TWIG #387: LiftOff IPO, Xbox pulls out the bangers, and The Simpsons take over Monopoly GO!

TWIG #387: LiftOff IPO, Xbox pulls out the bangers, and The Simpsons take over Monopoly GO!

Nintendo's stock is getting hammered without a new Mario, Monopoly GO is going all-in on The Simpsons, and Liftoff is back on the public markets. Meanwhile, Xbox finally seems to be doing what it should have done years ago.In this episode, we break down:● Liftoff's IPO and the AppLovin challenge● Monopoly GO's Simpsons mega-event● How Scopely uses IP for reactivation● Apple's crackdown on low-quality apps● Xbox's biggest Summer Showcase in years● Why Xbox is bringing exclusives back● Fable, Gears, Persona 6, and Minecraft Dungeons 2● Nintendo Direct's biggest announcements● The growing mystery of missing Mario● Why Nintendo investors are getting nervous● Paramount's new gaming division● TMNT, Star Trek, Avatar, and Marvel projects● Why Hollywood struggles to make games● The missing mobile strategy at Paramount● Apple IDFA rumors and what they mean for UA● The future of AppLovin, Meta, and Google adsCHAPTERS:01:36 Minecraft Summer Parenting03:22 Quick Correction Bond Sales05:18 Liftoff IPO Breakdown06:41 UA Ecosystem and AppLovin08:37 Private Equity Red Flags10:41 Simpsons Takes Monopoly Go11:53 Why the Crossover Works15:20 UA Reactivation and Celebs19:12 Apple’s App Store Purge21:54 Xbox Showcase and Strategy25:57 Xbox Margin Unlock26:38 Platform Strategy Risks27:29 Minecraft Sales Reality28:30 Nintendo Direct Highlights30:42 Where Is 3D Mario36:12 Paramount Games Revealed38:17 Execution Over Press41:48 Mobile Missing Piece43:19 IDFA Rumor Rant46:20 If IDFA Returned48:10 Rumor Season Noise50:24 Closing The Episode

$500M in 2 Years: Here's How Grand Games Did It!

Two mobile games with a $500M annual run rate in just two years, with a fivefold revenue increase in the last 12 months alone. If you're building in mobile gaming or just want to understand what a genuine rocket ship looks like from the inside, this one's worth your time.Grand Games' founder Batuhan Çelebi built one of the fastest-growing mobile game studios in history. In this episode, Batuhan breaks down exactly how Grand Games did it: the multi-studio structure that keeps teams small and ownership real, the game greenlight process that filters out imitation before it starts, and why Turkish mobile gaming talent is pound-for-pound best in the world. We also get into the honest stuff. The capability gaps they're still closing, what happens if growth flattens, and brutal seasons of raising his first round.

The ESA's Essential Facts: Free Player Data Most Companies Pay For

Two thirds of Americans now play video games every week. That is more than 212 million people, the average player is 37, and among Boomers, more women play than men. These numbers come from the ESA's 2026 Essential Facts report, the kind of audience and demographic data most companies pay a lot of money for, free to anyone. Jen Donahoe sits down with Stanley Pierre-Louis, President and CEO of the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), the group that has represented the U.S. video game industry since 1994. He is a media and IP lawyer who leads the organization that defends games in Washington, runs the ESRB rating system, and makes the industry's case to lawmakers and parents. In this episode: * Why "gamer" means something different than it used to * The older and female players reshaping the audience * What a $20 monthly median spend says about gaming's value * How the ESA fights online safety and loot box legislation * Inside iicon, the ESA's new event connecting games to the wider economy * How to use this free data in your next project, especially for marketers Learn more about the ESA and find the report at The ESA website https://www.theesa.com/ [https://www.theesa.com/]

TWIG #386: CoD MW4 Revealed, Sony's State of Play, Bungie's End and 007 First Light

Call of Duty is getting back to basics, Sony is pulling the plug on PC ports, and Bungie is laying off staff after Destiny 2's final update. Meanwhile, Summer Game Fest is here, and everyone has something to announce. In this episode, we break down: ●  Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4, kill blocks, DMZ is back, no last-gen SKUs ●  Why dropping PS4 and Xbox One could hurt units but help revenue ●  GTA 6 pricing debate, is $70 leaving money on the table? ●  Sony State of Play, Wolverine, God of War's female lead, and first-party sales in freefall ●  Why Sony killed PlayStation games on PC and whether that math makes sense ●  Xbox's content problem and why Matthew Ball won't fix it ●  Summer Game Fest and the new platform are trying to make marketing spend attributable ●  Niko Partners Asia and MENA report; 13 markets, $103B by 2030 ●  Why Western publishers still can't crack Asia ●  Female gamers now make up nearly half the market in regions that were 80% male five years ago ●  007 First Light, 1.5M units at launch, but does it pencil at $200M dev spend? ●  Bungie layoffs, end of Destiny 2, and what happens to the studio next ●  Forza 6 at 5M units and why the racing genre is basically spoken for CHAPTERS: 01:52 Banter 02:55 Roundtables And Updates 06:01 Modern Warfare 4 Reveal 09:11 Dropping Old Gen Support 11:56 GTA Pricing Side Debate 14:16 Branding And Korea Setting 16:25 State Of Play Highlights 18:18 Sony Sales Charts Breakdown 19:04 PC Ports And Platform Math 26:43 Xbox Strategy Argument 30:03 Microsoft Content Crisis 30:55 Summer Game Fest Schedule 31:46 Player.gg Marketing Hub 35:49 Niko Asia MENA Report 38:02 D2C Mini Games AI 40:56 China Growth Debate 43:28 Why West Fails Asia 47:58 Racing Market Locked 50:44 Bond Game Economics 55:11 Bungie Layoffs Fallout

Match Masters' Influencer Marketing Playbook: 8 Years of Always-On Growth

Most studios still treat influencer marketing as an experiment. Match Masters, a top 150 grossing game globally, has run it as a permanent growth pillar for 8 years. Jen Donahoe sits down with Candivore's Aviv Vidro and consultant Marion Balinoff to break down the playbook behind one of mobile gaming's most disciplined influencer programs. Studios that treat influencer as a permanent pillar see compounding returns. The ones that test once and cut the channel watch their installs decline 2.7x faster. Aviv walks through Candivore's 8 year always on model, the blitz approach where 20 creators go live on the same day, and the product marketing funnel his three person team built around creators. Dedicated welcome pop ups, skill based leaderboard giveaways with tangible prizes, and retargeting mechanics that drive 6x higher in app purchases from returning players. Marion breaks down why the standard 24 hour click window is broken for influencer content, why 7 days is the floor, and why day 365 installs run 75% higher than day 30. The two also tackle vertical testing (true crime crushed it for Match Masters with female audiences aged 30 to 55, tech reviewers flopped), country penetration strategy, why TikTok still doesn't work for performance, and where influencer marketing ends and UGC begins. If you've ever been told influencer marketing doesn't work after a single test campaign, send this episode to your CMO.