Xsolla introduces new corporate identity, offers "all the things" developers could ever need

• Xsolla is celebrating its 20th anniversary.
• New brand appropriate as company & industry enter a 'new era'.
• Xsolla aims to offer support for the full games lifecycle.
• Company commits to 'listening and building' for developers of all sizes.

As the global mobile games market continues to evolve, the challenges facing developers and publishers to compete effectively have grown enormously.

Changes in legislation, different regional payment mechanisms and the growing opportunity to 'own' the player mean the number of capabilities required by developers are increasing exponentially.

Xsolla has spent the last 20 years building the technology to support the development community and enable them to stay abreast of the global games market. Now the company is rebranding and repositioning itself to stay at the forefront of the whole ecosystem.

The PocketGamer.biz team spoke to Berkley Egenes, the chief marketing officer for Xsolla to find out more about the new corporate identity and what it means for Xsolla's goal to provide 'all the things' developers could possibly need to succeed.

Pocketgamer.biz: After 20 years, why is now the critical time for Xsolla to undertake a major corporate brand refresh? What specifically does the new identity communicate about Xsolla's future focus?

Berkley Egenes: The games industry has evolved significantly over the last two decades. As a company, we have built our business on meeting developers where they are and delivering on their varying business needs. This is the right moment for a major brand refresh as both Xsolla and the games industry are entering a fundamentally new era. The gaming landscape has become increasingly complex, driven by regulatory changes, platform fragmentation, and the rising cost of reaching players.

Developers now need partners who can help them navigate all aspects of this changing landscape. We are doing just that, from supporting distribution and live operations to enabling cross-platform infrastructure, our new brand reflects a broader strategic shift: Xsolla is evolving from being viewed primarily as a payments provider to becoming an integrated game commerce platform.

This new identity conveys clarity, simplicity, and modularity, mirroring how we’re building our technology. It reinforces our commitment to supporting developers at every step of their journey and showcases a forward-looking philosophy centred on building the infrastructure that game creators need to thrive.

You state the mission is to ‘build all the things’ developers need. In practical terms, what core service or feature, essential for developer success, did Xsolla not offer previously that the new brand and strategy will address?

Xsolla is constantly exploring ways to innovate in the gaming industry and to meet the varying needs of developers on its platform. Building “all the things” is a statement of intent that reflects what we’ve been hearing from developers who want more unified, connected support across their entire lifecycle.

In the past, our focus was heavily weighted toward monetisation, but developers increasingly need help with distribution, live operations, cross-platform infrastructure, and direct-to-consumer engagement.

Our vision fills those gaps by expanding into areas such as web shops, player account systems, entitlement syncing, live ops-driven commerce, and lifecycle tools that tie player behaviour to revenue strategy. These additions allow us to support developers earlier in development, more consistently throughout launch, and more strategically during post-launch growth.

The brand refresh is launching during The Game Awards week. How is this week-long focus - including the partnerships with GamesBeat and Day of the Devs - designed to re-engage the development community specifically?

Launching during The Game Awards week gives us a massive platform at a time when the entire industry is already tuned in, making it the perfect moment to introduce Xsolla’s new brand and vision for the future.

Our collaborations with GamesBeat and Day of the Devs are designed to put developers at the centre of the story. Throughout our engagement, we will be highlighting real use cases, indie success stories, and the evolving needs of creators.

This is a week-long opportunity to show this rebrand is more than a visual update; it’s a renewed commitment to listening to and building for developers of all sizes. By embedding ourselves in a moment of global celebration for games, we’re reaffirming that our evolution is rooted in supporting the people who make them.

In the current global market, developers are demanding higher margins, greater data autonomy, etc. How is Xsolla leveraging the shifting platform policy landscape (like the recent Google Play and Apple vs Epic changes) to offer developers a stronger path to profitability?

This is creating new opportunities for developers to take control of their economics, and Xsolla is well-positioned to help them maximise them. As policies shift, developers now have more freedom to sell directly to players, access better margins, and own their transactional data.

Think about it - more revenue, with fewer costs and more engagement. Xsolla accelerates this by providing turnkey direct-to-consumer commerce infrastructure, web shops, account systems, entitlements, and global payment capabilities that allow developers to reduce costs, increase retention, and build long-term player relationships.

We absorb the complexities of compliance and regulation so creators can operate more freely across multiple markets. These policy changes represent a rare moment when developers can reclaim both margin and data, and our platform is designed to help them execute on that opportunity immediately.

What are the biggest payment or monetisation hurdles you currently see for developers trying to scale games into emerging or non-traditional markets (e.g., LATAM, APAC, BRICS, etc.)?

