Cosmic Lounge nets €4 million to use AI tech to create mobile puzzle games
Game Developer
APRIL 25, 2023
The studio was quietly formed in 2022 by a group of former King, Seriously, and Next Games developers.
Development Mobile Puzzle 
Wrapping up 2023 • Celebrating the life and works of solo developers
PreMortem.Games
DECEMBER 22, 2023
Here at PreMortem.Games we have a great admiration for developers that go through a complete development cycle alone. And it takes a special kind of developer that wants to fly solo. This year we featured over 20 brave game creators in our solo developers-series and we like to share some highlights.
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Newzoo looks at different generations • Mobile most popular among all ages
PreMortem.Games
OCTOBER 20, 2023
Dedicated game console Across every generation, mobile is the most used platform for playing games. Older gamers tend to play more Puzzle and Match games, while Gen Alpha, Gen Z, and Millennials all lean towards Adventure titles most frequently. Meanwhile, console and PC gaming are significantly popular among younger generations.
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The Rise of Hybridization in Mobile Games: How Developers are Genre Mashing Their Way to Success
Game Refinery
MAY 4, 2023
We’ve been writing about the growth of ‘hybrid’ mobile games – when a title merges two or more genres to create an entirely new gameplay experience – since 2020, but hybrid games have evolved a lot since then, especially when it comes to the game genres that are being merged together.
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How Mobile Game Developers Are Using In-Game Collaboration Events to Boost Player Retention
Game Refinery
NOVEMBER 23, 2022
If you’re looking for ways to improve player retention for your mobile game, hosting a collaboration event with a well-known franchise as part of your LiveOps might be the answer you’re looking for. To figure out what makes a brand collaboration successful, let’s look at some recent examples of in-game collaboration events in mobile games.
Chrome Valley Customs - Can a Male Audience and a Puzzle Game Be a Match?
Deconstructor of Fun
AUGUST 15, 2023
This is a much-dreaded question game developers ask themselves at every stage of game development. And if the game you’re working on is a match-3 puzzle, there is a widely accepted assumption that your target audience primarily consists of women aged between 25 and 45. Who is your target audience?
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[Event Spotlight] How Mobile Game Developers Can Boost Engagement In The Casual Puzzle Genre With Competitive 1v1 Events
Game Refinery
FEBRUARY 8, 2024
Following the high-level trend of hybridization across mobile , more and more casual games have started introducing competitive elements into their live event strategies. This has become especially prevalent in the puzzle subgenre, with around 75% of casual puzzle games in the US top-grossing 200 implementing these features.
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‘Doki Doki AI Interrogation’-developer YAMADA explores the role of AI in games
PreMortem.Games
JUNE 17, 2024
Japanese indie game developer Yamada has used ChatGPT as a key design element for his latest project, Doki Doki AI Interrogation. He had to set up strict boundaries and even make the AI powered character ‘drunk and forgetful’ to pull it off, but, according to the developer, the experience has moved players to tears.
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Mobile Games and Cross-Platform Development Projects
Starloop Studios
APRIL 18, 2023
With the mobile gaming industry’s continued growth year after year, mobile devices are becoming a platform of choice for numerous developers and publishers. Mobile games have evolved immensely from their roots are rudimentary puzzle games into viable and complex titles in their own right.
Game-Changing Storytelling: How To Integrate Narrative Elements in Mobile Games
Game Refinery
NOVEMBER 30, 2023
Narrative design has always been an important part of video game development, but its significance in modern-day games continues to grow as narrative elements play an important role in player engagement and retention. The story has multiple main and side characters, and besides the mystery theme, there are also some romance and LGBTQ themes.
The top 22 mobile games of 2022
Game Analytics
DECEMBER 28, 2022
Masters of simulation, this studio is renowned for making popular sim games for mobile. But not only is it the first to make it to mobile, it’s also the first one to be free to play. Summoners War: Chronicles is yet another MMORPG to make it to mobile. It’s tricky taking any game from PC and Console to mobile.
Puzzle game developed by cocos ?InOutPath?
