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!

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Mobile Gaming Art Mobile Mobile 52

Deconstructor of Fun

JANUARY 17, 2023

State of the Mobile Games Market The Western mobile games market , which we broadly analyze by removing the Chinese, Taiwanese, Japanese and Korean markets from the numbers, saw overall installs climb by 14% to 47.5B Noticeably, Tencent’s PUBG Mobile and Garena’s Free Fire were both down 37%.

Mobile Gaming 52

Mobile Gaming Mobile Mobile Sandbox 52

Game Refinery

APRIL 6, 2023

With increased competition from IDFA regulation changes and new games consistently entering the market, two of the biggest challenges facing publishers and mobile game studios are acquiring new players (UA) and keeping those players in your game (player retention).

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Mechanics Puzzle Mobile Mobile 86

Deconstructor of Fun

JULY 20, 2020

Riot’s Team Fight Tactics (TFT) was launched quickly to catch the emerging auto-chess genre that was gaining popularity as a mod on Twitch. Till date Team Fight Tactics has reached bit over 11M installs. A brand that is known to avoid excessive monetization mechanics steering always away from pay-to-win systems.

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Fighting Games Mechanics Balance 52

Game Refinery

MAY 30, 2024

Millions of mobile games are out there battling for engagement, yet only a few titles manage to fight their way to the top. Tencent’s PUBG Mobile, and Riot’s League of Legends: Wild Rift) might just have the answers you’re looking for. Their secret to success? Mastering the art of LiveOps.

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Mobile Mobile Co-op Mobile Gaming 52

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. With that in mind, are mobile game studios missing out on an important opportunity here to boost engagement?

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Puzzle Mobile Gaming Mobile Mobile 52

Deconstructor of Fun

JANUARY 31, 2021

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. Finally, please take the numbers presented with a giant grain of salt. Among the most notable transactions was Playtika’s recent $14.6

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Mobile Mobile Games Feature 52

Deconstructor of Fun

MARCH 27, 2019

Both of the authors are true fans of Command & Conquer franchise and both of the authors understand all to well how hard it is to ship a hit mobile game. No matter how you look at it, Command and Conquer Rivals is a good mobile game and the team behind it should be proud of the game they shipped.

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Mobile Mobile Mobile Gaming Build 52

PreMortem.Games

NOVEMBER 17, 2023

I left gamedev entirely for five years, because I was burned out from working on yet another F2P mobile casino game or whatever soulless product would feed my family.” I do sometimes have ‘flashes’ -or dreams- of cool ideas like a gameplay mechanic, other times a whole story or environment. Prepare to learn and give yourself time.

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Dev Playtesting Art Games 160

PreMortem.Games

JULY 17, 2023

The fact that you can tell who you’re up against because of how they fight, not how they look or what their name is. There is a much stronger presence in the mobile games segment, but more and more developers are also dabbling in PC games, which is great to see.” It was this idea that pushed everything else.

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Console First person PC Mesh 104

The Bottom Feeder

MARCH 5, 2024

The enormous mobile side of the business has been churning out massive piles of product (and 80 ripoffs of every game that gets any traction) for years. There is just too much entertainment out there fighting for too little free time. Watching the struggles of Unity is a good way to watch this whole mechanic play out.)

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iXie gaming

OCTOBER 10, 2023

Subscription Models: While subscription models have been around for a while and have paved the road for success for juggernauts like World of Warcraft, the model is more widely adopted today in the mobile platform. That said, the system still thrives in certain genres like fighting games and free-to-play RPGs.

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Balance Content Games Platformer 52

Deconstructor of Fun

DECEMBER 5, 2021

If you’re interested in growing your business on mobile and beyond, look no further. Xsolla has dedicated tools that will help you create your own online commerce platform, improve your performance marketing and discoverability, and expand your game business on mobile and PC. This post is sponsored by Xsolla.

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Console Mobile Mobile PC 59

Game Daily

MARCH 10, 2023

How does the tower defense (TD) genre – generally associated with casual, mobile gaming – fit into the Web3 world? But Omega Royale, which began development three years ago, will be a ten-player fight to the death, in which players individually take on waves of enemies, but must also send baddy boosts against human players.

