Investment News
Classy Games Studios secures investment from Merak Capital
Funds will go towards accelerating game development and expanding its core team
New Game Launch
Starvania Studio to launch Bahamut and The Waqwaq Tree during Dubai GameExpo Summit
The game is inspired by Arabian mythologies from the One Thousand and One Nights book
Market Growth
Middle East fastest-growing market for game revenue and downloads in 2024
The region was the only games market to see downloads growth last year
Esports In Africa
Carry1st Africa Cup 2025 returns with $15,000 Call of Duty: Mobile prize pool
Over 200 teams and 1,000 players are expected to participate for a $15,000 prize pool
Marvellous Mena
GEM Capital MD and Jetapult CEO talk MENA investments and unlocking the region's potential
Roman Gurskiy and Sharan Tulsiani discuss what they look for in startups, common founder mistakes, and how MENA game studios can attract global capital
Pgc Jordan
Game incubators in MENA and the risks of "polishing the wrong thing"
GIGS co-founder Ashraf Abi-Said and LUDiMUS Inc CEO and co-founder Sho Sato discussed the value of incubators at PGC Jordan 2024
New Partnerships
Saudi Esports Federation partners with PUGB Mobile to expand competitive opportunities
The partnership will merge the Saudi eLeague with the PUBG Mobile National Championship
Expansions
Animoca Brands opens first Middle East office in Dubai
Omar Elassar will lead the new hub as managing director and head of global strategic partnerships
Cloud Gaming In Mena
The Game Company launches AI-Powered cloud gaming platform
Launch comes after it raised $10m in funding earlier this year
New Office
Savvy Games Group opens first permanent HQ in Riyadh
New HQ now houses both Steer Studios and Mirai, bringing them under one roof
Gameexpo Summit
Dubai GameExpo Summit 2025 full conference schedule revealed!
Introducing: The Investment Summit; plus everything from AI to web3 this May 7th and 8th
Pgc Jordan
Investor AMA: "When it comes to platforms, we think that mobile is the way to go"
Speakers from Merak Capital, Tamatem and Walking Squid Advisory offered funding tips at PGC Jordan 2024
Investment News
Rise of Fearless launches with $700,000 funding goal to empower African gamers
Funding will go towards improving gameplay and expanding into the web3 ecosystem
Mena Games Awards 2025
MENA Games Industry Awards 2025 finalists revealed
Winners to be announced on Thursday, May 8th, as part of the Dubai GameExpo Summit 2025
Accelerator Program
Saudi Arabia’s NEOM to welcome 10 studios for largest Level Up accelerator cohort
Initiative designed for teams that have developed a minimum viable product or a vertical slice of their game
Game Jam
Savvy Games Group and HP launch climate-themed Game Jam in Saudi Arabia
The top three teams will then join the Savvy Incubator program in September
New Games
New release roundup: Disney Solitaire, Jetpack Joyride Racing, TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge and more
We highlight the latest new games that have broken cover over the past week
Marvellous Mena
How Steer Studios launched Grunt Rush while training a new development team
"We juggled training the team, building production pipelines, and developing the game all at once, whilst gradually bringing in experts throughout production to support."
Mena Month
Investment opportunities in MENA: "From an investor perspective this is the best time to be deploying by far"
Panellists took to the stage at the Dubai GameExpo Summit powered by Pocket Gamer Connects in 2024 to discuss mobile, web3, AI and investments in the MENA region
Mena Month
The big deals that have shaped the Middle East's games industry over the past year
We take a look at the acquisitions, partnerships and other deals in the Middle East's growing market
Expansions
KGeN opens MENA HQ in Bahrain
The new office will serve as a bridge between gaming, communities and global publishers
Esports In Mena
Savvy Games Group and Saudi Esports Federation Sign MoU to boost Saudi Arabia esports sector
The MoU will create internship opportunities for graduates of the Saudi Esports Academy
Fringe Events
Fringe events at the Dubai GameExpo Summit 2025 you can participate in
Got a game, project, tool or service to pitch? Win funding, prizes and make deals at the Dubai GameExpo Summit 2025
Ticket Discount
Dubai GameExpo Summit 2025 Mid Term rate expires this week!
