Brazil Ban
Brazil bans loot boxes for under 18s in online child safety measure
The law will come into play starting March 2026
Pgc Helsinki
Content revealed: Why you can't miss out on our biggest PGC Helsinki ever
Check out the schedule overview across a massive 22 tracks with three summits covering AI, multiplatform development and transmedia
Podcast | Episode 66
UGC platform revenue share, app store competition, and Fire Emblem's surprise launch | 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 66...
Game-changing Deal
Report: EA in talks to go private at $50bn valuation
Saudi Arabia’s PIF, Silver Lake and Affinity Partners working on deal that could be announced as soon as next week
New Offerings
Microsoft prices ROG Xbox Ally X handheld at $1,000
The Xbox Ally series launches on October 16th, with pre-orders now open
Leadership Change
Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser to retire at year's end
The leadership transition is set for December 31, 2025
Ai Innovation
Unity launches AI Council to accelerate innovation across game development platform
The game engine aims to be the leading platform for the next era of interactive content creation
Tiktok Sale
Trump signs executive order approving TikTok sale at $14bn valuation
TikTok ban delayed until January 20th, 2026 to finalise sale and approvals
Pgc Summit Korea
First speakers and tracks revealed for Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Korea
Learn from a top speaker lineup and multitrack agenda on October 31st
Stealthy Shadows
Nintendo shadow drops Fire Emblem Shadows as its first new mobile game in six years
The second mobile Fire Emblem takes a real-time approach as opposed to gacha Fire Emblem Heroes’ turn-based combat
New Studio
Former AppLovin leaders launch new mobile studio Cheer
Cheer will focus on creating casual puzzle titles
New Offerings
HoYoverse reveals cosmic life simulation game Petit Planet
The upcoming title marks HoYoverse’s first step into the life-sim genre
Job News
ZBD appoints Nicole Diaz as senior vice president of product
She will lead strategy for ZBD’s global payments and multi-currency solutions
New Partnerships
UMX Studio partners with Audiomob for in-game audio ads
Collaboration aims to enhance player experience while opening new revenue streams
New Game Launch
Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor set to launch on mobile this November
The mobile version promises the same hardcore action as PC
New Offerings
Google Play launches raft of new games features
Rolls out includes other features like the You tab and Play Games Leagues
New Partnerships
Niantic Spatial partners with Kojima Productions to merge storytelling with geospatial AI
The collaboration showcases AI’s potential to transform how people interact with the physical world
Milestone
Fateless completes Alpha Wave cycle with 36k players for upcoming RPG Godforge
Alpha Wave 3 drew 36,000 players, logging over 355,000 hours of gameplay
Pgc Aqaba
Indies! Maximise your opportunities at PG Connects Aqaba 2025
Exclusive opportunities to showcase your studio in the MENA market this November 8th to 9th
New Offerings
UK creative organisations call for a new Digital Creativity GCSE
The move aims to serve not just games, but healthcare, finance, media, and education
Acqusitions
Swoove Studios sells to undisclosed buyer
Under new ownership, Swoove is expected to continue innovating and scaling globally
Mobile Milestone
Delta Force hits $300m on mobile after record daily revenue
Daily player spending hit $9.3m on September 19th, up 333% over one week
Creator Chief
Roblox appoints ex-Zynga and Airbnb veteran Vlad Loktev as chief creator ecosystem officer
He will start the new role on September 29th, 2025, set to lead developer relations and platform events
Game Jam
Saudi Arabia launches the second edition of the Saudi Game Champions Program
Each startup will receive $53,000, mentorship from global experts, and training support
Online Safety
Kuwait temporarily blocks Roblox over child safety concerns
The country joins Turkey, Oman, China, and Qatar in restricting the platform
New Partnerships
Savvy Games Group signs MoU with Alinma Bank to deliver tailored banking solutions for Saudi gamers
