In February of the previous year, Sweden’s mobile entertainment leader Modern Times Group (MTG) completed a $620 million purchase of Plarium, the developer behind the blockbuster hero‑collection title Raid: Shadow Legends. That deal, while already massive, appears to be just the opening move in a broader expansion playbook, according to Maria Redin, MTG’s president and chief executive officer. Redin told GamesIndustry.biz that the acquisition of Plarium was a stepping‑stone toward an even more aggressive growth target: “We set out the vision last year that after bringing Plarium into the fold we want to double the group again. And yes, we want to fuel organic growth, but to do that we will need to make more acquisitions.” The timeline she outlined is bold – she hopes to achieve the second doubling within a three‑to‑five‑year window.
The ambition is not new for MTG; Redin noted that the company pursued a similar goal in 2021 and, in her view, succeeded in tripling its size. The mobile gaming sector, once characterized by double‑digit year‑over‑year expansion, has now settled into single‑digit growth, reflecting a market that is maturing quickly. What used to be a “blue ocean” of untapped opportunity has turned into a highly contested “red ocean,” where gaining market share often means either capturing a competitor’s audience or absorbing the competitor outright.
Acquiring studios is the easier half of the equation; integrating them smoothly is where many firms stumble, with integration failures sometimes leading to studio closures. Redin, however, believes MTG has a clear roadmap for both purchase and integration.
Before the Plarium deal, MTG already owned a portfolio of mobile studios, including InnoGames (known for Forge of Empires), Snowprint (creator of Warhammer 40,000: Tacticus), Hutch (developer of F1 Clash), Ninja Kiwi (the team behind Bloons TD 6), and Futureplay (maker of Merge Gardens). These studios were grouped into two internal “districts”: a Casual District and a Midcore District – the latter housing games that sit between pure casual experiences and hardcore titles. In the latest restructuring, those districts have been rebranded as Playsimple and Playamp.
Playsimple, named after the Indian studio behind WordTrip, gathers free‑to‑play, ad‑supported games, while Playamp contains the in‑app‑purchase‑driven titles that make up the bulk of MTG’s revenue. Redin says the rebranding is more than a cosmetic change; it is part of a larger vision to create “one of the leading gaming villages.” The term “village” is deliberately chosen to evoke a sense of community and belonging, aiming to boost employee retention and foster a collaborative culture across the many studios now under the MTG umbrella.
“Gaming is the best marriage of creativity and data‑driven decisions,” she explained. “People are our biggest asset, but we also need to create an environment where they can thrive.
When we acquire a company, we want the founders and their teams to stay on board because that’s when the real story begins – scaling the business together.” A key pillar of the integration plan is the standardisation of technology and tools across the group. Redin has been pushing for a unified tech stack since she took the helm in 2020, but she says the scale required to roll it out fully only materialised after Plarium joined. “Not everything needs to be built uniquely for every single company,” she noted.
The company is therefore aligning its tech platforms where it makes sense, while allowing flexibility where needed. For instance, the Playsimple division will use its own foundational tech suite for future casual acquisitions, whereas the Midcore (Playamp) side will adopt selected components of Plarium’s technology, deploying them selectively after a thorough internal assessment of where shared tools add value. Plarium’s GoGame marketing platform and product‑detail‑page (PDP) data system have already been rolled out across MTG, with additional features being added to enhance functionality. Redin believes that these shared tools will raise the overall output of all studios, stating, “We want to put our efforts where we get the biggest bang for our buck.
We have amazing game makers across the group, and with Playamp we aim to super‑charge them with a tech suite they can leverage, elevating everything that’s already been done.” Artificial intelligence, particularly generative AI, is another area where MTG is investing heavily. InnoGames, for example, has been using AI to generate all content for its mobile title Sunrise Village and is exploring broader AI‑driven content creation. Redin observes that AI is becoming embedded in production pipelines across the mobile industry. “We’re all having similar discussions on how to embrace new technology in our production chain,” she said, adding that generative AI is “significantly more powerful than any other tool we’ve had before.” The company’s AI strategy focuses on augmenting existing workflows rather than replacing them.
AI is being layered onto tools for A/B testing, graphics creation, quality assurance, and other routine tasks. Successful AI solutions from individual studios are being incorporated into the Plarium tech suite for company‑wide use. Redin stresses the importance of allowing studios the freedom to experiment within an overarching AI framework, then rapidly disseminating successful innovations across the group.
When asked whether AI will eventually make human designers obsolete, Redin cautioned against such deterministic thinking. “I often get the question, ‘Will gaming AI be able to do everything you do?’ I don’t think so. The creativity of our talent isn’t yet within AI’s reach.” Yet she also warned that ignoring AI would leave MTG lagging behind competitors.
“If we don’t embrace AI, we’ll be slower than the market. AI can supercharge everything we do while we keep the creativity, innovation, and vision of our people.” She cited capacity shortfalls as a concrete example where AI can provide a lift – handling analysis, coding, art generation, and complex logic. Revenue-wise, about 80 % of MTG’s income now comes from the Playamp division, with the remaining 20 % generated by Playsimple. Redin is eager to broaden both sides of the portfolio.
She mentioned the recent acquisition of Snowprint and expressed a desire to replicate that success globally, saying, “If we could find five more Snowprints around the world, that would be fantastic.” On the casual side, she noted that Playsimple is currently a single studio but still contributes a substantial share of revenue, and she envisions adding a third “district” to the gaming village in the future – a unit that would likely leverage the group’s marketing platforms or data capabilities. Despite the market’s maturity, Redin believes the top‑ten mobile games list remains relatively stable, reinforcing MTG’s long‑standing belief in evergreen intellectual properties. “Our thesis from day one has been that evergreen IPs are the backbone of sustainable growth,” she said. Nonetheless, she acknowledged the necessity of a fresh pipeline.
“Raid has many years ahead of it, but we also need new games to keep the pipeline flowing.” The challenge of launching successful new titles is underscored by industry observations. Ilkka Paananen of Supercell warned that the western mobile market is “coasting,” noting that only two of the 22 mobile games surpassing $1 billion in revenue since 2020 originated from the West. Even Supercell’s own incubation efforts have struggled, with projects like Squad Busters being discontinued after a short run. Redin concurs that creating and scaling a hit game is difficult, but she stresses that new titles are essential for preserving the creative DNA of each studio.
“Investing in new games retains creativity, passion, and drive,” she said. Looking ahead, Redin remains optimistic about the market’s overall health. With roughly three billion gamers worldwide, she sees ample opportunity, even if hyper‑growth is unlikely to return. “We’re seeing low‑single‑digit to mid‑single‑digit growth across the board.
To exceed that, you need to keep investing in strong evergreen IPs and also bring fresh games to market.” In her view, the combination of strategic acquisitions, technology standardisation, AI‑enhanced workflows, and a balanced portfolio of proven and new titles will enable MTG to pursue its ambitious goal of doubling size while navigating a mature, competitive mobile gaming landscape.