In February of the previous year, Sweden’s mobile‑gaming powerhouse Modern Times Group (MTG) completed a $620 million purchase of Plarium, the studio behind the blockbuster hero‑collection title Raid: Shadow Legends. That deal, however, was only the opening move in what MTG’s chief executive, Maria Redin, describes as an aggressive expansion plan. Redin told GamesIndustry.biz that the company’s vision, set out after the Plarium transaction, is to double MTG’s scale once more.
“We set out the vision last year that post‑acquisition of Plarium we want to double yet again in size,” she said. “And yes, we want to fuel and continue to drive organic growth, but in order to do that, we will need to do more acquisitions.” The timeline Redin proposes is bold: she aims to achieve the doubling within a three‑to‑five‑year window. The Swedish group already has a track record of rapid scaling; Redin noted that MTG pursued a similar ambition in 2021 and succeeded in tripling its size. The mobile gaming sector, once characterized by double‑digit growth, has now settled into single‑digit expansion as the market matures.
What was once a blue ocean of untapped users has become a crowded, competitive arena where growth often means capturing market share from rivals or absorbing them entirely through acquisitions. Acquiring companies is the relatively straightforward part of the equation; integrating them into a cohesive whole is notoriously difficult. The industry is littered with cautionary tales of failed integrations that culminated in studio closures.
MTG, however, believes it has a clear roadmap. Before buying Plarium, MTG already owned a portfolio of mobile studios, including InnoGames (creator of 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”: the Casual District and the Midcore District—the latter covering games that sit between pure casual experiences and hardcore titles. Following the Plarium deal, the districts were rebranded as Playsimple and Playamp respectively.
Playsimple, named after the India‑based WordTrip studio, now houses free‑to‑play, ad‑supported games, while Playamp contains the majority of MTG’s revenue‑generating titles that rely on in‑app purchases. Redin emphasized that the rebranding is more than a cosmetic change. Her goal is to forge “one of the leading gaming villages,” a phrase meant to evoke a sense of community and belonging for employees. Retaining talent and ensuring smooth integration are critical when a company expands by acquiring numerous studios in rapid succession.
"I always say gaming is the best marriage between creativity and data‑driven decisions. People are definitely one of our biggest assets, but you also need to create an environment where they can thrive," Redin explained.
"We buy our companies, which also means that we want the founders and the teams to stay on board post‑acquisition, because that’s when the true exciting story should start and you continue to scale the businesses. The only way you can make sure they stay is if you create an environment they enjoy." A major part of the post‑Plarium integration has been the standardisation of technology and tools across MTG’s studios. Redin noted that not every piece of software needs to be built from scratch for each studio, and the scale achieved after the Plarium acquisition finally allowed the group to roll out a unified tech vision.
This standardisation effort began when Redin took the helm in 2020, but only after reaching sufficient size could the plan be fully executed. She acknowledged the pitfalls of forced tech uniformity, citing Electronic Arts’ controversial push to adopt the Frostbite engine across its studios, which caused significant friction on projects like Mass Effect. MTG, however, is taking a more nuanced approach.
The tech stack for Playsimple will serve as the foundation for future casual‑district studios, while the Midcore (Playamp) division will selectively adopt components of Plarium’s technology suite. "We’ve done a very thorough internal assessment on where it makes sense to collaborate and share technical tools, and where it doesn’t," Redin said.
Plarium’s GoGame marketing platform and product‑detail‑page (PDP) data system have already been rolled out across the group, with additional features being added to enhance functionality. Redin believes these shared tools will boost the productivity of all studios. "We want to make sure that we put our efforts where we get the biggest bang for our buck," she said. "We have some amazing game makers across the group, and with Playamp we want to super‑charge that with a tech suite they can leverage, elevating everything that’s already been done." Artificial intelligence, particularly generative AI, is another pillar of MTG’s future strategy.
InnoGames, for example, has been using AI to generate content for its mobile title Sunrise Village and is exploring broader AI‑driven content creation across its portfolio. Redin noted that AI is becoming embedded in many stages of game production, from A/B testing and graphics generation to quality assurance.
"Generative AI is significantly more powerful than any other tool we’ve had before," she said. "We’re all trying to find the right balance—where to change the workflow, where to keep it, and where AI can add the most value. The goal is to make our games more relevant to players and, ideally, bring new titles to market faster and better." MTG’s approach is to allow individual studios to experiment with AI within an overarching framework that defines best practices and boundaries. Successful AI solutions from one studio are then propagated throughout the Plarium tech suite, enabling rapid, company‑wide adoption.
When asked whether AI will eventually replace human creativity, Redin was cautious. "I often get the question, is gaming AI going to be able to do everything you do?
I don’t think so. The talent and creativity of our workforce are still essential and not yet replicated by AI," she responded. "However, if we don’t embrace AI, we risk falling behind competitors.
AI can super‑charge our work, helping us overcome capacity shortfalls in coding, art, and advanced logic." Financially, about 80 % of MTG’s revenue now comes from the Playamp division, with the remaining 20 % generated by the single casual studio, Playsimple. Redin expressed a desire to broaden both sides of the business. "We bought Snowprint a couple of years back, and if we could find five more Snowprints around the world, that would be fantastic.
On the casual side we’d like to add more scale," she said. Looking ahead, Redin hinted at the possibility of adding a third district to the “gaming village,” though she did not specify its focus. She suggested it would likely revolve around core capabilities such as marketing platforms or data analytics, extending the existing structure. Despite the market’s maturity, the top‑ten mobile games list remains relatively static, reinforcing MTG’s belief in evergreen intellectual properties.
Redin reiterated that while Raid: Shadow Legends has many more years of potential, MTG still needs a pipeline of fresh titles. "Investing in new games is essential to retain the creative DNA of our studios," she said, noting that Plarium has a new title slated for soft launch early next year.
Industry observers, such as Supercell’s Ilkka Paananen, warn that Western mobile gaming is “coasting,” with only two of the 22 games that have surpassed $1 billion in revenue since 2020 originating from the West. Even Supercell’s own incubation efforts have faced setbacks, exemplified by the recent shutdown of Squad Busters.
Redin acknowledges the difficulty of launching successful new games but argues that without fresh IPs, studios risk losing the creative spark that fuels long‑term growth. She remains optimistic about the overall market, pointing to a global base of three billion gamers.
While hyper‑growth may be a thing of the past, she believes steady single‑digit expansion is still achievable if MTG continues to nurture its evergreen franchises while also delivering new experiences. In summary, Maria Redin’s roadmap for MTG combines aggressive acquisition, thoughtful integration, strategic rebranding, technology standardisation, and AI‑enhanced production. By building a cohesive "gaming village" that values both talent and data, MTG aims to double its size within the next few years while maintaining a balanced portfolio of proven evergreen titles and promising new releases.