8 Predictions for Gaming M&A and Investments in 2025

Written by our Partner, InvestGame. 2024 was a year of recovery and strategic recalibration for the gaming industry. After years of pandemic-related challenges and shifting market dynamics, the sector is gradually finding its footing. As demand for gaming fell post-COVID, many public companies struggled to demonstrate positive organic revenue growth (i.e. growth excluding revenue from recently acquired companies), often missing analyst expectations. Rising interest rates and broader macroeconomic uncertainty further affected valuations for publicly traded gaming firms, making company stock less attractive currency for new acquisitions. This led sellers of acquisition targets to prefer cash over buyers’ illiquid, risky, and typically depreciating stocks. Meanwhile, debt raised during the pandemic to finance acquisitions has become more expensive to service. Coupled with weaker organic performance, these factors tightened debt covenants and led numerous public strategic players to announce strategic reviews, lay off […]

Gamigion January 20

Journal

Why Duolingo succeeds

I just wrote a piece on why Duolingo succeeds (and where the opportunities are) in language learning apps 🎮📱 I the piece, I'm breaking down what makes Duolingo work, and where new startups can find opportunities:1/ The Power of Game Mechanics- Leaderboards + league system drove 17% more learning time- 3x increase in highly engaged learners- Streak features + rewards keep users coming back- Former Zynga expertise in analytics drives optimization2/ The Reality Check- Most users treat it as a casual game, not serious learning- Example: Friend spent 2 years on Finnish, still struggles with basic conversations- Success metric: Making language learning a daily hobby vs. achieving fluency3/ Market Positioning MatrixTwo key axes to evaluate language learning apps:- Progress (study depth + learning progression)- Engagement (entertainment + stickiness)4/ Where are the opportunities?- "Hardcore" language learning remains untapped- Gap between casual […]

Joakim Achren January 19

Highlights

Mobile Gaming Today: 43

Hola Fam ☃️ Lezgo with hot stuff. Bye, TikTok. Aaand - Already back, lol. Strong reminder: Don't rely heavily on a single UA channel. Smt fun? Game of The Week: Block Blast Block Blast has created the biggest ad revenue game from a simplistic block-blasting mechanic. It's using the Tetris "likeness" to its advantage, but it still has a lot of iteration to differentiate from its predecessor. But don't be fooled, under the surface, there is a lot of hidden stuff that is the secret sauce of the game such as difficulty balancing. More? Here on YouTube & Spotify Mobile Marketing » Magic Sort Analysis: Grand Games’ New Treasure 📈 Paid campaign effect on organic traffic 🤟🏻 Evolution of Stacking Mechanics 👥 Player Segmentation to boost LTV 📱 Mobile Games Marketing Predictions 🇹🇷 Top 10 Turkish Mobile Game Publishers 👾 […]

Ömer Yakabagi January 19

Highlights

How TikTok’s US Ban Could Reshape Mobile Gaming Marketing

TikTok went offline on Saturday. The law passed by Congress last year gave TikTok's Chinese parent company ByteDance until Jan 19 to divest from TikTok or be cut off from U.S. App Stores and hosting services. TikTok said a sale wasn't possible and challenged the law in court, but the Supreme Court rejected it on Friday. Trump on Sunday posted that he'd restore TikTok, first writing "SAVE TIKTOK" and then vowing to issue an executive order on Monday to extend the time before the law takes effect. However, TikTok is already back. After being banned for not even 1 full day, it displays a "Welcome Back" pop-up. More? Marvel Snap is now banned following the TikTok US Ban. Marvel Snap's publisher Nuverse is owned by TikTok parent company ByteDance. Industry's Take? I think TikTok ban is kind of not the […]

