Tonk You Very Much
Ex-Disney and Pixar animators raised $2m for new Texas mobile studio Tonk Tonk Games
Funding led by BITKRAFT esports ventures
Game Freeze
China blocks new game approvals again as it strives to clear extensive backlog
As many as 5,000 games could be awaiting the greenlight
Rip Ps Vita
PlayStation Vita shipments to end soon in Japan confirming end for handheld
Vita Island is no more
Google
Google to unveil a mystery gaming project at this year’s GDC
"Gather round" for the web giant's next step into gaming on March 19th
Acquisition Strike
Japanese developer Mixi partners with XTech to accelerate M&A plans
Partnership could see expenditure of up to $271 million
Stark Rabbid Mad
Ketchapp utilises Ubisoft IP for new Rocket Rabbids mobile game
Keep calm and Bwahhh
Nexon-marble
Netmarble on Nexon acquisition: "With some leverage we could do the funding ourselves"
Been execs remain coy on exactly how a deal might be structured
Financials
Netmarble profit tumbles 72% year-on-year in Q4 due to slowing sales and lack of new releases
Publisher appears to be struggling to fill the hole from fading Lineage 2 and Harry Potter revenue
Too Little, Too Late?
Why Activision Blizzard’s mobile strategy is between a rock and a hard place
The wrong IP at the wrong time
Deepening Losses
Up to 30 full-time jobs on the line at Finnish dev Nitro Games
Studio employs 51 staff
Time For Change
US labour organisation pens open-letter to games developers urging unionisation
AFL-CIO’s secretary-treasurer Liz Shuler fronts message
Financials
Ubisoft mobile bookings soar 77.6 per cent over the first three quarters of the publisher’s FY2019
"Ubisoft delivered a solid performance in a quarter when, as expected, competition was particularly fierce.”
Mark Zuckerberg Likes This
Facebook top apps publisher for mobile downloads in Q4 2018
800 million downloads in three months
Funded
TinyBuild has big plans for its newly-acquired $15 million in Series-A investment
Large Series-A funding will be used to bring on new hires and push publishing project growth
Court Used Repel
Pokémon Go settlement could result in removal of certain Poké Stops and Gyms
Niantic will need to respond to 95 per cent of complaints in 15 days
Slice Of The Pie
Com2uS acquires 51.9 per cent stake in South Korean developers Day7
Developer is known for story-based games
Charts
Weekly global mobile games charts: Coin Master overtakes Candy Crush Saga in Great Britain and Ireland for top grossing
Charts from February 4th to February 10th
Event
Save up to $500 on Pocket Gamer Connects Seattle with Super Early Bird prices this week
Ticket prices now lowest they'll ever be for May’s event, ends Thursday
The Crowd Goes Wild
China officially recognises esports as a profession
Esports professional and operator roles recognised as of January 25th
Live Ops Landscape
5 videos from Pocket Gamer Connects London 2019's Live Ops Landscape track
Track sponsored by Amazon Game Tech
Europe A Priority
Activision Blizzard shuts down King’s San Francisco studio as it focuses on European development
Mobile developer pulls out of US altogether
The Saga Continues
Tencent joins Netmarble consortium in bid for Nexon
Deal could be made official as soon as February 21st
Who Ya Gonna Call
LEGO unveils new ghost-themed AR experience Hidden Side
Can we build it
Human Stand Tall
Human: Fall Flat coming to mobile in China as 505 Games partners with X.D. Network
Going back to 505
Wired
Plug In Digital raises $2.25M to push publishing efforts on mobile and PC
Plug In Digital looks to strengthen its services, partnerships and publishing opportunities
What's Next?
The Walking Dead: Our World dev Next Games lays off 26 staff as losses mount
Operating losses for 2018 increases to $19 million
Diamonds Are Forever
Minecraft has its best year ever on mobile earning $110 million
Good news for Steve
Big Deal
Report: Facebook wanted to buy Unity game engine to drive VR and AR business
Wants to be a key player in the next major computing platform after mobile
From This Moment On
Amazon launches new reward scheme Amazon Moments
Tailor-made discounts
Events
Pocket Gamer and Pixonic reunite for our second Party @ GDC 2019
Cap off your first day at GDC with free drinks, dance and networking
Lovin' It
AppLovin study reveals two-thirds of British people play mobile games
But only 64 per cent reckon they're a gamer
Maple
Maplestory M’s massive success is only part of Nexon’s record-setting financial results
Nexon’s highest full-year performance across both PC and Mobile made FY2018 one of the publisher’s strongest years to date
External Funding
Rovio looking to sell over 30 per cent of its stake in streaming service Hatch
To stream or not to stream that is the question
Let It Go
Disney collaborates with Kuato Studios for new storytelling app Disney Story Realms
The genie is out of the bottle
Keys To Success
How JoyPac delivered a top 10 success in China
China can be tough to break into, yet the right strategy can make it a reality
Not So Angry Now
Angry Birds 2 Q4 gross bookings up 77 per cent year-on-year as Rovio reports record quarter for games business
Finnish giant reveals it has 13 new games in development, anticipates big 2019 with new Angry Birds Movie sequel set to launch
Switch's Awakening
The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening remake set for Nintendo Switch 2019 release
Classic gets new lick of paint
We're Serious
Nintendo reveals Tetris battle royale game for Nintendo Switch
...what?
Mario Maker
Nintendo reveals Super Mario Maker 2 for Nintendo Switch
Set to release in June 2019
No Filter
Pokemon Go update will add new AR camera functionality
Coming very soon
Zap
Ubisoft partners with Mozilla for new bug detecting AI Clever Commit
Looks to improve Ubisoft’s player base
Super Hire
Former Grand Cru CEO Markus Pasula joins Supercell as game developer
Former Rovio SVP of global studios Antti Viitanen took up reigns of Grand Cru in February 2018
Port
Human: Fall Flat will land feet-first on mobile with a little help from 505 Games and Codeglue
505 Games partners with Curve Digital to bring the PC and Console indie hit to handheld devices
Turkey
Gaming Istanbul celebrates its fourth birthday in Turkey's billion-dollar gaming market
“The gaming bridge of Eurasia” wraps up its fourth year with international exhibitors
We Like Ike
Fire Emblem Heroes has grossed over $500 million in two years
More than all other release for mobile combined
Job News
PlayStation vet Lindsay joins Keywords-owned music firm Cord Worldwide as head of audio
Was previously head of audio at Sony Computer Entertainment Europe
Smart Move
Activision Blizzard: "Mobile is a top priority for us"
Expect more mobile games from the Call of Duty and Overwatch publisher
Hail To The King
Candy Crush maker King's revenue up in 2018 to $2bn, touts $100m ads business
"The next phase about where the ad business heading is about continued scaling"
Studio Closure
Report: King's Seattle studio to close
Decision results in 78 job losses
Job Losses
Activision Blizzard to cut eight per cent of workforce despite "record revenue"
Firm says development workforce to increase by 20 per cent