Data digest: Love and Deepspace hits $1bn, Pokémon TCG tops 200m installs plus fresh funding and financial news

 

Every Wednesday we break down the latest data, research and financial results into digestible chunks.

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Love and Deepspace hits $1bn

Love and Deepspace has generated $749m in IAP revenue, surpassing $1bn in total user spend, according to Appmagic.

Peak daily IAP revenue hit $7m late last year due, in part, to major events like the anniversary gacha event. The Throne of Eros event generated $22m+ and revenue surges of +154%, taking it to number one in China that day and number three globally in the top grossing chart.

You can read more about the making of Love and Deepspace here.

Pokémon TCG Pocket passes 200m downloads

200m players have now downloaded Pokémon TCG Pocket since it launched in October 2024, according to a post from the game’s X account.

Appmagic estimates suggest the game has earned The Pokémon Company and codev partner Dena around $1.16bn in IAP revenue in that time, with 45% of that cash coming from Japan. The US is the game’s second biggest market with 24% of the total lifetime IAP revenue.

Mission Control Games secures $4m in pre-seed round

Mission Control Games has secured $4m in its pre-seed round, supported by Arcadia Gaming Partners, General Catalyst and e2vc.

Cofounders Kivanc Okutur and Murat Gurel are both former directors at Gram Games, and say they will use the capital to explore new sub-genres through “rapid iteration and AI-native development” in the casual puzzle space.

Nexon reports record Q126 with MapleStory revenue up 42%

Nexon has reported a record Q1 2026 performance, with revenue of $957m (¥152.2bn) (+34% YoY) and operating income of $366m (¥58.2bn) (+40%).

Mobile performance was mixed: MapleStory: Idle RPG drove strong growth, contributing to 42% YoY growth in the MapleStory franchise, but this was offset by declines in Dungeon & Fighter Mobile. The company warned of more volatility in its mobile segment, stressing the Dungeon & Fighter Mobile declines will continue into Q2.

Square Enix mobile sales down 21%

Final Fantasy maker Square Enix’s mobile business reported a 27% drop in net sales, down from $477m (¥75.8bn) to $347m (¥55.2bn). However, operating income was up 65% YoY, jumping to $88m (¥14.0bn), up from $53m (¥8.5bn).

The net sales decline was blamed on “weakness in existing titles”, but operating income increased year-on-year, mainly because of “improved profitability stemming from diversification of payment methods”, the company said.

Overall, Square Enix reported FY ending March 2026 net sales of $1.87bn (¥297.6bn), down 8.3% YoY, while operating income rose to $344m (¥54.7bn), up 34.9%. Net profit came in at $186m (¥29.6bn), rising 21.3% YoY.

Record financials for Capcom, but mobile revenue drops 32%

Capcom reported record net sales of $12.3bn (¥1,953bn) (+15% YoY) and operating profit of $4.7bn (¥752bn) (+15% YoY), marking its 13th consecutive year of operating profit growth.

Mobile content remains a relatively small segment, generating $145m (¥23bn) (-32% YoY), a significant drop from $214m (¥34bn) the previous year.

The company’s overall Digital Contents business, however, saw digital sales reach $7.9bn (¥1,256bn) (+21% YoY), accounting for the majority of revenue. Total unit sales hit 59.07 million (+13.9% YoY), with digital units making up 93% of overall sales.

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