Aquiblizz
UK Competitions & Markets Authority rumoured to block Activision Blizzard acquisition
According to sources, Microsoft are actively anticipating a possible block on the Activision-Blizzard acquisition by the UK CMA
Staff
Iwan Morris
Job Title
Staff Writer
About Iwan is a Cardiff-based freelance writer, who joined the Pocket Gamer Biz site fresh-faced from University before moving to the Pocketgamer.com editorial team in November of 2023.
Articles by Iwan Morris
Sales
Rovio are officially in talks with Playtika, and others, for a potential sale
A recent statement on Rovio’s investors page indicates that the Angry Birds developer may also be in talks with other interested buyers
Porting
Stumble Guys Vs Fall Guys - Why speed is essential in capitalising on mobile
With Fall Guys clone Stumble Guys reaching the upper echelons of the download charts, it looks like a huge case of missed opportunity for the original developers
Anniversaries
Storytelling studio Brunette Games celebrates seventh anniversary
The storytelling studio has previously done work on major titles such as Lily’s Garden and Matchington Mansion
Profile
Janneke Van Swetselaar from Ultra on bridging the gap and working in gaming
"What attracted me the most was the industry itself; it is very informal, it moves quickly, and people tend to be creative, passionate and come up with new ideas all the time."
Insights
Marvel Snap publisher Nuverse talks up their new global focus
Tom Van Dam, Nuverse's Senior Director of Global Business, outlines their increased global focus post Marvel Snap success
Marketing
Minigames and visual effects drive casual and simulation game marketing
New insights into the marketing of casual and simulation games reveals the latest techniques to generate impressions and installs
Data
Google Play and iOS App Store reached 142 billion downloads in 2022
According to the latest data, first-party app stores reached 142 billion downloads in 2022, with games still dominating
Appointments
Playstudios to appoint Playtika vet Mickey Sonnino as new COO
The Las-Vegas based mobile studio is set to bring in Playtika veteran Mickey Sonnino as their new Chief Operating Officer
Financials
Cyberagent's operational profits are down 69.9%
The digital advertising company has sees dip in sales and operational profits but claims strong start to 2023 in its Q1 financials
Sunsets
Apex Legends Mobile Vs Everdale – the right & wrong way to sunset a game
With the sunsetting of both Apex Legends and Battlefield Mobile, we compare Supercell’s handling of Everdale's closure to EA’s recent misadventures
Pocket Gamer Connects
Aarni Linnakangas talks “Shifting genres while keeping your core identity”
Superplus Games Hills of Steel made the shift to RTS. At PGC London 2023 they explained how they kept their core identity despite the shift in game design
New Launch
Street Fighter Duel coming to the West in 2023
Pre-registration is now open for Tencent’s Street Fighter mobile spin-off game, previously released in China and now coming to the West
Comment & Opinion
Devolver Tumble Time’s Monetisation - Genius or Devious?
While the new match3 game from indie publisher Devolver may seem like a humorous take on the world of mobile games, it still pulls a few tricks to dip into your wallet
Ports
Desta: The Memories Between, makes the jump from mobile to Switch & PC
Developed by Ustwo Games, the title is now spreading its wings beyond its exclusive deal with Netflix Games
New Releases
Ubisoft brings Valiant Hearts spin-off exclusively to Netflix Games
The Valiant Hearts: The Great War spin-off, Valiant Hearts: Coming Home, launches today on Netflix Games
Pocket Gamer Connects
Voodoo’s Alex Shea: “Hypercasual is dead”
In his talk at PGC London 2023, Alex Shea of Voodoo made a convincing argument for how hypercasual may be going the way of the dodo
Milestones
UK mobile dev Kwalee hits 1bn total installs
Leamington Spa-based developer Kwalee announced the important milestone today
Legislation
Indian game makers call for better consultation on proposed changes to legislation
Controversial new legislation which would see games in India covered by iGaming or gambling legislation has caused an uproar amongst game makers
Statistics
Android has a 71% share of all ads traffic
Android remains the preferred platform for creatives, as the number of advertisers has more than doubled from 2019 to 2022
New Hires
Adjoe plans to open up new markets as they hire fresh management team
Mobile advertising platform Adjoe has made three new key hires, concentrating on growing their business in new markets and leading the overall team
Acquisitions
Metacore acquires discontinued Supercell game Everdale
The story continues… Despite being shut down by its creators, Everdale is about to start a new life as Metacore acquires the title
Job News
Snowprint Studios hire ex-Miniclip talent as new CMO
The Warhammer 40,000: Tacticus developers have appointed Jonathan Winters as their new CMO
Installs & Uninstalls
Why are people uninstalling games ahead of other apps?
Games are seeing the largest portion of uninstalls in any category of app, so why is this happening?
Pocket Gamer Connects
MNM Gaming's Kalvin Chung on the cultural communication potential of Esports
At Pocket Gamer Connects London CEO of MNM Gaming, Kalvin Chung, spoke about the cultural communication potential of Esports
New Launch
Bidstack launches dedicated Sports Division and partnership with SimWin Sports
Bidstack's new sports division allows the management of virtual advertising on a whole new level
Pocket Gamer Connects
Pocket Gamer Connects 2023. It's a wrap!