Grab a ticket before Friday to save on access to our MENA business-boosting networking conference (May 7th to 8th)
Mena Month
The opportunity for anime games in MENA
Tamatem group product manager Shorouq Ghneim discusses the company's launch of Land of Heroes and anime's popularity in the region
Web3 Way
High income, a young population and "attractive" regulations could make Dubai a "launchpad" for games and web3
Dubai Multi Commodities Centre director of ecosystems Belal Jassoma talks MENA region advantages
Mena Month
How Savvy aims to grow its games empire after $3.5bn Niantic deal
PocketGamer.biz speaks to CEO Brian Ward about buying the Pokémon Go developer Niantic, how it works with Scopely, and its plans outside of mobile
Gameexpo Summit
Dubai GameExpo Summit 2025 conference tracks revealed!
Featuring the Investment Summit plus all the hottest topics from AI to web3 across eight themed tracks
Mena Month
MENA Month begins on PocketGamer.biz
We'll be highlighting the exciting teams, investment opportunities and major news from the region
Marvellous Mena
Lobah on raising $12m and the opportunity for culturalised games in MENA
We talk with Lobah head of product and partnerships Ibrahim El Kawam fresh on the back of the studio's big-money investment
Marvellous Mena
Sandsoft's CEO on the publisher's hybridcasual evolution and global expansion
David Fernandez Remesal discusses the publisher's journey throughout the past year and its plans for 2025
Marvellous Mena
"The most accessible platform to reach South Africans is mobile"
Pineapple on Pizza CEO Kushal Jeethendra Sithlu discusses upcoming mobile titles, localisation efforts and funding challenges
Celebratory Strike
NetEase’s Blood Strike surpasses 60m mobile installs and $22.9m in time for first anniversary
The US has proven Blood Strike’s most lucrative mobile market in year one, despite accounting for just 7% of downloads
Acquisition Accomplished
Scopely acquires Pokémon Go developer Niantic's games business in $3.5bn deal
Blockbuster deal brings the multi-billion-dollar hit mobile game under the Savvy Games Group umbrella
Funding News
Saudi Arabia's Lobah Game Studio secures $12 million investment
Company will use the funds to accelerate development of its upcoming games
New Offerings
Sandsoft plots hybridcasual expansion with three new game deals
Publisher said that it has “several more" games in testing and are scheduled to release in the coming months
Marvellous Mena
“We aim to merge games with Africa’s finest tunes and rhythms''
Weza Interactive Entertainment CEO and co-founder Odongo George Ahere discusses mobile rhythm game Riziki, funding challenges and tapping into the African market
Mena Region
Saudi Social Development Bank backs esports and game development with $122m
The expanded financing portfolio has supported over 30 clients across esports, game development and publishing
Investment News
Good Job Games Secures investment from Menlo Ventures
The investment raises Good Job Games’ valuation to over $100 million
Mena Guide
Seven reasons why you can't ignore the MENA market
Discover why the MENA region is becoming a global hotspot for business growth in the games industry
Mena Games Awards
Nominations open for the MENA Games Industry Awards 2025
Come celebrate the developers, publishers, investors, and leaders who are driving MENA's growing games market
Week That Was
Who will buy AppLovin's games studios, Olympics esports delayed, and DeNA's profits surge | Week in Views
The Pocketgamer.biz team pick their highlights from the headlines this week and deliver the stories behind the stories
Esports In Mena
Emirates Esports Federation opens bidding for E Gaming League franchises
The league's owners see it as an opportunity to establish the UAE as a hub for digital entertainment and economic growth
New Partnerships
Merak Capital partners with Huawei Cloud to boost Saudi Arabia’s games industry
The partnership will provide gaming startups with workshops on cloud-native game development
Investment News
Spoilz secures strategic investment to launch new IPs
The studio said it will form new partnerships, uplift local talent, and improve monetisation
New Partnerships
Merak Capital and Microsoft team up to support gaming startups in Saudi Arabia
The partnership builds on Merak Capital's $80 million gaming fund
Mena Expansion
Roblox rolls out Arabic language support
The UGC platform has seen daily active users grow by an average of 80% across five MENA countries
Esports In Mena
Savvy Games Group and HP sign MoU to help Saudi Arabia learners get careers in gaming and esports
Saudi games and esports group said it will also provide skill-building opportunities through incubator programs
New Partnerships
Savvy Games Group and Merak Capital partner to boost Saudi Arabia’s games ecosystem
The partnership builds on Merak Capital's $80 million gaming fund to support the Kingdom's esports sector
Marvellous Mena
"Mobile web-based gaming is set to play a significant role in our future"
Sea Monster Entertainment CEO and co-founder Glenn Gillis discusses impact games, EdTech in Africa, funding challenges and building a climate resilience game