New Game Launch
Starvania Studio to launch Bahamut and The Waqwaq Tree during Dubai GameExpo Summit
The game is inspired by Arabian mythologies from the One Thousand and One Nights book
Market Growth
UK video game consumer spending hits £7.6bn
Ukie’s new report found that mobile games grew by 8.1% to £1.7bn in 2024
Market Growth
Middle East fastest-growing market for game revenue and downloads in 2024
The region was the only games market to see downloads growth last year
Gameexpo Summit
Dubai GameExpo Summit 2025 begins today
Two days of insightful sessions and networking opportunities for the MENA region takes place on May 7th to 8th
New Partnerships
EA and MLS launch live match streaming on EA Sports FC mobile via Apple TV
Players that watch the live broadcasts via FCM TV will earn in-game currency
Esports In Africa
Carry1st Africa Cup 2025 returns with $15,000 Call of Duty: Mobile prize pool
Over 200 teams and 1,000 players are expected to participate for a $15,000 prize pool
Earnings Report
Roblox delivers $1.04bn revenue in Q1 2025 despite $215m net loss
Users spent 21.7bn hours engaged on the platform, marking a 30% increase
Lawsuit
Apple files appeal against court's App Store ruling
The company has denied violating the court's order in a previous lawsuit filed by Epic Games
Trump Tariffs
Trump’s film industry tariffs: Will game movie adaptations be sentenced or spared?
The US president calls incentives drawing US filmmakers to other countries a "national security threat"
Tech Talent
OP Financial Group joins Supercell to back tuition-free coding school Hive Helsinki
In five years Hive has helped 245 people launch tech careers in Finland
Sold Shares
Liftoff welcomes new investor as General Atlantic acquires minority stake
Blackstone will continue to hold the majority of shares
Gameexpo Summit
Showcasing the Sponsors! Dubai GameExpo Summit 2025
Meet the leading companies that make our May 7–8 conference possible
Hot Five
Hot Five: Game over for "Apple tax", Overwatch Mobile distribution plans, and Pokémon TCG Pocket beats Go in first six months
Our quick-fix roundup of the hottest stories on PocketGamer.biz
Strategic Review
Stillfront launches strategic review as it eyes asset sales amid revenue decline
The company has also tapped capital market firm Carnegie and Aream as financial advisors to assist with its strategic review
Marvellous Mena
GEM Capital MD and Jetapult CEO talk MENA investments and unlocking the region's potential
Roman Gurskiy and Sharan Tulsiani discuss what they look for in startups, common founder mistakes, and how MENA game studios can attract global capital
Week In Views
Dream Games lands CVC investment and Pokémon TGC Pocket nears $1bn | Week in Views
The Pocketgamer.biz team pick their highlights from the headlines this week and deliver the stories behind the stories
Acqusitions
Super League acquires Supersocial to expand interactive brand integrations on Roblox
Superficial CEO Mr. Raz-Fridman will now serve as an advisor to Super League
Developer Tools
Stripe launches guide for iOS external payments amid Apple's policy changes
The team has prepared a guide to walk developers through how they can accept payments using the platform
Apple Policy
DTC industry leaders weigh in on the Apple App Store ruling
The industry responds to Apple’s ruling that could change the face of mobile monetisation
Company Spotlight
Company Spotlight: Almedia
Find out more about Almedia, the Berlin-based rewarded user acquisition and loyalty platform, which also is the fastest-growing ad company in Europe
Tiktok Fine
TikTok hit with €530m fine over GDPR breach
The social company has six months to comply
App Store Changes
Apple updates app store rules to allow external payment after court ruling
An exemption has been added for apps on the US storefront
Milestone
Big Cash Bingo hits $500,000 in monthly revenue
Bring It On will soft-launch its next real-money skill game later this month
New Offerings
FGL Games launches new portal for online web titles
A move to help developers navigate app store challenges
Five New Games
New release roundup: Sleepy Stork, Odin: Valhalla Rising, The Mr. Rabbit Magic Show and more
We highlight the latest new games that have broken cover and are all set to do big business
