PocketGamer.biz Podcast

Acquiring valuable users is only half the battle. To truly power profitable growth, studios must focus on the smart strategies that retain their users for years rather than days. Faith Price, pioneers this approach in gaming as the Director of Growth Marketing at DoubleDown Interactive, a leading social casino and mobile games studio. She joins host Peggy Anne Salz in this episode to share how she uses lifecycle marketing to extend the lifespan of DoubleDown’s 13-year-old app—and the tips you can implement to do the same for your game. She opens up about her testing tactics and routine and reveals the three steps anyone can take to reinvent themselves during this industry downturn. 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

01:50 - Determining the features that acquire vs retain

05:36 - Timing and testing communications and community

11:26 - What does the testing routine look like?

12:31- How to reinvent yourself in games

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

In today's noisy, data-constrained market, studios can't afford to splash the cash on multiple soft launches. Instead, they must identify innovative ways to test and validate concepts while keeping their costs low. It's a path stacked with strategic decisions that can seem daunting for smaller studios or leaner teams. In this episode, Peggy Anne Salz links up again with Piyush Mishra, Director of Growth at Product Madness, to learn about his playbook for producing stellar games on a shoestring budget, from concept testing to global launch. He reveals the metrics that matter most when evaluating creative and the questions to ask to effectively greenlight games across genres.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

03:22 - The creative metrics that matter

08:12 - Using UA to test and validate concepts

11:38 - Keeping costs down during testing

15:36 - Using UA to test gameplay creative

17:29 - Benchmarks for greenlighting a game 

23:15 - Marketing must be there from the start

27:28 - What genres does this work for?

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

For smaller studios on shoestring budgets, diving deep into data can feel daunting. But having a leaner team doesn’t equate to less impressive results—if you have the right tools at your fingertips. When tasked with managing her studio’s UA and monetisation, Clary Xiaodan Zhang, Head of UAM at Elia Games, created a fully customisable, no-code automation system that transforms marketers’ time management and democratises data using two readily available, low-cost tools—Google Sheets and Notion. Clary joins us on this week's show alongside hosts Peggy Anne Salz and Brian Baglow. She explains how her system delivers on three fronts: It serves as a data analytics platform, matches specific actions with campaign performance, and sends smart alerts that tell marketers in minutes the campaigns that need their attention most. Clary reveals how she saves 50 hours/week integrating this automation and shares the blueprint that studios of all sizes can follow to build their own system in-house.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

04:28 - Balancing UA and monetisation at the same time

05:58 - Clary's no-code solution

08:48 - How Clary's solution helps studios of all sizes

11:10 - AI strengths and weaknesses in UA & monetisation

16:01 - How AI is changing job descriptions

20:52 - Saving 50 hours/week with a no-code solution

24:12 - Disrupting the non-gaming industry

26:47 - Cultivating creativity with Clary's no-code AI

29:40 - How to build a system like Clary

34:48 - Favourite games Q&A

Players who relate to your game are easier to retain. But how do you pinpoint the story that enhances your game’s USP, resonates with your player base and sparks the desire to stay in the game? Deniz Kekeç, Performance Marketing Manager for casual simulation game Sunrise Village at Innogames, has cracked the code with a pioneering approach to UA that she calls “narrative marketing.” It’s a content-driven approach that involves writing a game’s story or enhancing an existing one “in a way that the user can bond with the product themselves.” And it works because the engaging narrative appeals to players’ emotions and builds their preferences into gameplay from the start. In this insightful episode with hosts Peggy Anne Salz and Brian Baglow, Deniz delves into the formula for success and how studios can determine, test and adapt the right narrative for their game. She should know—she tested several, including love stories, mystery yarns and a strange relative with secrets. Curious about the concept that excited players and transformed Sunrise Village’s reach and retention? Well, you’ll have to listen until the end for that. 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

03:53 - What is narrative marketing?

06:59 - Determining the right narrative

11:33 - Testing the narratives

17:50 - Adapting the narrative to different UA channels

20:53 - Advice for getting started

26:12 - Yoga lessons in marketing

28:55 - What story won? 

30:22 - Favourite games Q&A 

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

Extending a game’s lifespan is every studio’s grand objective, but the path to effective execution is packed with difficult decisions. Studios can lean into Live-Ops to keep content fresh and cultivate profitable partnerships to enhance their marketing mix, or they can centre community management and leverage audience listening. Or, like Innogames, they can do all of the above. Our hosts Peggy Anne Salz and Brian Baglow welcome three guests from Innogames for insider insights into how the studio successfully lengthens the lifespan of their legendary games, Tribal Wars and Forge of Empires, which just reached 20 years of play and hit the one billion lifetime value milestone, respectively, and continuously nets new audiences for both. Matthew Milligan (Product Head), Stefan Flinterhoff (Head of Game UA), and Thorsten Schankin (Senior Product Manager) dive into Innogames' unique approach to UA and company culture—one that puts games first and centres teams around titles instead of channels. They also chat about community engagement and sourcing inspiration from Forge of Empires’ million daily active users. From forecasting tools and Live-Ops to embracing power creep and integrating cross-platform before it was cool, this episode is loaded with useful information for indies and triple-As alike.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

