Supercell’s investment push, Minecraft movie rakes in $301m, and industry M&A hits $6.6bn | 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.

Why Supercell wants to invest in games companies

Remember when Supercell ‘just’ made hit billion-dollar mobile games like no one else in the industry?

Hay Day, Clash of Clans, Boom Beach, Clash Royale, Brawl Stars, all massive games upon which it built its empire. 

Post-Brawl Stars, it has hit a wall (except with the reinvigoration of that title), much like many of the rest of the world’s most successful developers. It’s not impossible, but it’s proven incredibly difficult for even the most talented teams to strike gold repeatedly, making Supercell a standout.

The company has spent years now transforming itself, launching the Spark program for new games (now open to external devs), while also expanding the headcount for its live game teams. It’s even hiring for a senior film and TV development executive to lead its transmedia expansion.

And while it’s not exactly new, Supercell has launched a website and refreshed branding for its Investments arm as it steps up its push to fund games companies. It’s also actively looking at M&A deals.

It’s good news for the games industry, which has struggled for investment opportunities over the last few years as funding dried up. But is Supercell stretching itself too thin? What does it get out of this?

“Supercell invests in other game companies to broaden its reach beyond the walls of its own studios,” Supercell Investments lead Jaakko Harlas told PocketGamer.biz in our interview. “Not every talented founder wants to join an existing company, many want to build something of their own. By backing independent teams, we can support that ambition while also learning from it.

“This approach gives us access to a wider talent pool, fresh perspectives on game development, and exposure to genres, platforms, and creative approaches outside our core focus. In an industry where making a hit game is incredibly hard, we believe in taking more shots on goal, not just ourselves, but by empowering others.

“At the same time, the value flows both ways. Our community becomes a place of shared learning and collaboration, creating a powerful community of builders who can learn from each other’s wins and mistakes.”

Fast-forward five to 10 years from now, I’m curious to see whether Supercell has transformed itself into a Nintendo-like entertainment powerhouse, as well as one of the industry’s key investment companies, or if some of those ambitions ultimately get scaled back. But it’s clear Supercell isn’t afraid of taking risks.

A Minecraft Movie earns $301m in first two days, double its production budget

Minecraft is one of the most widely recognised titles in video games, and for years, it has attracted players of all ages – particularly the younger generation. As each generation grows up, Minecraft has been there to embrace the next one. 

We now have our first movie based on the IP and it grossed around $301 million globally within its first two days, doubling its budget of $150 million. The opening also broke box offence records for the biggest video game adaptation, surpassing The Super Mario Bros. Movie. 

The funny part is that when you look at reviews, most of them are bad. It seems to be one of those cases where the critics’ score is low, but the audience’s score is much higher. To me, the obvious target isn’t the critics going to watch the movie, it’s the younger generation playing the game each day that they want to fill the cinema with.

My five-year-old niece, who loved Roblox, told me the other day that she now likes Minecraft more because she’s getting bigger, and lo and behold today, she’s going to see the Minecraft movie. 

Last week, I spoke about Supercell taking their IPs beyond games, and this week, we have the release of the new Black Mirror season, where one of the episodes is accompanied by a video game release.

This huge influx we see with game adaptations still has its bad apples, but many of them go on not just to boost revenue but also go a long way in building out a franchise and engaging with audiences, old and new.

So, while A Minecraft Movie may not be an incredible piece of cinema, that big-name IP alone clearly has the power to fill seats. I’m just wondering what beloved video game franchise gets the movie treatment next… 

Games industry M&A hit $6.6bn in Q1 2025 with mobile domination led by Scopely

In what looks like good news for an industry bouncing back, games industry M&A hit a two-year high in Q1 2025 at $6.6 billion in total value.

The figure comes according to Aream & Co.’s new Video Game Market Update report, which noted that mobile continued to dominate quarterly M&A deals over the period. This was largely driven by Scopely’s planned acquisition of Niantic’s licenced games portfolio, of course, in a massive $3.5bn deal.

It’s worth noting, therefore, that total M&A value would have fallen slightly year-over-year without the Scopely deal.

But there were still over 40 separate deals made last quarter, up from 32 in Q1 2024, suggesting more of a reshuffle than has been seen in quite some time.