1.    Supercell invests US$37M more in Space Ape Games

• Supercell has increased its stake in Space Ape Games to 75% by investing another US$37 million in the game studio
• Supercell invested US$56.6 million in Space Ape Games in 2017 for a 62.6% stake
• London-based Space Ape Games is in an expansion mode and it makes titles like the mobile rhythm game Beatstar

2.    Apple lets apps in South Korea use third-party payment systems

• Developers of apps released in Apple’s South Korean App Store no longer have to use the company’s own in-app payment system, Apple has announced in a developer update. Instead, developers will be able to take payments using the third-party service providers pre-approved by Apple
• Now developers can use this TPP to attract user for the first payments then ask them move to webpay
• The Dutch competition regulator, the Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM), has ordered Apple to allow dating apps — and only dating apps — to use alternative in-app payment systems
• The European Union’s upcoming Digital Markets Act (DMA) contains provisions to force Apple to allow users to install apps from third-party sources, and to allow App Store developers to use alternatives to Apple’s payment systems

3.    Diablo Immortal earned US$49 million in first month

• Activision Blizzard’s Diablo Immortal has earned over US$1 million every day in its first month, with a final number of approximately US$49 million
• To date, the game has been downloaded 10 million times. The game’s revenue peaked shortly after launch, earning US$24 million in revenue just ten days after release
• In China, the game having been indefinitely delayed in June. This caused stock in NetEase to plummet to $139.20 on June 22, down from a six-month peak of US$172.50 just 12 prior

4.    Tencent expands with four new studios

• Tech conglomerate Tencent’s subsidiary TiMi Studio Group has reorganised, splitting the TiMi J3 Studio into three smaller teams and allowing TiMi to cover more bases in the FPS genre
• The three teams are named TiMi Y1, TiMi Y2, and TiMi Y3
• TiMi Y2 will focus on the creation of multi-terminal, self-developed titles worldwide - currently working on a military shooter using Unreal Engine 4. No specific details about the project have been released as of yet
• TiMi Y3 is responsible for the development of CrossFire Mobile among other related releases
• TiMi Y1 is taking responsibility for games including Call of Duty: Mobile, meanwhile incorporating multi-dimensional capabilities in FPS games for the aforementioned two studios
• TiMi has also established TiMi G1, which will focus on creating original 3A products

5.    NetEase invests in VR game studio Something Random

• NetEase has invested in VR game studio Something Random based in Poland. The net investment was not disclosed but was reported to be “several million dollars
• Something Random was founded in 2021 by Cezary Skorupka, Jakub Witczak, Anna Żurawicz-Skorupka and Piotr Goguś. After the investment, the company accelerated its VR game work and announced that it would launch its first game in 2023
• This investment also represents NetEase’s first entry into the Polish market

6.    H1 2022 Gaming Investment Overview

• Global game market

1. 130 M&A activities happened in Global game market in H1’ 2022, YoY- 28% in terms of number of events. Total volume is US$99 Billion, YoY+ 509%
2. The total amount has skyrocketed, Microsoft, Sony, and Take Two have initiated a number of huge acquisitions, which have raised the overall value
3. 15 activities is NFT games, 13 activities is metaverse

• China Game market, (Focusing on strategic investments)

1. 34 M&A activities happened in China game market in H1’ 2022, accounted for 26% of Global total scale
2. YoY- 72% in terms of number of events. Total volume is US$492 M, YoY- 90%
3. The decrease is mainly due to the slow economy ( covid effect), China tech crackdown and also gaming licensing froze for 8 months
4. Due to the difficult situation in China, more and more Chinese gaming companies are marching into oversea market; Rough statistics show that H1 overseas game team has received more than US$490 Million investment from China Companies
5. Tencent has 11 investment activties, 9 of them is in oversea
6. Netease has 6 investment activities, 3 of them is in oversea
7. Bilibili focus on Waifu Gaming companies

• Oversea Game Market ( Focusing on NFT Games, metaverse)

1. 96 M&A activities happened in Oversea game market in H1’ 2022, YoY+ 72% in terms of number of events. Total volume is US$98 B, 9 times of H1’ 21
2. 18 M&A activities has a total amount of over US$100 Million

7.    Tencent to shut down WeGame app

• The app for Tencent-owned storefront WeGame is set to shut down in September
• The tech giant already shut down its streaming platform Penguin Esports this June
• WeGame initially launched in 2007 as Tencent Games Platform

8.    Bungie and Netease reportedly developing Destiny mobile game

• Bungie's under-wraps work with NetEase involves a mobile shooter set in the Destiny universe
• NetEase invested US$100m in Bungie back in 2018, though the companies have never officially confirmed what the two are working on
• NetEase is working on a new Destiny shooter project for mobile, and has been for several years. The suggestion is this will be a fresh game, rather than a mobile port of Destiny 1 or 2

9.    Garena's Alpha Ace begins another round of beta test on Android in select countries

• Skang Studio’s (China Developer) Alpha Ace is a mobile alternative to tactical first-person shooter games like Counter-Strike, is available on Google Play under Garena
• Alpha Ace is a new 5v5 first-person tactical shooter
• Alpha Ace was first announced in February 2021 under the name of Global Offensive Mobile. At the time, the game had many similarities to Counter Strike Global Offensive (CS:GO) and the game was accused of plagiarism. Now the game returned in January 2022, under the name of Alpha Ace, and looked very different from earlier and successfully avoided any obvious similarities with CS:GO maps and weapons
• The game is available for beta testing only on Android on Google Play under Garena International II in Belarus, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Uzbekistan, Kirghiz, Latvia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Philippines, Malaysia, and Singapore

10.Ubisoft announces Tom Clancy’s The Division: Resurgence free-to-play mobile shooter

• Ubisoft announced Tom Clancy’s The Division: Resurgence, a new free-to-play, third-person shooter RPG mobile game from the Tom Clancy’s The Division franchise
• The game will be available for iOS and Android devices on the App Store and Google Play
• The game is playable solo or co-op with a variety of player-versus-environment (PvE) activities, from story missions to world activities

11.Ampere: Global games market forecast to decline in 2022

• The latest outlook from Ampere Analysis forecasts that the world games content and services market will decline in 2022 to $188bn (-1.2%) – (Newzoo’s prediction: Global Games Market will generate US$203.1B in 2022)
• Following a very strong market performance in 2021 (+5%, $191bn – Same as Newzoo’s prediction), the sector landscape has become increasingly unsettled during the first six months of 2022
• Mobile gaming set for a decline of 1.3%
• Supply chain challenges are negatively impacting console and PC gaming
• Reasons Behind:

1. Now that many countries have returned to more normality, it is inevitable that consumer attention on gaming will in some cases become more diluted, especially in mature markets
2. As we progress through a period of heavy inflation, with an increasing cost-of-living squeeze, and a higher potential for a recession, it is inevitable that the games market will be negatively impacted in certain areas

• Ampere is forecasting the Russian market to drop to number 14 in the global ranking in 2022 and for it to lose US$1.2bn in value compared to the previous year
• US spending on games to drop 8.7% this year