Hot Five: Japan’s newest stars, Nordic numbers, and Tripledot Studios’ acquisition
Start your week right with our quick take on the stories that are impacting the mobile industry right now.
To help get you primed and ready for another week in mobile gaming, we’ve curated the biggest stories you need to know from the last seven days.
1) Tripledot Studios acquires Get Color developer Zephyr Mobile
Woodoku publisher Tripledot Studios has acquired Zephyr Mobile for an undisclosed sum, bringing into the fold the developer best known for Get Color, Hey Colour and Math Crossword. Zephyr’s library of games has reportedly reached over 100 million people.
Zephyr Mobile CEO Serge Morozov will continue to lead day-to-day operations at the company, which employs 55 people across Warsaw and various Eastern European cities.
May 2024 saw multiple new hits release in the mobile games market, and GameRefinery’s latest analysis reveals which of those new titles saw the greatest start in Japan. Supercell’s Squad Busters topped the chart as the most downloaded mobile game of May and was followed by Wuthering Waves, matching their rankings in the US too.
Gakuen Idolmaster landed in Japan’s top 10 highest-grossing mobile games chart and spent multiple days at the top of it, leveraging the region’s popular IP The Idolmaster. Break My Case peaked at number 32, meanwhile, as match-3 games become increasingly popular in Japan.
3) Over 70 games being made in the Nordics right now
There are more than 70 games currently active and in development at Nordic studios, with Finland alone housing renowned mobile devs from Supercell to Rovio, to Fingersoft and Small Giant Games.
Among the active games to have come out of Finland are Clash of Clans, Brawl Stars, Sonic Rumble, Angry Birds 2, LEGO Hill Climb Adventures, and Empires & Puzzles; and that’s just the tip of the iceberg…
Mobile games generated $320 million in Japan during Golden Week 2024, with Fate Grand/Order making the most of any mobile game at over $15 million. As one of Japan’s biggest holidays, the period typically sees revenues surge across various industries, video games included.
Monster Strike generated the second-most revenue after Fate/Grand Order and had the most daily active users during the holiday, meanwhile match-3 game Puzzle & Dragons wedged its way into a top 10 list dominated by RPGs.
5) EA's CEO Andrew Wilson earns $25 million despite company layoffs
EA senior executives were paid more than $60 million combined in FY2024 with CEO Andrew Wilson championing $25.6 million of that sum, awarded in stocks, salary, and other compensations. President of entertainment, technology and central development Laura Miele earned over $12 million in the past year, making her the second-highest earner at the company.
These massive earnings come not long after the publisher laid off 5% of its global workforce, cancelled projects and closed a number of studios.
Companies
