As 2025 comes to a close, it’s been a surprisingly eventful year for mobile gaming. It feels like just yesterday I was compiling last year’s review – researching, writing, and getting everything ready for a wrap-up. Time really does fly by!
Okay, so 2025 is wrapping up, and wow, what a year for mobile gaming! Now that things have calmed down a bit, I’ve been thinking about all the awesome games that came out and how much things changed with different studios and platforms. It was a really exciting year, and honestly, only mobile gaming could deliver that kind of energy. So, I wanted to share my take on everything – here’s my GamingonPhone’s Mobile Games Year in Review for 2025!
2025 was a Year of Heavy Hitters and Innovation
2025 built on the success of 2024 with an even stronger year for game releases. The year started quickly, with significant new games and updates across all types of genres. Popular franchises, social games where players collaborate to survive, and role-playing games were particularly prominent, and casual games continued to be incredibly popular with mobile gamers.
Several new titles launched globally with immediate success, particularly within established franchises. Notable early releases included DC: Dark Legion, which brought the expansive DC universe to screens, and DC Worlds Collide.
The Game of Thrones franchise recently launched two new games. Game of Thrones: Kingsroad is a detailed kingdom-building game with the political intrigue fans expect. Following that, Game of Thrones: Dragonfire offered a different experience, focusing on 4X strategy gameplay.
Likewise, MARVEL Mystic Mayhem broadened the range of Marvel mobile games, offering a fun and unpredictable spellcasting experience instead of the typical hero-versus-hero combat. These two games demonstrated that licensed mobile games could still be innovative and successful.
Players who enjoy tactical shooters were particularly excited about Delta Force, which was a highly anticipated release that finally became available. For fans of survival games, Once Human offered a spooky and enjoyable experience.
Several popular mobile games emerged recently. My Talking Tom Friends 2 quickly became a hit, attracting both children and adults with its charming world. Archero 2 also proved to be a successful follow-up to the original game. Umamusume: Pretty Derby offered a delightful sports simulation experience and earned numerous awards.
Several great games came out this year that you could buy, including popular franchises like Prince of Persia: Lost Crown, GRID: Legends, TABS Pocket Edition, Crashlands 2, Hitman: Absolution, and Football Manager 26 Mobile. We also saw the return of WWE to mobile gaming with WWE 2K25: Netflix Edition.
Several other great paid games were available, including the visually stunning Subnautica, which was a particular highlight. Playdigious had a fantastic year, releasing excellent premium titles like Chants of Sennaar, TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge, and Besiege, culminating in the recent release of Planet of Lana.
Although big-budget game releases grabbed most of the attention in 2025, the year was really marked by innovation. Smaller teams and independent studios took risks and created unique experiences, especially for mobile platforms, leading to some of the most exciting new ideas we’ve seen, and paving the way for even more creativity in the future.
I’ve been thinking about a bunch of games lately. There’s
A highly-rated indie game originally for computers recently launched on mobile devices. Many considered the $25 price tag steep for a mobile game, but it quickly became clear the game was worth the cost. The experience feels fully realized and plays exceptionally well on smaller screens.
Generally, games were still pretty good this year, though there’s definitely room for improvement. We didn’t see many strong racing games, and action titles weren’t as common as usual. Despite that, some high-quality games really stood out and made it an interesting year.
A Year full of Controversies
Let’s be honest, 2025 wasn’t tame. At all.
Apple faced several challenges this year. Ongoing pressure from the Digital Markets Act, disagreements over developer fees, and new rules for app stores created difficulties in Europe and Japan.
Apple and Meta each face fines of up to $800 million due to a new European Union law called the Digital Markets Act. This law is a significant step towards lessening Apple’s dominance over how apps are distributed. Adding to this pressure, Brazil has instructed Apple to permit users to install apps from sources other than its official App Store – a practice known as sideloading. Meanwhile, Apple and Epic Games are locked in another dispute, leading to the temporary removal of the popular game Fortnite from iPhones in the US before it was restored.
In several parts of the world, governments began to directly regulate games. Early in the year, the United States blocked certain games from MOONTON and Nuverse – including MLBB and Marvel Snap – due to national security worries related to their connection with ByteDance.
We’ve seen examples like Russia blocking Roblox, citing concerns about extremist material and LGBTQ+ content, and Hong Kong banning the game Reversed Front: Bonfire, claiming it encouraged armed rebellion. These events show how global political conflicts are starting to affect even mobile gaming.
A recent legal dispute involved the game Light of Motiram. Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) sued Tencent Games, claiming its new survival game was too similar to the Horizon series. The case concluded in mid-December with Light of Motiram being removed from sale and a private agreement reached between the two companies.
Problems weren’t limited to Apple; many game developers ran into trouble too. Some faced criticism for how they tried to make money from their games, while others struggled with disagreements with players, flawed test versions, or simply poor communication.