The most significant hurdles stem from payment fragmentation, regulatory complexity, and economic volatility. In many emerging markets, credit cards are not the primary payment method, and success hinges on offering intensely localised options, sometimes dozens within a single country.

Compliance requirements vary widely across regions, making it risky for developers to operate without a partner who can manage taxes, chargebacks, and reporting. And finally, fluctuating currencies and varying purchasing power require sophisticated, region-specific pricing models.

Xsolla simplifies all of this by offering a single integration unlocking an extensive catalogue of payment methods, localised pricing tools, and automated compliance, eliminating the barriers that often prevent studios from scaling successfully into high-growth markets.

Xsolla supports creation, monetisation, distribution, and marketing. Which of these four pillars is currently the most difficult for the average mid-sized studio to manage efficiently, and how does Xsolla simplify it?

Marketing and distribution remain the biggest challenges for mid-sized studios. Rising acquisition costs, reduced targeting capabilities, and shrinking visibility on major platforms make it difficult for teams with limited budgets to compete.

Xsolla simplifies this by offering integrated tools that bypass traditional bottlenecks in direct-to-consumer commerce to build owned audiences, creator and affiliate programs to expand organic reach, and a multi-platform distribution infrastructure that reduces friction for players.

Combined with our global payments network, these solutions help mid-sized teams operate with the kind of efficiency and capability typically reserved for much larger publishers.

The industry is looking increasingly at cross-platform and direct-to-consumer (DTC) models. How critical is the transition to web-stores and DTC sales for the long-term viability of mobile developers, and how does Xsolla facilitate that shift?

For mobile developers, the transition to direct-to-consumer channels is becoming essential. With platform discoverability shrinking, acquisition costs rising, and audience fragmentation, relying solely on traditional app stores is no longer a sustainable strategy.

Web shops and DTC channels give developers higher margins, full ownership of customer data, and the ability to deliver personalised offers, increasing player lifetime value. They also allow studios to unify player identity across platforms, enabling cross-progression and more flexible monetisation strategies.

Xsolla facilitates this shift with a fully managed web-shop ecosystem, global payment coverage, built-in promotional tools, and entitlement systems that ensure seamless experiences between web, mobile, and PC. We enable mobile teams to build sustainable, scalable businesses beyond the confines of app stores.

Where does Xsolla see its primary competitive edge moving forward: technology, geographic reach, compliance, or developer relationships?

Our competitive edge lies at the intersection of all four, but the real differentiator is how they work together. Technology drives our platform, geographic reach ensures global scale, and deep compliance expertise removes operational risk for our partners. But what sets us apart is our long-standing relationship with developers and publishers.

We’ve spent 20 years building trust by solving real problems, adapting to industry shifts, and delivering infrastructure that works in the background so creators can focus on making great games. That combination of global, compliant, developer-first technology is challenging to replicate and positions us firmly for the next decade of game commerce.

Beyond core payments, what is the biggest area of innovation Xsolla is currently investing in for 2026?

Our most significant investment area is in expanding next-generation commerce infrastructure, specifically, tools that help developers connect player data, content, and monetisation into a single, cohesive system. This includes advancements in live ops-driven storefronts, AI-supported offer personalisation, subscription and membership systems, and new models for cross-platform progression and entitlements. 

We’re also exploring the future of interoperable digital goods and identity frameworks that allow players to move more freely across platforms. These innovations are designed to give developers greater control over revenue, engagement, and retention while reducing the technical cost of implementing sophisticated systems.

The game commerce space is becoming increasingly crowded. How does Xsolla plan to communicate its value proposition to developers who may be experiencing ‘tool fatigue’ from too many providers?

Developers are overwhelmed by fragmented tools that solve single problems but don’t connect into a unified workflow. Xsolla’s value proposition is built around consolidation, reducing the number of integrations and partners required to operate globally.

Our platform is intentionally modular, allowing studios to start with one solution and expand into others as they grow. We focus heavily on interoperability, cross-platform support, and simplifying back-end complexity so studio teams can focus on building content, not infrastructure.

By highlighting real developer outcomes, not abstract promises, and by showing measurable improvements in margins, conversion, and retention, we cut through the noise and demonstrate value quickly.

Looking three years out, what market trend or developer need—currently minor—do you predict will become central to Xsolla’s strategy by 2028?

We expect player identity ownership to become one of the most critical topics in the industry. As cross-platform ecosystems mature and direct-to-consumer models expand, developers will need unified identity, entitlement, and progression systems that operate independently of any single platform. This shift will redefine how studios manage player relationships, monetisation, and live ops strategies.

By 2028, the ability to control your player graph and build personalised, data-driven experiences across all touchpoints will become a competitive necessity. Xsolla is investing in this future now because the studios that build around owned player ecosystems will be the ones who thrive in the next decade.