Profit Power
Square Enix’s Q1 profits more than triple despite revenue decline
The company generated ¥69.9 billion in net sales and ¥10.8 billion in profit this Q1
Staff
Aaron Astle
Job Title
News Editor
About Aaron is the News Editor at PG.biz and has an honours degree in Creative Writing.
Having spent far too many hours playing Pokémon, he's now on a quest to be the very best like no one ever was...at putting words in the right order.
Articles by Aaron Astle
Hot Five
Hot Five: Turkey blocks Roblox, Jam City layoffs, and the sinking of Shipyard Games
Our quick-fix roundup of the hottest stories on PocketGamer.biz
Five New Games
New release roundup: The best new mobile games from Olympic sports to 90s nostalgia
We highlight five new games that have broken cover and are all set to do big business
Pgc Helsinki
Metaplay CPO Teemu Haila talks top tips for startups and what NOT to do
Speaking at Pocket Gamer Connects Helsinki 2023, Haila discussed three key learnings worth knowing
Playtika Profits
Playtika’s profits surge 63.4% to $86.6 million as it reverses 'no new games' strategy
Direct-to-consumer revenue increased but overall revenue is down in Q2 2024 as the company reveals a return to game production
Consider The Community
15% of monetised players spend more if actively engaged in a community
Mistplay's latest report outlines the increasing importance of social in driving retention, calling it the "lifeblood of publisher success"
Partnership Power
Marvel Snap dev Second Dinner strategically invests in W4 Games and forms multi-year partnership
Second Dinner aims to build the largest game in the Godot engine yet
Profit Power
NCSoft profit bounces back with 59% of revenue on mobile but not all Lineage games are thriving
The dev recorded $51.7 million in net income during Q2 2024, up 133% year-on-year
Apps And Att
Fewer than 19% of mobile games receive ATT consent as game CPIs rise 6% on Apple
Mobile game CPIs increased on Apple during Q2 2024 while becoming cheaper on Android
Apple Vs Android
Mobile games revenue growth is at a snail’s pace on Apple as Android closes the gap
Android users spent $10 billion on mobile games in H1 2024, versus $13.8 billion on Apple
Burton's Back
Roblox gets a Beetlejuice experience with in-platform ticket sales for the first time
The 1980s comedy horror movie has sequel in cinemas next month, but first, a Roblox experience with a ticket store built in
Ai Qa
nunu.ai has raised $2 million towards AI playtesters and QA with bot detection on the way
The startup specialises in quality assurance for open-world games
Adapt And Approve
Square Enix and Tencent to team up on mobile game based on Final Fantasy XIV
Full details on the new game have yet to be revealed by either company, but a Chinese licence approval suggests the game is in development
Profit Plummet
Nintendo profits down 70.6% with falling sales across Switch and other IP ventures
Q1 sales are down considerably with no new hits to follow 2023’s Mario movie and Zelda game
Major Milestone
NetEase’s Blood Strike rockets to 50 million installs in less than a year
The milestone was reached within nine months of official release in Southeast Asia
Masterclass
Last chance to buy tickets for PocketGamer.biz MasterClass: Game Monetisation Design Interactive Workshop
Develop your existing skills and learn new ones from the finest games industry experts in an in-depth learning environment
Proof Is In The Profit
Web3 tech firm Improbable makes its first profit after metaverse pivot
The company shifted focus to the metaverse in 2022, and achieved its first ever annual profit in 2023
Rallying Revenue
Game of Thrones: Legends fires past $1 million with daily earnings rising fast
Zynga’s latest match-3 launch raked in $109,627 on August 4th
Hot Five
Hot Five: Squad Busters breaks $50 million, EA’s mobile blueprint, and Finland’s "survive to 2025" mantra
Our quick-fix roundup of the hottest stories on PocketGamer.biz
Five New Games
New release roundup: The best new mobile games from mathematical puzzlers to the return of Jon Snow
We highlight five new games that have broken cover and are all set to do big business
King In The North
Zynga calls in Kit Harrington for Game of Thrones: Legends launch
Mobile ads are becoming increasingly star-powered, with Jon Snow himself promoting the latest puzzle RPG
Ea Q1 Financials
Electronic Arts: "FC Mobile is the blueprint for our mobile strategy"
Their profits may be down 30% but EA Sports FC Mobile made record net bookings while FC Mobile Madden NFL 24 earned double digit growth
Resleriana Revenue
Atelier Resleriana adventures past $50 million via the power of fan-favourites
Most lucrative day coincided with release of Klaudia, a main character from best-selling game in the series Atelier Ryza
Microsoft's Mobile Mystery
Microsoft made $88 billion profit in FY2024 thanks to Activision Blizzard boost
Xbox revenue was up 61% in Q4 2024, but mobile specific figures remain a mystery
Rpg Reposition
RPGs overthrown by strategy genre as new consumer spending king
RPGs have topped consumer spending charts since "at least" 2017, but were dethroned in Q2 2024
Ai Acquisition
GiantX acquires League of Legends AI coaching app maker iTero Gaming
The app, launched in late 2022, has been downloaded almost 250,000 times
Cash Splash
Q2 mobile app spending hits a new record of $36.2 billion
Apple owners are responsible for the latest spending surge for Q2 2024, though downloads in the quarter declined
German Gaming
German mobile gamers spent €2.9 billion in 2023, 98% via in-app purchases
The German video games industry more broadly generated €9.97 billion last year
Squad Spenders
Squad Busters takings pass $50 million, but how does it compare to Supercell’s greatest hits?