Here's our highlights from day two of our massive Pocket Gamer Connects London 2023 event
Publishing
Flexion to publish Hill Climb Racing on alternative app stores
Flexion is set to publish Fingersoft's Hill Climb Racing 1 & 2 to alternative app stores
Pocket Gamer Connects
Game compliance no longer a checkbox exercise says Paul Gardner
With growing pressure to regulate data protection and potentially expanding gambling laws covering all manner of monetisation, Paul Gardner from Wiggin says developers and publishers need to be proactive
Pocket Gamer Connects
Pocket Gamer Connects London 2023 is GO!
PGC London 2023, our biggest event of the year, is on right now. Here's a recap of the show so far
Patenting
In-game ad company Anzu patents tech to measure viewability of intrinsic ads
Anzu has secured a patent for its technology which measures the viewability of their intrinsic ads within a 3D video game environment
Investment
Turkish studio Yamy receives investment from UP Venture Capital and $4m valuation
Another example of foreign investment into the Turkish mobile gaming scene
Mergers & Acquisitions
Playtika offers $737.5m to acquire Angry Birds developer Rovio
Israeli-based Playtika have sweetened their offer to acquire Rovio, as the latter remains reliant on their flagship franchise
Esports
Deleted Facebook post: Tencent will bring new PUBG Mobile Super League to South-East Asia
Rumour suggests that the PUBG Mobile Super League (PMSL) will supersede the previous PMPL (PUBG Mobile Pro-league) SEA Championship
Publishing
Huuuge Games bags new studios and new games
Huuuge Games have secured publishing rights for two studios, Square Triangle and Frieddegames and their titles Bowling Clash: New Legends & Cafe Dash: Cooking Diner Game
Data
Action game installs grow 49% in Q4 of 2022 according to new data
According to recently released data, amongst other changes in the mobile market, installs of games categorised as ‘action’ grew by 49%
Revenue
MAG Interactive's record quarter shows 39% revenue growth
According to their Q1 report, MAG Interactive have seen record revenue growth and are strongly investing in UA to push their portfolio even further in 2023
Speaker Spotlights
Speaker Spotlight: Matilda Kivelä makes advertising appeal to Gen Z
Pocket Gamer Connects London is coming 23-24 January 2023. Time to meet some of the leading industry names that will be on stage at the event
Speaker Spotlights
Speaker Spotlight: Pau Quevedo talks bringing creatives into your UA
Pocket Gamer Connects London is coming 23-24 January 2023. Time to meet some of the leading industry names that will be on stage at the event
Esports
Mattel163 announces UNO! Mobile tournament with $50k prize pool
Mattel163, the joint venture of Mattel and Chinese game giant Netease have announced a new eSports tournament for their UNO! Mobile game, with numerous prizes to be won
Reports
ESA reports U.S. video game spending hit $56.6bn in 2022
The Entertainment Software Association, in partnership with Sensortower noted that video game spending was stabilising post-Covid
Investment
African publisher Carry1st reports $27m funding round led by Bitkraft Ventures
One of Africa’s top mobile game publishers, Carry1st has partnered with numerous brands such as Riot Games and Call of Duty, leading to significant investment
Speaker Spotlight
Speaker Spotlight: Jai Dave talks business development for mobile
Pocket Gamer Connects London is coming 23-24 January 2023. Time to meet some of the leading industry names that will be on stage at the event
Speaker Spotlight
Speaker Spotlight: Joseph Iris talks machine learning for UA
Pocket Gamer Connects London is coming 23-24 January 2023. Time to meet some of the leading industry names that will be on stage at the event
Speaker Spotlights
Speaker Spotlight: Catalin Butnariu talks M&A going into 2023
Pocket Gamer Connects London is coming 23-24 January 2023. Time to meet some of the leading industry names that will be on stage at the event
Joint Ventures
Mattel and NetEase partnership announces rapid growth going into 2023
Mattel163, the studio formed as part of a partnership between Mattel and NetEase has announced rapid growth and success going into 2023
Profile
Speaker Spotlight: Teis Mikkelsen chats about monetization and subscriptions
Pocket Gamer Connects London is coming 23-24 January 2023. Time to meet some of the leading industry names that will be on stage at the event
Speaker Spotlight
Speaker Spotlight: Hagop Hagopian of Appvertiser talks advertising opportunities
Pocket Gamer Connects London is coming 23-24 January 2023. Time to meet some of the leading industry names that will be on stage at the event
Profile
Speaker Spotlight: Mark Val talks the challenges and benefits of multiplayer
Pocket Gamer Connects London is coming 23-24 January 2023. Time to meet some of the leading industry names that will be on stage at the event.
Esports
Match fixing is just as much a threat to eSports as to traditional sports
Players throwing games and intentionally manipulating games to their favour is a problem eSports will need to grapple with