02:19 - Product and marketing come together

07:19 - Leaning on your community

11:13 - Cross-platform before it was cool

17:52 - In the case of power creep

19:50 - Forecasting tools

25:08 - Community starts internally

28:05 - Constantly testing new partners

30:37 - Staying novel

34:16 - A little more about Matt, Thorsten, and Stefan

38:15 - Favourite games Q&A

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

In Guy Gadney’s eyes, implementing AI into your game development is like “cooking with eggs.” You can use it as an ancillary tool to optimise your current creative endeavours, or you can “make an omelette”, baking AI into your game from the beginning and establishing it as a fundamental component of character or world creation. The application options are endless—if guided by the right questions. Peggy Anne Salz welcomes Guy Gadney, Co-Founder and CEO of Charisma—a plug-and-play platform creating interactive stories with virtual characters—onto the show again to reveal what to ask to effectively apply AI to your creative process, revolutionise your entertainment experience, and “fundamentally change the art of storytelling.” After their dynamic discussion, Peggy chats with another AI expert and entrepreneur, Harry Holmwood. Harry describes how Magicave, a game company designing digital hobbies similar to Dungeons & Dragons and Warhammer, uses AI to transform data into real-time world-building with digital dice, characters, and tiles. Listen, learn, and love this episode as we talk about co-creating engaging experiences with players, implementing AI ethically, and how to navigate the machine learning minefield in 2024. 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro 

00:51 - AI is like cooking with eggs

07:29 - Navigating compliance

10:19 -  AI will fundamentally change storytelling

13:10 - Using AI to create new worlds every day

17:41 - Copyright and fair IP

22:28 - Monetising and the Pay To Learn model

24:00 - Magicave's vision

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

How did Yahtzee break revenue records? What’s up with webshops, and are subscription models shaping up to match past hype? We answer all these questions and more in this episode of the PocketGamer.biz Podcast live from the floor of PGC London. Host Peggy Anne Salz leads a captivating conversation with Steel Media Ltd. executives Chris James (CEO), Craig Chapple (Head of B2B Content), and Aaron Astle (News Editor). The group gets into the weeds about redefining customer relationships, advancing IP through AI, and how studios are saying sayonara to Apple’s near 30% commission fees. Tune in for our team’s hot takes and exclusive insights on gaming in 2024, and register today for PGC San Francisco!

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

01:08 - Show highlights

05:47 - Small changes make a big difference

08:23 - Advancing IP through AI

14:34 - Webshops and Apple's 27% commision

21:00 - Subscription models

23:02 - Favourite talks and tracks

29:02 - Favourite games Q&A

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

Past predictions into mobile gaming foresaw an industry slowdown in 2024, but recent data reveals a different reality. Peggy Anne Salz welcomes two mobile mavens onto the show this week to lift the lid on the actual state of the market, and the trends studios should pay the closest attention to in the coming year. First, Karl Knights, Global VP of Customer Success at mobile data and analytics platform data.ai, digs into the latest data in the State of Mobile 2024 report. He shares surprising findings, reveals the monetisation methods dominating the app stores and walks us through the models that can predict future app performance. Then, Lirui Ding, Senior Associate at Transcend Fund—an audience-first gaming venture firm—dives deep into the rapidly evolving world of Esports. He details how game studios can use Esports to elevate engagement and community building and new ways VR is poised to revolutionise mobile gaming. 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

00:50 - The truth about mobile growth and ad spend

05:49 - Breaking down successful games and subgenres 

12:09 - data.ai's MPS

14:05- The state of esports in 2024

19:40 - Effective community building

21:20 -  VR eSports

30:17 - Lirui’s hopes for 2024

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

While some studios are cashing in their chips on hypercasual and casual games, a few future-focused brands are doubling down and winning big by placing their bets on rewarded play. Indeed, though once a taboo UA tactic, rewarded play now opens doors for lasting loyalty and long-term engagement. That’s why Mistplay, a leading loyalty platform for mobile apps, provides rewards that fit the bill for every player. Gabriel Lewis, Senior Director and Global Head of Accounts at Mistplay, joins Peggy Anne Salz in this episode of the PG.biz Podcast, where he explains how Mistplay goes beyond cashback offerings to deliver a variety of perks custom-matched to player interests. He says rewards are more than just bonuses but catalysts for continued gameplay. Tune into this show for insider tips on leveraging these turbo boosts—plus loyalty and LTV—in your game design and a look into the secret strategy that Mistplay mobilises to keep gamers glued to their screens.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

00:41 - First impressions and exciting trends

02:30 - Mistplay and rewarded ads

08:34 - Designing for rewards types

12:37 - Rewarded ads in the years to come

15:29 - What's next for Gabe?

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

In an industry where data-driven decision-making pays dividends and a deep content pool is the difference between customer churn and a long-term connection, game studios need a tool capable of gathering granular user data and satiating consumers' content cravings. NAK3D—a startup recently awarded for its innovation by the World Economic Forum—delivers on both ends. Kelly Vero, CEO and CTO of NAK3D joins Peggy Anne Salz for an on-the-ground interview into how the interoperable fashion marketplace leverages AI-developed data to provide developers a constant stream of new in-game content while empowering fashion and retail brands to establish a digital presence. She says the future of game commerce (or g-commerce as she calls it) lies in digital assets and putting the power back into the hands of the player. Few people are as daring, future-focused, and driven as Kelly, which is why major designer brands like Alexander McQueen and Lulu Guinness trust NAK3D to bridge the gap between digital and physical retail and deliver actionable insights into Gen Z and Gen Alpha audiences. Don’t miss out on this mega-meta episode—the first in a series of special live podcasts connecting you with the sharpest minds and savviest innovators in gaming.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

01:54 - Davos, the metaverse, and trends in Asia

07:06 - The evolution of Nak3d

12:29 - The future of Gcommerce and information sourcing

19:30 - Digital death and the metaverse

26:28 - Look outside the games industry

29:03 - What is Kelly looking forward to most?