The US currently represents the game's biggest market share, where it's earned $19.6 million so far
Lively Layoffs
Lively Studio undergoes layoffs for the sake of "long-term health"
The Keywords subsidiary will reportedly lay off a small number of people, while sister studio Electric Square remains unaffected
Pokemon Power
The Pokémon Company caught $10.8 billion from merch and licenced goods last year
License Global’s latest Top Global Licensors Report places Pokémon seventh among all licensors based on 2023 revenue
Hot Five
Hot Five: HoYoverse’s next game, Monster Hunter Now’s multiplayer mindset, and three years of Pokémon Unite
Our quick-fix roundup of the hottest stories on PocketGamer.biz
Five New Games
New release roundup: The best new mobile games from Asphalt Legends Unite to Laid-Back Camp: Puzzle Camp
We highlight five new games that have broken cover this week
Monster Multiplayer
Monster Hunter Now’s Dimensional Links show a conscious effort to include rural players
Multiplayer levels up with this latest online matchmaking feature
Monetisation Masterclass
PocketGamer.biz MasterClass: Monetisation models, resources, and taking players on a journey
Fundamentally Games CEO Oscar Clark shares insights into the art of pricing while actually making a good game
Content Creator Collab
Monster Hunter Now looks to bring "meaningful integration" with MrBeast collab
The game’s first collab outside the Monster Hunter IP is with YouTube’s biggest creator
New Game Approved
HoYoverse’s next game Astaweave Haven among 105 Chinese approvals this July
This month’s domestic approvals in the country are at their highest since March
Safety First
Roblox claims to be "overwhelmingly positive experience" despite over 13,000 child exploitation incidents in 2023
The platform reported 13,316 incidents last year as work to navigate the "complexities" of online child safety continues
Live Service Look
Digital Extremes CEO believes "terrified" game makers drop live service titles too soon
Warframe is still in service after 11 years and continues to expand to new platforms
Pokemon Power
Pokémon Unite catches $83 million on mobile as it celebrates first three years
Pokémon Gold mascot Ho-Oh rises to the occasion via time-limited event for third anniversary
Pastures New
ZeptoLab CEO Max Petrov to leave company after almost 12 years
Petrov became CEO in 2022, focusing on strategy, business and culture
New Studio
Pixelberry vets form Candlelight Games with "heartfelt" narrative games on the way
The new studio’s founders bring experience from leading roles on Pixelberry's flagship title Choices
Five New Games
New release roundup: The best new mobile games from Subway Surfers City to Lego Play
We highlight five new games that have broken cover and are all set to do big business
Ea Awakens
Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes goes cross-platform with early access PC launch
Joining the PC side of the Force
Ark Ahoy
Ark: Ultimate Survivor Edition coming to mobile later this year as original nears $50m in revenue
All of Ark: Survival Evolved’s DLC will be included in the package
Smashing Sales Strategies
Super Smash Bros. creator Masahiro Sakurai warns of market research producing "average and mediocre" games
"Targeting isn’t as reliable as people claim, and market research is based on past results"
Mobile Milestone
Wuthering Waves sails past $100 million in under two months
According to AppMagic data, players in Japan have contributed 23% of its mobile earnings thus far
Early Echo
Echo Chess maker Echo Chunk raises $1.4 million in pre-seed round with a "passion" for AI
Participants include Andreessen Horowitz, Zynga’s Mark Pincus, Opendoor’s Eric Wu, and Roblox’s Stef Corazza
Advertising Ascent
Global advertising revenue to hit $1 trillion in 2026
PwC projects global in-game advertising will reach $147.9 billion in 2028
Rpg Revenue
Zenless Zone Zero surpasses $50 million in 11 days
HoYoverse’s latest launch gets a big start, but revenue is declining