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Top-Tier Mobile Game Publishers Spend $21 Million on Custom Tech

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Top-tier mobile game publishers are investing more than $21 million to build and maintain internal technology and tooling. That’s the startling headline of new research from mobile game development company, Metaplay, which also dives into the hidden, human costs of game programmers who are diverted to work on tech instead of gaming content.

Based on a survey of 125 senior executives at large mobile game development companies in the United States, the data shows that large publishers are spending an average of $21,662,784 to build and maintain their backend tech. Respondents, all of whom are C-level execs or tech team leads at companies with at least 50 staff, were asked questions relating to the size of their tech teams, how long they had been working on internal tools, and their teams’ remuneration. They said:

  • $138,864 is the average salary of an employee working on internal tech at major publishers in the United States

  • 52 is the average number of employees working predominantly in internal tech

  • 36 months is the average number of months the companies surveyed had been building internal tech (just over three years)

Beyond the hard numbers, there are human costs associated with the in-house development of backend tech. Almost three-quarters (74%) of respondents said their game programmers had been impacted by being redeployed to work on internal tech as opposed to gaming content. Of those who had redeployed staff, 41% said that doing so had slowed the game development process, 34% said it had increased ‘crunch’ working practices, and 34% said this led to higher employee turnover.

Teemu Haila, co-founder and Chief Product Officer at Metaplay, commented:

“As a company which has spent almost four years focused entirely on building backend tech for mobile games, even we had to do a double-take when we saw these stats. Shipping a long-lasting hit game was already very challenging, but the current state of the mobile gaming market means investment at this level without any guarantee of success is incredibly risky. We’re trying to fix the binary choice of ‘build vs buy’ when it comes to backend tech – where ‘build’ means expensive and ‘buy’ means unscalable, so mobile devs can focus on making great content.”

Matt Wilson, mobile gaming advisor and investor, said:

“This research shows that building internal tech is becoming prohibitively expensive as well as distracting game-makers from their day jobs. As an investor, I generally want to see as much capital as possible to go towards developing the product. Many companies still suffer from an ‘if it’s not built here, it’s not good enough’ mentality but, while that may have been true in the past, it’s certainly not always the case now.”

Further key findings from the research:

  • Top-tier game studios in the US are most likely to be developing strategy games (58%) and shooters (57%). They’re least likely to be working on hypercasual (22%) and card-collecting games (18%)

  • Respondents’ companies are most likely to outsource or use third-party tooling for security and compliance (43%), multiplayer and/or matchmaking (42%), and game logic server hosting (41%). They’re least likely to outsource observability tooling (26%), and data pipelines (14%)

As well as being available as a whitepaper here, the research has today been released as a hard copy book which is available at Nordic Game Conference stand D6, or on request from Metaplay.

The post Top-Tier Mobile Game Publishers Spend $21 Million on Custom Tech appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

George Miller (Gyorgy Molnar) started his career in content marketing and has started working as an Editor/Content Manager for our company in 2016. George has acquired many experiences when it comes to interviews and newsworthy content becoming Head of Content in 2017. He is responsible for the news being shared on multiple websites that are part of the European Gaming Media Network.

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The App You Need to Download if You’re Tired of Throwing in League of Legends

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GIANTX launches iTero Standalone — the new and improved version of its AI-powered coaching tool already used by more than half a million players worldwide

If you’ve ever thrown a game because of a bad draft, missed rotations, or your jungler vanished before minute three, there’s now an app that might finally help you clean up your gameplay: iTero.

Developed by the global esports organization GIANTX, the new version of its artificial intelligence training tool —iTero Standalone— arrives with a clear mission: to help players level up their League of Legends performance once and for all.

The new version is fully independent and available for direct download, offering faster performance, better precision, and a smoother overall experience. Lighter, smarter, and more stable, iTero Standalone represents the next step in the evolution of GIANTX’s technology ecosystem, with full control over development and updates.

Founded by Jack Joseph Williams in 2022 and acquired by GIANTX in 2024, iTero Gaming has been developing and refining AI-driven coaching systems for both casual and professional players. Its first virtual coach was designed to enhance the League of Legends experience -developed by Riot Games- by analyzing millions of real matches every patch to deliver personalized recommendations, from strategic macro decisions to champion select choices.