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

To acquire valuable players and boost rank in the app stores, studios have to shift focus and budget to offer each user a customised experience that aligns with their unique player motivations. But the path to pinpointing player intent isn’t straightforward--especially in a privacy-first landscape that makes prediction more challenging than ever. It’s a perfect storm of conditions for revisiting and rethinking approaches that reward players for staying in the game.  Adam Jaffe, Founder and CEO of Mega Studio—an end-to-end gaming agency offering services in everything from product creation to marketing to monetisation—joins hosts Peggy Anne Samz and Brian Baglow to discuss how incentivised is powering UA and much more. Adam observes that rewarded approaches pay dividends, producing retention rates that are “40% higher” than those of non-incentivised users. This is because rewarded gives marketers bonus insights into player behavior. As Adam puts it, marketers know “exactly why” a user downloaded, allowing them to create a “railed environment” or direct path that users are nearly guaranteed to follow. He shares smart strategies to optimise this approach, from how to finetune features to create long-term users to where to place ads to maximise monetisation. Lastly, he offers advice on marrying product and marketing and explains why incentivised traffic can potentially become a critical data signal studios can harness to optimize everything. 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

03:15 - Why gamification? 

05:44 - Biggest misconception about rewarded traffic

09:30 - The nuts and bolts of incentivised traffic

13:05 - Maximising monetisation

18:16 - Finding the incentivised sweet spot

24:18 - Optimising for player motivation

27:08 - The future of incentivised traffic

32:45 - Favourite games Q&A with Adam

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

Profitable UA is about connecting with the right players at the right time in the right context. Using traditional targeting tools, UA managers can manually parse through data to predict who is the best fit. But ultimately, this approach eats up marketers' time—and ad spend. Gamelight’s AI-powered algorithm cuts out the guesswork, locating only the players sure to produce high LTV and delivering 4x ARPU uplift in just a few days. Günay Aliyeva, Co-founder of Gamelight, a company that removes the heavy lifting from UA, joins host Peggy Anne Salz on the show this week. She says it's time to toss the timeworn targeting tools and embrace automation to revolutionise UA. She talks about trusting AI to optimise monetisation and how Gamelight’s self-learning algorithm builds upon itself to extract the most value from new and existing players. Finally, she shares how to level up your game and what it takes to establish a successful startup. She would know—she’s built three!

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

03:23 - AI optimising in-app purchases

06:48 - Perfecting player targeting and UA optimisation

14:05 - Learning to trust the algorithm

17:10 - What it takes to build a successful startup

21:46 - Build your app during launch, not before

24:34 - Favourite games Q&A with Gunay

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

The games industry faced a brutal year in 2023, with unofficial layoff estimates reaching an alarming 10,000. The stakes remain high in 2024, and job seekers need to double down to secure a position amidst reduced hiring and increased competition. We learn how to “pimp our LinkedIn” and get the most out of networking opportunities in this episode with Oleg Paliy, CEO of Games Factory Talents, a recruiting agency that connects global talent with leading Finnish games studios. Joining our hosts Peggy Anne Salz and Brian Baglow, Oleg gives PG.biz Podcast listeners some tough love and expert advice on nailing your dream job in 2024. If you like what you hear in this show, don't miss out on your chance to connect with him in real life at PGC London, where Games Factory Talents will be hosting the career zone and giving attendees advice on their LinkedIn, resume and next career move.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

02:38 - The layoff landscape for 2024

04:20 - How to "pimp" your LinkedIn

07:13 - How to capture a recruiter's eye

10:28 - The most in-demand positions of 2024 

14:51 - Hiring for soft skills 

20:39 - Are you a diver or a surfer?

24:05 - Connect with Games Talent Factory

28:33 - Favourite games Q&A with Oleg

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

An evolving market calls for an evolved approach to user acquisition—one that treats players as individuals and weighs each user’s needs against all available acquisition tactics. When preparing to adopt this approach, though, game studios must consider one key question: Should they stick with the mainstream channels (META, Google, Apple, etc.) that provide reliability but unpredictable ROAS or focus their attention on alternative channels that bypass saturation and offer users that are 50% more likely to make in-app purchases? Studios face some tough choices in 2024, and this week’s guest encourages marketers to embrace the shift from “growth at all costs” to more targeted acquisition strategies yielding high-value users. We ring in the new year—and PG.biz podcast’s first anniversary with hosts Peggy Anne Salz and Brain Baglow— with digital marketing veteran and Fluent Cofounder and Chief Customer Officer Matt Conlin. In this insights-filled episode, Matt reveals where some studios are missing the mark and evaluates how game-changing UA trends (including rewarded discovery and influencer marketing) light the path to sustainable growth. He also shares his exclusive SWOT analyses of UA channels (both new and old), what games studios can learn from retail, and, most importantly, which tactics will power profitability in 2024 and which are better left in 2023. 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Happy 1 year to the podcast

02:20 - Trends to watch in 2024 

08:00 - The incentivised player

12:18 - The value of rewarded discovery

15:28 - SWOT analysis on rewarded platforms

19:37 - SWOT analysis on influencer marketing

23:10 - The new mobile landscape

26:24 - What's on the radar for 2024?

29:40 - How Fluent navigates rapid change

31:10 - Favourite games Q&A with Matt

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

The path to profitable growth is fraught with tough choices. Studios can net new audiences by pumping out new titles and features at the pace of change, or they can push the envelope (and extend the lifecycle of their legacy title) with content, Live Ops and real-life events. Or, in the case of Zynga, they can do all of the above. Yaron Leyvand, Executive VP at Mobile Studios at Zynga, joins hosts Peggy Anne Salz and Brian Baglow to share pages from the playbook that keeps the games giant growing amidst industry downturns and transformations. Yaron recalls the milestones in the journey that brought Zynga from a small gaming company with a start on Facebook to a leader in casual gaming with over 4 billion downloads and 200+ million monthly players worldwide. He also delves into Zynga’s unique approach to M&A—one that bolsters smaller studios and trusts in local talent. Don’t miss this info-packed episode as Yaron describes how Zynga and Take-Two are shaking up the industry with their landmark collaboration, and Peggy and Brian announce the biggest celebration in PG.biz history — the 10-year anniversary of PocketGamer Connects hosted at PGC London in January.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - The must-attend event of the year

