Daily Mobile Gaming News

A cleaner daily brief on mobile game launches, updates, and pre-registration moves worth watching.

News Fri, Nov 13, 2026

Poppy Playtime: Chapter 5 launches on iOS and Android Nov 12

Poppy Playtime: Chapter 5 — Broken Things arrived on mobile on November 12, when Mob Entertainment released the iOS and Android versions of the latest entry in the horror franchise. The mobile launch follows the chapter’s earlier release on PC and consoles earlier this year, and puts the game’s new content directly on phones and tablets. Chapter 5 picks up after the events of Chapter 4 and sends players back into Playtime Co.’s nightmarish factory to confront a murderous prototype. The story centers on unraveling a string of horrific incidents triggered by a deranged doll pilot called the Prototype, while the player survives alone and hunted in places where even toys hide in the dark. Along the way the narrative teases unanswered questions about how far the company’s experiments went and what horrors were left in the factory’s forgotten depths. Gameplay in Chapter 5 emphasizes exploration of new factory zones buried deep in the Prototype’s domain, encounters with twisted new characters hiding in the plant’s underbelly, and puzzle-solving that uses an upgraded GrabPack and fresh gadget abilities. Players will face environmental hazards and moral uncertainty: some entities may offer help, but betrayal and secrets are common in a place shaped by Playtime Co.’s experiments. Poppy Playtime: Chapter 5 — Broken Things opened earlier this year to strong sales and visibility. The chapter sold 110,000 copies within its first three hours, claimed the top spot on Steam’s global best-seller chart for more than 24 hours, and registered high Twitch viewership on launch day. To date, Chapter 5 has sold over 800,000 copies across every platform where it’s available. The release is broadly cross-platform: mobile players can now find Chapter 5 on Apple’s App Store for iOS and Google Play for Android. The chapter is also available on PC via Steam and Epic Games Store, and on consoles including Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. Those platform listings match the wider distribution the game achieved earlier this year and bring the same chapter content to handheld devices. Takeaway: with more than 800,000 copies sold across platforms and a No.1 Steam run that lasted over a day, Chapter 5’s mobile debut puts the franchise’s biggest recent release into players’ pockets — you can now face the Prototype on phone or tablet without hopping back to PC or console.

News Thu, Nov 12, 2026

Playnest shuts down after four years of mobile game development

Playnest has announced it will cease operations after four years of developing and publishing mobile games. The Helsinki-based studio — founded in late 2022 as Wonder Hive — published a farewell post confirming the shutdown and thanking employees, partners, investors and players. Playnest's public team listing names four people: Gabriele Aimone (CEO), Petri Räsänen (CCO), Tero Paavolainen (CTO) and Jonas Klar (CPO). During its run the studio published 12 games, built several versions of a shared metagame and created more than 30 prototypes. The company also ran in excess of 300 user acquisition campaigns while trying different concepts and launch strategies. In their goodbye note Playnest wrote, "We had many smaller successes along the way and came close to a breakthrough on a couple of occasions," and added that "a combination of factors, some beyond our control, prevented us from ultimately getting there." The post reads as a concise thank-you: the team expressed gratitude to everyone who supported the company and played its games. Beyond individual titles, Playnest developed an internal platform for building, testing and releasing games, plus an SDK for external developers and a pilot programme to explore opening the platform to other studios. Those technical assets — the release-and-test platform, the SDK and the pilot — are the tangible outcomes the studio leaves behind after four years in Helsinki.

News Wed, Nov 11, 2026

モンギル：STAR DIVE launches DMM GAMES PLAYER with data link

モンギル：STAR DIVE, the action RPG that traces its roots to Netmarble’s 2013 Touch Monster, has launched a DMM GAMES PLAYER version and supports data linkage with the smartphone release that began service in April 2026. Players can now connect accounts between the two releases and carry progress across platforms. Linking accounts between the DMM GAMES PLAYER version and the April 2026 smartphone version rewards early movers: if you complete data linkage between today and December 11 you receive three Promise Compass (約束の羅針盤) used for gacha pulls and Gold Stone items that raise Monplan ranks, among other in-game items. To celebrate the DMM PLAYER launch a 10% off coupon is also being distributed through December 11. The title credit reads (C) Netmarble Corp. & Netmarble Monster Inc. If you plan to combine play across devices, finish the data linkage by December 11 to collect the three Promise Compass, the Gold Stone, and the 10% coupon — those are the concrete extras on the table right now.

