Rating System
PEGI expands age ratings to cover loot boxes and in-game spending
Games containing paid random items such as loot boxes will now default to a PEGI 16 rating
Online Safety
UK government votes against blanket social media ban for under-16s
The government is consulting on whether games, AI chatbots and social media should face stricter controls
Kingshot Crown
Kingshot’s first year: $800m, 11 months of growth, but backlash from whales
Century Games’ Kingshot was the most lucrative new mobile release of 2025
Market Report
Vietnam’s mobile games market reached $825m in revenue in 2025
The country now has around 54m gamers, placing it among the world’s top seven markets by mobile game downloads
Developer Support
Tenjin joins Turkish government incentives programme for game developers
Eligible Turkish studios can now receive government reimbursement when using Tenjin’s services
Event Report
Pocket Gamer Connects Summit San Francisco smashed expectations
Mobile-focused business event sets the tone for GDC week, bringing together leading games companies from around the world
Bossfight Comeback
Squid Game: Unleashed dev Boss Fight Entertainment relaunches as indie studio Bossfight
The original studio was shuttered under Netflix due to a change in course at the streaming giant
New Offerings
Epic Games cuts V-Bucks bundles as Fortnite pricing update rolls out
Players will receive fewer V-Bucks across most purchase tiers under the new pricing structure
Compatibility Test
Rovio’s Beacon tech "indispensable" to its own games but less compatible with Sega’s
Sega has yet to achieve "the level of results that had been expected" prior to Rovio’s acquisition
Friends And Features
Discord expands its Social SDK with native mobile linking and focus on friends
Discord users will now see a linked friend’s status in-game, such as competing or watching
Layoff News
Electronic Arts lays off an undisclosed number of employees across multiple Battlefield studios
The cuts impact teams at Criterion Games, DICE, Ripple Effect Studios and Motive Studio
New Office
Maysalward opens new headquarters in Amman
The new office will host The Capsule, a programme designed to expand the studio’s capacity-building efforts
Market Report
Around 70% of UK adults are gaming with increasing focus on social connections
One in four UK players expect to spend less time on social media to make room for gaming
Acquisition
NCSoft acquires 70% of JustPlay in $205m deal to expand its games portfolio
The South Korean publisher will strengthen its European presence through the acquisition
Scopely Celebration
Scopely celebrates 15 years with more than $15bn in lifetime revenue
The publisher has achieved over 150bn hours of playtime across its portfolio
Apple Troubles
German publishers urge antitrust fine against Apple ATT
Industry groups say Apple’s proposed ATT changes fail to resolve competition concerns
New Partnerships
Sumo Digital partners with Arm to explore AI-powered "PC-class" graphics for mobile games
Arm’s neural technology adds AI accelerators to GPUs to push mobile visuals closer to PC quality
Rainbow Six Start
Rainbow Six Mobile snaps up $1.6m in first 14 days
Player spending has been led by the US since global launch, already surpassing any country with soft launch access
Clash Comeback
Clash Royale celebrates 10 years and $4.9bn in player spending after resurgence
2025 was a major comeback year for the title, bolstered by changes to daily battles, influencers and more
New Offerings
Roblox launches Incubator and Jumpstart programmes to help developers build more advanced games for its platform
The company is pushing for a new generation of Roblox experiences that go beyond the traditional look
Market Report
Mobile accounts for 55% of total games revenue in 2025 as studios shift towards retention
A new Adjust report shows day one retention across gaming apps reached 27% in 2025
Creator Crossover
PUBG Mobile teases MrBeast collab as eighth anniversary approaches
The version 4.3 update is set to launch on March 12th as part of PUBG Mobile’s eighth anniversary celebrations
Pgc Summit San Francisco
How important is the power of a publishing label?
PGC Summit San Francisco panel asks the age old industry question: should you self-publish or use a publisher?
