Socialpoint Strategy
Zynga’s Socialpoint launches merge RPG Top Troops today
The latest mobile game from Zynga and Socialpoint dials up the strategy with wide-ranging customisation options
Australia Applications
Australia announces three new government programmes to support local devs
Risk-takers are encouraged to apply, as are mid-career Australian devs looking for a ticket to GDC
Major Milestone
Playrix celebrates 10 years of Township and major $2 billion revenue
Since Township launched, Playrix has grown from a team of 20 to 130
An Apple A Day
Apple's App Store steps into line to comply with Chinese regulations
The company has previously come under fire for the Chinese government, but it appears it's ready to play ball
Cloud Gaming
Samsung set to launch its game streaming service this week
The Korean tech giant will reportedly launch its own cloud gaming service at its developer conference
Now In Neom
Maysalward is supporting young NEOM talent with new Game Dev Challenge
Mobile Game Legend Nour Khrais leads his studio in supporting new talent aged 15 to 17
Layoffs
Team17 CEO Michael Pattison departs ahead of consultancy and restructure
Significant layoffs are expected at the game maker as teams enter a "period of consultancy"
Flagship Festivities
mihoyo's Genshin Impact quietly celebrates third anniversary
miHoYo’s flagship celebrates three years, but it's clear that Honkai: Star Rail is the new apple of the company's eye
Job News
Kwalee appoints John Wright as vice president of mobile publishing
Wright brings almost twenty years of leadership experience to his role
Android Ahead
Bethesda just stealth dropped a new Elder Scrolls mobile game
The Elder Scrolls: Castles has released in early access on Android
Making A Meal
Honkai: Star Rail goes IRL: Collaborating with famous restaurant chains around the world
Across the cosmos to the real world, Honkai: Star Rail is set to make an impact in chains near you
Monster Hunter Now
Monster Hunter Now set to be Niantic’s third biggest game with $14 million in first month revenue
The game is Niantic’s fourth largest launch, and consistent consumer spend could see it climb even higher
Ai Development
Homa launches AI “Game Idea Generator”
The new technology streamlines the process of brainstorming a new title
Cloud Gaming
Ubisoft predicts a Netflix-style boom for cloud gaming
“We strongly believe in the next five to 10 years, many games will be streamed and will also be produced in the cloud”
Alternative App Stores
Who are the 26 app stores complying with China’s latest regulations?
The country’s latest crackdown has seen alternative app stores become even more prominent in the Chinese market
Acquisition
Playtika closes acquisition of Innplay Labs
The acquisition was valued at up to $300 million
One Special Day
Over 90 industry partners are backing SpecialEffect’s One Special Day fundraiser
One Special Day aims to help bring gaming to people with additional needs
Layoffs
Epic and Sega announce 900 more games industry lay-offs
A brutal end to another tough quarter for games jobs, with the UK hit especially hard
Ad Report
Meta owns all four of the top ad networks for mobile games in Q2 2023
Google Play hosted the most ad creatives, with Facebook leading the way
Court Case
Epic Games appeals to US Supreme Court in Apple antitrust case
The years-long case continues with arguments over pro- and anticompetitiveness
League Of Its Own
League of Legends: Wild Rift reaches lofty $1 billion across 111 million downloads
data.ai suggests such a milestone was reached through optimisation of touch controls and quick matches
Crushing The Competition
Candy Crush celebrates massive $20 billion revenue milestone
Games in the franchise have been downloaded more than five billion times
Chinese App Market
Apple isn’t complying with China’s new app store regulations
The Cyberspace Administration of China has named 26 app stores complying with its new rules
Promoted Position
My.Games appoints Elena Grigorian as CEO as Vladimir Nikolsky steps down
Grigorian has helped optimise 70+ games’ potential
Mobile Milestones
The Battle of Polytopia celebrates a milestone 20 million mobile downloads
The game has proven a hit on multiple platforms, with mobile leading the way
Leadership Changes
Activision Blizzard brings back Warcraft & Diablo old-hand Chris Metzen in creative leadership shake-up
The former contributor worked with Blizzard during some of its most successful years as a SVP of story and franchise development
Better Than Betting
Omada raises $7.5M for a sports game with a twist: tackling gambling addiction
Money isn’t spent or won on bets, providing a healthier alternative
Acquisition
Xsolla announces acquisition of multiplayer platform AcceleratXR
The acquisition will further Xsolla’s crossplay capabilities
Mobile Manoeuvre
Can young Sephiroth save Square Enix from crisis?
Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis is getting a new chapter and a PC port
Credit Where Its Due
Appodeal & Pollen VC partner to offer a new kind of mobile growth platform
New Appodeal & Pollen VC partnership offers a mobile growth platform with credit lines to scale your monthly revenues
Mobile Growth
Gaming is the fastest growing app category worldwide
Action, hypercasual, and sports are among the top-ranked gaming subverticals
Female Gamers
Games favoured by women set to exceed $16 billion in revenue this year
Women account for over 50% of mobile gamers, and almost 30% of revenue
To Be The Very Best
1 in 190: Why networking is essential for jobs in games
Chances of getting that job are only 0.05% without putting in those networking hours
Insider View
Bidstack's big cheeses talk the past and future of intrinsic advertising
We get the inside scoop from three of the insiders at intrinsic advertising specialists Bidstack
Success In China
MapleStory M surpassed $55 million in its first 35 days on the Chinese market
The game’s success in China pushed the game over $600 million in lifetime revenue
Now In Numbers
71% of the biggest mobile games use a Unity SDK
data.ai finds over 50% of the top 100 revenue earners are built on Unity
Gaming Strikes
Screen Actor’s Guild authorises video game strike
98.32% of voters chose to open the door for strike action
Licence List
Chinese licence approvals are on the up this September, but just how high?
September matches top month of 2023 with 89 new game approvals
Devolver Financials
Subscription champion Devolver Digital blames subscriptions for fall in revenue
The company’s revenue in the first half of 2023 fell 17% year-on-year
Reaching The Finishing Line
Mario Kart Tour to receive final new content in October
The game isn’t closing services, but will only recycle existing content from then on
Next Steps
East Side Games co-founder Joshua Nilson leaves after 14 years
A mutual parting of ways comes with optimism for the future
Next Stop: Everywhere
What is Everywhere? Inside Leslie Benzies' new game
The GTA legend has unveiled details of his latest project
Surging Shares
Capcom: "We wanted to get on mobile sooner" as shares rise 6%
Monster Hunter Now supports a surge in shares; it looks like mobile is the way to go
Unity Runtime Fee
Unity removed its terms of service “because the views were so low”
The company’s recent Unity Runtime Fee changes go against the previously established terms of service
Acquisition
Supercell acquires majority stake in Australian developer Ultimate Studio
The acquisition is key in Supercell's aim to expand beyond mobile
Chairman Comes
miHoYo co-founder Cai Haoyu steps down as chairman… Liu Wei steps up
Cai Haoyu will focus on research and development to push the company forward
Alternative Distribution
India gets another alternative app store with PhonePe’s Indus Appstore
The Indian market boasts a number of alternative app stores
Indian Expansion
Mobile is key to Capcom’s expansion goals in India
Company COO Haruhiro Tsujimoto believes Capcom may sell more games in India than China within a decade
Prices
Console price for console quality: Resident Evil 4 to be $60 on iOS
The game is set to emulate previous ‘lite’ versions
Latam Analysis
Chile leads the way in installs in Latin America with a 35% increase
Adjust analyses the performance of one of the world’s fastest growing mobile markets