Magic Mag
MAG Interactive records biggest year yet after Wordzee marketing push
MAG Interactive recorded net sales of $34.6 million this year, at a 10% yearly increase
A New Hub
Sandsoft launches Barcelona Hub for new mobile titles
The company expects the new studio to grow steadily and create 60 new roles over the next three years
Guilty Google
An Epic victory: Google found guilty of illegal monopoly in Epic lawsuit
The Epic vs Google case has reached a verdict with a unanimous jury vote finding in favour of CEO Tim Sweeney's anti-App Store crusade
Coming To Conquer
First mobile-exclusive Civilization game gets a rebrand under soft launch
Conquests and Alliances is officially rebranded as Civilization: Eras & Allies
Puzzle Power
Zach Gage and Orta Therox’s puzzle platform Puzzmo acquired by Hearst Newspapers
Gage is the dev behind SpellTower, Wordbind, Knotwords and more
Data Decisions
Apple’s privacy push continues with big implications come "Spring 2024"
Developers must be ready for Apple’s privacy manifest requirements and third-part SDK policy changes
Popularity Surge
Battlegrounds Mobile India is the fourth most searched game of 2023
After garnering an impressive $58.9 million, BGMI now sits above acclaimed titles such as Baldur's Gate 3 and Diablo IV in Google's annual 'most searched' rankings
Monster In The Making
Monster Hunter Now is a roaring success, making $100 million in under three months
Another milestone for Monster Hunter Now solidifies Niantic’s latest success
Peak Star
Peak Games explores match-3 genre with new title Star Match
Zynga-owned developer experiments further with match-3 mechanics
Podcast
Kwalee’s John Wright On Attracting Valuable Users With A Loyalty-Driven Approach | Podcast
The PocketGamer.biz podcast team and guests give you the state of play every week. Here's where to get it and and what's inside this week's episode…
App Stores
Former DotEmu and Playdigious co-founder announces alternative app store finder StoreRider
Xavier Liard's latest aims to provide new ways for developers to distribute their apps outside traditional platforms
Schedule Reveal
Get a sneak peek at the schedule for PG Connects London
PG Connects London is bringing you two days packed full of exciting content - take a look at what's on right here
Winners
The Game Awards 2023 picks its mobile game of the year
And the winner is… n't much of a surprise as mobile once more gets short shrift at gaming's biggest (and lengthiest) livestreamed awards ceremony
Ads Ahead
Google Ads overhaul: AdInMo and Usercentrics prepare for the big changes due January 2024
A case study with Black Smoke Studios shows that 83% of players are still willing to provide basic personal information
Audio Ads
Odeeo claims over 90% of audio ads are not skipped by gamers
Odeeo’s research provides tips on designing the ideal audio ads
Angry Nerds
Rovio close Studio Lumi in Montreal with the loss of 16 jobs
Rovio's second studio in Montreal, Studio Six remains unaffected, alongside roles held by key Rovio Montreal-based staff
Subs Only
3D Sonic adventure Sonic Dream Team launches as an Apple Arcade exclusive
This marks Hardlight’s second exclusive Sonic game on Apple Arcade
Jobs In Games
League Of Geeks halts Jumplight Odyssey, announces layoffs
“We are devastated to be in this position, and we have done everything in our power to avoid it,” said the co-founders
Dishing The Dirt
Codemasters suffer job losses in ongoing Electronic Arts takeover aftermath
After the acquisition of rivals, restructuring of teams and lacklustre sales, owners EA have stepped in to "align teams and resources to meet evolving business needs"
Candy Crown
King soft launch Candy Crush 3D: Is their next crowning victory on its way?
King stealthily reveals Candy Crush 3D on the Google Play Store
Legislation
Ukie: Government immigration proposals "risk giving impression the UK is closed for business"
Following changes to the minimum salary for a skilled worker visa, the UK's games industry trade body speaks out against the new legislation
About Apple Ads
Apple Search Ads and SKAdNetwork make waves as marketing attributions rise 55% in two years
Kochava’s State of Mobile Measurement 2023 report reveals how the landscape has changed since ATT
Plenty To Predict
Candy Crush to lose its crown in 2024? But overall mobile game revenues will be up
As 2023 comes to a close, data.ai makes its predictions in mobile gaming, AI and more for the new year ahead
Twitch Pullback
Twitch is pulling out of Korea after "significant" losses with "no pathway forward"
Twitch’s costs in Korea are too high, so the platform is leaving the country next February
Heroes Heights
Nintendo pulls out the stops for Fire Emblem Heroes' billion-dollar future
Nintendo’s biggest mobile game gears up for its next major update and Book 8’s opening chapters
Christmas Shopping
AppsFlyer closes the year with second acquisition in less than a month
The company plans to harness the full capabilities of AI to optimise its growth and monetisation strategies
American Ascent
The US accounted for 53.5% of casual game installs in Q3, but what are the hottest genres globally?
