Gaming
gamescom 2021: Meet indie gems by Hamburg-based devs – presented by Gamecity Hamburg
Gamecity Hamburg will present five companies and solo developers from Hamburg at the digital gamescom 2021 from August 25 to 29. The developers will show their new games at the joint Hamburg booth on the online platform Indie Arena Booth. gamescom is one of the most important events of the international games industry. In 2020, more than 2 million visitors attended the digital gamescom. The Indie Arena Booth Online will be accessible from August 25, 10 pm (CEST) at online.indiearenabooth.com and can be visited free of charge.
Hamburg presents itself as a games industry on the playable online platform Indie Arena Booth Online, which again invites visitors to discover numerous indie games at gamescom 2021 – free of charge and directly in their web browser. In addition to the Gamecity Hamburg location initiative, the Hamburg-based games companies Tiny Roar, Mooneye Studios, OneManOnMars, Klickaffen, and Radioactive Dreams will also be presenting their projects. Gamecity Hamburg enables the five studios to participate free of charge through the program “Road to gamescom 2021” to expand their networks, present their game projects to the media, influencers, and gamers, and win over future fans for their games.
Indie Arena Booth Online: A showcase for indies from around the world – innovation made in Hamburg
The Indie Arena Booth Online showcases the diversity of the indie game scene: visitors can explore the platform in their browser as avatars and discover a curated lineup of more than 120 games by independent developers from around the world at virtual booths.
The Indie Arena Booth is planned and produced by the Hamburg-based Super Crowd Entertainment, an event agency specialized in the games industry. In 2020, Super Crowd transformed the concept into a playable online platform within a few weeks – so that indie developers can present themselves to an international audience even in pandemic times. In May, Super Crowd was awarded a special prize for this at the German Computer Game Prize (Deutscher Computerspielpreis), awarded by the German Federal Ministry of Transport. For 2021, the Indie Arena Booth Online offers new features and sports a new look under the narrative theme “Summercamp of Doom”.
The five Hamburg indies at the Gamecity-Booth 2021
Tiny Roar: world-premiere for previously unannounced project „XEL”
Founded in 2015 in Hamburg, Tiny Roar will give the first glimpses of their sci-fi action-adventure XEL at gamescom 2021. XEL is currently being developed with the support of German federal games funding and publisher Assemble Entertainment. The official announcement of the game is planned for August 24, and on August 25 Tiny Roar will be featured with their game in the Gamevasion streaming program at gamescom.
Mooneye Indies present their first publishing project: „Haven Park”
Following the success of its own indie adventure game Lost Ember, Hamburg-based studio Mooneye now uses its marketing know-how to help other developers reach the right audience for their games under Mooneye’s new publishing label “Mooneye Indies”. Their first publishing project Haven Park takes the player to a lovingly animated nature and camping park. It was developed by solo dev Fabien Weibel and was released on August 5.
OneManOnMars shows “Leif’s Adventure: Netherworld Hero”
OneManOnMars is the company of experienced game developer Roman Fuhrer, who is currently developing the hand-drawn 2D adventure “Leif’s Adventure” as a solo dev. He went through Gamecity Hamburg’s Games Lift Incubator program with the project in 2020 and is preparing to release the game in early 2022.
Radioactive Dreams: first playable demo of 2D-Platformer „Turbo Shell”
In 2020, three experienced game developers from Hamburg joined forces under the name Radioactive Dreams to develop a 2D platform game with novel game mechanics. The team received prototype funding through Gamecity Hamburg for their game Turbo Shell 2020. At gamescom 2021, they will show a playable demo of their project for the first time.
Klickaffen Studio: „Unbuild”
For 10 years already, freelance motion & interactive designer Matthias Mach has been producing games under the name Klickaffen for the “most personal gaming device ever”, as he calls his favorite platform – the smartphone. At the gamescom, he presents his work to an international industry event audience for the first time and shows his mobile casual game “Unbuild”.
