iOS 14's Impact on gaming
Nintendo stepping away from mobile games, Mixer and all creators are joining Facebook and more..
Hello friends,
Welcome to issue No: 9!
These days, I’m spending my time talking to people in the industry and investors to learn more about the opportunities and pain points, feel free to reach out if you want to have a chat.
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🗞News
At WWDC 20, Apple unveiled lots of privacy features on iOS 14. These new changes will have a big impact on the mobile advertising industry (and gaming), especially on how app installs are attributed.
Apple’s announcements relate to better transparency in privacy, geolocation tracking and privacy reporting. They also announced the need for opt-in consent for access to the iPhone IDFA and changes to app install attribution with SKAdNetwork:
Ad networks that sign ads and receive install notifications when ads result in conversions
Source apps that display ads provided by the ad networks
Advertised apps that appear in the signed ads
There are still lots of unknowns but here are some initial reactions from the industry:
App Attribution industry is dead by Branch
Mobile measurement in iOS 14: Four possible scenarios by Adjust (!!)
Apple Just Crippled IDFA, Sending An $80 Billion Industry Into Upheaval by Forbes
Apocalypse Now: per WWDC, the IDFA is dead by Eric Seufert
Why Apple's "Consent for IDFA" announcement is a game-changer for online and mobile privacy by Fieldfisher
Current implications for third party attribution providers and retargeting companies are currently unclear but many will get disrupted.
On other updates, Apple is getting serious about gaming with more updates on iOS 14 and Apple GPUs:
Game Center improvements: Dashboard, Access Point, and Profile
Tap into Game Center: Leaderboards, Achievements, and Multiplayer
The mystery Pokemon project being developed by Tencent is a cross-platform MOBA
In this game, players face off against each other in 5-on-5 team battles. During battles, players will cooperate with teammates to catch wild Pokémon, level up and evolve their own Pokémon, and defeat opponents' Pokémon while trying to earn more points than the opposing team within the allotted time.
In-game app-development platform Overwolf acquires CurseForge assets from Twitch to get into mods
Overwolf is a framework that enables 3rd party creators to develop, grow, and monetize in-game apps for leading PC games like League of Legends, CS:GO, Hearthstone and more.
We like the idea of user-generated content or moddable platforms as part of our investment thesis because it lets users participate in creating their own worlds. That’s very interesting.
In the past twelve months, apps on Overwolf were used in over 1.92 billion game sessions, with top creators on Overwolf earning over $1,200,000 per year.
Nintendo Reportedly Stepping Away from Mobile Games
Ace Research Institute analyst Hideki Yasuda said that, in Japan especially, gacha remains the only lucrative business model in mobile games. But even if Nintendo were willing to go down that path, it would be unsuccessful, he added.
“You need an active long-running franchise with hundreds of attractive characters to make a good gacha game and then you’d need to keep adding new characters each month to retain players,” Yasuda said. “Fire Emblem is the only Nintendo franchise capable of doing that.”
This week in streaming wars: Microsoft is shutting down its streaming platform, Mixer and all creators are joining Facebook.
The FDA just approved the first prescription video game — it’s for kids with ADHD
Improvements in ADHD impairments following a month of treatment with EndeavorRx were maintained for up to a month,” the company cites, with the most common side effects being frustration and headache — seemingly mild compared to traditional drugs, as you’d hope from so-called virtual medicine.
📈 This Week in Numbers
$200B - According to Newzoo’s Global Games Market Report: This year, the games market is expected to achieve $159.3 billion in revenue. By 2023, that is likely to increase to $200 billion.
$1.5B - Roblox Mobile hits $1.5 billion in lifetime revenue
Undisclosed - Facebook acquires VR studio behind ‘Lone Echo’
As part of the Oculus Studios team, Ready At Dawn will continue creating memorable, immersive, and innovative VR content for gamers around the world as an independently-operated studio. We’re thrilled to welcome them to the family.
€7.1M - Focus Home Interactive buys Deck13
🔮Good Reads
Two great posts from Riot Games about their R&D process
Playable Worlds: First comes the game, then comes the Metaverse
Video Games are the Future of Education
Here’s a great youtube channel covering game design principles and deconstructing good games.
Finally, I watched The Kingdom Of Dreams And Madness. A documentary following the routines of those employed at Studio Ghibli, including filmmakers Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, and Toshio Suzuki as they work to release two films simultaneously. Highly recommended if you want to learn more about the creative processes at Studio Ghibli.
Have a great weekend,
Emre
Curated by Emre Colakoglu, an experienced product manager and data scientist working in gaming. I’m based in London and working on something new. You can find me on Twitter, my website and LinkedIn.
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