In February of last year, Sweden’s mobile entertainment leader Modern Times Group (MTG) completed a $620 million purchase of Plarium, the studio behind the wildly popular hero‑collection title Raid: Shadow Legends. Yet, according to Maria Redin, MTG’s president and chief executive officer, that deal was merely the opening move in a broader expansion playbook. Redin told GamesIndustry.biz that the company set a bold vision after the Plarium acquisition: “We want to double our size again, building on the growth we achieved after bringing Plarium into the fold.” She added that organic growth will continue to be a priority, but that further acquisitions will be essential to hit the target.
The timeline she cited is aggressive – roughly three to five years – although she noted that MTG has already demonstrated the ability to scale quickly, having tripled its size after a similar ambition was announced in 2021. The mobile gaming sector, which a few years ago was expanding at double‑digit rates, now shows single‑digit growth, reflecting a maturing market. What was once a blue‑ocean of untapped users has turned into a crowded, competitive arena where gaining market share often means buying rivals or absorbing them entirely.
While buying companies is relatively straightforward, integrating them successfully is notoriously difficult; the industry is littered with stories of acquisitions that ended in studio closures due to poor integration. MTG, however, believes it has a roadmap for that challenge. Before the Plarium deal, the group already owned a portfolio of mobile studios such as 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 split into two “districts”: a Casual District and a Midcore District – the latter covering games that sit between casual and hardcore experiences. The districts have recently been rebranded as Playsimple and Playamp.
Playsimple, named after the Indian studio behind WordTrip, gathers free‑to‑play, ad‑supported titles, while Playamp houses the majority of MTG’s portfolio, focusing on games that generate revenue through in‑app purchases. Redin says the rebranding is more than cosmetic; it is part of an effort to create what she calls “one of the leading gaming villages.” The name is intended to evoke a sense of community and belonging, which she believes is crucial for retaining talent after rapid expansion.
“Gaming is the perfect marriage of creativity and data‑driven decision‑making,” she explained. “People are our greatest asset, but we must provide 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 – scaling the business together.” A key component of the integration strategy is the standardisation of technology and tools across the MTG ecosystem.
Redin has pursued this goal since becoming CEO in 2020, but she says the scale achieved after the Plarium acquisition finally allowed the vision to be executed fully. The plan is not to force every studio to use identical systems – that would repeat the pitfalls seen at companies like Electronic Arts, where mandating the Frostbite engine caused major friction – but rather to identify where shared tools add value and where bespoke solutions are still needed. For example, the Playsimple division will use a common tech stack that will become the foundation for any future casual‑district acquisitions.
In the Midcore (Playamp) side, MTG has selected parts of Plarium’s technology suite to roll out selectively, after a thorough internal assessment of where collaboration makes sense. Plarium’s GoGame marketing platform and product‑detail‑page data system are already being leveraged across the group, with additional features and functionality being added to enhance studio output. Artificial intelligence is another pillar of MTG’s growth engine. Generative AI tools are already reshaping content creation at InnoGames, where the entire asset pipeline for the mobile title Sunrise Village is AI‑driven, and the studio plans to broaden AI‑generated content across its portfolio.
Redin notes that AI is being woven into many production processes – from A/B testing and graphics creation to quality assurance – and successful AI solutions from individual studios are being incorporated into the broader Plarium tech suite. She cautions, however, that AI is not a magic replacement for human creativity. “Our talent’s imagination is still something AI can’t replicate,” Redin said.
“But if we ignore AI, we risk falling behind competitors who are using it to accelerate development and improve player relevance. AI should augment, not replace, the creative spark of our teams.” Financially, about 80 % of MTG’s revenue now comes from the Playamp division, with the casual Playsimple unit contributing roughly 20 %. Redin is eager to expand both sides. She cites Snowprint as a model – “if we could find five more Snowprints around the world, that would be fantastic” – and hints at the possibility of adding a third district to the gaming village, likely built around the group’s core capabilities in marketing and data analytics.
When asked about the future of mobile titles, Redin observes that the top‑ten games on the charts change very little year after year. “Our thesis from day one has been to back evergreen IPs,” she said, noting that Raid: Shadow Legends still has many years of life ahead.
Nonetheless, she stresses the importance of a fresh pipeline: “We must continue to bring new games to market, otherwise we lose the creative DNA that fuels innovation.” The broader industry context is sobering. Western mobile publishers have struggled to launch new billion‑dollar hits, with only two of the 22 titles that have crossed that threshold since 2020 originating from the West.
Even Supercell, a powerhouse in the space, has seen limited success with recent incubated projects, such as the short‑lived Squad Busters. Redin acknowledges these challenges but remains optimistic about the market’s long‑term prospects.
“There are three billion gamers worldwide,” she said. “The market is still compelling, even though growth has slowed to low‑single‑digit or mid‑single‑digit percentages.
To exceed that baseline, we need to keep investing in strong evergreen IPs while also launching fresh experiences.” In summary, MTG’s roadmap under Redin’s leadership combines aggressive acquisition, thoughtful integration, technology standardisation, AI‑enhanced production, and a balanced focus on both proven franchises and new titles – all aimed at doubling the company’s size within the next few years while fostering a collaborative, talent‑centric culture.