Monopoly GO and Subway Surfers prove to be the quarter’s most downloaded games
A Winning Team
Korea shoots and scores with huge surge in soccer-themed mobile game sales
Despite the FIFA rebranding, EA FC Mobile continues to dominate the soccer-themed mobile games market
Make A Difference
Games For Change announce new 'Diverse Voices, New Stories Challenge'
Mobile game creators across the globe can submit their work and help players discover games that feature diverse characters, voices, and stories
Real Results
Mobile AR users are projected to reach 1.7 billion by 2024
The cross-platform development platform is providing users with tools and support to build, collaborate and publish WebAR content
Download Disparity
Q3's biggest genres saw 700% more downloads on Google Play than Apple App Store
A total of 12.36 billion downloads across top three Android genres VS 1.54 billion on iOS
Platform Psychology
Former Activision Blizzard CEO supports GameTree's $1.7M seed round for AI app to unite gamers
The funding round saw support from Ukraine’s former president and a former Activision Blizzard CEO
Activision App Store
Activision Blizzard, Epic Games and Supercell considered forming a Google Play competitor
The Epic vs Google case reveals past plans for an app store alliance
Beastly Balancing
Monster Hunter Now enters new season with "major update" promised every quarter
New balancing, monsters and weapons are on their way to Niantic’s second-biggest game
A High Breed
Hybridcasual conquers the $2 billion mark in 2023
The hybridcasual genre is projected to reach $2.1 billion in annual revenue this year
New Horizons
Babil Games co-founders AJ and MJ Fahmi depart for new ventures
After 11 years building the mobile company, the COO and CEO are now on a new path to find new opportunities and challenges
Podcast
NSPCC’s Kevin Antao and Andy Sallnow on the challenges of safe gaming for children | Podcast
The PocketGamer.biz podcast team and guests give you the state of play every week. Here's where to get it and and what's inside this week's episode…
Microsoft Mobile
Microsoft in discussions with potential partners over mobile app store for games
Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer hints its launch may not be far off
Best Of The Best
Google Play reveals its Best of 2023 award winners
Familiar names such as Honkai: Star Rail and Monopoly GO lead the charge in Play's round up of 2023's great and the good
Pgc Stories
PGC Stories: "Feedback from seasoned judges helped me grow as a professional and individual"
Below, Zaibatsu Interactive CEO Jussi Ultima and Reality+ co-founder Tony Pearce share their favourite PGC memories
Apple Picking
Apple unveils App Store Award winners. These are the best apps and games of 2023
It's that time again. After picking its shortlist last month, Apple now reveal which games and apps have come out on top for 2023
Fundraising Partnership
Pocket Gamer Connects London teams up with SpecialEffect for fundraising initiative
Pocket Gamer Connects, the leading mobile games industry conference, is delighted to announce its partnership with SpecialEffect for its upcoming flagship show in London on January 22 - 23.
About Accessibility
RovioCon 23 sees unveiling of new industry inclusivity guide
Diversity, equity and inclusion are among Rovio’s focuses in its new playbook
Next For Netflix
Grand Theft Auto remastered trilogy is on its way to mobile with Netflix
Netflix has been increasing its gaming presence, with this latest move the biggest yet
Pokemon Persuasion
Pokémon Go changes tack and adds Pokémon Legends for cross-platform promo
Hisuian Decidueye, Typhlosion, Samurott and Wydeer are on the way from Pokémon Legends: Arceus
Tech Splash
Video games add £1.3 billion to UK economy in "spillover technology"
Ukie and FTI Consulting have partnered for a new report into games tech’s influence on other industries
Truly
State of the games industry: “I think the technical term for it is a clusterf**k”
Global Top Round Game Investment Landscape panel discusses the current state of the market and the challenges facing games companies
Partnership Power
Sony sets sights on mobile in strategic partnership with NCSoft
A strategic deal has been secured by CEOs Taekjin Kim and Jim Ryan
Valorant Valiance
Riot Games’ Social Impact Fund raises $50 million in five years for charities, education and more
Almost $15 million raised in Valorant alone in three years
Marketing Magic
Supercell's marketing head Iwo Zakowski: "We need to make our games f**king famous and become part of pop culture"
68% of Clash players discover via word of mouth, Chess.com promotion drives 1M+ additional players and more insights from RovioCon 23