In February of the previous year, Sweden’s mobile entertainment titan Modern Times Group (MTG) completed a $620 million purchase of Plarium, the developer behind the blockbuster hero‑collection title Raid: Shadow Legends. That transaction, while already sizeable, is only the opening move in a broader expansion playbook, according to MTG’s president and chief executive, Maria Redin. Redin told GamesIndustry.biz that the acquisition of Plarium was deliberately positioned as a springboard for a second wave of growth. “Last year we announced that after bringing Plarium into the fold we intend to double the company’s size once more,” she explained.
“Organic growth remains a priority, but achieving that scale will require further strategic purchases.” The timeline she set for this ambition is aggressive: MTG aims to hit the doubling target within three to five years. Redin noted that the firm has already demonstrated the ability to move quickly; the same growth objective was set in 2021, and the company subsequently tripled its revenue base.
The mobile gaming market, once characterized by double‑digit expansion, has now settled into a single‑digit growth rhythm as the sector matures. What was once an open blue ocean has turned a deep red, meaning that future expansion will increasingly involve capturing market share from rivals or absorbing them outright. Acquiring studios is the easier half of the equation; the real challenge lies in integrating them smoothly. The industry is littered with cautionary tales of mergers that resulted in culture clashes, duplicated technology stacks, and ultimately studio closures.
MTG, however, believes it has a roadmap to avoid those pitfalls. 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 originally grouped into two “districts”: a Casual District and a Midcore District—the latter covering games that sit between pure casual experiences and hardcore titles. Following the acquisition, MTG rebranded these divisions as Playsimple and Playamp. Playsimple, named after the India‑based WordTrip studio, houses free‑to‑play, ad‑supported games, while Playamp contains titles that generate revenue primarily through in‑app purchases (IAPs).
Playamp now represents the bulk of MTG’s earnings. Redin says the rebranding is more than a cosmetic change; it reflects a vision to create “one of the leading gaming villages.” The terminology is intentional, designed to foster a sense of community that encourages talent to stay and thrive.
“Gaming is the perfect marriage of creativity and data‑driven decision‑making,” she remarked. “Our people are our greatest asset, and we must build an environment where they can flourish. When we acquire a studio, we want the founders and their teams to remain post‑deal, because that’s when the real story begins.” A key part of the integration effort has been the standardisation of technology and tools across the MTG ecosystem. Redin has pursued this goal since becoming CEO in 2020, but she notes that Plarium’s size finally gave the group the scale needed to roll out a unified tech platform.
The company is careful not to repeat the missteps of other publishers—such as Electronic Arts’ forced adoption of the Frostbite engine, which caused friction across multiple studios. Instead, MTG tailors its tech stacks to the needs of each district. For Playsimple, the tech foundation will serve as a template for future casual acquisitions.
In the Midcore arena, MTG has selected components of Plarium’s proprietary suite to distribute group‑wide, but only after a rigorous internal review to determine where shared tools add value and where they would hinder creativity. Plarium’s GoGame marketing platform and product‑detail‑page (PDP) data system are already being leveraged across the organisation, with additional features being layered on to boost studio output. The company is also investing heavily in generative AI, a trend that is reshaping mobile development worldwide.
InnoGames, for example, has been using AI‑generated assets for its Sunrise Village title and plans to expand AI‑driven content creation across its portfolio. Redin observes that most industry peers are grappling with similar questions about how to embed AI into production pipelines.
“Generative AI is far more powerful than any tool we’ve had before,” she said. “We’re experimenting with AI for A/B testing, graphics creation, quality assurance and more.
Successful AI solutions from individual studios are being folded into the broader Plarium tech suite, so the whole group can benefit.” Nevertheless, Redin cautions against viewing AI as a silver bullet. While the technology can accelerate development and fill capacity gaps, creativity remains a distinctly human trait. “If we ignore AI, we risk falling behind competitors,” she warned.
“But AI will never replace the imagination and vision of our teams; it simply amplifies what they can achieve.” Financially, about 80 % of MTG’s revenue now originates from the Playamp division, with the remaining 20 % coming from Playsimple. Redin is eager to broaden both sides of the business. She cited Snowprint as a model: “We acquired Snowprint a few years ago; if we could find five more studios with that DNA, it would be fantastic.” On the casual front, she envisions adding more studios to Playsimple and even contemplating a third district that would centre on core capabilities such as marketing platforms or data analytics.
When asked about the future of mobile hit lists, Redin noted that the top‑ten games change very little year over year. “Our thesis from day one has been to back evergreen IPs,” she said.
“Raid Shadow Legends still has many years of life ahead, but we also need a pipeline of new titles to keep the portfolio fresh.” The market’s maturity does not mean growth is impossible. With roughly three billion gamers worldwide, Redin believes the sector remains attractive, even as it competes for attention with streaming services and social media. “We’ve moved from hyper‑growth to a steadier, low‑single‑digit to mid‑single‑digit growth environment,” she explained. “To exceed that baseline, we must continue to nurture our strong evergreen franchises while also launching new games that capture fresh audiences.” In summary, MTG’s strategy under Maria Redin’s leadership blends aggressive acquisition, thoughtful integration, technology standardisation, and AI‑enhanced production.
By rebranding its studios into cohesive districts, fostering a village‑like culture, and balancing the reliability of proven IPs with the risk‑taking needed for new titles, the company aims to double its size within the next few years and secure a leading position in an increasingly competitive mobile gaming landscape.