Web3 Goes Mobile
Inside Animoca Brands and Yuga Lab's Wreck League web3 strategy
Developer nWay hopes to make waves with web3 and web2 releases of the same game
Funding
Zibra AI raises $500,000 from a16z Speedrun
The funding brings the company's total investment so far to $2.5 million
Q&a
Bringing Second Life to mobile: "There’s a lot of excitement and anticipation in the community"
Second Life’s VP of product, Grumpity Linden tells us how the legendary PC pre-metaverse experience is making the leap to mobile
Job News
FunPlus appoints industry veteran Alexandre Amancio to leadership role
Amancio joins the team as SVP and head of world building and IP Strategy
Financials
Unity celebrates a record quarter with $533 million in revenue
The company’s revenue increased 80% year-on-year
Gem Games
Gem Capital’s new $50M fund will invest in fledglings of F2P, midcore and more
Investments to be made in pre-seed, seed, and Series A rounds
Job News
WAGMI appoints EA veterans to leadership roles
Esteban Gil and Brent Pease will assist the company in its web3 goals
Moving To Mobile
Mobile exclusive Assassin’s Creed Codename Jade launches first closed beta
The open-world game is available on iOS and Android until 11 August 2023
Google Goes Blockchain
Inside Google’s blockchain content policy
The tech giant has recently revealed its policy on in-app blockchain and NFT and commentators are digging deep as to what it all means
Artificial Intelligence
AI startup Inworld raises another $50 million for a $500 million valuation
The new investment follows the company’s work on AI-driven non-player character experiences
New Release
Anything World launches its 3D models on the Unity Asset Store
Unity users can now access their library of rigged 3D animated models and more
Subscription Success
Mobile games using a subscription model almost triple in a year
Liftoff and Appsflyer report that mobile games represent almost 30% of subscription-based apps
Anniversary
Fireproof Games prepares for the tenth anniversary of The Room
The cross-platform hit will be on sale across platforms in September
Startup Speedrun
a16z Games announces Speedrun 2024 with $75 million investment pool
Startups are encouraged to enter for the next event starting in January
Indie Funding
Google opens applications for its latest Indie Games Fund
The tech giant will distribute $2 million to small studios in Latin America
Chinese Restrictions
China to implement new restrictions on children's smartphone use
Just when it looked like China legislation was opening up, new moves to restrict the market are afoot
Financials
EA delivers a record $1.9 billion in net revenue in the first quarter of 2023
Mobile accounted for only a small percentage of the 9% YOY increase, despite FIFA Mobile success
Ai Activity
Homa's AI hackathon just built 10 new AI tools in just 48 hours
The company's first Internal Gen AI Hackathon saw 10 teams create new tools to a strict deadline
Routes Arrive
Niantic flies the AR flag with new features in Pokémon Go
Routes in Pokémon Go is a new feature being rolled out ahead of eagerly anticipated Niantic/Capcom collab, Monster Hunter Now
Partnership
Reactional Music and Amanotes announce new partnership
The partnership aims to bring music and gaming closer than ever before.
Unmissable Savings
Indies, take your career to the next level at PG Connects Helsinki this September 12-13
Book your ticket to PG Connects Helsinki today to give your indie brand a boost and save with our Mid-term offer!
Acquisition
Playtika acquires Azerion's Youda Games portfolio for upwards of $89.1 million
Azerion is selling the portfolio as part of its business refocus with an earnout agreement potentially pushing the price even higher
Anniversary
My Talking Tom turns 10
10th anniversary events include a collaboration with MrBeast to support a hospital in the Philippines
Mihoyo Milestone
MiHoYo makes $8 billion in user spending with 73% from Genshin Impact
Honkai: Star Rail makes up 6% of the total in just a few months
Milestone Sales
MLB 9 Innings achieves quarter of a billion dollars in lifetime sales
The franchise is officially North America’s number one mobile baseball game
Report
Japan’s consumer spend set to surpass $12.6 billion in 2023
RPG continues to dominate, but hypercasual is on the rise
Meet The Experts
Your first glimpse at just some of the speakers at Pocket Gamer Connects Helsinki 2023!
Check out the star-studded lineup sharing their insights with us at PG Connects Helsinki this September
Germany Grows
Germany on the rise with 46% growth in games companies since 2020
A 15.5% rise in games companies was observed in 2022
Apple V Epic
Epic Games appeals to the US Supreme Court in latest Apple legal clash
The move follows Apple’s own appeal filing earlier this month as Epic seek to make a 2021 ruling stick
Privacy
Apple enters the ATT endgame as its quest for privacy enters its final battle
Now they'll require developers to explain their use of certain APIs with non-compliant apps rejected by App Store Connects from Spring 2024
Jobs News
July's Mobile Movers and Shakers: Samantha Ryan leaves EA plus hires for Supercell, Zynga and more
July has seen some significant moves by some of the industry's biggest company's - here's the highlights from the last week
Success In China
China’s gaming reportedly hit a record gamer base in the first half of 2023
The opening session of ChinaJoy delved into the country’s gaming industry
Monster Hunter
Monster Hunter Now opens for pre-registration ahead of September 14 release
The game will bring the hit franchise to mobile for the first time
Digital Education
United Nations calls for crackdown on mobile app use in schools
UNESCO has called on countries worldwide to evaluate how technology is used in school
Tencent Acquisition
Tencent acquires visual novel company Visual Arts
The move follows the company’s acquisition of Techland earlier this week
Netflix Addition
Cut the Rope returns with a twist for Netflix Games
Flipping from Apple Arcade to Netflix Games, Cut the Rope has found a new home with a new daily gameplay twist
China Licensing
Is China's gaming output back on track?
With 88 new licences granted, could the country’s regulatory issues be coming to an end?
Financials
Capcom saw $311.7 million in net sales in quarter one 2023
The company is forecasting net sales of over $994 million by the end of the fiscal year
Gaming In India
India’s gaming industry draws the line between 'online' and 'real money' gaming
The move comes in the wake of India announcing a new 28% tax on games
Data.ai Report
In-app spending hit a record $67.5 billion in the first half of 2023
Mobile spend has returned to growth following declines in 2022
Partnerships
NetEase partners with payments provider Checkout.com to “accelerate global expansion”
The payment provider will help to facilitate payment integration in new markets
Data Privacy
French regulators call out Apple’s ATT
The iPhone and iOS owner may be in hot water from European regulators
New Release
What is Pokémon Sleep? The latest craze explained
The game brings the world of sleep tracking apps to one of the world’s most beloved franchises
Deals
Sega's Rovio deal clears regulatory hurdles and gets the green light
Barring a sudden 11th hour flap, the Sega's Rovio acquisition is set to go ahead
Financials
CyberAgent sees lean financials with game sales down 27.7%
The company operates major hits in Japan such as Uma Musume Pretty Derby
Venture Funding
Valhalla Ventures launches $66 million fund for gaming investment
The firm is targeting “audacious entrepreneurs” across games and mobile
Apple Vs. Consumers
Apple's "anti-competitive" App Store woes continue with a $1 billion class action lawsuit
The suit accuses the company of acting anti-competitively with its imposition of a 30% fee on in-app purchases
Ranking
Japan's top earning mobile games continue to dominate in the first half of 2023
Pole position and number two swap places while third place holds its own
Report
Consumers spent 2.5 trillion hours on Android in H1 2023. What's does that mean for mobile?
New reports show a 4% increase in time spent on Android - more than ever before
Ranking
Honor of Kings tops Weibo’s trending list with Honkai: Star Rail in hot pursuit
The microblogging site is one of China’s most popular social media sites and offers an interesting insight into the market