We unpack the biggest mobile app trends 2026 and mobile gaming trends 2026.

How Zynga built and builds games that never die

Mobile, Console, Steam, China, AI, Sony, Xbox, GTA6... 12 bold and data backed predictions.

Game development is evolving from logic to life. Through world models, Pim De Witte is building a future where virtual worlds learn, react, and feel alive.

The hits are older. The players are smarter. And success is quieter. Mobile gaming’s mid-year status check is here—and it might not look like what you expected.

2025 is going to be a wild year for consumer apps. From TikTok’s survival saga to AI-driven personal finance apps and the rebirth of super apps, here’s what we think will shake up the market and reshape how we connect, spend, and engage.

From private equity power plays to Web3 comebacks, here’s what we think will shake up the gaming world and redefine deal-making and investment strategies this year.

2025 is here, and the game is changing! From AI ads under $10 to loyalty programs driving big gains, explore the forces shaping mobile gaming’s next era.

The future of mobile gaming in 2025: bold bets, shifting trends, and some tough truths.

Let’s revisit last year’s crystal ball moments and see how our predictions measured up against reality.

Latest insights into mobile gaming and marketing, app vs game dynamics, ad spending on TikTok and YouTube, regional differences, IP collaborations, and the future of subscription gaming. 

In 2021 Sports category on mobile hit the wall. Revenues remained stable while downloads declined 9%.

Mid-Core games’ revenues reached nearly $15B, which is 16% more than in 2020. At the same time, the installs declined by nearly a fifth, bringing dark clouds above several genres.

Casual Games stand for 80% of all mobile game downloads and 35% of all In-App Purchases. Once you count in ad revenue, this is the most dominant category of them all.

While many teams will spend much of the year working on post-IDFA transformation plans, other secular trends within the gaming can provide a real opportunity to developers.

During 2020 the Shooter revenues boomed by 38% Year-over-Year while the installs clocked at 2.7B, growing by 31% compared to 2019 making this the second-fastest-growing category after Casino.

As the real casinos were shut down, casino games on mobile pocketed all the chips! But what happens when the lockdowns end?

Despite being the smallest category on mobile, 2020 was a very good year for Sports & Racing as it breached the billion-dollar mark, with combined revenue of $1.2B compared to $827M in 2019.

Strategy games generated $5B in net revenue during 2020 growing IAP revenues by 21% while the downloads were up 9% year-over-year.