Cocos
JANUARY 8, 2024
Hello hallo, we are the development team of the indie game InOutPath, and as the development of the game is getting better and better, we have now made the Steam page of InOutPath available. We are an adventure puzzle game with 7 big chapters and 300+ small chapters. and more than 20 different puzzle mechanisms.
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How to Balance Time, Resources, and Costs in Mobile Game Development?
Big Games
JANUARY 7, 2024
Embarking on the ambitious journey of mobile game development is akin to setting sail on uncharted waters. The path is fraught with multifaceted challenges for any game development company or mobile game development services provider. How to Start Mobile Game Development?
[Event Spotlight] How Mobile Game Developers Are Driving Player Engagement With Race Events
Game Refinery
JUNE 15, 2023
The rise of hybridization in mobile games has resulted in game developers experimenting with new gameplay mechanics and features from other genres to drive engagement, something that’s often done via limited-time events.
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Can Playrix' Puzzle Breakers Crack Zynga's Empires & Puzzles?
Deconstructor of Fun
SEPTEMBER 28, 2020
The mobile hit Empires and Puzzles (E&P) by Small Giant Games (acquired by Zynga) has made over $600M in net-revenues while racking up around 60 million installs. While there have been numerous clones and follow up titles trying to get a piece of the ever growing puzzle RPG pie, none of them has had any meaningful success.
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Button City by Subliminal Gaming wins the 2024 Diverse Voices, New Stories Challenge
PreMortem.Games
JUNE 28, 2024
The challenge is an initiative to improve representation and increase visibility for underrepresented game developers in the mobile gaming industry. Four mobile games from indie studios in the U.S., Europe and Africa received awards for ‘innovative stories, highly engaging gameplay, and real-world impact’.
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Hypercasual games market keeps shrinking, still 3.38 billion downloads last 3 months
PreMortem.Games
JULY 12, 2024
The AppMagic Hypercasual games recap for the second quarter of 2024 unveils some interesting information about this specific part of the mobile games market. Wood Nuts: Screw Puzzle The first game on the list is a title by Zego Studio: Wood Nuts: Screw Puzzle. Now, let’s turn to the newbies at the top.
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Best Practice and Strategies for Targeted IAP Offers in Mobile Games
Game Refinery
JUNE 21, 2023
User acquisition has become increasingly challenging for mobile marketers ever since Apple introduced its App Tracking Transpency (ATT) policy in April 2021. With that in mind, mobile marketers should focus on identifying better ways to push monetization opportunities to their existing audiences.
Solo dev Diego Ras of Raccoo Venture “Everything starts with paper and pencil”
PreMortem.Games
FEBRUARY 2, 2024
He worked 5 years on his nostalgic 3D platformer Raccoo Venture , but according to Brazilian solo developer Diego Ras the journey was ‘extremely rewarding’. As a solo developer, Ras loves the complete control he has over his creations. Why did you become a solo developer? “I’ve What’s your creative process? “As
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Feral Cat Den is pushing the audio-visual boundaries of games with Nirvana Noir
PreMortem.Games
JULY 1, 2024
The sheer confidence of steering clear of the beaten track and creating something truly original, comes from experience gained outside the world of video game development. They created interactive installations, motion graphics animations, experiential web pages, mobile apps, and lots of other creative projects.
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The Case of Playrix and why Product-Market fit is a Moving Target
Deconstructor of Fun
FEBRUARY 27, 2023
Follow Nebo on everything mobile growth > @eniac W hen AppTrackingTransparency was introduced, many predicted the doom and gloom situation and the death of mobile gaming. It's no secret that Match 3 is the most competitive mobile gaming genre. Written by Nebojsa Radovic and originally published on his Medium page.
