Ambition Check
Saudi Arabia’s PIF reportedly short on fresh capital for new investments
Insiders say much of the fund’s wealth is tied up in illiquid megaprojects like Neom
Staff
Isa Muhammad
Job Title
MENA Reporter
About Isa Muhammad is the Lead MENA Reporter at PocketGamer.biz, spearheading the team's Middle East & Africa games coverage. He's been in games media for over seven years and is steadily writing his way to the sharp end of journalism. If he's not reading, playing games or catching up on his favorite TV shows, he's probably writing about them.
Articles by Isa Muhammad
Studio Strategy
Ubisoft lands $1.3bn Tencent investment for Vantage Studios
The deal values Vantage Studios at $4.3bn pre-money
Funding News
SuperGears Games raises $2.1m to power its next growth phase
Funding fuels expansion of the Racing Kingdom mobile racing universe
Regulations
Junglee Games parent Flutter records $556m impairment over real-money gaming ban in India
Junglee shifts fully to free-to-play while assessing future options
Investment News
Torpor Games closes a minority seed investment round to develop its next flagship title
Investment will also support two Suzerain DLCs and a new standalone game
Accelerator Program
Maliyo Games launches Creator Academy Accelerator to help aspiring creators in games
The 4-week programme includes curated learning materials, weekly challenges, and peer feedback
Milestone
Resident Evil Survival Unit surpasses 1 million downloads in under three days
The game reached number one on the App Store’s top free charts in more than 15 regions
Trading Resumption
Ubisoft sets new date for delayed H1 financial results
The company will now publish its results before the opening of trading November 21st, 2025
Job News
Ex-Nordisk Games boss Mikkel Weider named CEO of Everplay
Effective from January 1st, 2026
Clash Contest
Supercell launches global Clash of Clans contest offering a month-long stay in an Irish castle
The £120,000 prize includes flights for four, private transfers, a personal chef and exclusive castle access
Winners Revealed
Google reveals winners of its Google Play best of 2025 awards
Pokémon TCG Pocket was crowned best game of 2025
App Store Awards
Apple reveals 45 finalists for 2025 App Store Awards
The awards honour developers delivering standout innovation, design and user experience
New Partnerships
Anzu partners with Playgama to bring intrinsic in-game ads to web games
The deal marks Anzu’s expansion into web game support
Online Safety
Roblox to introduce facial age estimation to limit minor-adult chat interactions
The company says the system sets a new “gold standard” for online communication safety
Awards Season
Public voting is now open for the 12th Annual Pocket Gamer Awards
Shortlisted finalists span more than 20 categories
Investment News
Stan secures new Series A investment from Sony Innovation Fund
The funding will fuel AI-driven personalisation and creator monetisation tools
New Offerings
AdsAdvisor launches Playable Reformer to streamline multi-network playable ads
The tool aims to remove technical barriers and simplify workflows for UA and creative teams
Milestone
Asus reports strong sales for Xbox ROG Ally X
The handheld’s October 16th debut drew an “extremely positive” market response
New Partnerships
Exel by Merak and Saudi Bridge partner to support international startups entering the kingdom
The cooperation forms part of the Biban 2025 initiatives to boost global collaboration
Acqusitions
Stash acquires Galleon to expand global DTC footprint in games
The deal expands Stash’s footprint in EMEA and brings Galleon’s founders into senior leadership roles
Expansions
Ukrainian studio Burny Games expands into publishing
This marks Burny’s first external publishing partnership with another studio
New Offerings
Apple launches Mini Apps Partner Program with reduced commission on qualifying in-app purchases
Eligible developers can earn an 85% share on qualifying in-app purchases
New Offerings
Coherence 2.0 update launches as major upgrade to the multiplayer platform
Indie teams get full features free under the $200,000 revenue threshold
New Partnerships
Room 8 Group teams up with Pragma to streamline online game development
Partnership brings studios a full suite of backend and live ops tools
Acqusitions
SUD acquires Cocos in a $72m deal to deepen platform integration
