Podcast | Episode 103

Gamescom 2026 insights and Sony Music's shock Puzzle & Dragons investment | Week in Mobile Games podcast

The PocketGamer.biz podcast team give you the state of play every week. Here's where to get it and what's inside this week's episode 103...

September 6, 2026

Social Casino

DoubleDown Interactive's Faith Price on D2C growth, ageing apps and the real cost of AI

Faith Price on D2C outpacing the industry's measurement tools, acquisition for a 16-year-old app and fixing processes before layering on AI

September 3, 2026

Gaming Revolution

The Brian Ward era: How Savvy built Saudi Arabia's games industry and what happens next

We analyse Brian Ward's time at Savvy Games Group, from its billion-dollar acquisitions to the wider effort to build a games ecosystem in Saudi Arabia

September 4, 2026

Latest

Pgc Nordics

Think PG Connects Nordics is just about mobile games? Think again!

It’s time to explore multiplatform opportunities this October 20th and 21st

September 7, 2026

Week In Views

Cloud gaming's broken promises, inside DoubleDown, and Pokémon's new movie | Week in Views

The Pocketgamer.biz team pick their highlights from the headlines this week and deliver the stories behind the stories

September 4, 2026

New Games

New release roundup: Shoe it All!, Bloodless, Block Blast+, White House Arcade and more

We highlight the latest new games that have broken cover over the past week

September 4, 2026

New Offerings

Xbox Game Pass to launch cloud gaming limits in November

The company expects the change to affect 4% of Game Pass subscribers

September 4, 2026

New Partnerships

Savvy Games Group signs new MoUs with Gosu Academy and Warpzone AI Labs

Savvy is continuing to expand its talent development efforts in the Kingdom

September 4, 2026

Apple Troubles

UK legal claim seeks £2bn from Apple over App Tracking Transparency

The claim alleges Apple imposed stricter ATT requirements on third-party developers than on its own services

September 4, 2026

For me, the most interesting part isn't AI replacing creative talent, but how it can allow smaller teams to work faster.

Hind Toufga discusses how Nordic studios are utilising AI

We made the mistake in the not-so-recent past of thinking that adding more content would solve a problem, but it didn't.

Outfit7's Urška Leskovar on diagnosing attention problems before you ship another feature

Studio Profile

How Türkiye's Bold Games plans to set itself apart

CEO Ulaş Mergen tells us about the studio’s founding, what it plans to do with its recently-won $6m investment and how AI is helping it iterate faster on new ideas

September 3, 2026

Growing Godot

W4 Games hopes to capitalise on Godot growth with $18m investment

Godot has grown substantially over the years. W4 Games wants to build on that success

September 2, 2026

Ip Partnerships

What makes a game ready for an entertainment IP?

SayGames COO Denis Vaikhanski explains how publishers can recognise when a game is ready for an entertainment IP

September 1, 2026

Beyond The First Purchase

Turning rewarded users into long-term players: Beyond the first purchase

Rewarded users have a reputation problem. In many studios, they’re labelled as incentivised, low intent, or one-and-done. That story is convenient, but it’s worth examining more carefully

September 1, 2026

Discovery And Monetisation

Why discovery and monetisation are converging in 2026

Appcharge’s David Stelzer and Stream Hatchet’s Eduard Montserrat explore why publishers need to connect creator-led discovery with direct monetisation

August 31, 2026

Acquisition

Sony Music Japan to acquire 23.29% stake in Puzzle & Dragons developer GungHo Online Entertainment

The companies will explore joint game development across mobile, console and PC

September 3, 2026

Deal

Seriously founder Andrew Stalbow fronts investor group set to acquire Bath City Football Club

Former Rovio and Seriously exec leads an group of over 50 investors that have raised approximately £6 million for the club

September 3, 2026

Developer Training

DMCC and Epiphany launch gaming mentorship programme

The programme focuses on funding, monetisation, publishing, growth and partnerships

September 3, 2026

Funding News

Saudi gaming startup Takahouse raises $1.5m from Impact46

The company is focused on games that combine entertainment with social interaction

September 3, 2026

Game Jam

Global Game Jam and Zoud launch financial literacy jam with $140K prize pool

The virtual jam will run from October 15th to November 15th, 2026

September 2, 2026

New Offerings

Dubai and Xsolla to launch new game accelerator in October 

The Good Game Club podcast is also relocating to Dubai

September 2, 2026

New Partnerships

Savvy Games Group and MCIT sign MoU to support Saudi games talent and startups

The agreement will expand access to Savvy Academy programmes through the Saudi Digital Academy

September 1, 2026

Jobs Roundup

September 2026's Movers and Shakers: Savvy Games Group, Supercell, Scopely, King, Moloco and more

Our regular roundup of the mobile games industry's movers and shakers

September 2, 2026

Leadership Change

Savvy Games Group CEO Brian Ward steps down

Turqi Alnowaiser will serve as interim acting CEO

September 1, 2026

Job News

ASGC founder Amir Satvat joins 1Up Ventures as general partner

He will continue his work with ASGC alongside his new role

September 1, 2026

Big Change

Tim Cook steps down as Apple CEO after 15 years

John Ternus is set to take over as Cook moves into the role of executive chairman

September 1, 2026

Job News

Nicholas Le named PeopleFun CEO as Tamara Feiman takes over Lion Studios

Le will remain involved with Lion Studios as studio chair

August 28, 2026

Academy Rebrand

GameUp Africa rebrands as GameUp Academy with always-on learning platform

The academy is moving from a fixed boot camp model to an always-on learning platform

September 3, 2026

False Alarm

Square Enix denies plans to go private after report sends stock surging

The company has spent the past four years restructuring its operations

September 3, 2026

Palworld Preparation

Palworld Online opens for pre-registration in South Korea

The MMORPG will require iOS 12.0 or later and 2.9GB of storage on Apple hardware

September 3, 2026

Legal Proceedings

Israeli court rejects Papaya Gaming debt plan to repay Skillz

The court wants Papaya to add funding beyond operating profits to its repayment plan

September 2, 2026

New Partnerships

Ukie and Discord launch Go To Market Academy for UK indies

The academy will focus on marketing, audience development and community building

September 2, 2026

Developer Training

Krafton launches KIGI Academy with IIT Madras to train next-gen game developers

The six-month programme will train 30 students in game development

September 2, 2026

Outlanders Original

Monster Hunter Outlanders opens pre-registrations with Elder Dragon Ruger Aidal unveiled

The reveal confirms original monsters will appear in Outlanders, not just legacy beasts

September 1, 2026

Podcast | Episode 102

Did Apple really resolve its EU dispute? | Week in Mobile Games podcast

The PocketGamer.biz podcast team give you the state of play every week. Here's where to get it and what's inside this week's episode 102...

August 24, 2026

Podcast

Podcast: Xsolla on D2C's growing momentum and its biggest product wave yet

Xsolla president Chris Hewish discusses all things direct-to-consumer ahead of a big week at Gamescom

August 21, 2026

Podcast

Coming soon to the PocketGamer.biz Podcast: Xsolla on D2C and key pre-Gamescom reveals

Xsolla president Chris Hewish discusses the state of direct-to-consumer and the company's six new solutions for its expanding product suite

August 20, 2026

Podcast | Episode 101

Week in Mobile Games podcast Episode 101

The PocketGamer.biz podcast team give you the state of play every week. Here's where to get it and what's inside this week's episode 101...

August 15, 2026