03:09 - Introducing Yaron

03:48 - Zynga's 2024 mentality

07:09 - Most innovative shift in puzzle games

11:43 - The secret to Zynga's success

14:46 - Zynga's acquisition approach

20:02 - The power of combining forces

25:37 - To license IP or not to license IP

27:56 - How to make a "forever franchise"

33:04 - Favourite games Q&A with Yaron

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

Success starts with a great game, but profitable growth is fueled by ongoing engagement that treats players as individuals. And, although it’s not rocket science, the SuperScale report, Good Games Don’t Die, reveals this is where most studios miss the mark. Nearly 40% fail to deliver relevant and engaging content to their users. It’s also one reason 83% of games fail within three years of launch. How can gaming companies step up engagement to ensure their game (and audience) is thriving years down the road? Jim Laurain, Head of Growth at Aampe, a company that leverages AI to level up your communication stack, shares some smart approaches in this week’s show with our hosts Peggy Anne Salz and Brian Baglow. Jim reveals how 75% of top gaming apps fail to welcome new players and outlines how these same companies can significantly increase engagement in just one step. He also zeroes in on the stages where top games are getting their messaging and segmentation wrong. He wraps up with an experiment every game dev can run to gain a deeper understanding of their players and “massively increase their retention and activity” in the process. And this is one experiment you can do at home!

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

04:51 - 75% of apps miss this crucial step

10:11 - How are 25% of apps getting messaging wrong?

14:01 - Popular trends in messaging flow

22:28 - Tailor messaging based on player motivation

24:58 - An experiment to reveal player types and relevant messaging

33:05 - Using CRM data to shape UA

37:42 - How does Aampe help devs with messaging?

40:46 - Favourite games Q&A with Jim

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

During the hypercasual reign, short-term metrics, like the seven-day LTV curve, were the golden standard for an app’s scalable potential. Now, looking further down the road and building an environment that encourages players to set down roots for 30, 60, or even 365+ days is how studios can come out on top and predict profitability. So, how can studios get to the bottom of what causes churn and retain players for years instead of days? John Wright, Vice President of Mobile Publishing at Kwalee — the UK publisher with 70+ published games and 1 billion+ mobile game downloads — has the answers in this week's episode. Alongside our hosts Peggy Anne Salz and Brian Baglow, John dives deep into prioritising player loyalty, creating memorable (and profitable) user experiences, and the strategy that increased Kwalee games’ LTV by 40x. “It’s a mindset shift from ‘How do we get users as cheaply as possible to how do we maximise our users moving forward.’”And we end on a high note, talking about Kwalee’s first-ever virtual event and how you can participate. 

Gamemasters Summit, powered by Kwalee - register here

Understanding Player Loyalty Is A Game-Changer For Mobile Publishers (Forbes)  - read here

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

04:00 - Upcoming PG.biz and Kwalee events

06:43 - Why hybrid casual?

11:02 - Is hypercasual dead?

12:14 - Is the worst of privacy changes behind us?

14:10 - A loyalty driven approach to growth

18:08 - How to get someone more invested in your game

20:54 - Becoming a multi-app experience

24:59 - Should your metrics change?

28:36 - Where does John see growth? 

33:13 - Favourite games Q&A with John

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

There’s no shortage of benefits that games bring to players, from increased creativity to developing interpersonal skills to greater self-confidence. Yet, gaming popularity grows, so do the silent risks posed to children online. Fortunately, there is an organisation leading the fight against child abuse and developing safe game design guidelines. The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) is the UK’s leading children’s charity, protecting and advocating for youth in the UK and Channel Islands for 139 years. Joining host Peggy Anne Salz on the show this week is NSPCC’s Head of New Product Development and Innovation, Andy Sallnow, and Gaming and Digital Disruption Consult, Kevin Antao. Andy and Kevin discuss how children experience games differently, channels that pose the greatest threat to young users, and the Safe Games Festival. From February 5-11, 2024, at a state-of-the-art eSports venue and featuring live streaming, safeguarding workshops, and a fierce eSports competition, this festival joins parents, youth professionals, young gamers, and industry leaders to celebrate games and “promote safer gaming through design, production, and education.”

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

03:25 - How has social gaming impacted children?

08:03 - Safe game design

14:06 - Research into harm in the metaverse

17:35 - Is privacy-first harmful for children?

20:26 - Game Safe Festival

24:08 - The Games Bundle

26:05 - How to get involved in preventing child abuse

29:10 - Impactful NSPCC partnerships and resources

34:26 - Favourite games Q&A with Andy and Kevin

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

In a time when investors are calling for prudence and playing it safe, one company has managed to not only persevere but prevail. Elena Grigorian, CEO of MY.GAMES, joins hosts Peggy Anne Salz and Brian Baglow to explain the key strategies and developments that delivered a 14-fold increase in MY.GAMES’ effective marketing investments, a 4-fold increase in the company’s business, and an opportunity to crack the Chinese market. What’s more, Elena discusses her journey and challenges to becoming one of the few female CEOs in gaming and MY.GAMES’ impressive efforts to empower women and embrace multiculturalism in gaming. From diversification to centralisation to how to ride the game industry's highs and lows, this episode has it all. 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

02:55 - MY.GAMES centralisation of marketing

07:42 - Should studios convert to 100% remote?

