Hyper-Casual Trend Digest #16
Welcome to a new episode of Trend Digest with a bunch of game dev news and exciting projects!
HYPER NEWS đź—ž
đź”— Apple initially confirms and then backs out of its decision to stop iPhone web apps in the EU intentionally
At the beginning of February with the release of iOS 17.4 beta, PWAs were demoted to website shortcuts, losing functionality such as dedicated windowing, notifications, and long-term local storage. In the end, Apple has reversed its decision to block web apps (PWAs) on iPhones in the EU and will reinstate functionality in the upcoming iOS 17.4 release.
The European Games Developer Federation (EGDF) expresses disappointment in Apple’s new EU iOS and App Store policies, calling for robust enforcement of the Digital Markets Act (DMA). Apple announced new policies to comply with the DMA, including reducing the App Store revenue share from 30% to 17%, adding a 3% fee on Apple Pay transactions, and implementing a new €0.50 fee for downloads over one million installs annually.
Hendrik Lesser, president of the European Games Developer Federation, urges the European game industry to unite and face challenges head-on. He acknowledges struggles such as market saturation, failed projects, and dwindling funding opportunities but emphasizes the importance of producing the best work possible.
đź”— AppLovin shines in Q4 2023 with stellar financial results
AppLovin reports strong financial results for Q4 2023, with revenue reaching $953 million, a 36% year-over-year increase, and net income of $172 million, resulting in an 18% net margin. The company’s strong performance in the mobile app ecosystem has led to a notable trajectory in its share price, contrasting with Unity’s downward trend after the failed acquisition attempt by AppLovin.
đź”— Scotland and Indonesia have new strategies for the game industry
The Scottish Government supports the creation of a national games strategy. The games market contributes over ÂŁ188.5 million annually to the Scottish economy, demonstrating significant commercial and transformative potential. At the same time The Indonesian government plans to introduce a new legal requirement for game publishers to set up limited liability companies in Indonesia to continue operating in the region. This requirement would affect both local and foreign entities, with games from non-compliant publishers facing the threat of being blocked.
And some fresh stats for you đź‘€ :
- Japan generates 50% of worldwide geolocation game spending
- Chinese firms lead as global mobile gaming market hits $85.76 billion
- Xsolla’s State of Play industry report projects an annual rate of 8.7% between 2024 and 2027
- Mobile game downloads fell for the first time ever in 2023 to 88 billion, according to the State of Mobile Gaming report by data.ia
- Quantum’s 2024 Gaming Industry report says that gaming M&As down 43% year-on-year while deal value falls 69%
HYPER TRENDS 📱
Time for movies and TV series
As always, when February rolls around, everyone’s eyes are glued to the Oscars! This year’s awards went down on Sunday, March 10th. Take a peek at the video below for a rapid rundown of all the big winners.
But the real kicker is that the best film of March won’t even compete in the Oscars until next year. “Dune: Part 2” smashed expectations in its first week at the US box office, doubling last year’s results with a whopping $81.5 million compared to $41 million. And it’s not just about the numbers – the movie also earned the status of “career-best” for director Denis Villeneuve and even for the super-popular actor TimothĂ©e Chalamet, who played the lead role.
The underdog of March is the “ShĹŤgun” series, which didn’t even come close to having the massive marketing budget of other projects this month. But it still managed to grab a vast audience thanks to its perfect storytelling and direction. Critics say this story set in 17th century Japan reaches the storytelling levels of Game of Thrones.
On March 7 Netflix presented new Guy Ritchie series The Gentlmen, which expands world of successful The Gentlemen movie (2019) with new cast and brand new plot.
This month’s biggest announcement for kids is “Kung Fu Panda 4.” The new sequel to the franchise promises to be a successful continuation of the classic story, where, once again, Po’s team will battle against evil forces.
Trends on YouTube, TikTok, Imgur, etc.
In a simple video, a girl showcases her strawberry, which quickly goes viral with just one idea – TikTok users decided to surpass the previous number one most-liked video by Bella Porch. And they will achieve their goal. Bella’s video has 64.8M likes, while the chocolate and strawberry video already reached 47.7M likes. Naturally, TikTok users all over started collaborating and creating sketches about this.
pr4yforgabs | chillestcat | usimmango
The following meme in the queue would be everything about Dune 2. This movie made so much money and so much noise that it could be impossible for it not to create many different memes: for example, special Dune popcorn buckets, Stilgar’s character reaction to anything, or just the iconic looks of cast members on the red carpet.
cine.saint | dobrywteklocki | dunemovie
One more thing is Gen Z nostalgia for the Plants vs. Zombies game. Do you remember it?
jossaintt | liucongchenlv | tuhaylu
New TikTok effects
Many new game-format masks have appeared on TikTok. Here are some examples below.
jay_cup15 | ethancaf | whoknowspraise
Additionally, one very popular CapCut trend template helps people find their reflection in pop culture memes.
plantillastrend | plantillas_ramirezvcaro | plantillas_ramirezvcaro
And two masks that use AI to turn users’ photos into Van Gogh paintings or change their faces to that of celebrities.
griss1003 | abstaxks161 | carlywarly1983
oscaramau3 | mikaelaqistina | danaronsm
Trend-based projects
What about new projects that use some trends to build a game? We’ve found some!
Ararat Games | Playspare | ABI Games Studio
FOOD FOR THOUGHT 🤔
In this month’s “Food”, we’re announcing Part 2 of our upcoming article titled “Architecture Programming Design,” written in collaboration with the talented Unity Developer Vladislav Batyshchikov. The second part will be out in several days, but if you’re interested in coding, you can dive into the First part, which is available via the link.
