Epic Payout
Epic Games paid $352 million to Fortnite creators in 2024
58 creators earned over $1m
New Approvals
China approves 136 new games including Tencent’s upcoming Honour of Kings: World
The latest game approvals include 123 domestic titles and 13 foreign games
Jobs In Games
Leanne Loombe joins Annapurna as executive VP and head of games
She will report to the firm's president of interactive and new media Hector Sanchez
New Partnerships
Epic Games covers Apple’s core technology fee and partners with Playdigious to bring third-party titles to its store
The distribution deal will generate revenue through 2025
Space-time Smackdown
Pokémon TCG Pocket’s Space-Time Smackdown will shift to 2000s nostalgia with 140+ new cards
The next expansion will jump from Generation 1 to Generation 4 and is set to monetise Sinnoh fans
New Galaxy
Galaxy S25 packs a 40% boost in ray tracing performance for gamers
Samsung claims the new CPU offers up to 5x stronger performance and “smoother graphics rendering”
Partnership Power
Pokémon TCG Pocket partners with McDonald’s as player spending hits record low
Players in the US can earn Pack Hourglasses and Wonder Hourglasses with their Happy Meal purchase
New Partnerships
Pocketpair partners with Surgent Studios to develop upcoming horror title
The game is set to launch in 2025 and will be a standalone title
Pocket Gamer Connects
PG Connects San Francisco - Super Early Bird Ticket offer ends Monday!
Save up to $400 if you book before midnight on the 27th
Brand Boost
Team17 Group rebrands to everplay after "improved" performance in H2 2024
Team1, Astragon and StoryToys will remain distinct developers and publishers under the rebranded parent company
Jobs In Games
Nordcurrent recruits Ada Mockutė Jaime as new chief marketing officer
She will oversee global brand identity, player engagement, and marketing strategies
Event Report
PG Connects London 2025 a sold out smash hit!
More than 2,600 games industry attendees from over 65 countries and 6 continents
New Appointment
Savvy Games Group taps Nika Nour as new SVP and head of international business development
Her career spans Congressional Affairs, digital advocacy, and leadership in the games industry
Pgc London 2025
PGC panel talks privacy, first-party data and avoiding a "last minute scramble"
PGC London panellists discuss privacy changes, the Digital Markets Act, ATT and the value of first-party data
Pgc London 2025
"Only 27% of people describe their manager as highly effective": Learning to lead, retain employees, and free up time
Leadership development trainer Andy Coley talks nurturing problem-solving and freeing up managers’ time
Pgc London 2025
"The number one job of narrative is to make a game less weird"
MY.GAMES head of narrative Armando Troisi talks the interaction between gameplay and narrative
Funding For Games
Exel by Merak gaming accelerator is now accepting applications for first cohort
The program includes a two-week virtual boot camp and a 16-week acceleration phase
Settlement Reached
Hoyoverse agrees to $20 million settlement with FTC over loot boxes
The publisher will “introduce new age-gate and parental consent protections for children and young teens” going forward
Pgc London 2025
"Almost all" Subway Surfers installs are organic: Building a brand with "snackable" gameplay and memes
Sybo senior brand manager Adam Collier shared tips and tricks to building a hit brand at PGC London
Snap Back
Marvel Snap back online in the US as developer vows to prevent future outages
“This is the start of a new era for Marvel Snap.”
Pgc London 2025
Epic Games Store Mobile will do "all of the things developers want facilitated", but what about premium?
