Daniel Griffiths Editor - PocketGamer.biz Daniel Griffiths is a veteran journalist who has worked on some of the biggest entertainment media brands in the world. He's interviewed countless big names, and covered countless new releases in the fields of videogames, music, movies, tech, gadgets, home improvement, self build, interiors and garden design. Yup, he said garden design… He’s the ex-Editor of PSM2, PSM3, GamesMaster and Future Music, ex-Deputy Editor of The Official PlayStation Magazine and ex-Group Editor-in-Chief of Electronic Musician, Guitarist, Guitar World, Rhythm, Computer Music and more. He hates talking about himself.

Monument Valley is 10 years old today, kickstarting a year of celebrations

Happy birthday! Monument Valley is ten… And where did the last decade just go?

Quite possibly my favourite game of all time just had its tenth birthday and will shortly be coming to Netflix Games. And after all the layoffs and battles the news that Escher-inspired, worldview-flipping, adventure/exploring puzzler is once again getting a chance to shine, makes this a great week for mobile gaming.

And by God after the year so far, we need it.

Entertainment that embraces its delivery medium to prove what can be done are few and far between and Monument Valley and mobile is right up there with gin and tonic, Morecambe and Wise and Gameboy and Tetris.

At once the game defined both touchscreen gaming and the world-changing dawn of what could be done via in-app purchase. Is there anyone who bought the first game who didn’t spring for the Forgotten Shores additional expansion pack that arrived six months later? Come on. At $1.99 it was rude not to.

And after an afterlife on Apple Arcade the news that the game and its sequel will be continuing their quest on Netflix (hopefully delighting a whole new audience in the process) is the icing on the birthday cake.

Wonder which of the big players going to be the first to host Monument Valley 3?…

Craig Chapple Head of Content Craig Chapple is a freelance analyst, consultant and writer with specialist knowledge of the games industry. He has previously served as Senior Editor at PocketGamer.biz, as well as holding roles at Sensor Tower, Nintendo and Develop.

Laton Ventures secures $35 million for games investments in Turkey and beyond

VC funds are opening up to new waves of investments as we enter the new financial year. Laton Ventures has just raised $35 million to invest in pre-seed and seed stage startups with the potential to “scale into massive companies”.

Meanwhile this week a16z opened up its third Speedrun accelerator with $75 million up for grabs to startups. On top of that, Wargaming co-founder Nick Katselapov has launched investment company Mika Games with a $50 million fund for mobile games companies.

So between just the three of them, that’s potentially $160 million for startups announced in just the past week.

This year is still expected to be a challenging one for the industry, but it’s positive to see investors still open to funding companies on what remains a very lucrative and exciting sector. It’s a good sign for the future of the industry as it gets back on its feet and looks toward brighter years ahead.

Paige Cook Deputy Editor Paige is the Deputy Editor on PG.biz who, in the past, has worked in games journalism covering new releases, reviews and news. Coming from a multimedia background, she has dabbled in video editing, photography, graphic and web design! If she's not writing about the games industry, she can probably be found working through her ever-growing game backlog or buried in a good book.

72% of women play video games with half of female players being payers

As a woman who plays games, I always find it interesting to see the numbers in reports such as this. Mostly, they tend to prove the same few things: yes, women are playing games, and the gap between women and men gamers is often closer than some would think.

That last part, however, still confuses me. Are there still people unaware that women enjoy games almost as much as men? The diversity and inclusivity questions are always interesting to me too. The report states that 65% of the men surveyed and 62% of women consider diversity in games important. Again, is this something that people aren’t aware of in 2024?

I understand that the industry is generally far more aware of its audience now, and some even use that knowledge exceptionally well to cater to a specific demographic. I'm also not knocking the report; having actual data and numbers that explore who players are and what they want is always insightful. I'm more just wondering, or should I say hoping, that as an industry, most of us are reading such reports and not being surprised to see that gamers are a group of diverse people who want to see that diversity reflected back in the media they consume.

Aaron Astle News Editor Aaron is the News Editor at PG.biz and has an honours degree in Creative Writing. Having spent far too many hours playing Pokémon, he's now on a quest to be the very best like no one ever was...at putting words in the right order.

10 games industry questions answered: From AI and alternative app stores to layoffs and more

It’s always interesting hearing different opinions on the future of man and AI working together. Are we nurturing our new best friend’s personal development, or teaching a meniacal machine how to destroy us? Either way, it looks like AI’s continuing to improve and many game developers have found their footing firmly on one side of the fence or other.

According to analyst Omdia, over 30% of game developers are already using generative AI, but only 21% expect the tech to be a net good. 18% foresee an outright negative result of using generative AI, while everyone else either anticipates some pros and some cons, or frankly don’t know what to expect.

Omdia’s data also answers questions around the mass layoffs seen across the industry, the potential of alternative app stores, and more key topics of 2024.