Update Wed, Nov 11, 2026

Resident Evil Survival Unit adds Wesker, RE4 Leon and Ada in 1st-anniversary update

Resident Evil Survival Unit, published by Aniplex and JOYCITY, rolled out a first-anniversary update that adds Albert Wesker via a new Villain System and expands the roster with Resident Evil 4 versions of Leon S. Kennedy and Ada Wong. The mobile strategy game also announced it has surpassed eight million downloads. The update opens the Ruins, a new area where players can meet Master Villains from the Resident Evil series and complete character-linked quests for rewards. A separate Costume System lets you swap Heroes’ appearances, and anniversary events include daily check-in rewards, lucky draws, and event-exclusive skins. Those event mechanics come alongside the new Villain encounters and playable RE4 heroes. If you like new encounters and cosmetics, the combination of the Villain System, Ruins quests, RE4 Leon and Ada, plus anniversary skins and draws gives both fresh combat goals and vanity options to chase during the celebration.

News Tue, Nov 10, 2026

Fortis Games appears to have closed, 400+ staff affected

Fortis Games appears to have closed, with multiple LinkedIn posts today saying the studio “has officially shuttered, abruptly putting more than 400 talented people out of work.” One former communications director wrote that exact line; a production staffer added that “Las Vegas Sands Corp. has chosen to end funding and part ways, terminating all of the contracts, worldwide.” MobileGamer.biz contacted Fortis for comment but the company had not responded at publication. Fortis was created and fully owned by Las Vegas Sands and launched in 2022. The studio was co‑founded by Steven Chiang, Shawn Foust and Calvin Lau, who came from senior roles at EA, Zynga, Machine Zone and Twitch. At launch Fortis said it had 150 staff, assembled through the acquisition of three studios: Portugal’s Doppio Games, Brazil’s Oktagon Games and Romania’s Metagame. The developer listed four titles across its site and social channels: Mergemon Wilds, Twilight Towers, Bloom & Breakfast and Havoc Crew. Twilight Towers reached soft launch in September 2025 but Fortis posted a blog last week announcing the game would be closing this month. AppMagic data indicates Bloom & Breakfast reached early testing with a small number of downloads, while Mergemon Wilds and Havoc Crew never registered installs. If the LinkedIn posts are accurate, more than 400 people have lost their roles and the studio’s published projects will stop progressing; that combination explains why several soft launches and early tests are now being pulled back or canceled.

News Tue, Nov 10, 2026

My.Games management buyout led by Elena Grigorian expected by year-end

My.Games has agreed a management buyout from its sole shareholder, Alexander Chachava, with the transaction led by CEO Elena Grigorian and COO Denis Savuta and backed by UAE-based investor Georgy Nurislamov. Financial terms were not disclosed and the company says the deal is expected to be final by the end of the year. The agreement follows a process launched in 2025 to assess strategic alternatives for My.Games. Chachava, who is managing partner at LETA Capital and bought My.Games from VK for $642 million in September 2022, said the management team’s offer “stood out as the strongest, backed by their deep understanding of the business and consistent delivery of results.” He also noted that over the past four years the company’s financial and business sustainability has been strengthened despite a challenging external environment. The press release names Georgy Nurislamov as the UAE-based private investor the management team brought on board to back the buyout. Grigorian previously held senior roles at Disney’s games division and served in C-level roles at My.Games before becoming CEO. The company credits her with helping grow War Robots into a franchise that has generated more than $1 billion in lifetime revenue. My.Games’ portfolio also includes Rush Royale, Hustle Castle and Left to Survive. Takeaway: the buyout keeps My.Games’ existing brand and leadership intact, which means the same team that runs War Robots and the studio’s live titles will remain at the helm once the transaction closes later this year.

News Tue, Nov 10, 2026

Lego Digital Play acquires ForthStar studio from Golf Clash founders

Lego Digital Play has acquired Manchester-based ForthStar, the mobile studio founded by Golf Clash creators Paul Gouge and Alex Rigby, in a deal that adds roughly 30 people to Lego Digital Play’s team. Paul Gouge will become head of games across Lego Digital Play, while Alex Rigby will stay on to lead ForthStar as a flagship studio; financial terms were not disclosed and the Manchester team will remain in place. Before the acquisition Lego Digital Play operated as a separate company from the Lego Group from early 2025 and had around 100 employees, mainly in London and Denmark. The ForthStar addition pushes the group’s headcount toward the low 130s and brings a new UK base under the company umbrella. Lego Digital Play’s leadership says it is recruiting teams with creative cultures and shared values, and the studio’s existing staff will continue working from Manchester. Gouge and Rigby are the founders behind Playdemic, the studio that made Golf Clash; GamesBeat reports Golf Clash has generated more than $1 billion in revenue and is approaching $2 billion, with hundreds of millions of downloads. Playdemic was acquired by Warner Bros. in 2017 and sold to Electronic Arts in 2021 for $1.4 billion. The pair left Playdemic and launched ForthStar in 2023 to focus on building and operating live-service mobile games at scale. Aaron Loeb, president of Lego Digital Play, says the company wants to bring the Lego building system into digital games and that mobile is the best starting point to reach children worldwide — the acquisition adds experienced mobile operators and a Manchester studio to support that push.

