Esports World Cup
Esports World Cup 2026 officially opens in Paris
The event features a record-breaking $75m prize pool
Pgc Summit Shanghai
How Thatgamecompany and NetEase grew Sky's community in China
China has become one of Sky: Children of the Light's largest and most active player bases in the world - and the partnership behind that success runs far deeper than capital or market access
Abrupt End
Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis to end service in October
In-game events will continue to be updated until the end of service
Game Closure
Nintendo to shut down Mario Kart Tour in September
“Thank you for your support throughout the years”
In The Hot Seat
In the Hot Seat: Mattel163 COO Devin Nambiar on Uno, the East-West divide and life after the NetEase deal
Mattel163's COO Devin Nambiar gets candid about cross-border publishing and the NetEase acquisition
Pokemon Phenomenon
10 years of Pokémon Go: Making a phenomenon built to last
Scopely’s Kim Adams and Christian Kurlemann discuss forever franchises Pokémon Go and Monopoly Go at Pocket Gamer Connects Summit San Francisco
Funding News
Exclusive: Türkiye studio Bold Games raises $6m
Studio aims to grow the team and scale debut sort puzzle mobile game Market Match
Pgc Nordics
Why the Nordics, why now?
How this small region with big results is ahead of the global game in 2026
Union Support
CWA vows action after Microsoft layoffs impact unionised Xbox game workers
The union plans to bargain over severance, job placements and recall rights
Backlash Continues
Love and Deepspace cancels Bilibili World 2026 appearance amid ongoing controversy
The company will reimburse affected fans for tickets, flights and hotel cancellations
Strategic Move
Xbox CEO says mobile to play key role as Microsoft restructures gaming business
Asha Sharma said the Microsoft games division spread its resources too thin
New Offerings
Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey launches Roblox companion game ahead of film release
The game has already recorded 1.7 million visits
Leadership
Xbox appoints Helen Chiang as first chief operating officer
The appointment comes as Microsoft continues a broader restructuring of its Xbox business
Pgc Summit Shanghai
Why developers can't miss PG Connects Summit Shanghai
A gateway for international companies to access the world’s largest games market
Pgc Summit Shanghai
Who's funding, monetising and building with AI at PGC Summit Shanghai 2026
Inside the top sessions at PGC Summit Shanghai, as speakers set the scene for the ideas, insights and conversations they’ll bring to the stage
Not-so Mini-games
The key numbers on China's booming Mini-Games market
The Mini-Games market drove an estimated $7.65bn in revenue during 2025 from IAPs and ads
Xbox Reset
King and Mojang to report directly to Xbox CEO Asha Sharma after company "reset"
The Candy Crush and Minecraft developers were highlighted for their large player bases
Marvellous Mena
Dubai doubles down on public-private partnerships to drive gaming ambitions
Crown Prince Hamdan says the future of gaming depends on government and industry collaboration
Marvellous Mena
WOLF Qanawat on cutting churn with games, the three-persona system and building for a majlis-first audience
"In the MENA region, gaming is intensely communal. It's a digital extension of gathering in a physical ‘majlis’ meeting place or cafe"
New Offerings
YouTube launches supervised kid accounts across MENA with new parental controls
New accounts include built-in parental controls and safety protections
Studio Closure
Niantic Spatial closes New Zealand office amid enterprise shift
At least 10 employees are believed to have been laid off
Strategic Move
Stillfront extends €60 million loan facility until 2028 amid CEO search
Loan terms have been aligned with the company's revolving credit facility
Regulations
US Supreme Court allows Texas app store age verification law to take effect
Apple and Google are among the companies challenging the legislation
10 Years Of Pokemon Go
Pokémon Go celebrates 10th anniversary with over $9bn in revenue
The location-based game is the fifth highest-grossing mobile title across the decade
Sweeping Cuts
Xbox to cut 3,200 jobs and divest five studios
Microsoft is laying off 1,600 staff today and will make more staff redundant over the coming year
