In February of the previous year, Sweden’s mobile entertainment leader Modern Times Group (MTG) completed a $620 million purchase of Plarium, the studio behind the blockbuster hero‑collection title Raid: Shadow Legends. According to Maria Redin, MTG’s president and chief executive, that deal was only the opening move in a far larger growth play. “We articulated a vision last year that, after bringing Plarium into the fold, we want to double our size again,” Redin told GamesIndustry.biz. “We’ll keep driving organic expansion, but to hit that target we’ll need to make further acquisitions.” The timetable she cites is bold: MTG aims to achieve the doubling within roughly three to five years.
Redin notes the company already set a similar ambition in 2021 and, in her words, “we think we tripled” during that period, indicating that the firm has experience scaling quickly. A few years ago the mobile market was expanding at double‑digit rates, but growth has since slowed to single digits as the sector matures. What was once a blue‑ocean landscape now looks more like a crowded red sea, where gaining market share often means taking it from rivals or absorbing them outright.
Acquiring studios is the easy part; stitching them together into a coherent organization is where many companies stumble, and the industry is littered with stories of failed integrations that ended in studio closures. MTG, however, believes it has a roadmap for success.
Before the Plarium deal, MTG already owned a portfolio of mobile developers, including InnoGames (known for Forge of Empires), Snowprint (Warhammer 40,000: Tacticus), Hutch (F1 Clash), Ninja Kiwi (Bloons TD 6) and Futureplay (Merge Gardens). These studios were grouped into two “districts”: a Casual District and a Midcore District—the latter covering games that sit between pure casual and hardcore experiences.
The districts have now been rebranded as Playsimple and Playamp. Playsimple, named after the India‑based studio behind WordTrip, houses free‑to‑play, ad‑supported titles, while Playamp contains the bulk of MTG’s portfolio, focused on games that generate revenue through in‑app purchases.
Redin says the rebranding is more than cosmetic; the goal is to create “one of the leading gaming villages.” The term “village” is deliberately inviting, meant to foster a sense of belonging among employees—a critical factor when a company is rapidly adding new studios. “Gaming is the perfect marriage of creativity and data‑driven decision‑making,” she explains. “People are our biggest asset, but we must also give them an environment where they can thrive.
When we acquire a studio, we want the founders and their teams to stay on board, because that’s when the real story begins and the business can scale.” A key part of the integration plan has been the standardisation of technology and tools across the MTG ecosystem. Redin notes that this effort began when she took the helm in 2020, but the scale required to roll it out fully only became possible after Plarium joined. The company is careful not to repeat the mistakes of other giants—such as Electronic Arts’ problematic push to force all studios onto the Frostbite engine—by tailoring toolsets to the needs of each district.
Playsimple’s tech stack will serve as the foundation for future casual acquisitions, while Playamp will adopt selected components of Plarium’s suite, deployed selectively after a thorough internal assessment of where shared tools make sense. Plarium’s GoGame marketing platform and product‑detail‑page data system are already being used across MTG, and Redin says the group is adding new features to enhance them. The aim is to maximise impact: “We want to focus our resources where we get the biggest bang for our buck,” she says. “We have fantastic game makers across the group, and with Playamp we intend to super‑charge them with a tech suite that elevates everything they already do.” Artificial intelligence is another pillar of MTG’s strategy.
Generative AI has already reshaped content creation at InnoGames, where much of the artwork for Sunrise Village is AI‑generated, and the studio plans to broaden AI‑driven production. Redin observes that AI is being woven into many stages of game development—from A/B testing and graphics creation to quality assurance. Successful AI tools from individual studios are being integrated into the broader Plarium tech suite, creating a feedback loop that spreads innovation quickly across the organisation.
When asked whether AI will eventually replace human creators, Redin is cautious. “I don’t think AI will do everything,” she says.
“Our talent’s creativity is still the core differentiator. But if we ignore AI, we risk falling behind competitors.
AI can fill capacity gaps and accelerate development, allowing us to deliver games faster and, ideally, better.” Revenue-wise, about 80 % now comes from the Playamp division, with the casual Playsimple unit contributing roughly 20 %. Redin is eager to broaden both sides.
“We bought Snowprint a few years ago; finding five more studios like that would be fantastic,” she notes. On the casual front, she envisions adding more scale, perhaps even a third district that leverages MTG’s marketing platforms or data capabilities. Despite the market’s maturity, Redin believes the top‑ten mobile games remain remarkably stable year after year, reinforcing MTG’s long‑standing belief in evergreen IPs. While Raid : Shadow Legends still has many years of life ahead, the company also recognises the need for a fresh pipeline.
Plarium is preparing to soft‑launch a new title early next year, and MTG continues to scout for promising concepts. Industry observers warn that the western mobile market is “coasting,” with only a handful of new billion‑dollar titles emerging from the West since 2020. Supercell’s own incubation attempts have shown mixed results, exemplified by the recent shutdown of Squad Busters. Redin acknowledges these challenges but stresses that abandoning new‑game development would erode the creative DNA of MTG’s studios.
“Investing in new titles keeps the passion alive,” she says. Looking ahead, Redin sees a market of three billion gamers that remains attractive, even if the era of hyper‑growth is over.
“We now see low‑single‑digit to mid‑single‑digit growth,” she explains. “To exceed that, we must double‑down on strong evergreen franchises while also bringing fresh experiences to market.” In summary, MTG’s roadmap combines aggressive acquisition, thoughtful integration, district‑specific technology stacks, and a measured embrace of AI—all aimed at building a cohesive “gaming village” that can sustain growth in a mature, competitive mobile landscape.