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Co-op Mechanics Balance Build 52

Deconstructor of Fun

MARCH 4, 2019

This one is written by Om Tandon (Director of User Experience, DIGIT Game Studios) and Abhimanyu Kumar (Mobile Games Consultant). Almost all Social Casino titles have fought for market share by staying safe and delivering authentic casino experiences on mobile. To make sure you don’t miss on all of the ?content

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UX Mechanics Build Point and Click 52

Deconstructor of Fun

JANUARY 29, 2020

And just like that, this new concept initially created for PC quickly became a new genre and expanded to mobile, as most of these games are also on mobile (or are going to be soon). Here’s how you play Auto Chess: The objective of the game is to defeat 7 opponents through a series of 1v1 fights. What should be the path?

Mobile 52

Mobile Mobile Games Fighting 52

Deconstructor of Fun

APRIL 4, 2023

We dive into decline of hypercasual games and hybridcasual, an attempt by mobile game developers to adapt to the new normal in the industry. It’s again taking a super simple addictive core game but actually pairing it with a simplified progression mechanic and some amount of live operations. Missed a previous newsletter?

Mechanics 52

Mechanics Mobile Gaming Mobile Mobile 52

Deconstructor of Fun

JANUARY 20, 2020

This makes RPGs the third largest genre on mobile after Strategy ($5.4Bn) and Puzzle ($4.5Bn) games. For example, entering Fighting games is nearly suicidal effort. Fighting games install trends are spiky as is the revenue rate. This speaks of a successful new game launch and growth. 1 Idle RPGs will drive the genre growth.

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Puzzle Fighting Studios Art 52

Deconstructor of Fun

FEBRUARY 12, 2024

Guest post by Kenneth Landen , Director of Product at Hit Factor Executive Summary In the ever-evolving landscape of mobile gaming, Supercell's Brawl Stars has undergone a remarkable resurgence, transforming challenges into triumphs. That’s because these new tiered purchase options include an old fan favorite, luck mechanics!

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Mechanics Content Feature Mobile 59

Deconstructor of Fun

OCTOBER 10, 2021

Written by Ethan Levy , who is always looking for worthy, free-to-play mobile games for the N3TWORK Platform. If you’re interested in growing your business on mobile and beyond, look no further. I spend most of my waking hours thinking about game mechanics and how they will make players feel. This post is sponsored by Xsolla.

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Asset Games Fighting Mobile 52

Deconstructor of Fun

JANUARY 31, 2022

An essential data platform for all mobile gaming studios. Well, one of the biggest trends in mid-core games is growing your business on mobile and beyond. In 2021 the Mid-core category continued to dominate on the revenue side, bringing 45% of all In-App Purchase (IAP) revenues in mobile markets (excluding China, Japan, and Korea).

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Cross platform Platformer Puzzle Mobile 52

iXie gaming

NOVEMBER 25, 2022

Casual Mobile Art. Game art studios have been around for decades, but the industry has recently seen an explosion of casual mobile games. And with the internet being so widely accessible in the 21st century, this makes casual mobile art as a service a valuable tool for game developers. What do Game Art Studios do?

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Art Game Developer Game Development Studios 52

Deconstructor of Fun

OCTOBER 28, 2024

But Shooters on PC/Console are like Match games on Mobile -- one of the biggest genres, with players always hungry for another game… right? New Entrants are Struggling to Break-In While elder games have been fighting over a stagnant TAM of players, new entrants have struggled to gain traction into the market.

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Console Co-op Content Cross platform 52

Big Games

NOVEMBER 9, 2023

Let’s explore the Top 10 Mobile Game Development without wasting your precious time! Unicorn Run also introduces flying powers and shooting mechanics to help you achieve higher scores, adding an extra layer of excitement to the gameplay. So, are you excited to take a look?

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Graphics Racing Entertainment Games 52

Deconstructor of Fun

SEPTEMBER 28, 2020

This analysis is written by Taras Koshelev (Lead Game Designer at My.Games Venture Capital) who focused on game mechanics and loops and Michail Katkoff (Founder of Savage Game Studios) who covered the market and marketability. Puzzle RPGs on Mobile. Because lets be honest, Playrix seems to be able to do magic with ‘just’ good enough.