Ömer Yakabagi January 19

Highlights

Konvoy Q4 2024 Gaming Industry Report

🎮 Konvoy Q4 2024 Gaming Industry Report - funding in 2024 was down 15% from 2023, and Q4 saw $286m in funding (the lowest funding in 5+ years for gaming venture). ↗️ - AI funding is marginally increasing in gaming (10% of funding this quarter) - Series A graduation rates for gaming startups dropped to just 11.5%, signaling an opportunity for more support for early-stage founders.- Big tech is doubling down on immersive platforms with Google Android XR launch, and rising scrutiny around child safety is reshaping trust and accountability online.👀 We expect the gaming market size to hit $223B by 2029, the road ahead is packed with many challenges and unique opportunities.🎮 Full report here. Source: Konvoy & Josh Chapman

Ömer Yakabagi January 18

Journal

Jobs in Mobile Gaming: 28

🎨 933 Jobs in Mobile Gaming » 10-17 January 👉🏻 Data from Gamigion.com/jobs 🕺🏻 Dev 💻 Art 🎨 Product 📱 Marketing 🎯 Business 💰 Data 📈 QA ⚒️ 💻 Dev Technical Team Lead (Client) Scopely 🇨🇳 Senior Fullstack Engineer - LiveOps Automation Team Scopely 🇪🇸 Client Engineer Scopely 🇨🇳 Senior Analytics Engineer Scopely 🇲🇽 Senior Client Programmer, Project R.I.S.E Supercell 🇨🇳 Game Client Programmer, Clash Royale Supercell 🇨🇳 Senior Software Engineer- Website Development Zynga 🇮🇳 Principal Software Engineer - Developer Services, ZMGT Zynga 🇺🇸 🇨🇦 Lead Technical Program Manager/Lead Producer - Systems, ZMGT Zynga 🇨🇦 🇺🇸 Senior Software Developer - Small Giant Games Zynga 🇫🇮 Senior Performance Engineer - Echtra Games Zynga 🇺🇸 Senior Software Engineer 1 Zynga 🇮🇳 Gamplay Engineer 2 Zynga 🇮🇳 Unity Developer Playtika 🇵🇱 🇷🇴 Software Architect Playtika 🇮🇱 Ad Tech Product Manager MobilityWare 🇺🇸 Director […]

Gamigion January 18

Journal

The ‘Why’ Behind Grand Games’ $30M Investment

We wrote about "Grand Games secures $30M Series A" last week. Cooler stuff? Just published our "Magic Sort Analysis", check it out! Let's talk about the How & Why. Securing $30M just 9 months after its launch? 🦄 Folks, it's something big. The publisher behind Magic Sort made $4M+ in 6 months. Among the largest Series A rounds for Turkish gaming startups. Turkey’s Casual Mobile Gaming scene is booming. Or, it's been booming 😅 Check out: Mobile Gaming World: Türkiye Dream Games raised $255 million in 2022. Peak Games was acquired by Zynga in 2020 for $1.8 billion. Spyke raised $50M last year and launched with $55 million. DoubleU Games Acquires Turkish Studio Paxie Games Azur Games, has acquired the hypercasual portfolio of Good Job Games. Agave Games' $18M Series A at a valuation of around $100M last month. Cypher Games Secures 10M$ Investment […]

Ömer Yakabagi January 17

Journal

How Is Your Soul Doing?

Happy New Year ✨! Let’s open the year with an important topic regarding self-leadership: Health. Last Sunday, I hosted the first women’s circle as part of my new coaching program, ORIN (more details below). We started this journey with a discussion on health, and one powerful realization emerged from the group: most of us neglect our souls when we think about health. How often do we consider our soul’s well-being when discussing taking care of ourselves? The Missing Piece in Our Health Conversation Typically, when we discuss health, we focus on mental health and physical health. Mental health usually refers to how we feel. Are we rested, calm, and content? Or are we stressed, exhausted, and overwhelmed? When we feel mentally depleted, we often try to “fix” it with rest—taking a break or going on a vacation. But do these […]

Sophie Vo January 17

Journal

The gaming industry is NOT what you think.

