A robust backend infrastructure is the engine that powers all top-grossing mobile games. It enables engaging gameplay experiences and handles essential functions such as user authentication, multiplayer capabilities, LiveOps, leaderboards, cloud storage, and much more. However, there are numerous mobile game backend providers (also called backend-as-a-service) in the market. By the end of this article, you’ll have an understanding of who they are, and how they differ from each other. Should you build or buy your backend tech? Most of the companies you see in the top-grossing gaming charts use bespoke backend technology that they’ve built in-house. This allows for customization and total control of the backend tech stack, but it requires hiring a team of engineers – a time-intensive and costly process. The vast majority of game developers, however, do not have the time, human resources, or money to...

You need to wear a lot of different hats when you’re making a game – especially if you’re doing it solo. One day, you’re a foley artist. Next, you’re a marketer. Even as a programmer or designer, it’s useful to understand how these elements come together, so you can make sure everything ties into your theme. To help you along the way, we gathered all the free resources you can use to learn about the different areas of game development. Before you use the resources, we encourage you to make sure the assets are royalty-free. Game design resources Game design is all about the choices you make. The rules and mechanics that bring your idea to life. From small decisions, like whether to use coyote time in your platformer, to big decisions, like the main theme of the game. Game...

Developing a version of your game for PC or console can help boost sales and reach more players. But is it right for your game?

When building a multiplayer game, your players are going to need a way to find each other. That's where a matchmaker comes in. But what is a matchmaker? How do they work? And is there any difference when it comes to mobile?

What exactly should you be focusing on this year? What are the trends that will really impact your development? We’ve dug through the most popular trends and brought together the topics you should keep an eye on in 2024. 1. Learn about AI and Machine Learning With the release of Google’s Gemini, we’re seeing AI continue to explode. It won’t be long before it’s a common tool that we all use day to day. Getting to grips with how it works is going to be essential, particularly in gaming. At the same time, we’re seeing hyper-casual games shift to richer and deeper experiences – becoming hybrid-casual. In fact, the number of hyper-casual games dropped by 18%, while hybrid-casual grew by 13%, according to Sensor Tower. By their nature, hybrid-casual games have a longer development cycle than hyper-casual games. Using AI...

As we enter the new year, the anticipation is high for the unfolding trends that are about to redefine how we create and play games—from AI seamlessly crafting entire game worlds to the ongoing rise of mobile gaming popularity, where developers refine strategies to extend engagement and enhance monetization, alongside their focus on diversity and sustainability. AI keeps revolutionizing development dynamics Traditionally, creating expansive open-world games with stunning graphics required large teams and significant time investments. But lately, AI is becoming a leader in a new era where even smaller studios and indie developers gain access to tools enabling the next generation of artwork. That includes the creation of entire worlds through procedural techniques, dynamic dialogue generation, or even players’ live avatar integration within the game. These AI technologies are currently in their early stages, but the trajectory is clear...

Protecting yourself isn’t necessarily hard. Not if you’re aware of the techniques hackers use. So, with data breaches becoming increasingly common in the news, we thought we’d give a little advice about how to protect yourself.

While you can’t (yet) plug in a prompt and have it develop a fully functional mobile game, you can use AI to help you come up with ideas and speed up your process. So here are a few ways you can use AI when developing your prototypes.

Adapting your game to mobile is no walk in the park. Yoru controls are different, you have a much smaller screen size, and you're much more limited with the hardware. And yet, Psyonix nailed this perfectly. Here’s what we can learn from them.

Out of all the many mobile industry benchmarks, it’s important to keep player retention rates top of mind. Retention allows marketers to understand when, and perhaps why, a user leaves their game — which gives you the ability to slow the rate down and keep your users around. In this article, we’ll cover the basics of mobile game retention rates and some of the secrets game marketing pros deploy to reduce churn, as well as look at how you can learn from your retention metrics. What’s The Point of Retention Rate? Retention rates are a key indicator of game growth and its health. Not only does a game with better retention likely mean players enjoy using it, but good retention also means it can generate revenue quickly. In the meantime, low retention means rapid user churn, lower user reviews, and...

Working with social media influencers can open up an ocean of new players for your games. But who are the best influencers to work with? How do you go about finding them? And how can you get in touch with them?

You want your players to be engaged with your game, but you don’t want to accidentally break the trust you’ve built up. When developers overpromise and don’t deliver, it can damage their relationship with their audience. Here are our top tips for building hype safely.