The partnership aligns with Saudi Vision 2030 and the National Gaming and Esports Strategy
Pgc Helsinki
Therapy? drummer Neil Cooper and other stellar speakers joining Pocket Gamer Connects Helsinki
New cutting-edge content announced for Helsinki, October 7th to 8th
Clampdown
Trump imposes a $100,000 annual fee on H-1B visa applications
US commerce secretary Howard Lutnick claims big companies are on board with the plan despite millions of dollars in extra costs
Online Safety
US Congress calls on Twitch, Steam, Reddit, and Discord CEOs to testify on online radicalisation
The hearing is scheduled for October 8th 2025
Expansions
Supercell plots new office in Helsinki’s Maria area to support expansion
CEO Ilkka Paananen says the new space will help Supercell attract talent and sustain global growth
Adaptations
MrBeast joins the cast of Angry Birds 3
The film will hit cinemas a month earlier on December 23rd, 2026
Job News
Supercell taps King's Sabrina Carmona as new Clash of Clans GM
She will work alongside a team to spearhead the future of the title
Growth
Playstack revenue surged 52% in H1 2025 to £30.7m
Balatro and Abiotic Factor sold over 3m units in the first half of the year
Scholarships
BAFTA awards over £277,000 in grants through its 2025 scholarship programmes
The fund provides up to $2,700 each for training, equipment, and other essential costs
Legal Proceedings
Tencent rejects Sony’s claim that Light of Motiram is a “slavish clone” of Horizon
The Level Infinite parent company argues Sony is trying to monopolise common genre elements
Global Launch
Pocketpair confirms Palworld will exit Early Access in 2026 with a major 1.0 update
The studio says that the cleanup work in 2025 will prepare the game for a stronger full release
New Offerings
Fortnite creators will be able to sell in-game items directly from their islands starting in December
Epic says creators will earn 50% of V-Bucks value from sales, rising to 100% through late 2026
Market Growth
Cross-industry game engine adoption surges, led by Unreal, Unity and Godot
Unreal Engine remains dominant at 65% adoption, with Unity growing to 53% as the second most popular engine
New Partnerships
Flexion partners with Microfun to bring Seaside Escape to alternative app stores
Seaside Escape earned $6m net revenue in August
Acquisition
Verve acquires Captify in $30.3m deal to boost data and sales reach
Captify CEO Mike Welch to step down moving into a strategic advisor role
Milestone
Metacore celebrates fifth anniversary alongside Merge Mansion’s five-year milestone
The mobile title has surpassed 60m downloads and $700m in lifetime revenue
Podcast
From offerwall to always-on: Xsolla’s take on player engagement
The PocketGamer.biz podcast team and guests give you the state of play, here's where to get it and what's inside this week's episode
New Offerings
Epic Games launches new open content marketplace Fab
Developers can now access Fab’s full asset library and manage acquisitions
Industry Partnership
Pocket Gamer Connects partners with Global Game Jam
New collaboration aiming to elevate game creativity and games industry networking
Trade Body
Ukie launches Interactive Entertainment Scotland to champion games sector
IES will represent Scottish studios in government and policy discussions to support industry growth
Industry Outlook
UK games industry generates £12bn annually and supports 73,000 jobs
Despite this growth, TIGA warns the UK lags behind global rivals with its 20.4% tax relief
Monster Milestone
Monster Hunter Now celebrates second anniversary and $271m in lifetime player spending
Originally a Niantic game, Now was purchased by Scopely as part of a larger $3.5bn deal this May
Investment News
Lingokids raises $120m to invest in AI and scale learning content
The funding will also help expand partnerships with popular IPs
Pgc Helsinki
"Why your players hate your web store"
Appcharge’s Miikka Luotio discusses the four steps of a web store and which element might be "broken"
Milestone
Fable Town celebrates first anniversary after generating $9m in lifetime revenue since launch
A special three-week Anniversary of Magic event runs until October 2nd to mark the milestone