The big games industry trends and stories to watch in 2025

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Happy New Year, readers!

The mantra of ‘survive to 2025’ can finally be laid to rest as we move into a slightly more hopeful year. There’s a new mantra of ‘thrive in 2025’, but as a Brit I lack total optimism and I like to take the “we’ll see” approach.

There are a lot of positive signs for the industry, though. The mobile games market returned to growth in 2024, and a few funds like Vgames and Play Ventures have raised $140m+ for investments. There were also big acquisitions like Miniclip’s purchase of Easybrain for $1.2 billion and MTG’s $620m deal for Raid: Shadow Legends maker Plarium. But you can’t wave a magic wand at the turn of the year and everything is suddenly better.

Predictions 

We asked the Mobile Mavens for their thoughts on what to expect over the next year, which you can see here, here and here.

Utmost Games CEO and founder Vladimir Nikolsky anticipates more layoffs and studio closures in the near future. ZBD COO Marca Wosoba believes there will be “hard times” ahead for small studios and indies, but “good times” for big publishers.

GEM Capital MD Kirill Gurskiy, though, is “cautiously optimistic” the industry downturn will end, citing the emergence of those new funds, increased M&A and more venture activity over the past nine months, compared to the previous year.

Metaplay CPO Teemu Haila has a bolder outlook.

“It feels as though the industry is taking the learnings from the last few years and applying them to a new thesis for building a vibrant and refreshing future. A game development renaissance, if you will.”

Stories and trends to watch in 2025

As we start off the year, I think there are a few trends and stories worth following that could eventually shape the future of the industry. For anyone that read our last newsletter on trends, this will look remarkably familiar.

HTML5 and web games

This is perhaps one of the most interesting and exciting spaces to watch. It’s had a few false starts, but WeChat Minigames are making billions, Telegram’s games have seen a surge in popularity, and even Facebook Instant Games is back.

Former EA CEO and founder Trip Hawkins said last year that browser gaming offers a “great opportunity” for developers.

“I believe browser crossplay, with HTML5 and webGL, I think that’s one of the next waves.”

I wrote last year that “everything is a games platform” now, and I think that will continue in 2025.

AI

Developments in AI could have a fundamental impact on how games are made. Just its potential for disruption is causing a stir, and the SAG-AFTRA strike of performers continues to rumble on over this very topic.

Kwalee VP of mobile games (check out his predictions here) says AI will become central to game ideation and design, and predicted this year we’ll see the first title where over 50% of its foundation will be generated with the tech.

AppAgent CEO Peter Fodor, meanwhile, predicts technological transformation will alter cost structures, “enabling companies to scale 10x with only a third of the workforce”. He added this will mean job losses in current roles.

Check out the AI Gamechangers newsletter run by our very own Dave Bradley for the big interviews and roundups of the latest news in the AI space.

Rewarded play

Rewarded play has become an increasingly bigger trend over the past year as more players like Mistplay, Almedia and Gamelight compete to be major players in this new arena.

It will be interesting to see how the UA model works over the long-term. There’s a careful balance between giving consumers value and real rewards, and publishers getting a worthwhile ROI to continue using them.

But these companies are growing first. You can find out more on our Pocket Gamer Connects London panel ‘The Rise of Rewarded UA: How to Take Advantage of the Marketing Revolution’ on January 20th.

For more details on how it works, check out our interview with Almedia CEO Moritz Holländer and Two and a Half Gamers’ Matej Lancaric’s breakdown here.

Regulatory enforcement

It’s crunch time for the regulatory battles against Apple and Google. The European Commission, through the Digital Markets Act, will need to show its teeth against Apple’s App Store policies if it’s serious about upholding its new rules.

The DMA’s first-ever fine was reportedly expected in December, so expect some news on this soon. The battle will play a pivotal role in how the mobile platforms open up to third-party marketplaces like the Epic Games Store and Xbox’s stalled mobile plans, as well as alternative payment methods and web shops.

Google is currently undergoing a stay of execution after the Play store was found to be an illegal monopoly in the US, another landmark case.

Meanwhile, TikTok’s potential US ban looms large. It took a rare bipartisan effort to force ByteDance to sell or have the app shut down in the country, but the new Trump administration, which kicked off the whole affair, is looking for a delay. As a major UA platform, the consequences of a ban will be significant.

Chinese publishers extending their influence

It’s no secret the influence that Chinese publishers like NetEase and Tencent have over the industry, following years of M&A across the globe, some of that, perhaps, to escape a tough regulatory environment at home.

On mobile, Chinese publishers aren’t just gaining influence from investments, other companies like Lilith Games and miHoYo have built truly global, billion-dollar hits.

Meanwhile, Black Myth: Wukong on PC and consoles was seen as a landmark moment for triple-A. We’ve also recently had big launches like Marvel Rivals and Delta Force.

One investor and former exec questioned last year how Western publishers can compete with this. Bigger teams, cheaper costs, bigger budgets, truly global expertise – it’ll be fascinating to see how industry dynamics shift over the coming years.

And that’s not to forget the large investments being pumped into the Middle East’s games sector, further shifting focus away from the West.