In February of the previous year, Sweden’s mobile entertainment leader Modern Times Group (MTG) completed a $620 million purchase of Plarium, the studio behind the wildly popular hero‑collecting title Raid: Shadow Legends. That transaction, however, is only 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 company’s ambition, set shortly after the Plarium deal, is to double its overall scale once more. “We set out the vision last year that post‑acquisition of Plarium we want to double yet again in size,” she explained.
“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 cited is aggressive: roughly three to five years to achieve the target. She noted that MTG has already demonstrated the capacity to grow quickly, having tripled its size after a similar ambition was announced in 2021.
The mobile gaming landscape has shifted dramatically in recent years. A few years ago, the sector was enjoying double‑digit annual growth, but that momentum has slowed to single‑digit figures as the market matures. What was once a blue‑ocean of untapped opportunity now resembles a crowded, competitive arena where gaining market share often means acquiring rivals or integrating them into a larger ecosystem. Acquisitions are relatively straightforward; the real challenge lies in integration.
The industry is littered with cautionary tales of studios that were bought only to be dismantled because the parent company failed to meld cultures, technology stacks, and business processes. MTG, however, believes it has a clear roadmap for avoiding those pitfalls. Before adding Plarium, MTG already owned a suite 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 (makers of Merge Gardens). These studios were historically grouped into two “districts”: a Casual District for lighter, ad‑supported games and a Midcore District for titles that sit between casual and hardcore, typically relying on in‑app purchases (IAPs).
In the latest restructuring, the districts have been renamed Playsimple and Playamp. Playsimple, named after the Indian studio behind WordTrip, will focus on free‑to‑play, ad‑driven experiences, while Playamp will house the IAP‑centric portfolio that now accounts for about 80 % of MTG’s revenue. Redin emphasized that the rebranding is more than a cosmetic change. She envisions MTG evolving into “one of the leading gaming villages,” a term chosen deliberately to convey a sense of community and belonging for employees.
Retaining talent after an acquisition is a top priority, as the true value of a purchase emerges when the original founders and development teams stay on board and continue to scale their products. “People are one of our biggest assets,” Redin said. “We need to create an environment where they can thrive, because that’s when the exciting story truly begins.” A major component of the integration strategy is the standardisation of technology and tools across the group.
Since Redin took the helm in 2020, MTG has been working toward a unified tech infrastructure, but the scale required to roll it out fully only became available after the Plarium deal. The plan is to avoid the “one‑size‑fits‑all” mistakes made by other publishers—such as Electronic Arts’ forced adoption of the Frostbite engine, which caused significant friction for studios working on titles like Mass Effect. To that end, MTG is treating the two districts separately.
Playsimple’s tech stack will serve as the foundation for future casual‑game acquisitions, while Playamp will adopt selected components of Plarium’s proprietary suite, deployed selectively after a thorough internal assessment of where sharing tools makes sense. Plarium’s GoGame marketing platform and product‑detail‑page (PDP) data system are already being rolled out across the group, with additional features being added to enhance functionality. The goal of this technology harmonisation is to maximise efficiency and impact. “We want to put our efforts where we get the biggest bang for our buck,” Redin explained.
“We have some amazing game makers across the group, and with Playamp we aim to supercharge them with a tech suite they can leverage, elevating everything that was already done.” Generative AI is another pillar of MTG’s future roadmap. The technology is already reshaping content creation at InnoGames, where AI has been used to generate assets for the mobile title Sunrise Village and is slated for broader application across the studio’s pipeline.
Redin noted that AI is being woven into various production processes—A/B testing, graphics generation, quality assurance, and more—allowing studios to experiment within an overarching AI framework that defines best practices and boundaries. Successful AI‑driven solutions from individual studios are being incorporated into the Plarium tech suite for company‑wide use.
When asked whether AI will eventually replace human creativity, Redin cautioned against such deterministic thinking. “I often get the question, is gaming AI going to be able to do everything you do?
I don’t think so,” she said. “What matters is our talent’s creativity, which AI can augment but not replace.” She added that without embracing AI, MTG would risk falling behind competitors that are already leveraging the technology to accelerate development and improve player relevance.
Revenue distribution highlights the strategic importance of the Midcore (Playamp) segment. About 80 % of MTG’s earnings stem from Playamp titles, while the Casual (Playsimple) side—currently represented by a single studio—contributes roughly 20 %. Redin expressed a desire to expand both sides: “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 would like to add more scale.” She also hinted at the possibility of a third district, which would likely revolve around core capabilities such as marketing platforms or data analytics, though details remain tentative.
Despite the market’s maturity, Redin believes there is still room for growth. The mobile top‑ten charts have remained relatively stable, reinforcing MTG’s long‑standing belief in evergreen intellectual properties. While Raid: Shadow Legends is expected to generate revenue for many more years, the company also recognises the necessity of a fresh pipeline.
Plarium is preparing to soft‑launch a new title early next year, and MTG continues to scout for innovative concepts to keep its portfolio vibrant. Industry observers, such as Supercell’s Ilkka Paananen, warn that the western mobile market is “coasting,” with only two of the 22 titles 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 acknowledged these challenges, noting that “it’s hard to make a successful game and scale a game,” but argued that abandoning new‑game development would erode the creative DNA of its studios. In summary, MTG’s roadmap under Maria Redin combines aggressive acquisition, thoughtful integration, technology standardisation, and AI‑enhanced production to pursue a doubling of size within the next three to five years.
By nurturing both established evergreen franchises and a pipeline of new titles, the Swedish group aims to sustain relevance in a market that has shifted from rapid expansion to measured, single‑digit growth, while still believing that the sector’s three‑billion‑player base offers ample opportunity for continued success.