09:20 - How MY.GAMES leverages diversification 

14:07 - Empowering women and cultivating diversity in games

18:48 - How to ride the games industry highs and lows

20:44 - The development is Elena most excited about

26:51 - Favourite games Q&A with Elena

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

Good games offer great experiences, and accurate and timely issue resolution is imperative to keeping LTV high and your game in good graces with its users. And it’s not just a must to please your players. App store algorithms have begun to rank games based on performance metrics and can punish games that go on the fritz. But, as all devs know, pinpointing the source is complicated, especially since most resolution tools either lack the data to determine the real cause or the holistic view of the player journey to check if other factors, like low bandwidth during the commute, are the real culprit. Years of frustration trying to figure out the root cause of the problem during his years as a co-founder of Scopely motivated Eric Futoran to build Embrace. The mobile-only monitoring solution effectively removes the guesswork by providing a “play-by-play of each user experience,” so your team can spend less time pointing fingers and more time building a #1 game. Eric joins host Peggy Anne Salz in this week’s episode to explain how Embrace “collects [an app’s] exhaust” and walks us through the key features that empower engineers to find solutions and, more importantly, take their seat at the decision-making table. “My goal at Embrace is to [prevent] you from constantly thinking about crashes and ANRs,” Eric says. “And allow you to get back to building games and making your users happy.” 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

03:06 - When you're forced to release a game

07:29 - Eric's lessons from his time at Scopely

10:47 - Give engineering a seat at the table

14:18 - Performance metrics now affect your ranking

17:30 - The need for proactive tools

21:39 - How does Embrace empower engineers?

26:30 - Examples of Embrace's effectiveness

33:07 - Eric's vision powering Embrace

35:48 - Can UA teams use Embrace?

37:29 - Advice to mobile studios + devs

41: 05 - Favourite games Q&A with Eric

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

If your ASO strategy isn’t motivated by real-time data insights that dive deeper than traditional tools to provide hourly insights into hot keywords and trends, you’re missing a massive opportunity. This is top-of-the-list advice from Mike Rhodes, CEO and Founder of ConsultMyApp, an app marketing agency with awards from Top CRM Consulting Company UK to Most Effective Use of Data 2022. ConsultMyApp believes in democratising ASO knowledge and that quality data “shouldn’t only be available to people [able] to spend thousands of dollars a year.” That’s one of the reasons Mike developed tools like APPlyzer that studios of all sizes can use to up their game and even have some fun exploring new keyword universes. Mike takes centre stage on this week’s show to share how studios can combine acquisition and engagement to increase monthly organic install volumes 10-15x and reveals the four things studios need to start doing now to end Q4 with a bang. 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

01:36 - Mike's journey

05:15 - How apps across verticals can all benefit from data

08:59 - What's the next big change in games?

11:07 - A tool to democratise data

14:46 - What APPlyzer tells you that other tools can't

20:32 - Uplift expectations for devs

21:29 - How to end Q4 with a bang

35:18 - Keeping high energy and staying on top

37:39 - Favourite games Q&A with Mike

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

The PG.biz Podcast team has known that games can be used for more than just entertainment. We’ve discussed charity and climate action use cases, but what about self-care, mental development, and skills improvement? Trail-blazing gaming company Skillprint enhances all three. Skillprint combines neuroscience and AI to create adaptive and personalised games that equip devs and players with actionable insights into player personality and behaviour. Skillprint’s CEO and Co-Founder, Chethan Ramachandran, joins Peggy Anne Salz to discuss how Skillprint transforms the way game developers “find, keep, and monetise their audience” and “gives the power of a massive LiveOps team to every game developer in the world.” 

You don’t want to miss out on this episode as Peggy and Chethan delve into the company’s latest report on the cognitive and psychological benefits of gaming and how devs can harness this data to understand their games and dramatically increase engagement and retention. 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

01:15 - What is Skillprint?

04:30 - Chethan's personal journey

10:12 - Altering the playing field for devs

13:18 - How are Skillprint customers using the data?

15:51 - Will I become a couch potato?

18:41 - Games Can Be Good For The Mind Report

25:53 - Games as meditation

29:04 - What's next for Skillprint?

34:49 - Favourite games Q&A with Chethan

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

It’s already known that games can positively impact mental health, but did you know they can positively impact the planet, too? Lisa Pak, Sustainability Consultant and Project Manager at Playing for the Planet, joins host Peggy Anne Salz to describe how, with its superpower reach, the games industry can wield the power of play in the fight against the climate crisis. Lisa brings her passion for sustainability to Playing For The Planet, a global alliance supported by the United Nations Environment Programme that unites and supports game studios and trade bodies in reducing carbon emissions and implementing green activations in games. Through planet-powering programs, campaigns, and the annual Green Game Jam, Playing for the Planet members bring a new meaning to gaming for good — and so can you!

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

01:44 - What is Playing for the Planet?

05:38 - Lisa's journey to Playing for the Planet

08:45- Green Game Jam

11:45 - Saving the Harlequin toads with games

14:27 - How to get involved in the Green Game Jam

17:31 - Integrating sustainability into game ads

20:27 - How to start being green at your game company

25:02 - Farming with friends

28:45 - Favourite games Q&A with Lisa

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

Few franchises can stand toe to toe with the IP power of Jurrasic Park. This year marked the 30th anniversary of the renowned first film and the 5th anniversary of Jurrasic World Live, a game with seismic numbers behind it. The geolocation game has racked up 33 million downloads and 2.3 billion play minutes, prevailing through the pandemic and fast-moving game market, proving studios can stand the test of time if they play their cards right. Here with the PG.biz team is Rose Agozzino, marketing wizard and Senior Product Marketing Manager at Jam City, to talk about the partnerships that make the Jurrasic player experience what it is today. Detailing LiveOps strategy and nostalgia-driven digital collectables, Rose reveals the strategy that keeps players coming back and inspires players across generations to dive into the daring world of Jurrasic Park.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

02:26 - Celebrating five years of Juarrasic World Live 

04:53 - Mutually valuable partnerships

08:02 - This is the era of nostalgia

11:18 - Jurassic's "stickiest" event

13:43 - How to forge valuable partnerships

19:09 - It's all about open communication

23:13 - What's next for Jurassic LiveOps?