Cocos 4 will move to a fully open-source model, offering all engine and CLI code for free
Industry Outlook
Survey finds over half of US game industry workers feel pay doesn’t reflect their role
5% report earning under $15,000 a year
Job News
Hutch appoints Andrew Watson as its new CEO
He previously led production on major mobile IPs including Forza, Hot Wheels, and F1
Layoff News
Crystal Dynamics cuts nearly 30 staff in workforce reduction
Studio says layoffs are part of a reorganisation to optimise development of its new Tomb Raider game
Marvellous Mena
Exel by Merak welcomes 19 startups for Cohort 2 accelerator
Cohort 2 spans mobile, PC, and console projects with completion set for February 2026
New Office
Appcharge opens Helsinki office to strengthen ties with Finnish game studios
Finland’s leadership in DTC growth was a key driver behind the expansion
Company Restructure
Krafton is offering voluntary resignations to employees amid AI-first shift
The company says it aims to help employees shape new career paths during its AI transition
New Offerings
Sybo to launch Subway Surfers+ expansion on Apple Arcade
Subway Surfers+ arrives December 4th, 2025
New Partnerships
Lurkit teams up with Streamlabs to push creator marketing forward in the games industry
Multiple medium to large mobile campaigns kick off from late December into early 2026
Apple Troubles
Apple denied permission to appeal a ruling that it abused its market dominance
The company now faces a potential payout exceeding £1bn as regulatory pressure intensifies
New Offerings
Red Dead Redemption to arrive on Android and iOS next month
Netflix members can also download and play the game from December 2nd at no extra cost
New Offerings
NCsoft reveals new global MMORPG Horizon Steel Frontiers for mobile and PC
The game is set in the Horizon World universe and is co-developed with Sony’s Guerrilla
Pay Increase
Sega is raising salaries for all Japan-based employees by 10%
New pay scales go live on April 1st 2026
New Studio
53 content creators unite to launch a fully player-owned game studio named Gallaxia
The studio aims to reinvent creation, ownership, and monetisation in the creator-driven economy
New Offerings
Roblox opens License Manager to all eligible IP holders through self-serve system
The company calls it the beginning of a new era of large-scale licensing on the platform
New Offerings
Valve’s Steam Frame will support Android games out of the box
Developers can bring existing Android and Quest-style VR titles via standard APKs
New Offerings
Epic Games is previewing in-island transaction tools for Fortnite creators
Creators can now test selling in-game items using V-Bucks ahead of next month’s rollout
New Offerings
Lore Machine launches Adventure_Mode for creating and remixing AI-powered visual stories
The feature shifts users from consuming content to actively shaping narratives in real time
Partnership Extension
Poki expands Sybo partnership to bring more Subway Surfers titles to the web
The original Subway Surfers has surpassed 1.7bn plays on Poki since its web debut
New Offerings
Palworld Mobile Alpha test set for Q4 2025
The mobile version will make its public debut at G-Star 2025 in South Korea
New Offerings
The Games Growth Guild launches as a global network for marketing and publishing professionals in games
The Guild connects experts from indie, mobile, and triple-A studios to share growth strategies
Investment News
Chickmania secures investment from Singapore’s WeJoy to accelerate global growth
The deal aims to expand Chickmania’s reach across Asia, the Middle East, and global markets
Winners Revealed
Playing for the Planet and Green Game Jam 2025 winners revealed
The awards celebrated studios advancing environmental storytelling and sustainability in games
Acqusitions
Social First acquires in-game item marketplace GamerPay
The platform will continue operating normally, with all accounts and listings remaining intact
Power Saving
Google launches new Android metric to help reduce battery drain from background processes
Starting March 2026, affected apps may lose Play Store visibility or receive warning labels
New Offerings
MiHoYo teases next large-scale fantasy project in Unreal Engine 5
Job listings describe the project as a realistic fantasy title with heavy creature design work