Stocks
NetEase sees stock rally of 85% fuelled by new game releases
Their performance on the Hang Seng Index got a major boost
Big Festival
MENA and social gaming: What does it take to succeed in one of the world’s fastest-growing markets?
At BIG Festival, Nine66’s Ricardo Flores examined the growth of gaming throughout the MENA region
Legislation
Google, Apple and others now have six months to comply with new digital markets rules
The Digital Markets Act in the EU will see digital “gatekeepers” forced to adhere to new rules
Gaming In Brazil
38% of games developed in Brazil are mobile titles
Abragames’ 2022 Brazil Games Industry report examines the state of the gaming market
Company Spotlight
Company Spotlight: Pingle Studio
Find out more about the global game development partner that brings projects to life for some of gaming's biggest brands
Q&a
AppGallery's Jaime Gonzalo: "Alternative app platforms are providing developers with improved revenue-generating opportunities"
AppGallery aims to provide users with high quality content while ensuring that game developers feel supported
Production
Apple scales back production of highly-anticipated Vision Pro headset
Issues relating to the supply chain and concerns over quality may lead to a significant cut to the originally proposed one million unit production run
Appointments
Sega appoints NetEase alumni as new senior general manager of mobile publishing
Robin Ng served with NetEase from 2019 to 2021
Pokemon Power
More than 600 billion Pokémon caught as Pokémon Go approaches seventh anniversary
Celebration details revealed for upcoming anniversary
Competition Authority
South African authorities unconditionally approve Activision Blizzard acquisition
Another win for Microsoft despite home-grown struggles
Legislation
Apple to ask US Supreme Court to overturn Epic ruling
The company ask Supreme Court to consider Ninth Circuit ruling
Top 50 Game Makers
Don't forget to nominate YOUR choice of Top 50 Mobile Game Maker!
Make sure that your company and colleagues are part of the PocketGamer.biz Top 50 Mobile Game Makers for 2023
Executive Moves
CEO of Nine66, Kadri Harma, to return to venture capital
Harma has been CEO since late 2021
Viking Variety
NetEase’s Vikingard begins final crossover arc with MGM’s Vikings
"The Final War" adds Ivar the Boneless and Torvi from the TV show as new characters
Appointments
Animoca Brands’ Yat Siu joins Hong Kong taskforce on Web3 development
The executive chairman has been increasingly bullish on Web3
Feature
Using AI in games development: Part Three
In this third part of the series iLogos Game Studios founder Alexander Goldybin explores AI assisted game design
Shutdown
Just Cause Mobile to be discontinued ahead of official release
The title has been in development since it was announced in 2020
Data
ATT opt-in rates for gaming climb to 37% as users grow more data savvy
Adjust data shows acceptance is becoming more widespread thanks to user knowledge and publisher communication
Big Festival
Live from the BIG Festival: Day three of Latin America’s biggest gaming event
Thousands of gamers and industry professionals have descended on São Paulo, Brazil for the state of play 2023, and we’re here live at the show
Big Festival
Live from the BIG Festival: Day two of Latin America’s biggest gaming event
Thousands of gamers and industry professionals have descended on Sao Paulo - and we’re here on the show floor
Week That Was
Week in Views - What caught our eyes in the last seven days
The Pocketgamer.biz team take their pick of this weeks big news including EA's big break up, new looks, new opportunities and new challenges…
Collaborations
Angry Birds to collaborate with US National Parks Service for 4th of July
The Independence Day celebrations begin on July 3
Milestones
Football Manager 2023 & Touch was SIGames’ most played title ever
The Football Manager series covers PC, console and mobile
Legislation
South Korea could enforce an approval system for Chinese games
The Game Industry Promotion Law may soon be amended based on overseas practices
Milestones
Rush Royale hits 63 million installs and doubles growth in the US thanks to… Jake Paul?
