Going Global
Nigeria to bring first-ever developer delegation and booth to Gamescom 2026
The delegation is led by Maliyo Games founder Hugo Obi
Corporate Strategy
Tencent explores exits from Japanese game studio investments amid portfolio review
The company may sell some holdings back to management teams, even at a loss
Anima Arriving
HoYoverse’s new game Honkai: Nexus Anima gets closed beta test in July
The Evolution Test will begin on July 9th for iOS, Android and PC
Pgc Nordics
Save up to €138 on PGC Nordics before Super Early Bird ends on Thursday 25th
Essential conference set to host 800 of the world's leading games companies this October 20th and 21st
Pgc Summit Shanghai
SocialPeta CMO Summer Liu to speak at PGC Shanghai
Liu joins the star speaker lineup for Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Shanghai on July 19th
Region Focus
State of Play: The challenges and opportunities facing the Nordic games industry
We delve into the vibrant games hubs across Sweden, Finland, Norway and Denmark - and the key challenges they face
Industry Insights
From pet project to investable games startup: How to become investor-ready
Alena Patorskaya and Andrew Ermolenko discuss how early “pet projects” can be structured into investable business
Pgc Nordics
The 23 conference tracks that will be at PG Connects Nordics this October 20th and 21st
Everything from AI to web3 - and where you'll find the hottest opportunities
$1bn In D2c On Pc
Xsolla data reveals direct-to-consumer PC game transactions surpassed $1 billion in 2025
Transaction data across Xsolla's publisher network shows D2C on PC operating at scale across more than 1,000 games, an opportunity the market has historically overlooked
Leadership Change
Newzoo CEO Michelle Van der Wilk-Rouhof steps down after six years
Current CRO Joris Goossens will step into the CEO role as of July 1st
Lagos Games Week
“The studios that thrive will not be those that resist AI. They will be those that learn how to use it effectively"
Maliyo Games CEO Hugo Obi told Lagos Games Week the studios that thrive will use AI rather than resist it
Early Everness
Neverness to Everness steers towards $50m in two months on mobile
The gacha RPG released in China on April 23rd with a worldwide rollout soon after
Awards Ahead
BAFTA reveals 15 finalists for student awards
The finalists were selected from entries submitted by more than 600 universities worldwide
New Partnerships
Brawl Stars teams up with Adidas for first apparel collaboration
A second Adidas x Brawl Stars collection is planned for 2027
Expansions
Hill Climb Racing 3 expands soft launch to Germany
Fingersoft cites promising engagement and retention in early soft launch markets
New Offerings
CityDays and All3Media team up to launch The Traitors game on WhatsApp
Players participate in missions, banishments and secret traitor activity over approximately one week
Pgc Summit Shanghai
Kingsoft's Claire Yang joins PGC Shanghai to talk mid-sized studio survival
Kingsoft's overseas business development lead Claire Yang will tackle how smaller studios compete with the giants at Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Shanghai on July 29th
Layoffs
Electronic Arts reportedly hit by further layoffs across support and operations teams
Reports suggest that the cuts have affected customer support, recruitment, trust and safety, and IT roles
Investment News
AppsFlyer secures over $1bn investment from Moloco, Google, Meta and Unity
Firm stresses neutrality and independence as major tech and ad firms become backers
Fortnite Flurry
Fortnite surpasses 1m daily App Store installs for first time ever after global comeback
During Fortnite’s first month back, the game generated 11.5m downloads on the App Store
Pgc Shanghai
Three myths that cost Western games companies in the Chinese market
Monte Singman has brought over 50 Western games into China, from Gardenscapes to Sonic Dash. Ahead of his PGC Summit Shanghai session, he explains why companies keep getting the market wrong
Lagos Games Week Takeaways
5 takeaways from Lagos Games Week 2026: Packed halls, stronger panels and embracing AI as a tool
We round up the key trends and talking points from this week's big show in Nigeria
Consolidation
Kabam to consolidate Los Angeles office amid reported layoffs
The Marvel Contest of Champions developer says it remains committed to partners and ongoing development
Mistbound On Mobile
Guild Wars spinoff Mistbound is coming to mobile
ArenaNet, NC, and bilibili are collaborating on the title
Event Milestone
Dubai Esports and Games Festival 2026 attracts more than 43,000 attendees in largest edition yet
The festival hosted 66 esports tournaments with prizes worth up to AED 1m ($272,000)
Pgc Summit Shanghai
Thatgamecompany, Charles Cecil, Newzoo, Xsolla, Kingsoft and more confirmed to speak at PGC Summit Shanghai
Going to ChinaJoy? Make the most of your week with our gateway event
Going Public
Jio files for IPO that could become India’s largest share sale
The company is reportedly targeting a raise of around $3.8 billion to $4bn
Online Safety
UAE bans children under-15s from social media accounts
Children under 15 cannot access social media accounts even with parental consent
Hot Five
Hot Five: EA Advertising, Roblox Kids accounts, and six months of Where Winds Meet on mobile
Our quick-fix roundup of the hottest stories on PocketGamer.biz
Podcast | Episode 94
PGC Barcelona takeaways, the UK's social media ban and Fortnite vs Roblox | 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 94...