25:08 - Favourite game Q&A with Rose

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

Removing friction, taking control of user data, and enhancing customer engagement throughout the funnel are necessary steps to increase game margins and retain valuable players. However, the app store duopoly can put a block in the road, restricting access to players in growing markets, charging high transaction fees, and limiting commerce capabilities. This week’s guest, Xsolla, clears those obstacles. Xsolla is a game commerce platform that helps devs distribute their games directly to players, bypassing the oversaturated app stores and putting the power back in the hands of creators. Chris Hewish, President and Interim CEO of Xsolla, takes centre stage in this episode to tell devs about the company’s innovative solutions that maximise player LTV, give companies increased control of their data, and provide fully customisable, alternative monetisation tools that don’t interrupt gameplay and can increase revenue per paying user by 8X. 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

0:10 - Intro

02:45 - What does Xsolla do?

05:39 - A new era of game distribution

09:06 - Is it more cost-effective to ditch the app stores? 

14:40 - The Digital Markets Act

16:46 - Giving developers more control over what they create

21:23 - How does a web shop increase your revenue?

26:15 - A headless checkout

28:20 - Accelerate XR and Xsolla Mall

33:34 - Favourite games Q&A with Chris

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

The best and brightest gaming professionals gathered in Helsinki this September to share their thoughts, tips, and predictions about the latest gaming trends and what teams need to know to make their mark in the marketplace. Listen in as Steel Media CEO Chris James and COO Dave Bradley recap the candid conversations that took place in Finland’s capital city last month. From IP as a brand and revenue tool to the abundant opportunities for expansion in the Middle East to alternative monetisation methods that give smaller studios a spot in the market, our PG.biz team provides the in-depth industry information you need to succeed. 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro to Helsinki

03:58 - Indie competitions and audience choice champions

06:00 - The defining parts of Helsinki 2023

09:40 - Is mobile gaming struggling?

12:23 - Alternative monetisation and advertising methods

14:05 - Attracting audiences with PC and cross-platform play

17:00 - Wielding IP as a brand and revenue tool

20:14 - Opportunity in the Middle East

24:41 - Updates on Scottish Games Week 

26:30 - Upcoming PGC events

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Automated forecasting isn’t just about saving time and money. It’s about finding a gap in the market and going after it. With all the facts on the table, teams can decide early whether to keep, kill, or crank up the effort on a game. Ramp’s automated forecasting tool provided SpaceApe Games with the data to do just that. Angus Lovitt, Ramp CEO and Hong Nguyen, SpaceApe Games CFO, are back for part two of our series on the value-adds of Ramp’s revamped forecasting. This week, the two tell host Peggy Anne Salz how Ramp’s approach helped SpaceApe make the data-driven decision to increase their investments into Chrome Valley Customs and crack the top ten in puzzle games on the App Store. 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - How an automated forecasting tool can empower team members

05:28 - Real-time forecasting changes the game

08:04 - True data-driven decision making

10:56- Good forecasting is more than just data

13:23 - The future of forecasting

17:02 - Q&A with Hong and Angus

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

Good forecasting is necessary to predict performance or make tough decisions about your game. But it's not just about the numbers. Winning demands a single source of truth, insights into real-time data and a departure from the timework tools and approaches that have allowed team members to pass the blame, not the benchmarks. Fortunately, this week's guests are uprooting traditional forecasting practices for a more democratized, innovative and granular cohorts-based approach. "Fundamentally, [forecasting] is a process of alignment," says Angus Lovitt, Co-Founder of Ramp, a startup that integrates data across departments to provide studios with unified and accurate forecasts. In this first episode of a special two-part series, Angus and Hong Nguyen, CFO at SpaceApe Games, teach the entire team —from devs to marketers to finance —how to make better decisions informed by data.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

02:03 - Where is everyone going wrong with forecasting?

04:38 - Why is forecasting innovation important now in the gaming industry? 

09:01 - Bad forecasting is more than a bad formula

13:40 - How Angus disrupted the gaming industry for three years

16:52 - How does RAMP reenvision forecasting?

21:40 - The benefit of a single source of truth

25:46 - What does automation bring to forecasting?

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

Though there’s no algebraic algorithm that churns out games with guaranteed success, there are consistencies between top-ranking mobile games. The Gaming Spotlight Review 2023 from data.ai spotlights these similarities and delves into the data behind the success stories. Lexi Sydow, Director of Corporate Marketing & Insights at data.ai, joins our hosts again this week to highlight the heavy hitters in mobile gaming and simplify the strategies that shot them to the top. Alongside Peggy Anne Salz and Brian Baglow, she breaks down data.ai’s composite metric, the mobile performance score (MPS), and describes the “new gamer” that defies demographic stereotypes and will redefine the mobile industry.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Peggy's garden intro

01:24 - Four components of the mobile performance score

05:38 - Making waves with Monopoly GO

09:37 - FIFA Soccer fights its way to the top

13:12 - Royal Match ranks highly 

16:16 - What do successful games have in common?

20:38 - Who is the "new gamer" to watch out for?