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Puzzle Tile Mechanics Build 52

Deconstructor of Fun

FEBRUARY 3, 2020

Coin Master truly innovated on a core Casino mechanic by making random chance just one block in the core loop, not the only block. Expect more acquisitions, new game releases and revenue diversification efforts (also outside mobile games) from Playtika, as it prepares to bulk up before an imminent 2020 IPO. This is China based Funtrio.

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Mobile Mobile Feature UX 52

Deconstructor of Fun

JUNE 3, 2019

There was also this no-name developer Supercell that launched their first mobile games just few miles away back in 2012. Mechanics like auto-win and auto-battle clearly indicate the need for players to shorten their session and “be done” with the matching component of E&P. An unprecedented success from a no-name developer.

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Puzzle Feature Build Balance 52

Game Refinery

OCTOBER 11, 2022

Similar to the mechanics of Genshin Impact, the player explores the vast open-world by climbing on the walls, swimming in the rivers, gliding in the skies, wiping out enemies, and solving different kinds of puzzles. As a typical MMORPG feature, players can also challenge others for an open-world fight.

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Fantasy Co-op Open World Feature 52

Deconstructor of Fun

JANUARY 17, 2020

Here are the three things you need to know about ironSource: #1: They’re developing the most robust, data-driven growth engine for mobile games. #2: In fact, Arcade games alone make up for ~45% of 2019’s total download volume across all mobile gaming genres. This analysis is also brought to you by ironSource.

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Mechanics Platformer Studios Data 52

Deconstructor of Fun

APRIL 8, 2020

Considering the overly competitive mobile user acquisition market, increasing LTV over time is vital not only to succeed but to survive. Getting into an auto-battler like Riot’s Team Fight Tactics is very difficult. You can innovate by introducing a new take on the genre, which is yet to emerge on mobile.

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Data Build Mobile Mobile 59

Moonmana

APRIL 7, 2023

Unity is considered the best solution for mobile game development. Unity is the best option for indie developers and mobile game projects. Armed with a bazillion weapons, players can fight in a 4-player co-op on a relentless quest for revenge and redemption across the undiscovered and unpredictable living planet.

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Engine Engineering Game Engine Games 52

Game Errors

JUNE 6, 2023

Gameplay Mechanics Although both of these titles have many similarities, some key differences have made them unique from each other. This characteristic has created many more contrasts, particularly in the shooting, movement, and overall game mechanics. The movement mechanics in Fortnite is very basic.

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Data Esports Cross platform Content 52

Deconstructor of Fun

JANUARY 14, 2020

Puzzle genre is the second largest, after strategy games, on mobile in terms of in-app purchases. King lost third of downloads but woke up towards the end of the year to fight back for downloads. Mario World was a fresh take but just like most of the publisher’s games on mobile, it sadly tanked.

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Puzzle Games Tile Mobile 52

Deconstructor of Fun

MAY 4, 2020

Most mobile gaming companies bet on incremental innovation as their gateway to success. Instead, we think that Clans would have declined even without Clash Royale (albeit at a slower rate) due to the “law of gravity” that all mobile games face after launch and, therefore, that Clash Royale was net positive. Cover image: Talouselämä. #1

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Puzzle Mobile Mobile Mobile Gaming 52

Keith Burgun

JANUARY 27, 2023

I’m reminded a bit of those mobile games where the first 10 minutes is like this absolutely incredible looking and sounding thing, and then you’re sort of “dropped off” into the same old 2015 gacha clone looking thing. I mean, you spend a LOT of time fighting in this game. And the battles kind of suck.

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Writing Fantasy Fighting Cutscenes 52

Keith Burgun

JULY 29, 2022

It’s the fault of developers for not exploring new kinds of stories, new kinds of worlds, new kinds of mechanics and so on. Even a handful of new mechanics or other properties are often enough to help create that question in people’s minds: “what else might be possible in this game?”

Fantasy 52

Fantasy AAA Concepts Cutscenes 52

Deconstructor of Fun

DECEMBER 11, 2019

But with an increasing number of hypercasual games fighting for the same audience with often very similar visuals, gameplay goals and marketing tactics, IPMs are bound to suffer and therefore indicating market saturation. Source: Mobile Gaming Industry Analysis for H1 2019. According to Tenjin, CPIs are trending upwards since Q1 2019.

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