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
Battle Of The Giants
Apple makes new enemies as it pushes Tencent and Bytedance to cough up their 30%
Never one to shy away from a fight, Apple are seeking to close loopholes in WeChat and TikTok that allow users to bypass their fees
New Publisher
Digital Bandidos: "We are not a chop house where you will get lost in the shuffle"
CEO Steve Escalante on launching a new publisher during a time of industry turmoil
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
Enduring And Delightful Experiences
Spinning a great yarn: Webby winning developers on creating captivating narratives
Following its recent Webby Award win for Beyond Hogwarts, Jam City’s Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery team shares its strategies for creating stories that delight and endure.
Winter Is Coming
Working with world class IP: How Zynga made Game of Thrones: Legends a hit
Executive vice president, Yaron Leyvand discusses the recent launch of Game of Thrones: Legends, working with big brands and that advertisement with Kit Harington
New Game Studio
Former Hitman and Raid: Shadow Legends developers launch Chamo Games
The studio is focused on developing a physics-based shooter with a diverse European perspective
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
Investment News
MixRift raises $1.6M to develop mixed reality games
The start-up will use the funds to support and accelerate its efforts in developing MR games in 2024
Aquisitions
Nazara acquires UK-based Fusebox Games for $27.2 million
The studio behind the popular Love Island game is now part of Nazara's M&A drive for a $10 billion valuation
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"
Game Grants
The Draknek New Voices Puzzle Grant is back for 2024
Attention puzzle game master makers! You could be just an application away from a $15,000 grant and an expert mentor's help
Metrics And Upcoming Trends
Xsolla releases quarterly report on the future of gaming and game development for summer 2024
Key trends include the rapid growth of indie games, the power of influencer marketing and the impact of recent legal and regulatory changes in mobile gaming
Anniversary Celebrations
Nine years of Seekers Notes and 43 million downloads across 195 countries
Seekers Notes core producer Anastasiia Vorobeva on keeping competitive in the hidden object genre and the impact of community
New Publisher
Industry veterans partner to launch game publisher Digital Bandidos for indie developers
They're primarily focused on PC and console titles with a development budget of around $3 million
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
New Game Studio
Former NFL star and ex-Activision producer team up to launch new mobile game studio Marauder Tech
The Marauder Tech team are developing a turn-based strategy mobile game Price of Glory
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
Funding For Games
South Korea's HYBE secures $80 million investment for games division
The first payment of 61.8 billion won is due by September 6 with the remaining 48 billion won to be paid by October 31st 2024
Big Moves
Nazara’s $100m M&A war chest takes India’s largest games company global
CEO Nitish Mittersain on why Nazara could invest even more in deals and his ambitions of growing the company to a $10 billion valuation
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
Esports World Cup
ESL FACEIT signs multi-year deal as official partner of the Esports World Cup
The ESL FACEIT Group will manage tournament operations and broadcast programming
Interview
"Jordan's talent pool offers significant potential for growth and innovation"
Chickmania Entertainment head of studio Mustafa Swiedan discusses the company's new initiatives, cross-platform aspirations and MENA challenges
Podcast
Rise and Play’s Sophie Vo on leadership challenges when scaling your studio | Podcast
The PocketGamer.biz podcast team and guests give you the state of play every week. Here's where to get it and what's inside this week's episode…
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
Studio Closure
Supercell-backed studio Shipyard Games closes as investment dries up
The Helsinki-based geolocation games studio has slipped away quietly with a Discord message revealing its closure
Games Meets Social
Social First bag a further $4.2 million investment as they get set to "redefine social gaming"
Mikko Kähärä and Kim Soares' cross-platform company gains fresh funding for its first MMO, slated for early access later this year
New Approvals
China approves 15 import games, delivering a total of 76 import approvals in 2024
Nintendo secured approvals for Mario Golf: Super Rush and Paper Mario: The Origami King
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
Turning Up The Heat
US judge finds Google guilty in landmark search and advertising monopoly case
It’s not just you. Yes, Google did create, and is running an illegal monopoly on search and advertising
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
Industry Insight
Seven psychology-inspired tips for perfect video game design
Sensemitter’s analyst Bogdan Baranovskiy offers insight and advice on game design principles by relating them to real world situations
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
Acqusitions
Nazara subsidiary Absolute Sports to acquire US games content platform Deltias Gaming
The transaction involves an all-cash payment of $900K and is expected to close within 45 days
Masterclass
TOMORROW: Learn how to design effective game monetisation in a deep-dive online MasterClass workshop
The first deep-dive online workshop of the MasterClass Summer 2024 Programme is Wednesday, August 7th
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
New Offerings
Microsoft and Activision form new Blizzard team to expand iconic franchises
This new team is focused on developing smaller games based on existing Blizzard franchises, potentially for mobile platforms
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
The Law Won
TikTok kills its Lite Rewards program following EU Digital Services Act pressure
The social network's system for paying users for watching ads, liking content, following creators, and inviting friends on board is no more
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
Tough Times
2024's games industry lay-offs: The stories so far - all in one place
The second half of the year is still providing tough times. Here are all the companies that have resized, restructured and shed staff so far this year
Growth Story
The US spearheads mobile games sector back to growth as Asia markets stumble
A deep dive into the data of the industry's long-awaited upswing
New Partnerships
RallyHere partners with ProbablyMonsters to launch two new titles
ProbablyMonsters will utilise RallyHere's services for its two debut titles Battle Barge and Hidden Grove.
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
Layoff News
Jam City has laid off 10% of its workforce
"The overall upward trend has not materialised as expected," said Jam City CEO Josh Yguado
Bungie Breakdown
Is Destiny Mobile to blame for Bungie’s fall from grace?
Insiders are coming out of the woodwork to portion blame within the troubled giant
Interview
"Cross-platform games are the future of gaming"
Mad Hook Games CEO and co-founder Hazim Al-Hanbali discusses shifting mobile game mechanics and the challenges of finding talent
Top 50
Final weeks to nominate developers for PocketGamer.biz's Top 50 Mobile Game Makers 2024
Don't miss out - Nominations close on Friday, August 16th, 2024
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