25:36 - Q&A with Lexi

Gaming Spotlight Review 2023 - https://www.data.ai/en/go/gaming-report-idc-2023/

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Mobile remains the primary growth driver for digital games consumption despite a “softening in direct consumer gaming consumer spend.” But diversification rules as the strategy that will allow devs to generate revenues by ensuring their games are on all platforms and their monetization uses all formats and approaches -- especially rewarded video. This advice, and the stats to back it up, comes through loud and clear in the latest Gaming Spotlight Review 2023 from data.ai. In this special 2-part series, our hosts, Peggy Anne Salz and Brian Baglow, dive deep into the key findings with Lexi Sydow, Director of Corporate Marketing & Insights at data.ai. They discuss how shifting player tastes pave the way for emerging genres and why contextual market data is a must to overcome ad fatigue in an oversaturated market. 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS 00:00 Intro 02:56 An adjective to describe the current mobile market and latest report 05:29 The Gaming Spotlight report 09:37 Publishers, watch out for these subgenres 14:09 What does the data say about cross-platform gaming? 17:39 Are in-game ads coming to an end? 22:07 Contextual data to get your ad seen 26:09 Vote for PocketGamer in the British Podcast Awards Gaming Spotlight Review 2023 - https://www.data.ai/en/go/gaming-report-idc-2023/
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Diving into different game genres is no simple feat, especially as innovations in games call for new approaches to net valuable players from the get-go. The trick to coming out on top? Diversify your UA efforts as you diversify your portfolio, says this week’s guest. Ryan Davies, Head of Digital Marketing at Kwalee and recent 30 Under 30 performance marketer, joins us on this episode’s podcast. An expert in creating campaigns that crush it on all platforms, he chats with our hosts Peggy Anne Salz and Brian Baglow about pathways to profitable growth in hypercasual, hybrid, and casual games. He also discusses genre commonalities that transcend platforms and shares life lessons to help you lead teams, rely on your intuition and embrace risk.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

04:15 - Key skills to be a great UA manager

06:50 - Maintaining growth across different genres

08:45 - Is this the end of hypercasual games?

10:42 - Marketing tactics to match the metamorphosis of hypercasual games

13:43 - Navigating UA challenges on console and browser

19:20 - Ryan’s biggest lesson from six years in UA

22:45 - Balancing the qualitative and the quantitative and embracing risk

27:13 - Incentivising AI ideas

28:20 - Q&A with Ryan

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

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Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

To build a great gaming ecosystem, “Think global, act local,” says Anton Gorodetsky. Anton is the Head of Industry Relations at the leading European publisher and developer, MY.GAMES. He joins the podcast this week to explain how to build a comprehensive ecosystem dedicated to loyalty, branding, and retaining players that generates revenue years into a game’s lifecycle. He brings us behind the scenes of cultivating relationships that matter and one influencer partnership that raked in a 20% DAU increase and 6 million MAUs.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro & MY.GAMES’ expansion

05:17 - Communication is key 

09:27 - A collaboration that paid dividends

13:01 - Building a cohesive ecosystem

21:16 - New audiences, not new games

25:23 - InvestGame--your guide to gaming deals

27:46 - Q&A with Anton

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

Tactile Games’  User Acquisition Manager, Plamen Stefanov, joins our hosts, Peggy Anne Salz and Brian Baglow, to showcase how small teams can make big waves in the gaming community. You might recognize Tactile from its hit game, Lily's Garden, which has generated 517 million worldwide in lifetime player spending since it appeared on the market in 2019. Plamen cites cross-team collaboration and a testing ecosystem that feeds itself as two contributors to this success. Listen to Peggy, Brian, and Plamen’s conversation for a peek behind the curtain of Tactile Games’ scaling skills and for Plamen’s top three tips for someone passionate about pursuing UA.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Intro

03:30 - From B2B marketing to games advertising 

07:17 - UA beyond ROAS optimisation

08:44 - Is there room for creativity in data-driven UA?

11:47 - Suffering sells

14:53 - Everything feeds into everything else

19:35 - UA team Product team 

22:26 - AI for efficiencies, not decision making

26:00 - Q&A with Plamen 

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

Mike Levine, founder and CEO of Mystic Moose, an indie game studio and publisher, joins us on the PG.biz Podcast to discuss Mystic Moose’s newest game, Mojo Melee — a cross-platform, multiplayer PVP auto chess game — that weaves together a strong narrative and player choice. In the episode, Mike describes how Mystic Moose paves the way for players to personalize and own digital collectibles -- on their terms. This smart approach bypasses the Web 3 backlash and, more importantly, employs a “choose your own adventure” approach to user education. “We believe in the power of Web3 to empower players,” says Mike. “But it’s [just] a feature for those who wanna take advantage of it in our game.”

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Peggy and Brian: Back in the studio!

02:00 - What makes Mojo Melee magic? 

06:40 - Plant-based creatures, clans, and scouts

08:59 - Finding your niche in Web3

12:59 - Designing digital collectibles differently 

15:12 - Cross-platform creativity

21:27 - Advice for indie startups

23:14 - Is it time for AR in gaming? 

25:42 - Choose your own adventure user education 

29:33 - Q&A with Mike

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

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👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

A longtime board game lover and superstar marketing strategist, Faith Price understands what drives user retention and how to coordinate a killer soft launch. She shares her launch expertise with the PG.Biz audience this week. In this episode, Faith, Director of Growth Marketing at DoubleDown Interactive, and our cohost, Peggy Anne Salz, discuss what shifts in soft launch strategy tell us about what lies ahead for the gaming industry. Faith also divulges the DoubleDown team's big change to their soft launch process that paid off down the development road.

In even bigger news, we’re up for the Best In British Podcast Awards! Vote for the PocketGamer.biz Podcast here before voting closes.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Cast your vote for the Pg.Biz podcast

00:46 - Welcome, Faith, to the podcast

02:49 - What do soft launches tell us about gaming? 

06:17 - Are soft launches what they used to be?

09:01 - The timeline for an effective soft launch

13:34 - Reading data differently

18:00 - Teamwork makes the dream work

21:32 - A change to Double Down's soft launches that paid off

23:58 - Is AI part of co-creation?