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The accidental, inimitable success of Monument Valley
GamesIndustry.biz
APRIL 8, 2024
But there's something particularly special to be said about its main mechanic, and the pure joy of experiencing its optical illusion puzzles for the first time, seeing reality shift before your eyes. "I
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2020 Predictions #1: Prepare to Crown the New King of Puzzle Games
Deconstructor of Fun
JANUARY 14, 2020
Alrighty then, lets kick off the predictions with the Puzzle genre! Puzzle Games Continued to Grow. Puzzle genre is the second largest, after strategy games, on mobile in terms of in-app purchases. Last year Puzzle games generated a whopping $4.5Bn in IAP revenues while growing 18% year-on-year.
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12 Ways to Take Battle Passes to the Next Level in Mobile Games
Game Refinery
OCTOBER 26, 2023
The ever-changing nature of the mobile market means that new monetization mechanics are constantly emerging and evolving. Battle passes have crept into almost every mobile game genre imaginable, with our platform showing that 66% of mobile games in the top 20% have incorporated the feature.
Mobile Games Aren’t Your Enemy if You Play Right
Big Games
AUGUST 19, 2021
In general, non-gamers do not have a good opinion about playing mobile games. And discussing the benefits of playing mobile games is a bit of a controversial topic. Though people might find it outrageous to get to know the benefits of playing mobile games, there are authorized and genuine studies and research on this topic.
Art Production for Mobile Games: Tips & Tricks
iXie gaming
APRIL 3, 2023
Mobile gaming has grown into a multibillion-dollar industry, with millions of users spending time playing games on their smartphones and tablets. As the mobile gaming market continues to expand, mobile game developers must find ways to make their games stand out in a crowded marketplace. So, let’s dive in!
14 low-budget, highly successful story games
Game Analytics
DECEMBER 5, 2022
Simple controls, artwork, and game design make it easy for any developer to pick up. Available on mobile, console and PC. Available on mobile devices, Apple watch and PC. Lifeline has fewer paths than other titles on this list, but it makes up for it with a gripping story and a well-developed character. Let’s dig in.
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Minigames Revisited: How Developers Are Continuing to Tap into Trends and Drive Engagement
Game Refinery
NOVEMBER 21, 2024
With IDFA regulation changes and an influx of new games entering the market, publishers and mobile game studios are facing an ever-uphill battle to acquire new players (UA) and retain them. However, as we wrote last year , many top-grossing mobile games have found that minigames are the best way to boost UA and player retention.
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Can Hay Day Pop Solve the Puzzle?
Deconstructor of Fun
MAY 20, 2020
Mobile developers look up their fake AppStore accounts and download with excitement wondering what the new game could be. A bold move for Supercell, going against giants that continue to rule the casual puzzle space. Playing levels awards stars , which are used to earn coins in the Puzzle Pass. The Twist: The Puzzle Pass.
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Polte Games sets Sixth Extinction free “Does your game exist if no one is playing it?”
PreMortem.Games
JULY 5, 2023
Two years after its initial release, Sixth Extinction is now free to play on mobile and Steam. Developer Juha Salo, working under the name Polte Games , hopes to find a new audience for his cautionary tale about climate change and mass extinction. Many decisions I took were quite illogical during the development.
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Top gamification examples in mobile apps
Game Analytics
NOVEMBER 22, 2022
It’s a trick plenty of brands and developers have adopted to make their apps stand out from the rest. While it’s predominantly a VR app , the developers have also created a mobile app version, so users can track their progress and plan their workouts. Mix in quizzes and puzzles. How does gamification help?
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What are AAA Games and Mobile Games?
iXie gaming
FEBRUARY 17, 2023
With the rise of the gaming industry, two distinct categories of games have emerged: AAA games and mobile games. As a result, mobile gaming is pushed aside in favor of AAA titles, which have their own position in the market. According to reports, the game cost more than a quarter-billion dollars to develop and market.
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The State of Gaming 2024: Trends in Marketing, Gaming, and Apps
Deconstructor of Fun
JUNE 24, 2024
The mobile market continues to evolve rapidly, driven by shifting user behaviors, technological advancements, and emerging economic trends. This blog post delves into those insights to provide a comprehensive overview of the mobile landscape. 2023 was a challenging year for the mobile gaming market.
