Ultimate Game Changers
Lion Studios launches $300k indie mobile games contest
Games new and old welcome; Submissions close on August 15th
Ua Party
Tilting Point to invest at least $20m in CookApps UA
Match-three game Toy Party gets marketing boost
Falling Into Place
N3twork signs exclusive deal for mobile Tetris games
First release is battle royale title Tetris Royale
Rapid Growth
Growing German studio Kolibri hits 100m downloads
The developer behind Idle Miner Tycoon and Idle Factory Tycoon now employs 100 staff
Event
OpenSea, Blockade Games and Diginex join the next wave of speakers for the first Blockchain Gamer Connects Hong Kong
Two-day B2B games industry conference looks poised to make an impressive debut next month
Weekly Charts
Weekly global mobile games charts: Wizards Unite hits top 10 US download charts but is not a top grosser
Rankings from June 17th to June 23rd
Spellbinding Stuff
Harry Potter: Wizards Unite enchants players with $3 million in first week
6.5 million downloads in seven days
Mobile Art Style
PGC Hong Kong: GameRefinery chief analyst Kalle Heikkinen to discuss mobile art styles across different regions
Pocket Gamer Connects Hong Kong 2019 will take place on July 17th to 18th
Jobs In Games
Seeking a job in the games industry - part one: The application process
Game Dragons consultant Philip Oliver offers advice on getting a job in games
Yas Queen!
InfluencerUpdate.biz editor Danielle Partis takes Journalist of the Year accolade at Women in Games Awards
"It's incredible to be recognised among such a group of talented journalists"
Roundup
Games industry roundup: Top 50 PC developer submissions open, Dr Disrespect is back on Twitch, and Ubisoft's blockchain business
15 articles from PocketGamer.biz, InfluencerUpdate.biz and BlockchainGamer.biz
East Meets West
East Meets West: Nexon price scares off buyers, and gaming firms rally against new US-China tariffs
Keeping up with the news from the world's most influential games market
Hot Five
The design choices behind Behaviour's Game of Thrones title, Candy Crush shoots down PUBG Mobile, and LEGO Tower diorama breaks record
The hottest stories from the mobile games industry over the last week
Award Winners
BIG Festival Awards 2019 winners revealed
Starlit on Wheels takes home Best Mobile Game
Industry Growth
Brazil’s games industry has more than doubled in size in four years
2018 saw 276 games companies employing 2,731 staff
Investigation
Games industry only "paying lip service" to addiction, says DCMS committee chair
Companies aren't taking the issue seriously enough according to MP Damian Collins
Beta Success
DOTA Underlords public beta reaches 1.5 million mobile downloads in seven days
Russia garnered the largest number with approximately 210,000 installs
Live And Kicking
Two years on: Small Giant Games on the evolution of Finland's latest great export Empires & Puzzles
CEO Timo Soininen and developer Sofia Vanhanen. discuss growing the highly successful title
Finland X Sweden
Nitro Games partners with Avalanche Studios to utilise IP on new mobile title
New game expected to launch in 2020 on iOS and Android
Work Conditions
UK media and entertainment union BECTU investigating working conditions in games
"We know there are also challenges that people face in their working lives, whether to do with stress, pay, long hours, or harassment"
Government Backing
Uncertainty surrounds future of Brazil games funds
Ancine and Finep agencies may no longer provide grants for local games companies
That's Bananas
Devolver Digital's My Friend Pedro sells 250,000 copies in first week
Title launched on Nintendo Switch and PC
Breakout Success
Prison Architect surpasses four million players globally
Console developer Double Eleven taking over the project following Paradox sale
Job News
Jony Ive to leave Apple after 27 years to form independent design company
LoveFrom launches later this year with Apple as first client
Nfts
PGC Hong Kong: Animoca Brands CEO Robby Yung on the importance of NFTs
Pocket Gamer Connects Hong Kong 2019 will take place on July 17th to 18th
Pitch & Match
Who will you do business with at Pocket Gamer and Blockchain Gamer Connects Hong Kong 2019?