25:32 - How Faith's personal life motivates her professional

28:50 - Faith as a superhero character

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

Our guest rockets results and achieves sustainable success thanks to what co-host Brian Baglow calls the 4Ps: people, platform, partnerships, and personalisation. Tobias Edl, Director of Marketing & New Business at WHOW Games GmbH, joins Brian and Peggy Anne Salz in this episode to explain how WHOW's immersive tactics and attractive dual monetisation method create a loyal player base and have led to millions of game downloads across app stores. Tobias expands on the effect of real-time gameplay on player interest and reveals an aspect of successful strategy that he thinks marketers are missing.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - The face you need to know

03:02 - Walking through Vegas on your phone

07:11 - Keeping player interest high with real-time gameplay

09:11 - Tobias' personal connection to his games

11:55 - Monetising with IP

13:40 - What sets Whow Games apart?

15:37 - Choosing a winning creative

18:09 - The importance of localisation

19:33 - Third-party app stores...are they worth it?

22:16 - What are marketers missing

24:10 - Games Q&A with Tobias 

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

Nicknamed by our cohost Peggy Anne Salz as the Medici Man for his numerous talents and cross-industry experience, our guest this week has worked on both the publishing and the development sides of gaming. He predicted that social connectivity and games would go hand in hand and anticipated the pay-off. He also helped create early prototypes for mobile gaming. Little wonder that Robert Burnett, COO of Hashbang Games, knows what's next in the game industry and strongly advises devs to take a cross-platform approach. Hashbang specialises in backend development and integration, helping indie teams optimise their growth by providing and implementing cross-platform solutions that allow them to compete with the manpower of AAA studios. Alongside our hosts, Peggy Anne Salz and Brian Baglow, Robert draws from his  30+ years of experience in game development to offer indie studios advice on everything from the right tools for user analytics to how they tap their secret advantage to successfully swim alongside the industry big whales. 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Meeting Brian and his journey into the games industry

05:37 - Predicting game connectivity and games as a service

10:48 - Advice for indie developers and tools to utilise

16:00 - Robert puts his money where his mouth is with Hashbang's game Light Violence

21:58 - Should indies be both developer and publisher?

24:00 - What level of niche is too niche?

26:02 - Apple's AR: A hit or a miss?

28:47 - Find the right market for your product

31:04 - Robert's brutal advice for the PG.biz audience

33:30 - Q&A with Robert

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** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

SKIDOS, referred to by its CEO as “the Netflix of learning apps,”  sits at the intersection of gaming, learning, and kid-friendly technology by converting popular casual mobile app games into learning apps for children aged two to seven. With over two million kids playing SKIDOS games, plus a Family Choice Award and Best of Mobile Apps Silver Award under its belt, it’s clear that SKIDOS is an expert in UA and UX. We welcome the company’s Founder and CEO, Aditya (Adi) Prakash, onto the podcast this week. Throughout the episode, Adi explains to the PG.Biz podcast audience how SKIDOS maintains its growth momentum with its unique spin on the subscription service model and emphasis on child-safe tech. What’s more, Adi reveals how SKIDOS achieved a 95% organic growth rate without investing in any paid UA.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Welcome Adi to the show

03:15 - Building the Nextflix of learning apps

07:05 - Adi's inspiration to start SKIDOS

08:58 - How SKIDOS works in-app

10:42 - Selling to two different demographic groups at once

13:45 - What's in it for the developers?

15:52 - How SKIDOS succeeds with only organic growth

20:39 - What brands would pair well with SKIDOS?

23:38 - Generative AI: to use or not to use?

27:01 - Q&A with Adi

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

Matthew Zoern, Head of Studio at Solid Bash, outlines what developers can gain from identifying "the fun factor" — the core component of Solid Bash's "features-based iterative process."  Matthew reveals how his team meld aspects of old-school game development with new transformative techniques to ensure games are entertaining for the long term. Alongside our hosts, Peggy Anne Salz and Brian Baglow, he dives into his background with virtual collectibles to divulge how this approach helps his team craftily combine the digital and physical. Tune into this episode as our trio talk shop about implementing analytics innovatively and discuss what developers should know about profitable brand partnerships.

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Mathew's interesting journey into the world of gaming

06:21 - Solid Bash's latest and greatest

07:45 - The benefits of a feature-first approach

13:26 - Embrace the fun factor

16:56 - Treat 'em mean, keep 'em keen

20:30 - The shift to full-cycle development

24:55 - Something for Matthew to brag about

28:44 - Are brands getting gamification wrong?

35:18 - Advice for developers looking to work with brands

38:15 - Q&A with Matthew

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

Gamers, developers, and gaming experts alike united at PG Connects Seattle last month. We’re here with Dave Bradley, COO of Steel Media Ltd., to recap the exciting event. Dave tells our hosts, Brain Baglow and Peggy Anne Salz, that AI, indies, and blockchain games were on everyone's minds at this PGC gathering. Attendees were also lucky to experience the first-ever PG Connects recruitment affair. This episode isn’t one to miss, with some shocking facts about iOS app releases, a taboo topic that sparked intense conversation, and a free app idea for anyone brave enough to build it. 

CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Introductions & a shocking fact about iOS app releases

03:50 - Why Seattle?

06:09 - Hot topics and new additions at PG Connects Seattle

10:06 - Tailoring events to specific regions

15:38 - What unpopular topic turned out popular at PGC Seattle?

21:19 - A new PGC addition for free-flowing conversation

23:21 - Scottish games events

25:29 - Tinder for games?

27:47 - Updates on the next PGC events

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

** Let's Connect **

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event

👉🏻 Twitter - https://twitter.com/pgbiz 

👉🏻 LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/144491/ 

👉🏻 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PGbiz 

👉🏻 Website - https://www.pocketgamer.biz 

Check out more world-class speakers sharing their insights and expertise at one of our events. You can find details of our next event here - https://www.pgconnects.com/next-event