Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket breaks out, industry investment returns, Ever Crisis hits $100m | Week in Views

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The games industry moves quickly and while stories may come and go there are some that we just can’t let go of…

So, to give those particularly thorny topics a further going over we’ve created a weekly digest where the members of the PocketGamer.biz team share their thoughts and go that little bit deeper on some of the more interesting things that have happened in mobile gaming in the past week.

Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket surges past $100 million in 17 days

Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket is off to a great start. Initially, there was some confusion about whether this game would do well because there’s already a mobile Pokémon trading card game, Pokémon TGC Live. 

However, despite being based on the same principle of collecting cards, the two games have a very different approach. For one, TCG Pocket is off to a flying start in terms of revenue, surpassing over $120 million, and that’s because this game approaches monetisation in an entirely different way, TCG Live is actually relatively light on how it monetises and options are cheaper, whereas Pocket has a far heavier approach.

Pocket also has a subscription system, which allows you to open more packs, and it offers this to players under a two-week free trial – always a great way to give people a taste of a feature that they decide they don’t want to play without.

In terms of gameplay, we had a feature from Jakub Remiar on the site this week going into Pokémon TCG Pocket’s game design and one aspect that stands out is how Pocket is simplified.

There are no 60-card decks; it’s down to 20, energy is given automatically, and the whole experience is easy to follow, which means more people are inclined to play. Also, if you’re not interested in battling, you don’t need to in Pocket; you can simply progress and level up by collecting cards, whereas Live has a more prominent PvP presence. 

I could go on about the differences, but ultimately, I feel Pocket has come rushing out of the gates because it’s been made as a more approachable game, which attracts not only dedicated Pokémon players but also new players, or those like me who used to collect real cards years ago, and nostalgia has brought me back to collect them now digitally.

We already know there are updates incoming over the holiday period for Pokémon TGC Pocket, so I’ll be very intrigued to see if they can keep this initial momentum going.

Play Ventures secures $140 million to support early-stage game studios

All this year we’ve heard the term ‘survive to 2025’ and not much has changed on that front. Layoffs are still happening and studios continue to close, but there are bright spots emerging.

The mobile games market looks to be in recovery and returning to growth overall. During the first 10 months of 2024, games generated $69.5 billion in gross revenue ($48.6bn net) from player spending across App Store and Google Play, according to AppMagic estimates.

That represents a rise of approximately 2.7% from the same period in 2023. It’s not rapid growth by any means, but it’s a reverse of the market decline.

Another sign that that industry is in recovery is the recent spate of headlines for new funds and company investments. Leading the pack is Play Ventures $140 million fund to support early-stage games companies, from pre-seed to Series A.

Play Ventures’ founding partner Henric Suuronen was bullish in the announcement (he isn’t exactly going to be negative about the opportunities of the market, of course).

“Mobile gaming is one of the most dynamic arenas of our time, presenting massive, untapped potential,” he said. “With Fund III, we’re investing in a new wave of billion-dollar games and interactive experiences, supercharged by the transformative power of AI.”

Meanwhile, Play Ventures’ co-founder Harri Manninen added: “With Fund III, we are committed to supporting these brave founders who are creating new business, regardless of market sentiment. It’s an exciting time to invest in new gaming startups and technologies and help drive the industry forward.”

So at least the public footing is one of confidence and determination that the industry is turning around.

Elsewhere, Merak Capital launched its games fund and accelerator to support MENA start-ups to the tune of $82 million. Arguably the driving force here is not optimism of the mobile games sector’s future for growth, but bolstering Saudi Arabia and the wider Middle East’s position in the games and tech sectors within a still highly lucrative industry.

Meanwhile, Hasbro aims to invest up to $150m a year in games, SayGames is set to invest $30m in hybridcasual titles, former Supercell devs at Bit Odd raised $18m, Neon raised $14m to create web shops, and there are more stories to boot.

One of the common threads is that the mobile games industry’s future looks different. Bit Odd wants to change the approach to mobile game development, SayGames wants to fuel hybridcasual’s growth to outrun hypercasual’s decline, and Neon aims to take advantage of the direct to consumer trend and the ever evolving regulatory landscape for app stores.

Investment is returning as the mobile games industry changes, and just how much it evolves will be fascinating to see. Kwalee’s John Wright has his own predictions  on that front.

Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis surpasses $100 million

Square Enix’s Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis has hit the $100 million milestone in just over a year, following promptly after its first anniversary this September.

However, the gacha RPG has lost a lot of momentum along the way. According to AppMagic estimates, Ever Crisis’ launch month was its most lucrative by a strong margin, having made almost $20.8 million in September 2023 before falling to $13.3 million in October 2023.

Fast forward to October 2024 and it made just $4.8 million for the month.

It’s worth noting that Ever Crisis is available on PC too, so it’s true revenue is likely higher than the App Store and Play Store figures alone. But even so, it looks like Ever Crisis has turned out as just a modest success for a game with the Final Fantasy VII name.

After a tumultuous few years for Square Enix on the whole, maybe the upcoming Final Fantasy XIV Mobile will be the game to turn things around.