Are developers burnt out on mobile?

This opinion piece was first published in the new PocketGamer.biz newsletter. Sign up for more pieces like this straight to your inbox right here.

This week, the former Supercell developers at Bit Odd raised $18 million for their studio, developing a multiplayer action game for mobile.

A few quotes stood out in the press release. The studio aims to “create games that attract players through emotion and innovation rather than just conforming to traditional metrics”.

CEO and co-founder Lasse Louhento, the former game lead on Clash of Clans, further stated that “we started Bit Odd because we felt something was missing in gaming today”.

“The mobile gaming surge has been incredible, but it has also steered many studios toward finance-first thinking – over-relying on metrics and following the competition,” he said.

“Our approach is a bit different. We focus on designing games that stir the soul, embrace quirkiness, and tap into the emotional magic of gaming classics.”

It reminded me of another start-up set up recently by former Supercell developers: Antihero Studios.

CEO Brice Laville Saint-Martin, formerly focused on marketing creative direction and operation at Supercell, told PocketGamer.biz he felt IDFA was a “positive turn for the industry” as it “forces game developers to refocus on creating games that are worth people’s time and attention”.

“When I looked at other companies and startups in the industry, I often felt they were focused on short-term business models, without an inspiring vision for the kind of company they wanted to build,” he said. “As a whole, I felt we weren’t creating an inspiring future for our industry, players, or developers.”

A new future?

The comments on IDFA go against the grain. The mobile games industry was built on user acquisition, and publishers have struggled to adapt to privacy changes for years, which played a key role in the market’s decline.

Even just last month, Hill Climb Racing maker Fingersoft laid off staff, noting: “With this year’s substantial decline in ad revenue, adjustments to our cost structure became essential to preserve our competitiveness and secure the company’s long-term success.” It’s still tough out there.

If there was a different, better way to make games and market them, wouldn’t the world’s biggest publishers have done this by now?

Yet notable start-ups spawning from one of the world’s most successful mobile game developers ever are saying there is another way, and they want a different future.

Of course, it should be noted that these are press statements. It’s not like developers will say “we’re hunting whales” or “business over fun”.

But it feels like some developers are burned out by the business demands of mobile and want to build a different future with their new start-ups. But can they fight against history?