Testing
NetEase and Google partner up to bring automated testing software to Android
Google unveiled NetEase developed testing tech AirTest Project at GDC
Unreal
Epic Games to boost support for mobile developers with Unreal Engine 4
A host of improvements and features revealed at State of Unreal opening session at GDC
Chart Royale
Playerunknown’s Battleground Mobile grabs top spot on iOS free games chart in 17 countries
The battle royale title is also the second spot in Germany and the US
Gotta Go Fast
Games streaming service Hatch brings classic Sega titles Crazy Taxi and Virtua Tennis to Android
Other games like Sonic Jump, Sonic 4 Episode 2 and Sonic CD also heading to the platform courtesy of Hatch
Job News
Former staff at Telltale reveal a toxic working culture at The Walking Dead studio
Ex-employees complained of constant overwork, toxic management and creative stagnation
Polylingual
YoYo Games adds French, German and Spanish languages to GameMaker Studio 2
Development engine set to add more languages this year
Results Are In
Virtual Virtual Reality and Bury Me, My Love take the accolades at 14th annual IMGAs
Old Man’s Journey and Hidden Folks also receive awards
Augmented Reel-ality
Resolution Games set to give Bait! The AR treatment with Bait! Under the Surface on Android and iOS
The latest instalment of the franchise is expected to launch later this year
Phwoar
PlayFusion to give Warhammer the Pokemon Go treatment with new AR trading card game
The mobile games developer will also create additional content as a part of an IP partnership with Games Workshop
Like Nite And Day
Invitation-only Fornite Mobile nets more than $1 million in-game on iOS within three days
Epic Games’ battle royale is currently top of the iOS charts in over 40 different countries
Chickens On The Menu
Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds Mobile launches in America and Canada on iOS and Android
Further release dates for other regions to be revealed soon
Will I’ll Be
The Sims creator Will Wright working on new mobile game Proxi
Competition to join project as 3D artist announced at GDC
Nested Prefabs
Unity's big roadmap for 2018 includes machine learning, IAP Promo and a new rendering pipeline
Technology firms shows signs of a busy year ahead
Game Dev Challenge
$250,000 Unity and Universal contest gives game devs access to IP such as Battlestar Galactica and Back to the Future
Other famous franchises to play with include Turok, Voltron and Jaws
All On Board
Armello launches on iOS and Android
Free-to-play digital board game offers players in-app-purchases and subscription options
Get The Message
Chat app gaming: The massive opportunity in mobile no one’s talking about
Facebook Instant Games presents an exciting future for mobile
Instant Gaming
Android Instant lets players quickly trial games like Clash Royale with tiny downloads
Service currently in closed beta
Friendly Competition
Amazon reveals cross-platform competitive gaming service GameOn that delivers real-world prizes
Developers can use it to implement leaderboards, leagues and multi-round competitions
High Tide
Subway Surfers becomes first game to hit 1 billion downloads on Google Play
The endless runner launched in 2012 and was downloaded 400 million times last year
Service Provider
Meet games services company MoGi Group at GDC 2018 in San Francisco
The team will be at booth 2103 in the South Hall of the Moscone Convention Centre
Mobile Evolved
Ark: Survival Evolved set to touch down on mobile as a free-to-play title this spring
Closed beta to also launching today
Touched Down
Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds Mobile journeys West with Canada soft launch
Available for download from the Google Play store
Events
Blockchain Gamer Connects: The new conference for games and the blockchain heads to San Francisco May 14th to 15th
Two-day event revealed for May 14th and 15th
Reaching Out
Google Play reveals a slew of new mobile game advertising features
Rewarded video, playables and open bidding heading to Google Play and the company's services
Glorious
Super Evil Megacorp partners with Alibaba to bring Vainglory to World Electronic Sports Games
MOBA joins the likes of Blizzard’s Hearthstone and Valve’s Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
Cheers Guys
YoYo Games to hand out free licences for GameMaker Studio 2 during GDC
Games developers can use the suite at Train Jam, The Heart Jam and the Not Going to GDC Game Jam
Location Location Location
Now any developer can harness Google Maps for Pokemon Go-like real-world gaming
The next Pokemon Go could be just around the corner
An Instant Success?
Facebook Instant Games opens up to all developers
Platform rolls out with ads-based monetisation, ads optimisation and measurement tools and cross-promotion features
Top Dogs
Mobile games spending one-third higher than on PC/Mac, handheld and console combined in 2017
Mobile gaming continues to grow thanks by and large to growth in Asia-Pacific territories
Zombieland
Google Maps to power upcoming location-based augmented reality game The Walking Dead: Our World
Partnership will bring famous landmarks such the Statue of Liberty and the London Eye to the game
Getting Social
Sega and GetSocial study shows that social media is the way to go to engage players
GetSocial's study looks at the 40,000 players brought into Sonic Forces: Speed Battle through non-paid social channels
Big Moves
Lords Mobile generating up to $50 million a month
I Got Games also managed to snag $603 million in revenue for 2017
Sweet Deal
Jam City acquires Colombian World War Doh developer Brainz
Publisher expanding into real-time strategy development
Automated Offers
New machine learning-powered app monetisation tool Game of Whales launches
Data from tests claims 25 per cent increase in daily revenues
Rewarded Video Ad Growth
Tapjoy ad platform reaches 620 million monthly active users
Rewarded video ad views grow 150 per cent year-over-year
Off The Chain
Get the latest news and analysis on the world of the blockchain at BlockchainGamer.biz
Online from today, BlockchainGamer.biz explores the blockchain technology phenomenon and demystifies its use in gaming.
Breaking Japan
“The Japanese games market has come out from its closed-off period”
Yengage chief operating officer on the opportunities that await developers in Japan, and how to break in
Iap Inspector
How does The Sims Mobile monetise?
IAPs from the players' perspective
Decked Out
Valve set to bring Source 2-powered card game Artifact to mobile in 2019
Title will be premium, not free-to-play
Blast Off
Blast closes $5 million round to let gamers earn money while they play
Start-up wants to improve engagement and retention for developers while letting players make real money
Funding Round
Mobile developer Kixeye raises $20 million for machine learning platform
Tech to help studios optimise marketing, monetisation and retention
Most Read
Glu soft-launches new IP, student Roblox dev finds big success, and Mobile Legends faces off with Arena of Valor
The hottest articles of the last week
The Week In Jobs
Mobile game jobs weekly: Nordeus makes string of key hires, Gameloft to close Madrid studio, 80-plus EA Mobile vacancies
The movers, shakers and job opportunities in mobile gaming
Championing Diversity
Zynga partners with IGDA to kick off Women in Games Ambassador and Scholars initiatives at GDC
Zynga will provide mentoring from staff and access to the conference
Soft Launch
A guide to soft-launching your mobile game
Pixel Federation's Matej Lancaric offers advice from his personal experience.
Small-screen Dinner
Epic’s Fortnite Battle Royale is coming to mobile with PC and PS4 cross-play
Developer claims title will have same gameplay, map, content and weekly updates
Big Deal
Influencer-led DoubleJump Games acquires mobile developer TinyMob
Further acquisitions and publishing deals on the cards
Trends Survey
Last chance to fill in our developer survey ahead of GDC
Be in with a chance to win a free ticket
Investment News
HQ Trivia dev scoops up $15 million funding round
Company valued at $100 million
New Studio
FoxNext opens new narrative-focused games studio in San Francisco
New branch to harness Fox and Disney IP for episodic title