Find that important contact among the 500 world-class companies represented at our debut two-day B2B games industry conference in July
Event
Google, X.D. Network, Yoozoo Games and Superera join incredible Pocket Gamer Connects Hong Kong 2019 speaker lineup
Speaker lineup for the two day B2B games industry conference continues to grow
Superstar Sessions
Don’t miss Superstar Sessions at Pocket Gamer Connects Hong Kong
Pocket Gamer Connects Hong Kong will run from July 17th to 18th
Access All Areas
New platform Unity Learn Premium aims to help teach real-time 3D development
Available at no further cost for Plus and Pro subscribers or $15 a month
Ice And Fire
Game of Thrones gets another mobile game spin-off with Behaviour Interactive's Beyond the Wall
Behaviour Interactive creative director Justin Jones discusses game design and working with a globally recognised IP
Gotta Friend ‘em All
Pokemon Masters launches on mobile this summer
“The idea was to create a gameplay experience where you could not only befriend Pokemon but also trainers to battle alongside you”
Road To Hero
Oasis Games developing One Punch Man title for iOS and Android
First officially authorised game for Western countries
Live Long And Prosper
Scopely reaches $1bn in lifetime revenue
Six games have exceeded over $100 million
Stock Sold
India's Reliance Entertainment reduces ownership to 14.2 per cent of Codemasters
Racing firm's CEO Frank Sagnier says that OnRush has been played by 2.5m people as of March 2019
Survive Together
Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony unite against US tariffs on consoles
Joint statement addressed to US government asking to exclude consoles
And The Winner Is
Ordia, Photographs and G30 - A Memory Maze win big at European Google Play Indie Games Showcase 2019
20 finalists arrived from 10 countries for the awards show in London
New Pubg In Works
PUBG Corp opens new game development studio Striking Distance
Former Sledgehammer Games co-founder and GM Glen Schofield named as CEO
Grand Plans
Why Monument Valley developer Ustwo hired a CEO
New chief exec Maria Sayans and chief creative officer Dan Gray discuss what's changed, what hasn't and why the studio is taking on multi-game development
Pgc Hong Kong 2019
PGC Hong Kong: Twitchy Finger founder and CEO Edward Li on future opportunities for developers
Pocket Gamer Connects Hong Kong 2019 will take place on July 17th to 18th
Big Festival
Brazil's Independent Games Festival 2019 kicks off today
PocketGamer.biz will be reporting from the show floor. Come say hi!
Instant Games And Hyper-casual
Check out the Instant Games and Hyper-casual track at Pocket Gamer Connects Hong Kong
Pocket Gamer Connects Hong Kong will run from July 17th to 18th
I Love Mena
Jordanian publisher Tamatem working with NokNok studio to bring I Love Mart to MENA region
Game to be renamed Bandar’s Farm to help become more culturally relevant
In The Red
Rovio files lawsuit against “Angry Birdz” chicken restaurant in California
A cease and desist letter was ignored by the owners in February
Acquisition
Gumi Cryptos acquires $1.67 million worth of shares in Double Jump.Tokyo
As part of this acquisition deal Gumi Cryptos received 891 non-voting shares
Reassigned
Google confirms it will no longer be making tablets
Though company will still support its Pixel Slate hardware
Collaboration
Niantic partners with AT&T and Simon to bring Wizards Unite incentives to retailers across the US
We’re excited to team up with AT&T and Simon to create a variety of custom Harry Potter: Wizards Unite gameplay experiences”
Speaker Spotlight
PGC Hong Kong: Superera VP Joe Tang on designing and creating a successful idle game
Pocket Gamer Connects Hong Kong 2019 will take place on July 17th to 18th
“we’ll Take The Lot”
Harry Potter: Wizards Unite on track to earn $10 million in first month
AR game brought in $1.1 million from opening weekend
West Meets East
Global trends, market insight and hyper-casual games: Inside West Meets East at Pocket Gamer Connects Hong Kong
Pocket Gamer Connects Hong Kong will run from July 17th to 18th
14 Years Later
Israel becomes home to Nintendo’s second official store
Official New York outlet opened in 2005