Gamecity Hamburg: Tailored support for the Hamburg games industry
Gamecity Hamburg is the publicly financed location initiative to support the games industry in the northern-German City State of Hamburg. In addition to programs such as “Road to gamescom 2021” that aims to represent Hamburg and the companies based in Hamburg at international industry events, Gamecity Hamburg supports the regional industry with other tailored support programs:
Through the Games Lift Incubator, up-and-coming game developers and start-up founders from Hamburg receive intensive coaching and mentoring from international industry experts in addition to financial support. Gamecity Hamburg also supports the development of games prototypes in Hamburg through its Prototype Funding program. Each year, 400,000 euros are available for games prototypes from Hamburg, of which up to 80,000 euros can be applied per project. For the first time, there will be a second round of prototype funding in 2021. From August 30, developers, teams, and SMEs based in or relocating to Hamburg can apply for funding.
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Australia
Regulating the Game 2026 Draft Program Unveiled, Spotlighting the Issues Shaping the Sector
Regulating the Game has published the draft program for its 2026 Sydney conference, outlining a comprehensive agenda of keynotes, featured addresses, panels, and expert masterclasses examining the most consequential regulatory, policy and operational issues facing the global gambling sector.
Regulating the Game 2026 will be held 9–11 March 2026 at the Sofitel Sydney Wentworth and represents the sixth edition of the conference as a forum for rigorous, cross-jurisdictional engagement on gambling regulation and sector performance and uplift.
The draft program confirms that each conference day is anchored by keynote and featured speakers, whose addresses are designed to frame and contextualise the broader program of talks, panels and masterclasses that follow. These speakers bring senior executive leadership, policy and advisory insight, and deep subject-matter expertise, helping to frame the regulatory and operating environment, its trajectory, and the lenses through which the agenda is explored.
Across the three days, the program integrates:
- Context-setting sessions that frame the regulatory and operating environment and its direction, including examinations of where gambling regulation and policy are heading, how enforcement and sanctioning approaches are evolving post-inquiry, and how governments and markets are responding to persistent black-market and grey-market pressures. These sessions establish the policy, strategic and operating lenses through which the broader agenda is explored.
- Moderated panels that interrogate regulatory assumptions and reform outcomes in practice, including discussions on harm minimisation in increasingly data-driven environments, the limits and consequences of intensified regulation, and the interaction between market design, consumer behaviour and regulatory intent.
- Expert masterclasses, including a session led by Jay Robinson focused on embedding the Responsible Gambling Officer role with purpose, authority and practical impact, and a second masterclass convened by the International Masters of Gaming Law, with final scope and focus to be confirmed. Together, these sessions are designed to support practical capability uplift and address the implementation risks that sit between policy intent and operational reality.
- Industry Spotlight sessions, introduced in 2026, comprising tightly curated 15-minute presentations from incumbent organisations. These sessions provide a platform to articulate strategic direction, investment priorities and innovation pathways, and to examine what lies ahead for the sector as regulatory expectations, technology and market structures continue to evolve.
Collectively, the agenda addresses:
- The trajectory of gambling regulation, enforcement and sanctioning frameworks
- AML/CTF reform, financial crime risk and supervisory expectations
- Safer gambling governance, harm minimisation and behavioural insight
- Black market and grey market dynamics in increasingly regulated environments
- Technology, data governance and the use of AI in regulatory and compliance systems
- Leadership, accountability and the operational reality of reform delivery
While the program is deliberately broad, particular attention has been given to curating sessions and contributors that surface topical and often unresolved issues facing the sector. The agenda is designed to frame the current environment and its direction, provoke informed debate, stimulate curiosity, and act as a catalyst for new ways of thinking, innovation bets and next practice across regulation, policy and operations.
Paul Newson, Principal at Vanguard Overwatch and Founder of Regulating the Game, said the 2026 draft program reflects a deliberate architecture:
“The program is designed to open up the problem space, not to close it down. Early sessions are intended to frame the environment honestly and rigorously, so that the discussions that follow can interrogate options, trade-offs and solutions with clarity and discipline.”
He added:
“Regulating the Game is deliberately structured to move from context to analysis to application. The draft program makes that progression clear and intentional.”
The program is supported by flagship events including Pitch!, the RTG Global Awards Gala Dinner, and an expanded Exhibition Showcase, which together complement the formal agenda and support cross-sector engagement.
The draft program reflects the core structure of the conference, with final speaker confirmations and minor refinements to be completed in the coming week.