10 Years Of Pokemon Go
How Pokémon Go's Ambassador Programme encourages community play
Pokémon Go ambassador Jupiter Hadley talks community meetups and bonus incentives
Rebranding
Pokémon Go studio Niantic rebrands to Scopely Explore
The studio had continued using the Niantic name following its $3.5 billion acquisition by Scopely
New Partnerships
Scopely invests in ex-Umamusume Pretty Derby director's startup Studio AuKnow
The studio is led by former Uma Musume Pretty Derby content director Takuma Akitsu
Funding For Games
Supercell opens applications for Africa-focused developer grants
Equity-free grants range from $20,000 to $200,000
Game Petition
Love and Deepspace 'bring back Valko' petition surpasses 229k signatures
The campaign has collected 228,970 signatures
Hot Five
Hot Five: Love and Deepspace's Valko controversy, Pikmin Bloom’s spending surge, and Umamusume: Pretty Derby’s $100m year overseas
Our quick-fix roundup of the hottest stories on PocketGamer.biz
Funding News
Tripo AI raises $150m in Series A3 funding round
Tripo AI plans to invest further in 3D foundation models and world model technologies
Game Concerts
Wuthering Waves concert tour expands to Los Angeles after selling out in Asia
The concert celebrates two years of Wuthering Waves music and updates
Pgc Summit Shanghai
Newzoo director of consulting Ben Porter to speak at PGC Shanghai
A leading games market analyst joins the speaker lineup for Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Shanghai on July 29th
Soft Launch
46 top mobile games in soft launch: Talking Tom Epic Ride, Brinko, WWE Generations, Mr Bullet 2 and more
The top mobile games in soft launch right now
Podcast | Episode 96
WeChat Mini-Games uncovered and the Love & Deepspace Valko backlash | 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 96...
Week In Views
Game ownership, Love and Deepspace controversy, Pikmin Bloom's record revenue and WeChat's mini-game boom | Week in Views
The Pocketgamer.biz team pick their highlights from the headlines this week and deliver the stories behind the stories
New Games
New release roundup: Unhinged, CookieRun: Classic, Creatures of the Deep+, and more
We highlight the latest new games that have broken cover over the past week
Job News
Rovio CEO Alex Pelletier-Normand appointed COO of SEGA Europe's West Studios
Pelletier-Normand will continue serving as CEO of Rovio Entertainment
Providing Support
United Videogame Workers launches hardship fund for laid-off game workers
Eligible applicants can request between $1,000 and $5,000 in assistance
Funding News
Innovate UK opens £10m Createch funding call for game developers
Grants of between £100,000 and £500,000 are available for eligible projects
Mobile Games Awards
VOTE NOW: The games of the Pocket Gamer Mobile Games Awards 2026
Who will win? Featuring Arknights; Hatch Dragons; Kingdom Rush; My Talking Tom; The Division; Warframe; Zenless Zone Zero and more…
Funding For Games
Google launches $1m Indie Games Fund for African developers
Ten indie game studios will receive between $50,000 and $200,000 each
Mobile Mavens
“Players have the right to know what they're buying and how long they'll have it”: The Mobile Mavens on game ownership
The Mobile Mavens discuss game ownership, publisher responsibility and what happens when games reach end of life
Beyond Games
Inside June's Journey's leap from mobile game to bestselling novel with Death Wasn't Invited
Wooga managing director Dennis Korf and author Carlene O'Connor discuss bringing June's Journey into publishing and expanding the game's world beyond mobile
Google Loses
Google loses appeal against $4.7 billion Android antitrust fine
Regulators found Google used Android agreements to block rivals
Milestone
SuperCity reaches $100m revenue as it celebrates 15 years
The game has reached 40m installs worldwide
Job News
Supercell head of investments Jaakko Harlas departs
Harlas said he has no new role planned and will spend time with his family
Pgc Summit Shanghai
MyGamez VP of partnerships Svitlana Verpakhovska to speak at PGC Summit Shanghai
The newly appointed MyGamez VP joins a growing roster to help Western developers crack the world's largest games market
Acqusitions
Kepler Interactive acquires minority stake in Oro Interactive
The investment gives Oro additional resources and expertise to support its growth.