With over 500,000 downloads worldwide, iTero has become one of the most popular performance tools among players of all skill levels. With the release of iTero Standalone, it now aims to become the leading AI coaching platform for gamers.

Five Ways iTero Actually Helps You Get Better at League of Legends

1. It tells you what to pick — and why.

The AI analyzes your team’s and the enemy’s composition to recommend the champion that has the highest chance of winning that game, based on your stats and the current meta. No more questionable picks.

2. And what Build to choose!

After helping you pick the best Champion for the game, the AI also analyzes the enemy composition to decide what the best items, runes, and summoners to take for that specific game. That even includes checking whether anti-heal or anti-shield items are efficient enough to buy!

3. It reviews your matches like a real coach.

After each session, the AI gives data-driven feedback on your macro performance throughout the game and identifies areas you performed well on, and what you struggled with. After ten games, you unlock the AI Macro Coach, which compares your stats with players of your same rank and shows where you’re consistently falling behind.

4. It provides actionable insights about the players in your lobby.

Using its unique data the Scouting Tool provides you with all the information you need to know whilst loading into a game, whether that’s learning that the enemy support loves to invade, your Jungler likes to spend their early game power-farming, or that your lane opponent plays aggressively.

5. All the overlays you expect, and more.

From tracking the gold difference, timing your inhibitor respawns, or quickly checking who has the Baron buff, iTero has every overlay you need to stay on top of your solo queue games.

A New Chapter in the GIANTX Ecosystem

The launch of iTero Standalone reinforces GIANTX’s commitment to technological innovation and expands its presence beyond competition, driving the creation of useful, data-powered products for the gaming and esports community. The organization also practices what it preaches: GIANTX’s performance department already uses AI-based tools to scout talent and support decision-making at the highest competitive level.

With this new version of iTero, GIANTX strengthens its leadership at the intersection of technology, artificial intelligence, and performance, paving the way for a new generation of smarter training in League of Legends —a title that averaged nearly 30 million active players in September 2025 alone.

 

The post The App You Need to Download if You’re Tired of Throwing in League of Legends appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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Winning Partnership: Apparat live on bwin in all-German content deal

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Developer of slots with a German accent integrates 43 games with German top operator

Apparat Gaming, the developer of slot games with a German accent, has added yet another big-name operator to its growing list of partners by entering into a partnership with bwin.

Under the agreement, 43 of Apparat Gaming’s unique slots are made available to players of the award-winning online casino brand bwin.

The operator, which belongs to the Entain Group, has now one of the largest Apparat portfolios on the German market online since November, with 43 of the currently 54 Apparat games eligible for approval under German regulations.

The timing for the partnership couldn’t be better, as bwin was one of the major brands sorely missing from Apparat’s customer list for the German market. The addition of Apparat slots to bwin’s gaming lobby will help position the operator in its fight for German market leadership.

Founded just five years ago, Apparat is one of the up-and-coming game developers in regulated markets due to its German approach to development, with a focus on quality, engineering and providing plenty of Augenweide (eye candy) with absolutely no sense of humour(!) to ensure a superior player experience across its games.

This includes titles such as Total Eclipse XXL, 5 Moon Wolf, Fishin’ the Biggest or Gates of Ishtar. The partnership will also include the missing as well as all of Apparat’s future slot releases like the next release, Piggy Balloons.

Martin Frindt, Chief Product Partnership at Apparat Gaming, said: “It’s great to see that bwin understands the language we speak, even though the casino team is made up of Austrians, and has opted to add our slots with a German accent to its game lobby.”

“We now just hope that the German regulator GGL will approve the remaining games as soon as possible.”

Wanja Richter, Director of Gaming North and Central Europe at Entain, added: “Providing players with access to the best content in the business is a major part of our success story to date, and to be able to offer German players slots that have been developed by Apparat Gaming and that truly capture the essence of Germany is a slam dunk for us.”

“We are happy to finally be working with Apparat and hope to get their upcoming games content approved as quickly as possible!”

 

The post Winning Partnership: Apparat live on bwin in all-German content deal appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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Not Just Games. Experiences: Interview with Gabor, CPO at DreamPlay

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The iGaming industry has evolved far beyond spinning reels and flashy win screens. Today, it’s a rapidly shifting space where player expectations define innovation. Creativity, data, and emotional design have become central to building not just games — but experiences.

