In February of last year, the Swedish mobile entertainment conglomerate Modern Times Group (MTG) completed a $620 million acquisition of Plarium, the developer behind the wildly popular hero‑collection title Raid: Shadow Legends. That deal, while already a headline‑grabbing move, appears to be only the opening act in a broader expansion playbook, according to MTG’s president and chief executive officer, Maria Redin. Redin told GamesIndustry.biz that the company’s ambition, set out shortly after the Plarium purchase, is to double its overall size 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 she cites is aggressive: the goal is to achieve the doubling within roughly three to five years. Yet Redin points out that MTG has already proven capable of rapid scaling.
In 2021 the group announced a similar ambition and, as she notes, “we think we tripled.” The mobile gaming market, once characterized by double‑digit growth rates, has now settled into a single‑digit expansion phase as the sector matures. What was once a blue ocean of untapped users has become a crowded, highly competitive red ocean.
In such an environment, growth often means either capturing market share from rivals or, more directly, acquiring those rivals outright. Acquisitions are the easy part; the real challenge lies in integration. The industry is littered with cautionary tales of studios that were bought and then shuttered because the parent company failed to meld cultures, technology stacks, and business processes.
Redin acknowledges these risks but says MTG has a clear roadmap to avoid them. Before buying Plarium, 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 (behind Bloons TD 6), and Futureplay (maker of Merge Gardens).
These studios were originally grouped into two “districts”: the Casual District and the Midcore District—the latter covering games that sit between pure casual experiences and hardcore titles. These districts have now been rebranded as Playsimple and Playamp. Playsimple, named after the India‑based studio behind WordTrip, aggregates free‑to‑play, ad‑supported games. Playamp houses the majority of MTG’s portfolio, focusing on titles that generate revenue through in‑app purchases (IAPs).
The rebranding goes beyond a cosmetic change; it reflects a strategic effort to build what Redin calls “one of the leading gaming villages.” She explains that the name is meant to evoke a sense of community and belonging, which is crucial for retaining talent after rapid acquisition sprees. "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 said. "We buy companies, which also means we want the founders and the teams to stay on board post‑acquisition, because that’s when the real story begins and you continue to scale the businesses.
The only way to make sure they stay is to create an environment they enjoy." A key pillar of that environment is technology standardisation. Since Redin took the helm in 2020, MTG has been working to harmonise the tools and platforms used across its studios, but the scale required to roll out a unified tech stack only became feasible after the Plarium deal.
"Not everything needs to be built uniquely for every single company," she noted, adding that the Plarium acquisition gave MTG the critical mass to implement the vision fully. Standardising tech is a double‑edged sword. EA’s push to force all its studios onto the Frostbite engine famously caused friction and delays on projects like Mass Effect. Redin is mindful of those pitfalls and stresses that Playsimple and Playamp have distinct technical needs, so the standardisation effort is tailored accordingly.
"Playsimple’s tech stack will be the foundation for future companies we onboard in the Casual District. For Midcore, we have chosen parts of the Plarium tech suite to use group‑wide, but we’re rolling it out selectively to ensure the end game is better for all companies," she explained.
An internal assessment identified where shared tools make sense and where bespoke solutions remain necessary. Two of Plarium’s platforms—the GoGame marketing suite and a product‑detail‑page (PDP) data platform—are already being deployed across MTG, with additional features being added to enhance functionality. Redin says the aim is to maximise return on investment by giving studios the best possible infrastructure while preserving the creative freedom that made those studios successful in the first place.
Artificial intelligence is another area where MTG is investing heavily. InnoGames, for example, has been using generative AI to produce content for its mobile title Sunrise Village and plans to broaden AI‑generated assets across its portfolio. Redin observes 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 workflows, where to keep them, and how to leverage new tech to make our games more relevant for players while speeding up delivery and improving quality." MTG’s approach to AI is pragmatic: successful AI solutions developed in one studio are packaged into the Plarium tech suite and rolled out to other studios, provided they fit within the company’s overarching AI framework. This encourages cross‑studio learning while respecting each team’s unique context. 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 important thing is that our talent has amazing creativity, and that doesn’t sit yet within AI," she said.
"However, if we don’t embrace AI we’ll fall behind competitors. AI can supercharge everything we do while we keep the creativity, innovation, and vision of our team." Financially, about 80 % of MTG’s revenue now comes from the Playamp division, with the remaining 20 % generated by Playsimple.
Redin is eager to grow both sides. She cites Snowprint, acquired a few years ago, as a model: "If we could find five more Snowprints around the world, that would be fantastic." On the casual side, she hopes to add more studios to the Playsimple district, which currently consists of a single studio but still contributes a meaningful share of income. Looking ahead, Redin hints at the possibility of adding a third district to the gaming village, though the exact focus is still under discussion.
It would likely centre on leveraging existing marketing platforms or data capabilities to create a new niche within the group. Despite the rapid changes in the market, Redin observes that the top‑ten mobile games list remains remarkably stable year after year. "Our thesis from day one has been that evergreen IPs are the foundation of long‑term success," she said. While MTG continues to invest in proven titles like Raid: Shadow Legends, the company also recognises the necessity of a fresh pipeline.
Plarium, for instance, has a new game slated for soft launch early next year. The broader industry context is sobering.
Supercell’s Ilkka Paananen has warned that the western mobile market is "coasting," noting that only two of the 22 mobile titles that have surpassed $1 billion in revenue since 2020 originated in the West. Even Supercell’s own incubation efforts have struggled, with projects like Squad Busters shutting down after launch. Redin acknowledges these challenges but stresses that abandoning new‑game development would erode the creative DNA of MTG’s studios. "Investing in new games is essential to retain creativity, passion, and drive," she said.
In sum, Redin sees a market that, while no longer experiencing hyper‑growth, still offers ample opportunity. With roughly three billion gamers worldwide, competition for attention is fierce—from streaming platforms, social media, and other digital entertainment—but the potential for incremental growth remains.
"We’re seeing low single‑digit to mid‑single‑digit growth depending on the data source," she noted. "To exceed that, we must continue to invest in strong evergreen IPs while also bringing fresh titles to market." The roadmap Redin outlines—strategic acquisitions, thoughtful rebranding, targeted tech standardisation, and a balanced embrace of AI—paints a picture of a company intent on scaling responsibly while preserving the creative spirit that fuels its most successful games. If MTG can execute this plan over the next three to five years, the ambition to double its size may well become a reality.