Concerns about fair play in gaming emerged early in the year when the US Federal Trade Commission penalized HoYoverse with a $20 million fine due to how Genshin Impact handled in-game purchases. Similar issues arose with MU Archangel, where publisher Webzen was fined by South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission for not clearly displaying the odds of receiving certain items.
These events highlighted a growing problem in the gaming industry. A recent survey in Japan found that about 20% of young gamers are struggling financially because of how much they spend on “gacha” games, sparking renewed discussion about how to protect players in games that are constantly updated with new content.
Platforms, Power, and the Battle for Distribution
Looking back at 2025, the biggest thing I noticed was how the big platforms started losing their grip. Apple was still a major player, but even they started showing some weaknesses – things were definitely starting to change.
Apple recently revealed plans for a special Apple Games app and improved gaming within Safari, suggesting a change in how they approach games. Rather than fighting the trend, Apple seems to be focusing on better organizing games within its devices. This shift became clearer when Amazon announced it was closing its Android Appstore after ten years of trying to compete with Google Play.
Epic Games expanded its mobile presence by offering free games on its mobile app, similar to what they’ve done successfully on PC. At the same time, Google made it possible to play many Android games on PCs through the Google Play Games app, making the distinction between mobile and PC gaming even less clear.
Microsoft has improved the Xbox mobile app by adding a fully functional Store, allowing users to browse and save games for later. While seemingly small, this suggests Microsoft is serious about expanding into mobile gaming. Elsewhere, Xiaomi’s WinPlay demonstrated the potential of playing Windows games on Android tablets, pointing towards a future where versatile hardware could be a key advantage.
The magic that is Mobile Gaming Business
This year featured several significant deals that marked a turning point for the future.
The gaming industry was stunned when Electronic Arts was taken private in a massive $55 billion deal, dramatically changing one of its biggest companies. This quickly led to questions about EA’s plans for mobile gaming, especially considering their inconsistent success in that area over the years.
The news got even more significant when Netflix announced it was buying Warner Bros. for $82.7 billion. This deal dramatically changed how people viewed Netflix Games, suggesting the company was aiming to become a major player in the broader entertainment world. Currently, Netflix is competing with Paramount Studios in a bidding process for another acquisition.
Several other significant deals took place recently. Niantic agreed to sell its games division to Scopely for $3.5 billion, and KRAFTON gained controlling ownership of Nautilus Mobile with a $14 million investment. Tencent also remained an influential player, and their investment in Ubisoft has led to further conversations about the role mobile gaming will play in Ubisoft’s plans.
ByteDance didn’t always sell off entire studios. Instead, it transferred the publishing rights for its mobile games – Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, Mobile Legends: Adventure, and Marvel Snap – to Skystone. This allowed ByteDance to adjust its presence in the US market without actually selling these games. Separately, CD Projekt Red teamed up with Scopely to bring one of its game franchises to mobile platforms.
Small screen games bidding goodbyes
Each year, we compile a list of games that have shut down, and this year was no different. Unfortunately, mobile games are constantly disappearing, and this year’s list included both established titles that had been around for a long time and newer games that were just starting to gain popularity before they were discontinued.
This year saw several popular games disappear. Asphalt Nitro was removed from stores by Gameloft after ten years. King’s Raid also ended its nearly decade-long run, and Guitar Girl concluded its five-year story. The Tale of Food closed down after gaining a dedicated fanbase, and rhythm games like Beatstar and Country Star have announced they will soon be unavailable.
It’s been rough seeing some games shut down recently! I was really into Eversoul, Black Beacon, and Atelier Resleriana – they all got pretty popular, but sadly only lasted about a year or so. And Soul Tide just disappeared because of licensing issues, which is such a bummer.
Several mobile games based on popular anime series have recently stopped operating, even though they had dedicated player bases. These include Black Clover M: Rise of the Wizard King, DanMachi BATTLE CHRONICLE, Tower of God: Great Journey, Gran Saga, My Hero Academia: The Strongest, and Re:ZERO – Witch’s re:surrection.
Games based on popular franchises like Tokyo Revengers: Last Mission, Digimon: Source Code, and Ride Kamens haven’t been very successful, and some weren’t even released worldwide before development stopped. Considering how well-known the original series are, these games had potential, but developers didn’t quite manage to capture it.
Games designed to be played online with others, or those constantly updated with new content, also experienced closures. Zynga’s Star Wars: Hunters announced it would shut down later in the year, and TRIBE NINE lost steam quickly, only three months after it launched. Tarisland, a game from Tencent Games that was hoped to become a major long-running online role-playing game, closed down less than a year after its release.
Even popular games weren’t safe. Blizzard’s Warcraft Rumble stopped receiving major updates, and Activision’s COD Warzone Mobile was considered a failure, leading to its removal from app stores, though limited online support continued.
