Data digest: Pokémon Go, Rust, Mihoyo and Bluey stats plus funding news, puzzle market analysis and more
There's also a load of new data nuggets from Newzoo and Sensor Tower in this week's need-to-know numbers round-up.
Platforms are “not doing their job” when it comes to discoverability, says Ustwo Games boss
“You know, you pay 30% to a platform for a number of things, and one of them is to help you reach an audience. And right now, that's not really working.”
King escapes Xbox cuts – for now
Four different sources have told us that the Candy Crush maker has not been forced to make layoffs as part of the big Xbox reset. But there are fears it might be next.
Even Destiny 2’s demise won’t save Rising
Things are looking grim for the last remaining Destiny game still being supported with new content.
Google on its new Play Store fees and that new Level Up program
We quizzed Google Play GM for games Aurash Mahbod on what the tech giant is trying to achieve with its new fee structure and Level Up program.
Jobs digest: moves and promotions at Sega-Rovio, Scopely, Supercell, King, Kwalee and more
There’s also job news at Lockwood, Raptor PR, Everplay, Rollic, Loop, Dream, and Ace in our latest round-up.
New game digest: The Walking Dead, Rust, Tencent’s take on GTA, another new Rollic game, Bleach, more
There's also this month's Apple Arcade line-up in this week's round-up.
June’s top grossing mobile games: Honor of Kings, Whiteout Survival, Royal Match, Gossip Harbor, more
Sudden revenue drops for Honor of Kings, Candy Crush Saga, LastWar and PUBG Mobile dominate June's AppMagic estimates.
June’s top mobile game downloads: Arrows, Amaze Go, Free Fire Max, Roblox, more
There are three Arrows games in the top ten and Block Blast's sudden decline continues in AppMagic's estimates for June.
Final Fantasy 7 Ever Crisis closes in October
Estimates from AppMagic suggest Square Enix has earned nearly $100m from the free to play RPG since launch in 2023.
Nintendo’s Mario Kart Tour to shut down in September
Appmagic estimates suggest Nintendo has earned nearly $270m from the game since launch in 2019.
Meta quietly soft launches Pocket, its take on an AI-powered ‘TikTok for games’
Meta inherited the app when it acquired the Gizmo team earlier this year.
Rumble Arcade maker Tribo Games is closing
"Building and running Rumble Arcade cost many times more than the game brought in," said the studio, which was formed as a web3-based 'play-to-earn' studio but pivoted to become an 'agentic distribution platform'.
Niantic’s games team has rebranded as Scopely Explore
The teams behind games like Pokémon Go, Pikmin Bloom and Monster Hunter Now have the new name a year after Scopely bought Niantic's games teams for $3.5bn.
Xbox axes 3,200 jobs; King and Mojang to report directly to boss Asha Sharma
1,600 jobs will be cut today, while four console game studios will be spun out. On King and Mojang, Xbox boss Sharma said they “have increasingly become platforms” and are the largest studios by monthly active players.
Scopely helps fund the new studio from the mind behind Umamusume: Pretty Derby
The Monopoly Go maker says the funding “demonstrates Scopely's long-term commitment to the Japanese market".