We sat down with Gabor, Chief Product Officer at DreamPlay, to discuss what modern slot development really means, how ideas transform into products, and why the future belongs not to games that are simply entertaining — but to those that resonate.

What makes a slot competitive today — math, visuals, gameplay, or a combination of factors? And which matters most?

Gabor: A great game is like an orchestra: you need every instrument playing in harmony or the whole thing falls apart.

The math and design are the heart and soul of every game — without them, even the best art is just a pretty face. Today’s players also expect to be entertained: strong pacing, polished audiovisuals, and features that feel meaningful, not gimmicky.

I always say that one of the challenges of creating great slots is that you have to be able to tell a whole story just through a push of the button — making them feel exciting while being simple and smooth for the player, but this means a lot of complexity for the creator.

So the real magic happens when everything clicks together. The best slots feel effortless, but behind that effortlessness is a very deliberate balance of math, flow, visuals, and just the right level of innovation.”

When working on a new release, what helps you shape the product vision before development even begins?

Gabor: Ideas can come from anywhere – a family vacation, a conversation, a movie, a meme, pretty much anything you can think of.

Creativity thrives when everyone on the team can chip in with their own ideas – we actively encourage that.

But inspiration alone isn’t enough. Every game needs a clear purpose. Is it pushing boundaries? Refreshing a classic theme? Continuing a successful series? We always start by defining the ‘why.’

Then we let data and experience meet in the middle. When the numbers support the idea and our collective instincts say ‘yes, this will work,’ that’s when a concept becomes a vision worth building.”

Do you see potential for an even closer integration of video games and slots, or are they still two different markets?

Gabor:There’s definitely potential — and honestly, the two worlds have been borrowing from each other for years. iGaming has embraced progression systems, more complex storytelling, achievements… while video games picked up loot boxes and other elements from gambling.

They will never fully merge, because the motivations and regulations are different, but there is clearly much more overlap than 10–15 years ago when these two industries were completely different. Today’s players grew up with games that blend entertainment, challenge, psychology, and reward, and they

expect a different form of entertainment than previous generations.

So we’re moving from ‘old-school gambling’ toward ‘interactive entertainment with a gambling core.’ And that trend will only continue.

Is the industry truly ready for bold experimentation, or does it still prefer playing safe?

Gabor: This is where it gets interesting. The industry loves talking about innovation and bold ideas – but in reality, the audience is still quite conservative. Most players enjoy evolution, not revolution.

We’ve seen a few big hits like Megaways and crash games, but they didn’t throw the core DNA of gambling out the window. These mechanics are mainly focused on enhanced entertainment value and presentation.

So yes, there’s room to experiment, but true format-breaking innovations tend to become niche and usually struggle to gain wider traction. The sweet spot is pushing boundaries without losing the essence of why players show up in the first place.”

What was your first step in iGaming, and when did you realize this was your industry?

Gabor: My start was completely unplanned. I moved to Israel from Hungary at 26, didn’t speak Hebrew yet, and was looking for any English-speaking job. A friend worked at an online casino, said they were hiring, and I thought, ‘Perfect, something temporary to help me get settled, I will find a proper job once my Hebrew improves.”

I have never even tried finding a ‘proper job’ afterward. That ‘temporary’ role turned into a 15+ year career across multiple countries, teams, and roles across casino management and game production — and I’ve loved every minute of it.

This industry is fast, sometimes (often) chaotic, but full of brilliant people and challenges that keep you sharp. Even after all these years, I still wake up excited about what we’re building. It’s hard to imagine doing anything else at this point.”

Final Takeaway

The iGaming industry continues its transformation — not just technologically, but emotionally. As Gabor pointed out throughout our conversation, the future belongs not to those who release the most games, but to those who understand what players truly feel.

We’re seeing a shift toward more immersive, meaningful experiences — where design, psychology, and data work together to create lasting engagement.

And it’s leaders like Gabor — and companies like DreamPlay — who are moving the industry forward, proving that innovation isn’t just about features or mechanics… it’s about connection.

Dream Play’s most recent releases and upcoming products here:

👉 Dream Play

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