Strategic Move
Unity to shut down IronSource Ads Network and explore Supersonic sale as revenue beats guidance
The ironSource Ads Network will officially cease operations on April 30th 2026
Esports Growth
Honor of Kings World Cup 2026 brings Honor of Kings and Arena of Valor teams together
Twenty teams from multiple regional leagues will compete for a $3m prize pool at the event in Riyadh
Funding For Games
LVL Zero receives over 240 applications as new wave of Indian game studios takes shape
More than 30% of applicants are designing games with live operations and analytics frameworks from the outset
New Offerings
Iwot studios partners with Initiate Entertainment to expand The Wheel of Time across games and animation
The partnership brings former Riot Games franchise leader Thomas Vu into the next phase of The Wheel of Time’s global expansion
Incentivising Play
Why TapNation is banking on rewarded play
We speak with TapNation's Philippe Lenormand and ZBD's Igor Melniks about how rewarded play works and best practices
Personal Pets
How Monopoly Go's Pets Season sparked 12,000 fan submissions and community engagement
This two-month season includes players’ pets as stickers, brand-new Style Tokens and a charity initiative
Esports Nations Cup
The Esports Foundation appoints National Team Partners ahead of the Esports Nations Cup 2026 debut
National partners will take responsibility for player selection, community mobilisation and long-term talent development pipelines
Expansions
AviaGames opens Global Trust Centre in Singapore to boost real-money game security
The new facility will coordinate global security standards and regulatory compliance as the company expands into additional markets
Resolve Open Cut Engage
The short drama disruption: What mobile game studios can learn from a new monetisation powerhouse
"If your first seconds don’t win, you’re invisible - and if your creative pipeline isn’t fast, you’ll lose to teams who treat iteration as a competitive advantage"
New Offerings
Sybo adds permanent competitive race mode to Subway Surfers after player demand
New Showdown mode allows up to six players to compete in real-time races
Layoff News
Meta cuts roughly 700 jobs as it shifts resources toward artificial intelligence infrastructure
Layoffs impact recruiting, social media, sales and the company’s Reality Labs division
Funding News
Verse8 secures $5m to scale its AI-driven game creation platform
The company aims to compress full game development into a single natural language prompt
Partnership Extension
Budge Studios continues Nickelodeon partnership with global launch of Dora: Explore and Play
The studio has surpassed two billion downloads across its portfolio of children’s entertainment apps
Master Plan
Savvy Games Group's CEO on M&A, China and rising Eastern influence
We speak to Brian Ward about how it works with its growing empire, Scopely's freedom, and opportunities in growing sectors like UGC
Mobile Mavens
"This is a fundamental shift in the way that games are rated": The Mobile Mavens on PEGI's new rules
Our Mobile Mavens share their insights on PEGI's updated age rating criteria and what it means for the wider games industry
New Partnerships
Xsolla and CYGMA team up to grow Cyprus’ game development sector
The deal gives local studios access to global monetisation infrastructure and publishing support
New Offerings
Teebik to launch Rome: Total War and Medieval II on mobile in China
The move signals a continued push to bring premium strategy titles into tightly controlled mobile markets
Closure
OpenAI shuts down Sora video-generation app less than two years after launch
The company is redirecting resources toward robotics and autonomous AI systems with real-world applications
Acqusitions
Reforged Studios acquires Headup to expand global publishing footprint
Headup will continue operating independently while gaining access to Reforged’s international infrastructure and support network
Pgc Summit Shanghai
Start your ChinaJoy trip at Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Shanghai 2026
Focused summit connecting the world’s game sectors from East to West on July 29th
Epic Troubles
Epic Games to retire three Fortnite modes after failing to attract and retain players
Rocket Racing, Ballistic, and Festival Battle Stage are being shut down
Mighty Milestone
Appcharge surpasses $1bn in D2C transactions
Transaction volume on the platform has more than doubled in six months following its $58m Series B funding round
Layoff News
Epic Games cuts 1,000 jobs as Fortnite slowdown forces major reset
“Since it's a thing now, I should note that the layoffs aren't related to AI," said Epic CEO Tim Sweeney.
