Supercell’s chief executive officer Ikka Paananen has acknowledged that the company must take risks to transform the mobile gaming industry by 2030. The Finland-headquartered firm, which also has offices in the United Kingdom, United States, South Korea and China, already has billion-dollar hits such as Clash of Clans and Brawl Stars.
However, despite pumping more money into the company and even tinkering with artificial intelligence, the company has struggled to produce another big-money hit. Paananen has made it clear that Supercell needs to think outside the box and make games that players can resonate with in the long term. Despite his stance, it is becoming increasingly clear that the company might be looking for gold in the wrong places.
The mobile gaming industry has matured and evolved. There is plenty of competition, and gamers are not as intrigued by flashy new releases anymore.
Supercell might need to step out of their comfort zone by exploring opportunities in other areas and the lucrative iGaming sector is worth considering.
The gap between mobile gaming and online casinos is not as wide as it seems and Supercell already has the tools to cross the divide.
A Market Searching for New Frontiers
Supercell has been pondering how to develop their next big hit, but it has been difficult coming up with a title that gets gamers glued to their screens.
But the issue is far more nuanced than that. Games are taking longer to develop and are more expensive to maintain. There is also growing competition in the gaming space.
And that’s not just from other games. The pressure is also coming from social media, music apps, streaming platforms and more. It seems there are so many battles to fight all at once.
Paananen has pointed out that players still spend most of their time on older games – those that have proven they can stand the test of time. But new games are struggling to get any attention.
Squad Busters is a great example. It flew out of the gates when it debuted, but the hype has faded since, and it hasn’t lived up to expectations.
Mo.co then entered the fray. The monster-hunting game was initially an experiment. Supercell only invited a few gamers to test it out, but the result was uninspiring.
“It’s hard to measure what they consider to be a success with that one,” says Neil Long, the founder and editor of mobilegamer.biz, and who has been a video games journalist for more than 20 years.
“It’s still invitation only and hasn’t really set the world on fire. Mobile games are quite an extreme business, where the successes are really big, but also the failures are really, really big.”
This doesn’t necessarily mean that Supercell has run out of ideas or ambition. It is just the reality of a saturated market. But the solution to Supercell’s problems could lie in the most unexpected places.
Moving into iGaming Might be a Smart Play
While online gambling is legal in numerous markets worldwide, including some parts of the Middle East, not everyone has jumped on the bandwagon.
Kuwait hasn’t, although the landscape could change. Many of the online casinos featured on comparison platform كازينوالكويت operate under licenses issued by authorities in overseas jurisdictions.
If the Kuwaiti government established its own regulatory organisation, Supercell could use its gaming expertise to develop the early landscape.
According to multiple forecasts, the global iGaming market is expected to surpass $100 billion in annual revenue over the next five years.
What makes it even more appealing for Supercell is the fact that it is increasingly mobile-first. Mobile devices are now the primary method for accessing online casinos in many countries.
The customer base is there. The revenue is there. The demand for games is also stronger than ever. Some people may argue that iGaming and mobile gaming serve different audiences.
When you bring ethics into the conversation, you can draw a line between the two industries to an extent. But there are certain areas where they overlap.
If Supercell enters the iGaming space, they could bring the polish, accessibility and aesthetic pleasure that the industry thrives upon.
It could also attract a new generation of gamers who are used to high-quality mobile games but also curious about real-money experiences.
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