​​Hong Kong-based gaming firm Animoca Brands announced Tuesday its official expansion into the Middle East, with a presence in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, to meet the growing demands of Web3 organizations moving into the region. The company has also appointed Omar Elassar as managing director for the Middle East and head of global strategic partnerships. Omar will oversee the company’s Middle East growth and operations, and will play a key role in advancing Animoca Brands’...

For years, mobile gamers have poured hours into their favorite titles—grinding, ranking up, collecting skins—only to walk away with nothing but screen time. Meanwhile, a wave of gaming finance (GameFi) projects promised rewards but delivered clunky gameplay, complex wallets, or worse—low-quality games that weren’t even fun or never launched at all. CryptoZoo, Blockverse, and Ubisoft’s Champions Tactics are just a few examples of GameFi projects that failed to...

Malaysia is targeting stronger global stage presence with fresh funding and incentive programs for games, animation and metaverse. The Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) said in a statement on last Friday that with the country’s rapidly maturing digital creative industry — spanning animations, films and video games — emerging as a key driver of economic growth, the agency has announced a series of incentive programs aimed at advancing industry development and...

Mobile gaming is a lucrative industry, projected to reach $270 billion by 2032. Surpassing the combined value of the video and music industries, mobile gaming’s growth is moving full steam ahead. Its ubiquity has transformed how we play and, crucially, how we pay. Forget one-time purchases; gamers today transact frequently in a free-to-play world. Yes, you heard it right – gamers are spending money. They’re investing in their experiences, and in return, they demand choice,...

Hoopi Holdings Pte Ltd, a collectibles and trading cards platform based in Malaysia with Indonesia presence, has successfully secured its maiden institutional funding round led by Creative Gorilla Capital (CGC), a Jakarta-based venture capital firm that invests in early-stage consumer-facing businesses. CGC said in a statement on Wednesday that the investment has enabled Hoopi to expand its platform’s user ecosystem and core services, facilitating strategic growth across the Southeast...

Malaysian Islamic digital bank AEON Bank (M) Berhad and electronic sports governing body Malaysia Esports Federation (MESF) have teamed up to nurture E-Sports talents among local youth. The duo said in a statement on last Friday that they have recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU), alongside two other strategic partners—Takaful Malaysia (Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Am Berhad) and Retromania. The key scope of the MoU is to further develop and empower the esports industry,...

Even top-tier studios are embracing third-party engines like Unreal Engine 5 to address the evolving demands of modern game development. In recent years, the gaming industry has witnessed a significant shift: AAA game developers are increasingly partnering with third-party commercial engines. At the 2024 Game Awards (TGA), 2K Games and its developer Hangar 13 announced they would abandon their proprietary Fusion Engine in favor of Unreal Engine 5 for the latest Mafia...

Gaming content creators reclaim the spotlight in Bilibili’s 2024 UP100 list. On January 3, Bilibili unveiled its latest UP100 list, recognizing the platform’s top 100 creators for 2024. This marks the seventh consecutive year of the annual selection process, which began in 2018. As in the previous two years, Bilibili evaluated creators based on three key criteria: professionalism, influence, and innovation. The announcement stirred mixed reactions among users. Discussions...