Several popular mobile games recently announced they’re closing down. Electronic Arts’ The Sims Mobile is ending after seven years, and Pokémon Masters EX is shutting down in parts of Southeast Asia. Additionally, Squad Busters, a new game from Supercell, will also be discontinued despite a promising start.
Electronic Arts recently surprised many by announcing the end of support for Real Racing 3, a popular racing game that’s been around for 12 years. This news is especially disappointing given that it’s already been a slow year for new racing titles, and losing a well-regarded game like this is a significant loss for fans.
Square Enix faced challenges this year, discontinuing the mobile game Kingdom Hearts Missing-Link after a lengthy development process. They also shut down two Final Fantasy mobile games, War of the Visions: Final Fantasy Brave Exvius and FINAL FANTASY BRAVE EXVIUS, in Japan.
Another year of job cuts
Layoffs and company changes continued throughout the industry, and it was difficult to see. Many talented community managers, developers, and artists spoke about unexpectedly losing their jobs, highlighting the instability that often exists behind the scenes in this field.
Big companies such as Electronic Arts, Microsoft, Ubisoft, Square Enix, Unity, and Netflix Games all had to make tough choices recently. Unfortunately, many smaller and independent game studios were either reduced in size or closed down altogether.
The impact was deeply felt within the game studios themselves. Well-known teams like Turn 10 Studios and Crytek had to scale back important projects, and some, including Romero Games, Phoenix Labs, Midnight Society, Studio Fizbin, and Mountaintop, even had their creative plans completely cancelled.
Often, game studios close down not because their games were bad, but because the companies funding them pulled out or decided to focus on other projects. This meant games that developers had worked on for years were suddenly cancelled, and the teams had little to demonstrate for all their hard work.
Companies focused on mobile games and ongoing live services also faced cuts. King, Playtika, Moon Active, Netmarble’s divisions, and Machine Zone all reduced the size of their development teams as the gaming market slowed down and it became more expensive to attract new players.
Even popular games weren’t safe if they didn’t support the company’s long-term plans. The gaming industry as a whole experienced significant job losses, continuing a pattern from the previous year.
2026 is a new start with better ideas
As 2025 ends, it doesn’t feel like a final goodbye, but rather a fresh start. I often think of how only the year changes, while everything else stays the same. However, as we move into 2026, I have a feeling positive changes are on the horizon.
Even though job cuts are happening, there’s a bit of positive news. A recent report showed that layoffs in 2025 were less severe than in 2024. While it’s certainly not good news when people lose their jobs, it suggests things might be stabilizing, and hopefully, 2026 will see further improvement.
I’m most excited about the future of innovation. In the last year, developers really pushed boundaries, trying new things. We saw significant progress in browser gaming, largely due to Apple, closer integration between mobile and computer platforms, and a growing preference for apps that don’t require installation.
Apple’s move to allow games to take over the entire screen on browsers, Google bringing Android games to computers, and platforms like Reddit trying out games within their apps all suggest that soon, how we play games will be just as important as what games we play.
Technology, particularly AI, is becoming increasingly important in the industry. While there are worries about AI replacing jobs, what’s really fascinating is how companies are figuring out when and how to use these tools effectively – and when not to.
I also recall being thrilled to see high-quality AAA games becoming available on mobile devices. The platform has improved dramatically recently, and several new releases demonstrate this progress. We’re seeing record-breaking performance scores in benchmarks like Antutu with each new top-of-the-line phone, and even more affordable mid-range phones are now powerful enough to handle demanding games.
Game engines are getting more powerful and efficient, which is subtly making games run better and more enjoyable without developers heavily advertising these improvements. Combined with progress in areas like cloud gaming, immersive location-based stories, and the ability to play across different devices, we anticipate 2026 will be a strong year for the gaming industry.
GamingonPhone’s small steps to the big mobile gaming dream
At GamingonPhone, we’re dedicated to connecting people and showcasing the best in mobile gaming. Our GamingonPhone Conference (GPC) Online recently held its third successful event, providing a valuable platform for industry professionals to network and explore new opportunities.
This year’s GamingonPhone Awards were our biggest yet! For the first time, we hosted an in-person event on October 17th in Bangkok, Thailand, celebrating winners in 30 different categories for both consumer and business sides of mobile gaming. We also launched GamingonPhoneBiz.com to provide coverage of the mobile gaming industry.
Looking ahead to 2026, my biggest wish is for fewer games that feel rushed out the door. I’d love to see more titles that have a clear vision and are developed with care, instead of just being released to take advantage of current trends. After a challenging year for the gaming industry, all I really want is more thoughtful game development – games built at a sustainable pace that players will genuinely enjoy and feel are worth playing.
Time really does fly! As we move forward, let’s aim to grow, innovate, and strengthen our gaming community. Just like in a game, we always find a way to try again, complete our goals, and improve. That’s my goal for 2026: Level Up!
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2026-01-01 04:16