Epic Games’ Sarah Thomson and Walter Somol spoke with premium developers at PGC London 2025
Pgc London 2025
Supercell reveals rise in Hay Day active users with "growth virality" 12 years on
Hay Day general manager Maya Hofree talks new features, new campaigns, and doing right by old fans
Pgc London 2025
Vera Manhoso: Focusing on UA is "holding back your mobile game" - focus on retargeting too
RTB House gaming account director Vera Manhoso talks UA and retargeting working in tandem
Pgc London 2025
"The Digital Fairness Act is probably being drafted as we speak"
At PGC London 2025, video games lawyer Isabel Davies spoke about potential legal changes to F2P and "addictive" user retention strategies in the coming years
Pgc London 2025
PGC panel talks rewarded UA’s renaissance and the "clear" demands of users
Panellist Lenny Rabin advised against copying another game’s rewarded UA model, instead suggesting a focus on personal goals and targets
Milestone
Balatro exceeds five million in sales across all platforms
“Selling five million units of any game is an incredible milestone worthy of celebration"
Pgc London 2025
A VC’s perspective on AI in games: "AI is going to change and replace lower development-effort work"
AI.Fund principle Maximilian Seeburg says its time to "make games smarter"
New Offerings
SuperScale launches Ecosystem to simplify mobile game publishing
The Launchpad is also tailored for indie, midsize, and VC-backed game studios
Understanding Ua
72% of mobile devs plan to increase UA spending in 2025 as reward-based campaigns rise
95% of those using reward-based marketing campaigns feel at a competitive advantage
New Partnerships
Clear Angle Studios appoints Raptor PR as global communications agency
The PR firm said it will focus on enhancing Clear Angle’s visibility and expanding into new industries
Gone In A Snap
US TikTok ban takes Marvel Snap and Mobile Legends offline
Mobile games by ByteDance-owned companies go dark following Supreme Court's decision to reject company's appeal against ban
Call For Speakers
Pocket Gamer Connects San Francisco 2025 join the speaker line-up for a leading mobile games industry event
Shape the future of mobile games industry and submit your ideas for an opportunity to speak at Pocket Gamer Connects San Francisco 2025
Tiktok Ban
TikTok faces imminent US ban as Supreme Court rejects appeal
Judges conclude a ban does not violate freedom of speech
Power Of Ai
Nefta set to unveil new AI-powered ad platform at Pocket Gamer Connects London
Nefta’s AI agents categorises games based on their style and genre, making it easier for game makers to market them effectively
Titanium Sponsor
TikTok announced as titanium sponsor for Pocket Gamer Connects London 2025
TikTok has been announced as the titanium sponsor for Pocket Gamer Connects London 2025, the flagship event of the year for the games industry...
New Offerings
Tencent and Ubisoft’s Guillemot Family explore new venture to boost company value
The deal could let Tencent own a share and gain more control over Ubisoft's IPs, expanding its video game business outside China
Acqusitions
Winking Studios to acquire game art studio Mineloader Digital for $27 million
An upfront payment of $24.5m will be made with the remaining balance paid after five years
Network Away
See who YOU could Connect with at this month's PGC London
From the most talented indie developers to the biggest brands attending the global games industry event, January 20th to 21st
Partnership Deal
Curve Games signs three-game mobile deal with Crunchyroll
Publisher to bring Space Crew, Patch Quest and 10 Second Ninja to subscription service Game Vault
Job Cuts
Huuuge Games lays off 122 staff and closes offices as it refocuses on social casino
Poland office sees 89 redundancies as studios in Netherlands and Finland are closed
Diamond Sponsor
Almedia announced as diamond sponsor for Pocket Gamer Connects London 2025
Almedia takes to the stage at Pocket Gamer Connects London 2025 as diamond sponsor. Don't miss their visionary insights and networking opportunities...
Web Gaming
CrazyGames partners with ByteBrew to support web game developers
Games makers can now access ByteBrew's technology through the web gaming firm's developer portal
Investment Strategy
Saga Origins plots non-web3 deals as it appoints new head of gaming investments
Former Samsung director Fernando Vasconez to identify, nurture and invest in new gaming projects and strategic partnerships
In-game Advertising
Audiomob launches new CPI audio ad product for mobile game developers
The product is powered by algorithms that personalise ads based on factors like location, time, device, and user behaviour
Switch 2 Confirmed
Nintendo Switch 2 unveiled
Nintendo’s successor to the Switch has finally been revealed
New Partnerships
Carry1st partners with Stellar Gate Games to boost Blood Strike MENA with new payment solutions
Steller Gate Games was formed by Sandsoft and NetEase in March 2024
Industry Enthusiasm
90% of developers plan to launch at least one game in 2025
Metaplay’s The Game Development Renaissance report suggests more than two in three devs are optimistic about the industry this year
What To Expect
Pocket Gamer Connects returns to San Francisco for milestone 50th conference
Celebrate the 50th Pocket Gamer Connects with two days of networking, expert insights, and business opportunities during GDC week.
F**k It
Gordon Ramsay is in f**king Hay Day
Supercell's latest partnership brings the celebrity chef to the farming title for a limited time
Partnership
Flexion partners with King to market Candy Crush Solitaire on alternative app stores
The game is set to launch globally on Thursday, February 6th 2025 across multiple mobile platforms