Age Verification
Utah becomes first state to require app store age verification for minors
Social media giants Meta, Snap, and X (formerly Twitter) have praised the law
Expansions
Appcharge expands into North America and Korea with new leadership hires
Sean Megaw will drive North American growth while Jin Woo Hong is set to lead its South Korea operations
Community Funding
Military history animation studio Yarnhub plots games expansion with community-led investment
YouTube content creator wants to build a military shooter for its 2.1m subscribers
Gameexpo Summit
Ramadan special offer for Dubai GameExpo Summit
Claim your 10% discount today
Podcast | Episode 45
Tripledot’s surprise acquisition of AppLovin's games business | 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 and what's inside this week's episode 45...
New Deal
Blizzard grants NetEase greater decision-making power over its games in China
Renewed partnership could lead to China-exclusive content like culturally inspired skins
French Fine
France readies Apple ATT antitrust fine and ban
A decision is expected to be reached this month, potentially leading to the privacy policy's first regulatory veto
Supersonic Growth
Supersonic surpasses 6.2 billion global downloads in five years
The firm was ranked as the fifth largest mobile games publisher in the world by downloads just behind Tencent, Azur, Onesoft, and SayGames.
New Partnerships
Women in Games and UKIE partner to support greater representation in the UK games industry
Partnership will provide networking, mentoring, and skills-building opportunities
Purchasing Power
Xsolla launches direct-to-consumer publishing suite
The toolkit brings Xsolla's services into one place to drive web store sales
Achievement
Rewarded play platform Almedia ranks as Europe’s third fastest-growing company in FT1000 listing
Rewarded play firm’s inclusion highlights its impressive 18,773.2% growth between 2020 and 2023
Network Away
See who YOU could Connect with at this month's PG Connects San Francisco
From the most talented indie developers to the biggest brands attending the global games industry event, March 17th to 18th
Developer Tools
Universal Foundry launches Compute Grant to support small Unreal Engine 5 studios
Grant covers the cost of the company’s services which starts at $950 per month
Milestone
RuneScape surpasses $2 billion in lifetime revenue
Titles have garnered over 300 million players worldwide
New Offerings
Plarium expands RAID: Shadow Legends to alternative app store Aptoide
The title's launch on Aptoide coincides with its 6-year anniversary event
Axie Alpha
Axie Infinity returns on mobile with web3 MMO Atia’s Legacy alpha incoming
Pre-registration referrals are already securing fans AXS tokens
Funding News
Saudi Arabia's Lobah Game Studio secures $12 million investment
Company will use the funds to accelerate development of its upcoming games
New Offerings
Konami resurrects 30-year-old IP with mobile RPG Suikoden: Star Leap
The title will be free-to-play and feature in-app purchases
Investment News
Tencent increases stake in From Software parent company Kadokawa
Publishing giant and Sony open approximately 18% of the company
Tax Relief
British Columbia increases Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit to 25%
The incentives will be effective from September 2025
M&a
Report: Tripledot to buy AppLovin’s games business
PocketGamer.biz has also heard the buyer is a London-based company
Pgc San Francisco
Save up to $130 with PG Connects San Francisco Mid Term rate!
Grab a ticket to start business-boosting networking before midnight March 6th!
Tour For More
Pokémon Go Tour Unova – Global weekend made $19.8m in two days
The free event with optional paid extras saw in-game spending at its highest since the eighth anniversary last July
Ai-powered Games
Activision promoting Guitar Hero, Call of Duty and Crash Bandicoot mobile games that don't exist
The publisher’s survey stated the titles are not real “but could be some day!’’
Kid Cosmo
Netflix’s The Electric State: Kid Cosmo game will serve as a prequel to upcoming film
The 80s-style puzzle adventure is set for release on March 18th, four days after the new film
Leadership Change
Stillfront names Alexis Bonte as new president and group CEO
Bonte joined Stillfront in 2017 after its acquisition of eRepublik Labs, which he co-founded
Leadership Change
Jagex CEO Phil Mansell steps down
Former Huuuge Games CCO and CVC advisor Jon Bellamy takes over the top job at the RuneScape developer
Valiant Victory
Goddess of Victory: Nikke hits $1bn on mobile during Romantic Valentine event
More than half of that player spending has come from the game’s Japanese players
New Approvals
China approves 110 new games including Plants vs. Zombies 3
The latest game approvals include 107 domestic titles and three foreign games
Company Shakeup
Room 8 Group expands leadership with new focus
Former Ubisoft veterans take key roles
Pgc San Francisco
Meet our awesome speakers at Pocket Gamer Connects San Francisco 2025
More than 70 world class expert speakers share the latest industry insights and future forecasts this March 17th and 18th
Branding News
Longstanding games services firm PTW rebrands as Side
"I’m proud that all our employees are now united under one banner"
New Offerings
Sandsoft plots hybridcasual expansion with three new game deals
Publisher said that it has “several more" games in testing and are scheduled to release in the coming months
Opportunities Galore
Three no-cost ways to benefit from Pocket Gamer Connects San Francisco 2025
Discover three great ways to make the most of your time in San Francisco without spending a dime...
Founder Fund
Ex-Tripledot president forms Arcadia Gaming Advisors with $100m fund for mobile game companies
The Tripledot founder has already invested in Dream Games, Layer AI, Spyke Games and more
Movers And Shakers
Lasse Seppänen named Supercell London GM
The new general manager will define the overall vision for the office
New Mode
Secret Mode breaks away from Sumo with buyout
Current leadership to remain at the helm
Pgc San Francisco
Full schedule revealed for PG Connects San Francisco 2025!
70+ experts lead the two-day games industry conference, March 17 to 18th
"more Than A Leader"
The OGs co-CEO Pablo Navajas passes away
“His legacy will live on through the countless people he inspired by example”
Investment News
Triple Tap Games secures $1.2m for hybridcasual puzzle games
The team is led by former Crazy Labs and Super Huge Studios staff
Partnership
EA partners with Flexion to bring mobile games to alternative app stores
First of EA's games included in the partnership will launch in Q1
China Regulations
Shanghai unveils new online game policies to ease licensing challenges
The city also introduced the Shanghai Online Game Publishing Application Service Platform
New Game Launch
StoryToys partners with LEGO and BBC for Bluey mobile game
The title will launch in August on the App Store and Google Play
Funding For Games
European Investment Fund pledges over $20m to boost Nordic game development
The EIF is helping Behold Ventures attract more investors to reach its target of $48m
Ready To Rumble
Sonic Rumble global launch delayed to spring
The title will launch on mobile and Steam
Fresh Details
AppLovin selling games business to private company for $500m in cash and $400m in shares
Buyer has entered into a term sheet with AppLovin and aims to borrow up to $250m to fund the deal
Podcast | Episode 44
AppLovin vs. short-sellers | 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 and what's inside this week's episode 44...
M&a
Jam City completes Ludia sale
Approximately 130 staff will remain at the developer, while a small number will stay with Jam City
Growth Engines
The need for growth engines: What they are and why they matter
According to a recent report by analyst Matthew Ball, the games industry shows significant growth potential in 2025. We explore what that means here - and at PG Connects San Francisco
Ai-powered
New AI creative tool Flora launches to “transform" creative workflows
“Current AI creative tools are built by non-creatives for other non-creatives to feel creative," says Flora founder Weber Wong.