Many mobile game developers rely on app store comments and friends and family to deliver feedback for their games. This is how many people still create games because they have a cool idea and a lot of passion and drive. But with so many games on the market, it’s all too common to see months of hard work come to nothing. Meanwhile, bigger studios and publishers have the budgets and resources to aggressively test and market their games post-launch. In this talk, consumer insight platform PickFu will share examples of how testing game concepts and creatives as part of the development phase can add helpful insight and data to the creation process, and potentially reduce the risk of a final game that doesn’t resonate with players. The presentation will also cover qualitative versus quantitative data, with insights into how mobile game publishers are already using consumer testing at different stages of the development process. In summary, some of the insights in this talk will include: - How testing can be used as a positive part of the creative process when making a game - The value of quantitative v. qualitative data in the mobile game development process - Common questions product managers and development teams need to ask during development Case study examples from real-life large mobile game publishers

Takeaway: 

• How testing can be used as a positive part of the creative process when making a game
• The value of quantitative v. qualitative data in the mobile game development process Common questions product managers and development teams need to ask during development
• Case study examples from real-life large mobile game publishers

Miniclip's Head of Developer Relations, Jamie Cason, will talk about how they worked with the developer, HypGames, to publish Ultimate Golf! taking on a hyper-competitive and crowded market, finding the key product features and practices that made a difference, and how they're striving to create a harmonious and winning team across the organisations to deliver an ever-green commercial success.
 

Takeaway: 

- Top features and practices in F2P mobile sports games
- How to enter and win in a crowded market
- Things to take care of for growth and profitability
 

With an estimated 2.3 billion active players worldwide, gaming has become one of the most popular forms of entertainment - both in terms of value and the time we spend. As more games move online and include multiplayer and community features, the demand for more interconnected experiences with other players also grows. But how should game companies safeguard their players from toxic behaviours and online harm?

Already, nearly three-quarters (74%) of online multiplayer gamers have experienced some form of harassment in online multiplayer games. Some publishers are even forced to shut down chats due to harmful content, risking their reputation and legal action. While manual moderation goes some way to address the issue, it’s costly and time-consuming. The innate bias of human moderators can lead to inconsistencies in moderation - putting players and communities at risk.

During this session, Mari-Sanna will explore the widespread issue of online toxicity, the pitfalls of ineffective moderation, the key lessons the games industry can learn from social media’s moderation struggles, and how publishers can build safe and positive communities for their players and fans. 

Cheating is not just a problem for large multi-player PC games. In fact it's mobile games, both single and multiplayer, that are seeing the biggest increase in the number of cheat products targeting them. However, when it comes to mobile game cheats, it's usually the game economy rather than player experience most at risk. With MOD APK's offering unlimited coins and gems, never ending ammo, free VIP access, and games with no ads, developers and their revenue streams face a real threat to their business model moving forward. This session looks at the problem in more detail, highlighting the specific actors, channels, sources, and cheat products, and explores trends and how the market is developing. Finally and most importantly it outlines what developers and publishers need to know and do to protect their games.

Takeaway: 

• Who the biggest cheat sellers in mobile gaming are, how they operate, and what products they offer
• The simple steps to disrupting their business, wherever they're based
• How to protect your game and future revenue

The younger generation are relying on non verbal communication more than any other generation before it, and alongside memes and videos, multiplayer games play a huge role in this type of communication. The global pandemic has accelerated the trend that Mojiworks was started around back in 2016: the rise of a new generation of social games that we call "Hyper-Social." In this talk I will share with you valuable insights into the social gaming behaviours of the younger generation, and how we go about designing our games with their input. I will deconstruct our game Ready Chef Go! that has been played by over 70 million Snapchatters and I will talk about how our data oriented approached helped us build features that our Gen Z audience loves.