Publisher My.Games credits the game's success to a two-month long collaboration event
Sonic Speculations
Microsoft acquiring Sega? Rumours get extinguished by COO Shuji Utsumi
The Federal Trade Commission’s suit against Microsoft reveals notions of acquiring Sega… Which went precisely nowhere
Feature
Is this the end of GAM networks on mobile?
Ad Monetisation Manager Felix Braberg explains GAM networks and what publishers should do as the end is in sight for GAM resellers
Alternative App Stores
Meta to get into the app store game as Facebook allows app downloads
The EU's Digital Markets Act is opening up app store monopolys and big players are getting ready to reap the rewards
Pride Month
The power of Pride and the state of inclusivity in gaming
As Pride Month ends we discuss why representing the queer community is important. And where companies still need to improve
Squad Building
Formation Games appoints new advisory group, including Wargaming and Riot veterans
The studio is the developer behind upcoming football game Club
Ai
Unity pulls the plug on Atlas AI generation tool less than 24 hours after launch
Atlas was released as part of a suite of new, approved, third-party tools offered by the company
Flash Sale
Happy Fourth of July – enjoy 20% off Pocket Gamer Connects Toronto and join us in 2 weeks!
PG Connects returns to Toronto this July 19-20, secure your ticket with 20% off today!
Feature
Using AI in games development: Part Two
In this second part of the series iLogos Game Studios founder Alexander Goldybin explores AI based game mechanics
Big Festival
Live from BIG Festival: Day one of Latin America’s biggest gaming event
Thousands of gamers and industry professionals have descended on São Paulo, Brazil for the state of play 2023, and we’re here live at the show
Redundancies
Niantic lays off 230 employees and cancels Marvel AR game
Shock news. The augmented reality gaming giant shutters a studio and games
Stock Crash
tinyBuild stock crashes 78% after profit warning and CFO departure
The crash has been branded “Worse than Embracer”
Sprouting Seeds
Pikmin Bloom introduces crossover content promoting first mainline game in ten years
Nintendo and Niantic promote new Switch game Pikmin 4 with special costume in Bloom
Barbie On Board
Barbie hits Stumble Guys in mass-multimedia promo campaign
It's getting harder to miss the arrival of the Barbie movie with mobile a prime promo target
Finding Funds
Mythical Games raises a further $37million, hitting a valuation of over $1billion
Investors include Animoca Brands, MoonPay and veterans from Activision Blizzard
Results
Slovakian games made €77 million in 2022
That number only a slight dip from the €80m in 2021
Investment
Scriptic raises $5.7m in funding for AI-driven narrative mobile games
The round was led by perennial investor Bitkraft Ventures
Ranking
AppLovin takes downloads top spot for US companies worldwide
Data.ai's latest shows mobile-first beating the big names to take pole position
New Deals
Scopely acquires Dundee-based Tag Games
Doubling down on 2021’s investment, the firm have now made Tag Games a Scopely Studio
Meet The Experts
Get an exclusive look at the stellar speakers of Pocket Gamer Connects Toronto!
Get a sneak peek at the star-studded lineup of PG Connects Toronto, sharing their insights with us this July.
Feature
Case Study: How Jackpot Party Casino keeps on winning
Oxana Fomina shares the winning formula of Jackpot Party Casino’s continued success
Celebrating Canada
Celebrate Canada Day with us and enjoy 20% off your Pocket Gamer Connects Toronto ticket!
PG Connects Toronto is just around the corner, don’t miss out on taking advantage of our limited time flash sale this holiday weekend!
Redundancies
Montreal-based Ludia lets 45 staff go in new round of layoffs
The company has clarified the impact its restructuring will have on its employees
New Features
Niantic adds Campfire to Pokemon Go in social gaming push
The new feature aims to draw players of their biggest game into their social ecosystem
Shock Report
Google accused of misleading its advertisers on over 80% of ad placements
“Repackaging shitty, brand-unsafe outstream as instream is a big problem," quotes a new report with potential refunds running into billions
Data & Research
Skrmiish announces new Head of Data, Dr. João Pela
Bringing CERN-style data analysis to the world of play-to-earn