Why government support is key to games industry growth, and Uma Musume: Pretty Derby’s global launch | 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.

UK Government launches £30 million Games Growth Package

Over the weekend – a classic Saturday announcement – the UK games industry got a significant boost with the announcement of the £30 million Games Growth Package.

Plus, there’s a new industry-led UK Video Games Council to establish closer links to decision makers, and the UK Games Skills Network aimed at tackling skills gaps and creating pathways into the sector.

I explain this in more detail on this week’s podcast – keep an eye out for that tomorrow – about the importance of government support. 15 years ago or so, Canada’s generous tax breaks were rinsing the UK’s games sector. 

It took years of campaigning from trade bodies UKIE and TIGA to get politicians to take notice, institute competitive tax relief, and stop the leak. Over a decade after getting those incentives, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport is finally investing and opening up other initiatives too to fix some of the industry’s critical challenges.

Successful games and companies will, of course, still emerge without government backing. But to be competitive on the global stage, attract the best talent, help companies fulfil their full potential, and create a large and thriving hub, decision makers need to be invested in that success.

Finland had strong support – some of which has been rolled back at a time when it arguably needs it most – and Turkey offers great tax incentives for companies, helping build one of the world’s top mobile gaming hubs. (Though one source has disputed how far this relief actually goes).

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are investing heavily in games, largely to play catch up with global competitors, and they can’t just rely on a large industry hub to emerge all on its own.

Brazil’s games industry has spent many years trying to attract overseas investors, publishers and media to the country – one of the founding goals of BIG Festival, now part of Gamescom LATAM.

The country finally has a legal framework for the games industry, signalling what it will hope is the start of more governmental support to help retain talent, become more attractive to those investors and publishers, and ultimately build up the local sector.

None of this happens overnight. These initiatives are many years in the making and are key for a country’s games industry to be competitive and successful in the long-term.

Uma Musume: Pretty Derby launches globally today after racing to $2.6bn on mobile in Japan

Uma Musume: Pretty Derby is a game I’ve reported on a number of times – long reserved to Cygames’ home country Japan, and one of the country’s biggest mobile successes since the pandemic.

In fact, this anime horse girl racer was Japan’s top grossing game of 2021 and 2022, and has already generated $2.6 billion on mobile over its four years in Japan, according to AppMagic.

Now, after continuing to make substantial monthly revenue in Japan, it’s finally getting a chance to shine on the global stage. So, I’m curious to see whether it thrives like anime-style games Genshin Impact and Goddess of Victory: Nikke, or whether training up horse girls to compete in races really will be too much of a culture shock here in the West.

Either way, I’m sure this Cygames hit will continue to trot its way to $3bn and beyond.