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2021 Predictions #3 Top Mobile RPGs Will Go Cross Platform
Deconstructor of Fun
JANUARY 19, 2021
Facebook Gaming helps developers and publishers to build, grow, and monetize their games. Role-Playing Games on Mobile The RPG market is a high risk, high reward genre walled by a robust entry barrier. A smaller studio can still build a very healthy and sustainable business with a very smart approach to content development.
Pixel Federation goes all-in on AWS with help from Labyrinth Labs
AWS Games
SEPTEMBER 12, 2023
Mobile game developer and publisher Pixel Federation entertains more than 140M players worldwide with popular mobile games, including ‘ Diggy’s Adventure ,’ ‘ Trainstation 2 ,’ ‘ Puzzle Adventure ,’ and ‘ Port City.’ For more information on using AWS for game development, visit: [link]
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Empires & Puzzles - From a Failing Company to a $700M Acquisition in a Year
Deconstructor of Fun
JUNE 3, 2019
This was the date that the social games giant had acquired a relatively unknown Finnish developer, Small Giant. The reason for this acquisition was the success of Small Giant’s hit game, Empires & Puzzles. Since mid 2017, Empires & Puzzles has raked in $260M in net revenues with only 34M installs. Wooga GmbH. Wooga GmbH.
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Splitting Point: how Field Trip Z got 45M players on Roblox this year
Game Analytics
DECEMBER 20, 2022
We recently spoke with Janzen Madsen, founder at Splitting Point Studios , to get his perspective on how to develop a hit on Roblox. Don’t make it like a mobile game. Often, developers coming from the mobile gaming industry will assume that they can replicate their success by rebuilding their games on Roblox.
Squad Busters One Month Later: Down, But Not Out
Deconstructor of Fun
JULY 8, 2024
The unreliability of pre-registration numbers, the overestimation of brand equity, and the waning influence of first-party featuring are soon becoming recurring themes in mobile gaming; Squad Busters' launch throws these challenges into the spotlight. This decision remains puzzling, as there was no pressure to launch Squad Busters.
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The Imminent Ragnarok of M&A in Mobile Gaming Space
Deconstructor of Fun
JULY 23, 2020
This post is written by Eric Seufert , a strategy consultant and the owner of Mobile Dev Memo In Norse mythology, Ragnarök is a series of events, including a great battle, foretold to lead to the death of a number of great figures and gods, natural disasters and the submersion of the world in water.
The Curious Case of Playable Ads and Traditional Marketing Strategies
Deconstructor of Fun
MAY 6, 2024
Playable Factory offers a suite of products that empower users throughout the ad development process, including tools for ad creation, customization and detailed performance analysis. They are typically found on mobile devices as part of a larger app or within mobile web browsers.
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Best Online Game Development Solutions for Your Smartphones
Big Games
AUGUST 17, 2021
Earlier the game players were constricted to play online games such as simple puzzles to adventures series only on the desktop, but the massive development of mobile technology within the past few years has brought a noticeable change in the game application development industry.
Supercell’s Strategic Initiatives that Will Transform the Company
Deconstructor of Fun
APRIL 12, 2023
In February, Ilkka Paananen, the beloved CEO of Supercell, and arguably one of the faces on the Mount Rushmore of Mobile Games Executives, published his yearly blog post. Ilkka’s words often portray Supercell’s game development model as straightforward and simple to carry out. After all, Supercell is our beacon of hope.
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Game Art Studio: The Future of Game Development?
iXie gaming
NOVEMBER 25, 2022
However, developing games has become very time-consuming and expensive. Many ask if there is a future for these developers who spend years developing these games. Many ask if there is a future for these developers who spend years developing these games. Casual Mobile Art. 2D and 3D character development.
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2021 Predictions #6 Casino Games on Mobile Post Lockdowns and IDFA Depreciation
Deconstructor of Fun
JANUARY 31, 2021
Facebook Gaming helps developers and publishers to build, grow, and monetize their games. Post-COVID investment flows in Social and mobile gaming emerged as one of the best performing sectors during coronavirus, and the ensuing influx of investment will likely impact companies large and small. Access all of our previous predictions.
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