Global Trends: Nexters CEO Anton Reinhold on a difficult year, innovation, and going against the grain

Keeping up with industry trends is key to staying ahead in the games industry and ensuring you don’t fall behind.

At Pocket Gamer Connects, we regularly run our ‘Global Trends’ track, providing an expansive view of the sector’s latest ttrends, facts, figures and insights from around the world.

In this new regular series, we’ve reached out top industry leaders to share their insights and expectations on the state of play and how they see the next few years shaping up.

We caught up with Nexters CEO and GDEV COO Anton Reinhold, discussing a difficult year for the industry and why overcoming competition requires innovation and going against the grain.

​​PocketGamer.biz: Could you tell us a bit about your company and what you’re currently working on?

Anton Reinhold: We are Nexters – an international game development company which strives to introduce the joy of core gaming experiences to casual players on mobile and desktop.

We operate Hero Wars: Alliance, Hero Wars: Dominion Era, Island Hoppers and other R&D projects. We’ve reached over 220 million installs worldwide, built a team of 500+ inspired game developers, and become one of the top six independent mobile game developers in Europe.

We are part of GDEV Holding, which is publicly traded on the Nasdaq stock exchange.

How have the last 12 months been for Nexters?

It was a difficult year, however, as well as for the entire game development industry. A decrease in growth rates, satiation with creatives, difficulties with purchasing users — these are all the things that we have observed and are currently observing in the market.

Nevertheless, we continued to expand into foreign markets, our guys continued to explore our new locations – Armenia and Kazakhstan. Throughout the year, Nexters has been actively engaged in its Hero Wars franchise.

For example, we have divided Hero Wars into two games: the mobile Hero Wars Alliance and the browser-based Hero Wars Dominion Era. Thanks to this, we now see that the players have become more aware of how the versions differ from each other.

We also saw significant growth for our rising star – Island Hoppers. We have brought it to a full-fledged launch this year and achieved positive results. Plus, we launched other products in the Hero Wars universe — a merch store, comics, a cartoon and new projects that are still in R&D.

What do you think the biggest trends in the industry have been over the last 12 months?

As mentioned, the situation grows more complex every year. All international companies are facing difficulties, especially in the mobile market.

But despite the challenges, some newer companies are finding this era to be fertile ground, creating new and innovative games and growing rapidly into unexpected niches.

This gives a lot of optimism. They’re establishing new franchises, and adapting to changing market realities as players find themselves less willing (or able) to pay as much for games as before. There’s also been success in cross-platform games. It’s inspiring and helps build faith in the future.

We see that many of our mature competitors (those who have been in game development for three years or more) have not seen many major breakthroughs in the development or marketing of their products, nor explosive growth. Companies right now are focusing on methodical and consistent development. 

Overcoming competition requires going against the grain and innovation. Everyone has to work hard, polish every aspect and play to their strengths to see growth.

What do you think are the key trends, challenges and opportunities for the next year, and how will you be taking them on?

Looking ahead to 2025, the games industry is expected to undergo transformative changes that will reshape how players interact with virtual worlds and each other. As technologies like VR, AR, and blockchain continue to evolve, and as new business models and regulatory frameworks emerge, the gaming landscape will become more dynamic and interconnected.

The anticipated advancements in cloud gaming, AI, and esports, along with a growing focus on inclusivity and accessibility, promise to create richer and more immersive experiences for gamers.

Staying attuned to these trends will be crucial for developers, players, and industry stakeholders alike, as they navigate the future of gaming in an ever-changing digital environment.

We at Nexters look with deep attention on these trends, use them with accuracy and we bet on our R&D projects and research new opportunities.

What do you think is the most important factor to a mobile game’s success in 2024?

In 2024 the mobile games industry is still going strong despite a slight decline in consumer spending. In-game advertising is a booming business, and we expect it to keep growing.

Mobile games are becoming more sophisticated, offering console-quality experiences and deeper engagement. Connectivity and social interaction are key drivers of player engagement.

The future of mobile gaming is connected, casual-core, and constantly evolving.

Have you moved to platforms outside of mobile? If so, why? If not, is it something you’re considering?

Yes, our games at Nexters are available on both mobile phones and desktop. This applies to both Hero Wars and Island Hoppers games. In our holding, other games are also available on all platforms.  We strive to exchange experiences to enrich the user experience of players.

We have been developing the Hero Wars Universe for a year now because we understand that it is very important, and now, in 2024 and even earlier, it is not enough to offer players just one game – they need entire universes and even more – comics, cartoons, and other products.

Look at successful franchises like Marvel, DC, and SEGA producing movies and cartoons, and so on.