Week In Views
UK under-16 social media ban, GTA VI’s industry impact and Pokémon Champions’ mobile launch | Week in Views
The Pocketgamer.biz team pick their highlights from the headlines this week and deliver the stories behind the stories
Lagos Games Week
African games industry has moved from potential to production says Maliyo CEO Hugo Obi
Maliyo Games CEO Hugo Obi used his Lagos Games Week keynote to argue the African games industry has entered a production era
Pgc Barcelona
Direct-to-consumer in games: Promise versus reality
At PGC Barcelona, experts from Xsolla, Breeze and Worldline assessed how far the app stores have really opened up and whether D2C is paying off
New Games
New release roundup: Pokémon Champions, and Roger, Barbie Horse Ride and Rescue, and more
We highlight the latest new games that have broken cover over the past week
D2c At Pgc Barcelona
The D2C window is open. Here's how mobile studios can walk through it
Berkley Egenes, Chief Marketing & Growth Officer, Xsolla takes a deep dive into the growing opportunities for European game developers to go direct to consumers.
Lagos Games Week
Most people take an unexpected route into games says Global Game Jam director
Global Game Jam executive director Maria Burns Ortiz shares why there is no single path into a career in games
Pgc Roundup
4 key takeaways from PGC Barcelona: D2C’s reality, star names flock to Spain, and going AI-first
We round up the key trends and talking points from this week's big show in Spain
Games Preservation
The European Commission rejects calls to stop publishers from taking games offline
The Commission plans to consult with publishers and consumer on end-of-life standard for video games
Market Revenue
Global Games revenue surpasses $200bn for the first time, mobile generates $113bn
The report shows that mobile generated more than half of all games revenue in 2025
Charity Event
Jingle Jam names eight charity partners ahead of 2026 games fundraiser
The announcement was made during Jingle Jam’s annual awards event
Roblox Fee
Roblox reveals creator fee structure for brand integrations from 2027
The new framework will calculate charges based on audience reach and player location
Trending Trainers
Pokémon Champions tops iPhone App Store installs in 13 countries on launch day
The new Pokémon battler released on mobile on June 17th, two months after Switch launch
Big Indie Pitch
Bottled by Bears wins the Mobile Big Indie Pitch sponsored by Xsolla at PGC Barcelona 2026
Find out who took the top three spots in our popular indie game developer pitching contest
Pgc Barcelona
Unpacking the Tetris licensing playbook with Maya Rogers
At PGC Barcelona, Tetris CEO Maya Rogers explained how she picks partners, protects the IP and keeps every collaboration feeling true to the game
Events
Lagos Games Week 2026 kicks off two days of talks, exhibitions and showcases
The event centres on connecting African game development talent with global markets, under the theme "Play Without Borders”
Making Money
Unreal Engine for Fortnite creator payouts surpass $1bn
Creators can monetise through engagement payouts and in-island transactions
Esports
Esports Nations Cup 2026 opens ticket sales ahead of debut event
The nation-based esports competition is set to take place in Riyadh across four weeks in November
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
Unreal Updates
Epic Games outlines its vision for Unreal Engine 6
The next generation of Unreal Engine is currently targeting early access in late 2027
Rising Revenue
Dream Games and Peak Games responsible for over 80% of Türkiye’s games revenue
AppMagic’s report Türkiye's Mobile Gaming Landscape 2026 finds puzzlers account for almost 97% of Turkish developers' revenue