Mobile Gaming Today: April’22 Week

Ciao Fam, Heading to HGC Berlin soon. Hit me up if around 🕺🏻 👌🏻 Top Gaming Content » Royal Kingdom’s Hollywood Power Play: Last Hurrah or Royal Rebirth? Launching a new Match-3 game in today’s mobile market is like trying to sell umbrellas in the Sahara. Saturation, soaring CPIs, and razor-thin differentiation margins make even the most technically sound games struggle to scale. When Dream Games soft-launched Royal Kingdom two years ago, they entered this same storm, which quickly showed itself. After years of pivots and a rocky soft launch, Royal Kingdom is back. This time with what may be mobile gaming’s priciest celebrity campaign, starring LeBron James, Jimmy Fallon & Shakira. Dream Games’ high-stakes play has reignited speculation: is this a desperate revival, or the launchpad for a broader Royal IP? Now, nearly a clone of Royal Match, Dream’s […]

Ömer Yakabagi April 22

Journal

10 funding options to bring your game to life.

In recent years, I've secured funding for 6 different projects. Here are 10 funding options to bring your game to life:---- 1. PUBLISHERS ----• Funding: $50k to several million• Terms: Revenue share, milestone payments, creative control clauses• PC/Console Publishers - https://lnkd.in/eXpN_nve• Mobile Publishers - https://lnkd.in/eFrqyyWh---- 2. VC INVESTORS ----• Funding: $300k to $10M+• Terms: Equity stake, convertible notes, valuation-based funding• List of VCs Investing in Games - https://lnkd.in/eExR25kB---- 3. ANGEL INVESTORS ----• Funding: $10k to $500k• Terms: Early equity, advisory roles• Top Angel Investors (Shizune) - https://lnkd.in/edy-UVy3• Playcap - https://www.playcap.gg/---- 4. ACCELERATORS ----• Funding: $20k to $150k+• Terms: Equity for funding, demo day presentations• Accelerators List - https://lnkd.in/eHY5acAg• Incubator List - https://lnkd.in/ehW4qwPu---- 5. CORPORATE GRANTS ----• Funding: $5k to $500k• Terms: Non-repayable funds, reporting requirements• Epic MegaGrants - https://lnkd.in/eq-FTZsQ• Indie Fund - https://indie-fund.com/• Games for Change Grant - https://lnkd.in/egUEbe8d---- 6. […]

Anton Slashcev April 22

Journal

Best Game Devs don’t work at Blizzard, Riot, King, Playrix, or Supercell.

Unpopular opinion: the best game developers don’t work at Blizzard, Riot, King, Playrix, or Supercell. Some of the best minds in game dev are building alone or in tiny teams. And they’re not just making noise.They’re topping the charts.Recent proof:• Lethal Company – Solo dev. Outsold AAA titles. Viral on Twitch and TikTok.• Balatro – Made by a small team. Hit $1M in sales in 1 day.• Palworld – Team of 40. Outsold Call of Duty and Pokémon.• Dave the Diver – Built like an indie. Game Awards nominee. Massive commercial success.These aren't lucky breaks. They're signals.At big studios:• You work on one piece of a massive machine• There’s process, politics, and polish• Creativity comes with constraintsIn small teams:• You move fast• You take risks• You make weird, unforgettable gamesThere’s no safety net. No backup plan. Just vision and execution.The […]

Anton Slashcev April 22

Journal

Mobile Games losing ground to Social Media? 🤔

Are mobile games losing ground to social media? 🤔 Industry believes YES. But what does data say?𝗕𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝘂𝗿𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿, see if you can guess which app corresponds with each engagement trendline below!I would have guessed this very, very wrong. 😅--SPOILERS BELOW--The takeaways:1. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗯𝗲 is an absolute juggernaut. #1 in the dataset in 2021 and its lead has grown since (by 19%). 2. 𝗠𝗼𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗴𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 playtime share has decreased, 𝗯𝘆 𝟴%. Nontrivial, but less than I expected. In aggregate hours, 𝗴𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝟱%.3. Another study put 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗴𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 at 𝟭𝟭% of usage in '24. With 8% decrease, that's 𝟭𝟮% -> 𝟭𝟭% over timeframe.3. 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 has lost big: 20% of its usage since 2021. 4. 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺 grew 20%, compensating 50% FB's losses.5. 𝗧𝗶𝗸𝘁𝗼𝗸'𝘀 share actually fell (16.1% -> 14.8%) 😮6. 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘀/𝗧𝗩 smaller than expected; has lost 20% since 2021 (1.9% -> 1.5%)7. In […]

Matthew Emery April 21

Highlights

Disney Solitaire: A Promising Start to Something Bigger

A Cozy Classic Gets the Disney Treatment Let’s be honest—most solitaire games are fine. Some are fun. But Disney Solitaire? It’s something else. SuperPlay teamed up with Disney ( help from Playtika ofc. ) to launch a game that feels like flipping through a deck of nostalgia. The game dropped globally in 17th April 2025, and it’s basically what happens when TriPeaks solitaire crashes into the Disney universe and they decide to throw a party. Think: cards, characters, cozy vibes, and just enough challenge to keep things interesting. Also, full disclosure: I’m someone who absolutely loves Solitaire Grand Harvest. It’s one of my favorite games. So when I saw Disney Solitaire pop up—especially with Disney IP behind it—I was immediately curious. My hope is that with the right liveops, events, and regular updates, it can rise to that same level. And honestly? It’s off […]

