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AI Coding

AI has the potential to make developers more efficient at nearly every task, from code generation, review, optimization, debugging, and even documentation writing. Studios can start using AI to review and manage code immediately, reducing tedious work and identifying issues developers may miss. However, AI can generate vulnerable or unworkable code, and copyright rules around AI-generated code are still unclear. Due to these concerns, AI-generated code should always be reviewed by a human developer, and studios may want to proceed with caution when using AI-generated code in their final products.

SciPlay Marketing

Quick Hits Slots’ Jerry O’Connell Campaign Quick Hit Slots ran a commercial campaign featuring actor Jerry O’Connell on major networks, cable, and streaming services in early 2023. The campaign shows O’Connell walking through the Vegas strip as he touts the app’s authentic Vegas experience and a 6M coin welcome bonus for new players (image). Two […]

Rovio’s Removal of Paid Angry Birds

To appeal to fans of the original Angry Birds, which was delisted in 2019, Rovio released a remake called Rovio Classics: Angry Birds in March 2022. Rovio Classics: Angry Birds cost $0.99 and didn’t include any IAPs. However, after Rovio determined that this paid app was pulling downloads away from Rovio’s other Angry Birds apps, the company renamed it to Red’s First Flight on iOS and delisted it on Android in February 2023.

Honkai: Star Rail Teardown

Honkai: Star Rail is a turn-based RPG with gacha mechanics released on PC and mobile by HoYoverse on April 26, 2023. The mobile app brought in more than 15M downloads and over $132M in revenue worldwide within its first month. Honkai: Star Rail capitalizes on Genshin Impact’s success while offering a fundamentally different experience that targets mobile players. As a spiritual successor to Honkai 3rd Impact and the incredibly popular Genshin Impact, Honkai: Star Rail includes a few reimagined recurring characters but otherwise exists in a completely new universe with a sci-fi-themed storyline.

Merge Mansion’s Viral Ad Campaigns

Merge Mansion seized on the success of a series of animated ads by creating a big-budget live-action campaign starring the famous actress Kathy Bates. These ads went viral by embracing an absurd premise that was popular with fans, helping to boost downloads by 180K per month for over six months. In anticipation of a major […]

Web Stores After Epic v. Apple

Over the past year, external payment systems have become significantly more common. Thanks to ongoing regulatory changes and waning opposition from Google, it’s become easier for developers to implement these systems. As a result, major developers like Scopely and Supercell have launched a large number of new web stores, expanded existing stores, and developed new strategies for driving traffic to them.

AI Art in App Development

AI art generators like DALL-E, Midjourney, and Stable Diffusion are more useful for quickly iterating through concepts than creating final products. Even so, AI art is already being used to speed up development, reduce costs, and open up new possibilities for user customization.

Analyzing Four Years of Celebrity Partnerships in Candy Crush Saga

Candy Crush Saga has used celebrity partnerships for all of its annual Candy Crush All-Stars tournaments and its 10 year anniversary celebration. The tournament’s first iteration in 2020, which was only available in the UK, partnered with British radio personality Roman Kemp as well as a supporting cast of well-known British celebrities. The 2021 version was only available in the United States and partnered with reality TV star Khloé Kardashian with support from rapper Doja Cat and former NFL player Rob Gronkowski. In 2022, Candy Crush Saga partnered with Meghan Trainor for their 10 year anniversary celebration. And the most recent tournament in 2023 partnered with hip-hop artist Saweetie and celebrity jewelry company Icebox.