News Tue, Nov 10, 2026

DoubleU Games launches $16.25 cash offer for remaining DoubleDown ADS

DoubleU Games has launched a cash tender offer to buy the remaining shares of DoubleDown Interactive it does not already own, offering $16.25 per American Depositary Share (ADS). The South Korean company currently holds roughly 67.05% of DoubleDown’s outstanding common shares. DoubleDown’s special committee of independent directors unanimously found the agreement fair and recommended the company’s board approve the deal, and the board has urged unaffiliated shareholders to accept the offer. The tender requires DoubleU Games to own at least 95% of DoubleDown’s outstanding shares after the purchase, but that threshold may be lowered to 90% with DoubleDown’s approval if reaching 95% looks unlikely. More than 50% of ADSs held by unaffiliated investors must be tendered for the offer to meet its conditions. The new proposal replaces an earlier offer after discussions between DoubleU and the special committee, and if the tender succeeds DoubleU plans to acquire any remaining shares through a follow-up transaction under South Korea’s Commercial Act at the same $16.25-per-ADS price. DoubleU Games intends to fund the purchase with cash on hand plus a bridge loan facility of up to KRW300 billion (about $224 million). Completion of the transaction still depends on the offer meeting its stated conditions, and the companies note there is no guarantee the acquisition will close. The announcement names concrete financing and statutory steps rather than timelines: the bridge loan cap and the post-tender second-step under Korean law are the clearest execution details provided. Takeaway: buyers and shareholders will be watching the tender thresholds — 95% (or 90% with approval) and the requirement that more than half of unaffiliated ADSs tender — since those conditions determine whether DoubleU moves to the statutory second-step purchase at $16.25 per ADS.

News Tue, Nov 10, 2026

Lego Digital Play acquires ForthStar, adds around 30 people

Lego Digital Play has acquired Manchester studio ForthStar, the team founded by Playdemic veterans Paul Gouge and Alex Rigby, and will fold roughly 30 ForthStar staff into its roster. Gouge becomes Lego Digital Play’s head of games while Rigby remains in Manchester to lead ForthStar; neither side disclosed the purchase price. ForthStar launched in 2023 and went public in January 2024 with 14 former Golf Clash team members and $10 million in backing from Griffin Gaming Partners. Gouge and Rigby previously co-founded Playdemic, which Warner Bros bought in 2017 and which EA acquired — including Golf Clash — for $1.4 billion in 2021. Lego Digital Play itself was established at the start of 2025 as a separate company from the Lego Group and currently employs just over 100 people, primarily in London and Denmark. Lego Digital Play’s president Aaron Loeb framed mobile as the place to reach “kids of all ages in every country on the globe,” and Gouge called the acquisition a chance “to really bring Lego to the prominence that it truly deserves on mobile.” Loeb, who previously led FoxNext Games, pushed back on the idea that mobile is declining, saying “the rumours of mobile’s death have been greatly exaggerated,” and noting the studio is taking “a different approach and a different way of thinking” than past projects like Golf Clash or Marvel Strike Force. This is Lego Digital Play’s second studio buy in just over two months — it recently acquired Offroad Games, maker of Chrome Valley Customs — and the company has also bought Light Brick Studio from Kirkbi. Takeaway: Lego Digital Play gains a Manchester-based development arm and senior mobile leadership in one deal, expanding a roughly 100-person company by about 30 people and keeping the founders who built Golf Clash in place to steer Lego’s mobile push.

News Tue, Nov 10, 2026

Savvy Games Group’s Moonton acquisition cleared by China Nov 2026

China’s State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) has granted unconditional approval to Savvy Games Group’s acquisition of Moonton, the agency’s merger list shows. The notice appeared on SAMR’s register of approvals between October 26 and November 1, 2026 and was published on November 6, with the review recorded as completed on October 29. The SAMR listing names Saudi Electronic Games Holding Company, Moonton Holdings Limited and Shanghai Moonton Technology Co., Ltd. as the parties involved. PocketGamer.biz first reported the proposed sale in March 2026, when ByteDance agreed to transfer Moonton to Savvy in a deal reported at more than $6 billion. ByteDance originally acquired Moonton in 2021 for roughly $4 billion. Moonton is best known for Mobile Legends: Bang Bang and spin-offs such as Magic Chess: Go Go. The buyer sits under Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF); earlier this year PIF completed a $55 billion purchase of Electronic Arts alongside Silver Lake and Affinity Partners. Reports also say PIF and Silver Lake have held talks about acquiring Unity in a deal that could be around $25 billion. Regulatory clearance from SAMR removes a key legal hurdle: the case listing and published notice give the transaction concrete timestamps (Oct 29 review completion, Nov 6 publication) that move the sale closer to finalisation. For anyone tracking ownership of Mobile Legends, the paperwork now ties Moonton to Savvy and Saudi Electronic Games, with PIF’s recent megadeals underscoring how large strategic acquisitions are shaping the buyer’s portfolio.