maker still believes Apple is "thwarting competition" despite the improvements
Teaming Up
Gadsme agrees three-year exclusive partnership with Football Manager
Non-intrusive ads will come to Football Manager 26
District Details
Modern Times Group unveils new midcore and casual divisions amidst leadership shake-up
Recently acquired Plarium will join the new Midcore District, but CEO Schraga Mor is stepping down
Industry Recognition
Maliyo Games featured by Apple to mark Nigeria’s 65th Independence Day
Safari City, Crazy Ludo, Whot King, and Secret Letter were spotlighted
Live Games Wanted
Supercent Announces RE:BOUND 2025
A global call to relaunch promising mobile games with $100M+ marketing power
Call For Speakers
Make an impact by speaking at Pocket Gamer Connects in Korea, Aqaba or London
Grow your reputation before an audience of dedicated games industry professionals
Game Monetisation
Beyond microtransactions: The future of game monetisation lies in loyalty, not loot boxes
Xsolla’s Chris Meredith on moving beyond microtransaction towards player-first monetisation
Nordic Games Industry
From major studios to indie teams - what makes Swedish game developers consistent?
Why the Swedish games market continues to show strength and resilience
Gamathon 25
"Every small game you create and release teaches you something the previous game never did"
Fer Factor CEO and founder Feranmi Oladosu shares his belief on why smaller projects can trump grand ideas
Mobile Mavens
"Sea-change" and "savage streamlining": The games industry reacts to EA's historic $55 billion deal
Our Mobile Mavens weigh in on the potential highs and lows of one of gaming's biggest deals
Genshin Goliath
Genshin Impact celebrates five years and $6.4bn on mobile as annual spend declines by 42%
The next year of Genshin Impact will focus on elemental convergence point Nod-Krai
Industry Insights
Five ad monetisation tests that didn't match the data
GameBiz Consulting’s Božo Janković shares insights from experiments that challenge assumptions in ad monetisation
Pgc Summit Korea
Celebrate Chuseok with Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Korea deals - free tickets or 50% off
Limited Chuseok ticket offer for the leading b2b games event in Korea, October 31st
Penguin Power
NFT penguin game Pudgy Party hits one million installs in first month
The title was developed on Mythical Games’ platform, but Web3 elements are optional
Ai News
Report: More than half of Japanese firms are using AI in game dev
32% of respondents are using the tech for their game engines
New Era
EA CEO says company's values will "remain unchanged" following Saudi acquisition
Andrew Wilson insists that he will be staying on as CEO
Pgc Helsinki
One week left - 10 reasons to join Pocket Gamer Connects Helsinki
Meet global powerhouses, learn from industry experts and connect with the Nordic games industry
Behind The Curtain
Who are EA's new owners?
A look at Saudi Arabia's PIF, Jared Kushner's Affinity Partners, and Unity investor Silver Lake
Attending Companies
Pocket Gamer Connects Helsinki 2025: The companies you can’t miss making connections with
Explore the ever-growing line-up of developers, publishers, investors and industry trailblazers heading to Helsinki on October 7th and 8th, with more companies added all the time
Games In Africa
Gamathon 25 kicks off in Lagos Nigeria
The week-long event celebrates African digital creativity and youth empowerment
Mega Deal
It’s official: EA agrees $55bn buyout deal
Saudi Arabia's PIF, Silver Lake and Affinity Partners swoop for publisher in all-cash deal