Aylin YAZICI April 19

Highlights

Google’s Adtech Monopoly Ruled Illegal

A federal judge just struck a seismic blow to Google’s adtech dominance. After a three-week bench trial, the court ruled that Google illegally maintained a monopoly in two vital pillars of digital advertising: publisher ad servers and ad exchanges. At the heart of the matter? Google’s AdX product and its tightly bundled relationship with DoubleClick for Publishers (DFP). Source: Inside Telecom The Plot Twist Judge Brinkema didn’t mince words. She declared Google’s conduct exclusionary—sidelining competitors, harming publishers, and ultimately shortchanging the public’s access to a competitive, open web. Google, it turns out, tied its tools not for better quality or security, but to maintain its grip on the market. The court found no valid justification for these ties—only power plays. Industry Voices Speak Out Andrew Casale, CEO of Index Exchange and one of the trial’s opening witnesses, called the verdict […]

Gamigion April 17

Journal

Mobile vs. Steam

How it started (2023): "Mobile is broken, so we're pivoting to Steam now. 😅" How it's going (2025): "Here's the DATA! 🥁🥁🥁" From 2022-2024: A LOT of game developers gave up on mobile, and started building for Steam / PC.Over same 2 years, Annual Steam releases grew 58%. 𝟭𝟮𝗸 (2022) 𝟭𝟰𝗸 ('23) 𝟭𝟵𝗸 ('24)🐯 Wild. And, since 2024, the % of devs working on PC has grown 𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 20% (GDC '25 Survey).All of this begs an obvious question...𝘞𝘢𝘴 𝘚𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘢 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦 to publish games in 2023/2024?In other words, which platform, Steam or Mobile, had the higher success rate* for new products?I wanted to find out! So we analyzed ~8000 game releases using data from AppMagic and Gamalytic.And, I must say, I was shocked by the results! 😮If your goal was to make over $1M, 𝗠𝗼𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 than Steam in […]

Matthew Emery April 17

Highlights

Finland: Winning Europe’s start-up crown?

Just saw the news right after Ilkka's LI post. Finland Bets Big on Start-Ups with Maria 01 Super Campus Maria 01 plans to become the biggest start-up campus in Europe Yellow diggers are shoring up mounds of earth, as construction workers prepare to lay the foundations for what's set to become the largest start-up campus in Europe. The project is an expansion of Maria 01, a co-working and event space for entrepreneurs and investors, as well as larger corporations that want to collaborate with tech start-ups. Its existing facilities across the street already house around 240 start-ups. They are spread across six buildings that used to make up the city's first hospital, founded in the 19th Century and notorious in Helsinki for treating patients with the plague. Now, the current 20,000 sq m site is a hub for companies developing […]

Ömer Yakabagi April 17

Highlights

Gaming Industry: At A Glance

The new Konvoy report is out and it's one of my favourites to review. it's a clear indication that we are seeing capital injection into games and studios, which does have a direct and positive correlation to how the industry is doing right now. The good news is that based on this report we're seeing early signs of renewed vitality as we enter 2025, following a highly challenging couple of years marked by funding contractions and market hesitations. While total deal volumes and funding remain below peak 2021–2022 levels, the report shows (to me) the worst is behind us.Few points to highlight:- Private market funding in gaming grew +23% QoQ, climbing from $570M in Q4 2024 to $700M in Q1 2025. - Venture capital specifically saw $373M raised across 77 deals, a 35% increase in funding quarter-over-quarter, despite the number […]

John Wright April 16

Journal

Mobile Gaming after 2024 & Q1 2025?

What is happening in mobile gaming after 2024 and Q1 2025? We can look at Sensor Tower to see what is happening there (each category is presented with 2024 data illustrating the growth from 2023 to 2024, and with 2025 data illustrating the growth from Q1 2024 to Q1 2025; size of the bubble presents the in-app/subscriptions revenue). Based on the data, we can see that 🔹 iOS is heavily driven by casual genres (Casual, Puzzle, Card games have very strong data) 🔹 evan casual genres have strong revenue concentration in top titles 🔹 core genres on iOS are starting the year with worse results than in 2024

Mariusz Gąsiewski April 15

Highlights

Mobile Gaming Today: April’15 Week

Ahoj Fam, Ready for another SOLID DIGEST? Lezgo! 👌🏻 Top Gaming Content » When Visuals Drive Performance 🧩 Triple Match 3D’s Quiet Comeback: Polished, Smarter, Still in the Game Once the king of Match 3D, Triple Match 3D is staging a sleek comeback. After being outpaced by Match Factory, the game has undergone a full visual reboot—new item designs, a modern UI, and an overall smoother feel that aligns with today’s top-tier puzzle titles. But it's not just a facelift. The game’s new “Mix & Match” offer system and clever use of Royal Match’s Super Light Ball show it's learning, adapting, and aiming to stand out, not just catch up. It might not retake the crown, but in a growing subgenre, a strong second place with solid monetization and retention is still a big win. Keep the momentum alive. ⚡️Game […]

Gamigion April 15

Highlights

How Much to Ask From Investors?

Photo by Hadija on UnsplashOne of the most critical aspects of fundraising that founders often get wrong? The answer to "How much are you raising?"Here's what I've learned about this question after years of investing and advising startups.1. Be Precise, Not VagueWhen a founder tells me they "need to raise at least $500K," I immediately wonder: Why not simply say "I'm raising $500K"? Exact numbers signal you've done the math.Even worse: "We're looking to raise between $1M and $1.5M." That's a 50% range! This suggests you haven't thoroughly planned your capital needs.2. What VCs Actually EvaluateAs an investor, when it comes to the amount you are raising, I primarily focus on:Your targeted monthly burn rate post-fundraiseYour discipline in maintaining that burn rateWhether the amount gives you at least 18 months of runwayWhy 18 months? Because we're already thinking about your […]

Joakim Achren April 15

#GamingBusiness

Login to enjoy full advantages

Go Premium!

Enjoy the full advantage of the premium access.

Stop following

Cancel subscription