Direct-to-consumer
Epic Games will launch web shops next month
Fortnite developer will also offer 0% commission on a game's first $1 million on the Epic Games Store
Pass Go, Collect $5bn
Scopely’s Monopoly Go hits $5bn in two years
Genshin Impact previously took 40 months to hit the milestone across the App Store and Google Play
Earnings Report
Microsoft reports $70.1bn in Q3 revenue as demand for AI tools increase
PC Game Pass revenue grew over 45% year-over-year
Mavens
The industry reacts to landmark ruling against Apple's App Store payment policy
Our Mavens share their insights on what this means for the industry and what may happen next
Mobile Milestone
Delta Force Mobile surpasses 10m downloads in first four days
Tencent’s Team Jade is adding celebratory Burst Fest content including 21 free vehicle appearances
Ai Safety
Epic Games clarifies position on AI thumbnails as detection becomes more difficult
The Fortnite maker acknowledged that human artists still deliver the best results
Strategic Investment
Dream Games secures strategic investment from CVC as sole equity partner
The deal is expected to close in Q3 2025
Sonic Slowdown
Sonic Rumble delayed indefinitely one week before expected launch
"We at Sega share that disappointment, especially because we're making this call so close to the launch"
Level Design
How King builds tournament levels for Candy Crush All Stars
Lead level designer Therese Sander gives us a behind the scenes look at how Candy Crush All Stars levels are designed for the high-stakes competition
Gameexpo Summit
Find your next role with the Careers Zone at Pocket Gamer Connects Barcelona
A hub of innovation, networking and talent acquisition sponsored by Sandsoft and powered by Games Factory Talent
New Partnerships
Mobile Legends: Bang Bang's MPL Indonesia lands partnership with NBA
Collaboration will further boost the esports scene in Indonesia
Pgc Jordan
Game incubators in MENA and the risks of "polishing the wrong thing"
GIGS co-founder Ashraf Abi-Said and LUDiMUS Inc CEO and co-founder Sho Sato discussed the value of incubators at PGC Jordan 2024
Milestone
My.Games' Castle Duels surpasses $1m monthly revenue
The game's lifetime earnings is now over $6m since it launched in 2024
Awards
Gamescom LATAM BIG Festival 2025 awards winners revealed
Ceremony celebrates regional and global games
Epic Win
“Game over for the Apple tax” as US court rules publishers can freely link to off-store payments
The iPhone giant could face criminal contempt proceedings as judge issues scathing ruling
Pc Expansion
Marvel Contest of Champions to launch on PC after making $2bn on mobile
Pre-registrations are open now, but the exact release date hasn’t yet been confirmed
New Partnerships
Saudi Esports Federation partners with PUGB Mobile to expand competitive opportunities
The partnership will merge the Saudi eLeague with the PUBG Mobile National Championship
Game Optimisation
Hypercasual games see 78% boost from story-driven ads despite low spend
New AppsFlyer report finds that top 2 percent of ad creatives in games still drive 53 percent of total spend
New Offerings
PvX Partners launches business intelligence suite Lambda
Tool is designed for financial planning and decision-making
Pokemon Prime
Pokémon TCG Pocket usurps Pokémon Go launch as it closes in on $1bn after six months
Pocket made $915.3m in its first half-year, beating Go’s $800.7m by 14%
Sponsored
How GeeMee reshapes mobile app Monetisation with AI technology
The evolution of app revenue generation
In-game Advertising
Report: Mobile leads in reach while PC and console drive deeper ad engagement
New report from Anzu finds that advertisers can benefit by combining the deep engagement of PC and console with the broad reach of mobile
Industry Insights
Four cases of the HR brand solving real business problems
Nikita Guk shares real examples of how employer branding helped companies with hiring, retention and reputation challenges
New Partnerships
Stillfront’s Dorado Games and Bytro Labs join forces to launch the Supremacy Franchise
Both companies have now formed Twin Harbour Interactive
Layoff News
EA layoffs hit hundreds in company wide restructuring
Around 100 staff were let go at Respawn and 200-300 more company wide