The gaming industry is NOT what you think. Let me drop some truth bombs.Here are 10 harsh realities many ignore:𝟭. 𝘔𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘨𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘺.LOL, no. It’s brutal. It’s art, tech, and business smashed into one impossible puzzle.𝟮. 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩.They’re not. Pressure shows you who’s in it for the team and who’s out for themselves.𝟯. 𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘢 𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘩 𝘤𝘰𝘸.For who? Not you. Not yet. You’ll grind for 7-10 years before the money’s decent. 𝟰. 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘨𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨You can’t. Playing games isn’t optional - it’s homework. And it’s never-ending.𝟱. 𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘢 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘳.Wake up. Studios shut down. Projects fail. Stability in gaming has always been fragile. 𝟲. 𝘠𝘰𝘶’𝘭𝘭 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺.Nope. You’ll follow orders for YEARS before your ideas even hit the table. 𝟳. 𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘢 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭, 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘺.No chance. It’s a […]

Sergei Vasiuk January 16

Highlights

Magic Sort Analysis: Grand Games’ New Treasure

Here’s what’s covered in this analysis article on Magic Sort: The Rise of Magic Sort: Financial Success and Funding Gameplay and Monetization: Relaxation Meets Revenue User Acquisition Challenges Visual Appeal and Player Experience Grand Games: A Unique Player in Casual Gaming Future Opportunities: LiveOps, Progression, and Global Expansion Check out: The ‘Why’ Behind Grand Games’ $30M Investment Magic Sort: Impressive Earnings, But Can It Scale Globally? The buzz surrounding Magic Sort has been undeniable. With the game already raking in impressive daily revenues between $80K to $100K and securing $30 million in Series A funding, things are looking bright for the puzzle game. However, there’s an interesting question lingering: Can the game sustain this momentum with its current user acquisition (UA) strategy? And more importantly, is it really set for scaling on a global level? Magic Sort’s initial performance, especially […]

Aylin YAZICI January 16

Highlights

Huuuge Games Lays Off 122 Employees

Poland office faces 89 layoffs as studios in the Netherlands and Finland shut down. Huuuge Games Restructures, Laying Off Nearly a Third of Its Workforce Huuuge Games is downsizing its global workforce by 29%, letting go of 122 employees as it shifts focus back to social casino titles. The layoffs include 89 positions in its Poland office, representing 21% of that branch's headcount. The company is also closing its Netherlands and Finland studios, known as 'Huuuge Pods,' and halting new game development. Additionally, funding for Bananaz Studios will cease, leading to a $3.5 million write-down. Huuuge expects the restructuring to be completed by February 2025, asserting it will not negatively affect revenue. Despite an 18.2% year-over-year decline in net income to $15.3 million in Q3 2024, the company remains profitable, holding $125 million in cash reserves and exploring potential mergers […]

Ömer Yakabagi January 16

Highlights

Ex-King and Ex-Apple Team Raise $9 Million Seed Round for Metica to Revolutionize Gaming Growth with AI-Powered Personalization and Monetization

Metica, a cutting-edge technology company building AI-driven customer engagement and personalization solutions for the gaming industry, has announced the successful raise of $9 million seed round. The round was led by top-tier venture capital firms Play Ventures, 13books, and Firstminute Capital, with participation from renowned angel investors including Riccardo Zacconi, founder and ex-CEO of King (makers of Candy Crush), Caro Krenzer, CEO of Trailmix, Klaas Kersting, CEO of Phoenix Games, Michail Katkoff, Founder of Deconstructor of Fun, Roland Rudd, Chairman of FGS Global, Nigel Morris, former CEO of Dentsu, and René Rechtman, founder of Moonbug Entertainment. Metica is on a mission to help games grow faster by uniting user acquisition (UA), in-game monetization, and AI-driven personalization. Founded by serial entrepreneurs Phil Mohr and Puli Liyanagama, Metica marks their third successful venture together. Their previous startups include Comufy, acquired by King, […]

Ömer Yakabagi January 16

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