Pgc Summit San Francisco
Discord’s plans for acquisition, retention and monetisation
Senior developer advocate Anthony Tešija discusses the messaging platform's current and upcoming features for engaging players with your game
Pgc Summit San Francisco
PGC Summit San Francisco kicks off with Second Dinner, Scopely, Discord, Helika and more
Mobile-focused one-day conference set to bring together games industry professionals as GDC week begins
Developer Support
Tech firms urge Google to abandon developer registration for apps distributed outside the Play Store
An open letter warns that the policy could undermine the historic openness of the Android ecosystem
Online Safety
Türkiye proposes new regulations for digital platforms and game distributors
Digital game distributors may be required to appoint a local representative to operate in the country
Winners Revealed
Ukie reveals winners of its UK Video Game Awards 2026 alongside Hall of Fame honours
PowerWash Simulator was crowned Best UK Mobile Game at the UK Video Game Awards 2026
Trump's Tariffs
Nintendo is suing the US government over Trump’s tariffs
Nintendo’s net profit were up 51% with the Switch 2’s release, but may have seen even greater growth without tariffs in the US
Pgc Summit San Francisco
Meet Tencent, Scopely, Jam City, Discord and more at PGC Summit San Francisco
From indie developers to the biggest brands in mobile represented at the games business event on March 9th
Funding News
Cheer Games raises $4.5m pre-seed to build puzzle franchises
The studio plans to use the funding to develop new puzzle titles and expand its Barcelona team
Pgc Summit Shanghai
Tickets now live for Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Shanghai, July 29th
Your gateway to games business in China
500 Million Lifetime Downloads
Avakin Life surpasses 500 million downloads, cementing 12-year legacy as a global powerhouse
Lockwood Publishing's Avakin Life surpasses 500 million lifetime downloads, as the platform celebrates 12 years of continuous growth
New Offerings
Roblox launches AI-powered chat system that automatically rephrases inappropriate messages
The feature replaces blocked text with more respectful language while preserving the original meaning
New Offerings
Pitchify launches Pitch Direct to make pitching to publishers more transparent
The platform allows publishers to set clear criteria including budget, platform, genre and timelines
New Offerings
Mistplay launches Playtime Events to deepen engagement in rewarded ads
The new reward model blends time-based incentives with event-driven milestones
Buyout Concerns
AppsFlyer halts $1.9bn sale talks after private equity bidders seek revised terms
Talks with Apollo and Fortissimo Capital broke down as market pressure weighed on software company valuations
Company Restructure
nDreams proposes restructuring with 78 roles at risk and two studios set to close
VR developer plans to close Near Light and Compass studios
Pokemon Pocket
Pokémon TCG Pocket hits six-month high as franchise turns 30 years old
The digital card game generated $4.7m on February 27th, its highest sum since August 2025
New Offerings
Ofcom invites small games studios to workshop on navigating regulation
Regulator seeks feedback from early-stage developers on compliance challenges
New Offerings
Former PlayStation and Xbox hiring lead launches Rocket Game Talent
New boutique firm aims to help studios scale hiring operations
Market Report
Mobile games host three times more malicious ads than other apps says AppHarbr
One in every 58 ads in mobile games is malicious, AppHarbr report finds
Acqusitions
Open World acquires Drope.me to scale creator-driven games marketing
Acquisition expands Open World’s ability to run large-scale creator campaigns
New Deal
Google cuts fees for mobile apps and games
Fortnite is set to return to Google Play as Epic settles worldwide legal disputes - though a revised US court injunction settlement is still pending
Rethink Liveops At Gdc
ThinkingData Summit: Global studios coming together to rethink live ops and data during GDC
Register for the ThinkingData Summit or sign up and receive the post-event recap series.
Security Review
Report: Trump administration reviews Tencent gaming investments over security concerns
Officials are assessing whether the company’s investments pose potential national security risks.
Job News
Beyond The Pixels strengthens leadership ahead of its debut title Astro Burn
Former Fnatic and GIANTX CEO Wouter Sleijffers joins the studio as chief operating officer
Policy Shift
Unity Asset Store to remove content from developers in Greater China region
The change affects developers based in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau
Tiga Stands Firm
TIGA calls on the UK government to strengthen the Video Games Expenditure Credit in the upcoming Autumn Budget
Proposed reforms include raising the VGEC rate and expanding qualifying expenditure to 100%
Making Matches
Hay Day Match is the latest match-3 attempt for Supercell’s IP
Supercell’s Hay Day Pop was cancelled in 2020, but Hay Day Match is being made by Playabit