[Last week in games] Dream Games launches Royal Kingdom worldwide, Play Ventures raises $140m in third gaming fund, and more news!
News in games that caught our eyes in the last week [November 18 - 14, 2024]
INDUSTRY NEWS
EA's four evergreen principles to keep your service games fresh (gamesindustry.biz)
Apple sued for £3 billion over anti-competitive claims (pocketgamer.biz)
The Game Awards announces Game of the Year 2024 nominees (polygon.com)
AppLovin once tried to merge with Unity – could it now just buy it? (mobilegamer.biz)
UN reveals finalists for Playing for the Planet Awards (venturebeat.com)
WTF Are These Three Battle Pass Things (gameeconomistconsulting.com)
Google Play's Best of 2024 list emphasizes multi-device strategies (venturebeat.com)
Eggy Party takes home best Pick Up & Play at Google Play Awards 2024 (pocketgamer.com)
Meta x Kwalee: Leveling Up Mobile Gaming with Hybrid Monetization and AI (deconstructoroffun.com)
Winners revealed for the first-ever Playing for the Planet awards (pocketgamer.biz)
Minecraft set for real-world attractions with $110m Merlin Entertainments deal (pocketgamer.biz)
Game Analysis: The winning formula behind Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket (pocketgamer.biz)
Will Royal Kingdom complement or cannibalise Royal Match? We asked the experts (mobilegamer.biz)
Minigames Revisited: How Developers Are Continuing to Tap into Trends and Drive Engagement (gamerefinery.com)
AFK Journey named Google Play's Game of the Year (gamesindustry.biz)
INVESTOR
Merak Capital launches $80 million fund to support MENA games start-ups (pocketgamer.biz)
Play Ventures raises $140m in third gaming fund (gamesindustry.biz)
Sony in talks to buy Elden Ring developer FromSoftware’s parent company (polygon.com)
SuperScale raises $1.2 million for analytics service SuperPlatform (pocketgamer.biz)
Game District acquires majority stake in Türkiye’s Gleam Games (pocketgamer.biz)
FromSoftware parent Kadokawa confirms buyout interest from Sony (gamesindustry.biz)
Embracer to contribute $423 million towards Asmodee’s near $1bn debt repayment (pocketgamer.biz)
KGeN secures $10 million for web3-powered ‘gamer controlled’ economies (pocketgamer.biz)
Playtika completes acquisition of Dice Dreams developer SuperPlay (pocketgamer.biz)
MARKET DATA
Solo Leveling: Arise hits 50m players and $139m revenue in first six months (pocketgamer.biz)
Snaky Cat has just crossed over a million pre-registrations on Android and iOS (pocketgamer.com)
Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket surges past $100 million in 17 days (pocketgamer.biz)
Data digest: Playtika's big buy, Pokémon Pocket rockets, Balatro hits $2.5m plus numbers from NetEase, Embracer, Tencent and more (mobilegamer.biz)
European video game sales jumped 12% in October on the back of blockbuster launches (gamesindustry.biz)
Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis surpasses $100 million (pocketgamer.biz)
Starfield reaches 15m players (gamesindustry.biz)
NEW GAMES
New games digest: Infinity Nikki, Monster Hunter, Resident Evil, Final Fantasy, Tencent's take on GTA and more (mobilegamer.biz)
Strinova launches soon on PC, with a mobile release to follow (pocketgamer.com)
Transformers: Tactical Arena opens Android pre-registration, with a launch date that's closer than you might think (pocketgamer.com)
Yolk Heroes: A Long Tamago is a Tamagotchi-inspired idle RPG, now open for pre-registrations on Android and iOS (pocketgamer.com)
Methods 4: The Best Detective continues the quirky battle of the brains, out now on iOS and Android (pocketgamer.com)
Squid Game: Unleashed's release date unveiled alongside new trailer (pocketgamer.com)
War Robots: Frontiers launches console playtest to ready for early 2025 launch (venturebeat.com)
League of Masters: Auto Chess releases worldwide on Android and PC (pocketgamer.com)
After Inc challenges you to rebuild civilization in the wake of a Plague Inc, pre-register now! (pocketgamer.com)
Final Fantasy XIV Mobile brings the beloved MMORPG to the palm of your hand (pocketgamer.com)
Rubber Duck: Idle Squad Game is out now on iOS and Android, bringing yellow bullet heaven action (pocketgamer.com)
MythWalker takes you on a magical journey by walking IRL, out now on iOS and Android (pocketgamer.com)
Stellar Traveler, a new idle RPG, will take you on an interstellar adventure as you battle aliens (pocketgamer.com)
Dream Games launches Royal Kingdom worldwide as Royal Match nears $4 billion (pocketgamer.biz)
DC Heroes United is a new interactive series from the makers of Silent Hill: Ascension (pocketgamer.com)
PUBLISHER NEWS
Blizzard Working On Open-World Shooter And It Might Be Starcraft-Related (kotaku.com)
Ubisoft's Splinter Cell movie cancelled (gamesindustry.biz)
New Roblox safety features give parents more control (pocketgamer.biz)
Monopoly Go welcomes Will Ferrell, Jason Momoa, Keke Palmer, and Chris Pratt to GOville in Scopely's star-studded ad campaign (pocketgamer.com)
Warcraft Rumble is making the move to PC with monthly mobile earnings down 92% in first year (pocketgamer.biz)
Job cuts at Kwalee following layoffs made earlier this year (pocketgamer.biz)
Why Two Point Studios returned to the office (gamesindustry.biz)
Unknown 9 developer Reflector Entertainment lays off 18% of staff (gamesindustry.biz)
Clash Royale to add Clash Mini in 2025 as it makes new platform play (mobilegamer.biz)
Xsolla and Com2uS forge strategic partnership to offer payment and backend services to developers (pocketgamer.biz)
Lego and UNICEF unveil game design toolbox to help promote children's wellbeing in digital play (gamesindustry.biz)
MTN and Telecoming partnership brings cloud gaming to mobile in South Africa (pocketgamer.biz)
Majority of GAME head office staff reportedly laid off since August (gamesindustry.biz)
Valve updates guidelines for season passes on Steam (gamesindustry.biz)
Xsolla to establish Asia-Pacific headquarters in South Korea's Busan Metropolitan City (gamesindustry.biz)
Hasbro aims to invest up to $150m a year in games (pocketgamer.biz)
Niantic is building a ‘geospatial’ AI model based on Pokémon Go player data (theverge.com)