The post Regulating the Game 2026 Draft Program Unveiled, Spotlighting the Issues Shaping the Sector appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
Adam Smart Director of Product Gaming at AppsFlyer
AppsFlyer State of Gaming Report: AI Is Flooding Mobile Gaming Marketing Channels and Raising the Cost of Standing Out
State of Gaming for Marketers 2026 reveals how AI-driven scale, global UA spend, and China-based publishers are reshaping mobile gaming competition
AppsFlyer, the Modern Marketing Cloud, today released the State of Gaming for Marketers 2026, an in-depth analysis of how AI, creative scale, and rising paid pressure reshaped mobile gaming marketing in 2025. Drawing on AppsFlyer data, the report examines how studios adapted as marketing activity expanded faster than player attention.
In 2025, AI-enabled production coincided with a sharp increase in advertising across iOS and Android. Creative output scaled rapidly across all spending tiers, with top gaming advertisers producing between 2,400 and 2,600 creative variations per quarter, up 25–30% YoY. That expansion increased pressure on paid acquisition channels. Paid install share rose 10% YoY across iOS and Android, while ad impressions increased 20%, indicating a significant rise in the number of ads competing for the same pool of players. To manage rising marketing volume and fragmentation, AI-enabled tools became a common part of daily workflows with 46% of AI assistant queries focused on reporting and performance breakdowns, reflecting the need for faster visibility as data volumes grew.
“AI has dramatically increased the speed and volume at which games and marketing assets reach the market,” says Adam Smart, Director of Product, Gaming at AppsFlyer. “The result is not a shortage of creativity, but a surplus of it. As paid activity and creative supply expand faster than player attention, marketing success depends on how effectively teams can measure, interpret, and act on an increasing volume of fragmented signals.”
Additional key insights from the State of Gaming for Marketers 2026
- Global gaming app UA spend reached $25B in 2025. Midcore UA spend increased 28% YoY on iOS, while Android spend remained largely flat.
● China-headquartered publishers increased their share of global gaming UA spend. Their share grew by 26% YoY in the UK, and 22% globally, with gains strongest on Android.
● iOS paid installs reached record highs. Share in the UK rose across Casino (+13%), Hypercasual (+10%), and Midcore (+30%).
● iOS advertisers expanded media mix to find incremental scale. iOS gaming advertisers increased the number of media sources they used by up to 15% YoY, reflecting growing fragmentation and the need to diversify beyond core channels.
● AI is still used primarily to manage marketing scale, not strategy. With 46% of AI assistant queries focused on reporting and performance breakdowns, teams are using AI to keep pace with rising data volumes rather than replace decision-making, but some genres are already employing more complex tasks and asks.
Methodology
AppsFlyer’s State of Gaming for Marketers 2026 is based on anonymized, aggregated data from 9.6 thousand gaming apps worldwide, analyzing 24.8 billion total installs, including 14.1 billion paid installs, alongside ad spend, creative production, monetization, AI-assisted workflows, and media source usage across iOS and Android during 2025.
The full report is available at: appsflyer.com/resources/reports/gaming-marketers/
The post AppsFlyer State of Gaming Report: AI Is Flooding Mobile Gaming Marketing Channels and Raising the Cost of Standing Out appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.
Arena Racing Company
Arena Racing Company awarded United Arab Emirates Gaming-Related Vendor License
Arena Racing Company (ARC) has been granted a Gaming-Related Vendor license from the United Arab Emirates’ General Commercial Gaming Authority (GCGRA), an independent entity of the UAE Federal Government with exclusive jurisdiction to regulate, license, and supervise all commercial gaming activities.
The license, operational with immediate effect, affords ARC the opportunity to provide its products and services to licensed operators in the region. Notably, the Racing1 Markets service, an all-in-one horse and greyhound racing solution delivered in conjunction with Racing1 alliance media rights partners at 1/ST CONTENT, Racecourse Media Group (RMG), and Tabcorp, alongside technical partner Pythia Sports. ARC has been added to the list of licensed vendors as per the GCGRA website.
Jack Whitaker, Commercial Manager at ARC, said: “Obtaining this license is a great achievement for ARC and its Racing1 partners. The emerging regulated UAE market is incredibly exciting, and we look forward to showcasing our innovative products and services in the region.”
The post Arena Racing Company awarded United Arab Emirates Gaming-Related Vendor License appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry Newsroom.
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