Aurora Awards Uk
"True innovation can only come from a group with different perspectives and experiences"
Sumo Digital's Catherine Bygrave on the crucial role of women in managing current industry challenges
Duolingo Design
Duolingo experiments with tool to lock other apps until daily lessons are complete
The new tool links access to social media directly to learning progress, turning education into a gatekeeper for screen time
Industry Insights
What our data reveals about ad quality and player churn in mobile games
Ivona Pinjak analyses player churn across ad networks, formats and platforms using Unity's AdQuality tool
Pgc Summit MalmÖ
Gain visibility and do games business in southern Sweden on May 27th to 28th
PG Connects Summit Malmö connects indies with publishers, investors and co-creators
Industry Decline
TIGA clamours for government support as UK game dev jobs fall at record rate and startup activity collapses
CEO Richard Wilson calls for better tax incentives and support initiatives to compete on the global stage
Industry Outlook
Australia’s game development industry generated $425m in revenue during FY25
Nearly half of Australian studios have been operating for more than six years, pointing to a more durable industry base
New Offerings
Minecraft World to open at Chessington theme park in 2027 with $67m investment
The project marks Minecraft’s largest step yet into location-based entertainment
Update Insights
Developing Wuthering Waves: "Every addition requires months or longer to meet our quality standards"
The Kuro Games team talks narrative foundations, engagement, version 3.0 and beyond
New Offerings
Ex-Supercell devs at Bit Odd soft launch debut game after $18m raise
The Canada launch is intended to generate early player feedback before a broader global rollout
Soft Launch
47 top mobile games in soft launch: Overwatch Rush, Trivia Crack Academy, Netflix Playground, and more
The top mobile games in soft launch right now
New Offerings
Roblox to take cut of in-game brand deals from 2027 under new advertising rules
The company is restructuring its ad ecosystem to position Roblox as a full-scale media and commerce channel, not just a games platform
Podcast | Episode 86
The final word on GDC | 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 86...
Milestone
Devsisters outlines multi-game expansion for CookieRun as franchise surpasses $1 billion
Series has crossed 300m players and $1bn in revenue to become a global IP
New Offerings
Amazon plans smartphone comeback years after Fire Phone failure
The new device is less about hardware competition and more about controlling daily customer interactions
New Partnerships
Supercell partners with Taika Waititi to launch new character in Brawl Stars
The collaboration signals a shift from traditional marketing toward story-driven promotion for live service games.
Pgc Barcelona 2026
Speakers from Zynga, Rovio and Layer AI set for Pocket Gamer Connects Barcelona 2026
First speakers among 100+ revealed for returning games industry event on June 15th-16th
New Offerings
Epic Games opens Star Wars tools to creators as branded content push expands inside Fortnite
The release represents one of the largest IP integrations on the platform to date
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
Week In Views
ByteDance's Moonton acquisition, Fortnite's Google Play comeback and a $2bn milestone for Farm Heroes Saga | Week in Views
The Pocketgamer.biz team pick their highlights from the headlines this week and deliver the stories behind the stories
Acquisitions
ByteDance to sell Moonton to Savvy Games Group in $6bn deal
The move marks another major expansion for Savvy Games Group
Squeezed Margins
Matthew Ball interview: Can new stores and D2C turn the tide on high UA costs?
A look at mobile gaming's discovery challenges and the pressure on profit margins as marketing and ad exchange expenses soar
Developing Next-gen Mobile Titles
Supercent and Sumo Digital sign strategic MOU to co-develop next-generation mobile titles
The MOU brings Supercent’s mobile-first innovation and data-driven publishing ecosystem together with Sumo Digital’s deep development expertise and cross-platform capabilities
Pgc Summit Shanghai
How Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Shanghai is your gateway to the world’s largest games market
Games industry summit returns on July 29th to connect East and West
New Games
New release roundup: Fortnite, Taimanin Squad, Goritaire, and more
We highlight the latest new games that have broken cover over the past week
Pgc Summit MalmÖ
How MeetToMatch will maximise deal-making at Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Malmö
Two-day networking event coming to the Nordic games industry on May 27th to 28th
New Offerings
LinkedIn launches new logic puzzle game Patches
New title challenges players to complete grids with no gaps or overlaps
Environmental Impact
PlanetPlay rallies games industry for global “Battle for the Habitats” campaign
Industry-wide initiative aims to raise $1m for environmental conservation