Mobile Games News Recap #97

Discover our weekly recap of the mobile games news on Android and iOS issue #97! On the agenda this week: the opening of pre-registration for Devil May Cry on mobile, a futuristic car game from NetEase, the closure ofEchoes of Mana, news from the Squad Busters beta and much more to discover in this recap. We'll let you read it all below. ⬇️

Pre-registration for Devil May Cry: Peak of Combat opens

Let's start this recap with the start of pre-registration for Devil May Cry: Peak of Combat. The famous demon-hunting license is launching on mobile after a partnership with the battle royale Free Fire. This is the perfect opportunity to discover Dante and Nero 's special weapons in dynamic and bloody battles. Go to our dedicated article to pre-register and be notified of the game's release on the day.

End of the first Squad Busters beta and the first feedback from players is positive

Many of you have been waiting for this multiplayer game from Supercell that honors all the games in its iconic licenses. As the Squad Busters beta has just ended, we learn more about the game modes, available characters and all the content coming for the release. Find out everything you need to know about Squad Busters' gameplay in our detailed article.

Rush Royale celebrates its second anniversary and remains top 1 mobile tower defense game

This week, we celebrate the second anniversary of Rush Royale, which ranks as the #1 tower defense game by downloads. Downloaded more than 50 million times in 2 years, this original title mixes gacha, card fusion and tower defense in PvP. You must defend your castle against waves of enemies thanks to the heroes in your deck who have special skills.

To dominate your challengers in PvP and to overcome PvE levels, you have to learn to master synergies and build a smart deck. The idea of a PvP tower defense game is really smart and it is what propelled the game's success to its position as the leader of the genre on mobile. But if you want to discover more original and popular mobile strategy games, find our selection of the best strategy games on Android and iOS.

Closing of Echoes of Mana, one year after the release of the game

The hecatomb of mobile games in 2023 continues and the dominoes are falling one after the other. The biggest participant in this story is obviously Square Enix, whose number of cancelled games has been countless, with the closure of the Onoma studio in Canada and other titles abandoned as early as January. Today, we learn that the game Echoes of Mana will close its doors on May 15, just one year after its launch.

But why? Again, it's a bit of a mystery. The official release simply explains that maintaining the quality envisaged for the game is no longer possible and that Square Enix had to make the difficult decision to end the service. This loss ofEchoes of Mana, a game full of nostalgia, adds to the list of titles classified as Rest In Peace like Apex Legends MobileBattlefield Mobile, some Tales of or Crossfire X which may be in your memory but not in your phone's.

Release of Dust & Neon on Netflix

If you're like us, you may have tested Tomb Raider: Reloaded for Valentine's Day and got a little frustrated with its stalled progress. But there are plenty of other Netflix games to check out, and a new title is being added to that list with the release of Dust & Neon. This twinstick shooter offers you to play as a lone cowboy in a futuristic version of the Great American West.

Shoot down robots faster than your shadow and traverse the entire campaign in about ten hours. With its simple and effective controls, Dust & Neon invites you to dominate the Wild West in toon shader settings right now on Android and iOS with your Netflix subscription.

Tencent will release Undawn this summer in Japan, a post-apo open-world

Level infinite has been releasing new products Tower of Fantasy this summer. After NBA Infinite last week, Tencent's gaming label is making news by announcing the release of its title Undawn in Japan this summer. Set in a particularly detailed post-apocalyptic open-world universe, this title aims for a zombie-laden Fallout-like experience. Zombies, by the way, are what caused the fall of humanity and the devastation of this world.

Undawn is especially anticipated by the mobile community since the developers of PUBG are at the helm of this game as well and the title will be released on PC, consoles and phone. While we don't have any information on a global release at the moment, Undawn has been announced for release in Japan and Korea, so we can expect an opening across Asia before Undawn is available worldwide.

NetEase will use ChatGPT in its new MMORPG Justice Online Mobile

NetEase is often the first to jump on trends and artificial intelligence will be no exception. Between Microsoft and Google's announcements, the Chinese video game publisher has chosen to integrate ChatGPT into its upcoming mobile MMORPG. We tell you all about this advance of AI in video games to bring a deeper dimension to the narrative and the player experience.

Side-scrolling RPG Closers RT: New Order announced for first half of 2023

Announced this week, Closers RT: New Order is scheduled for release in the first half of 2023. Featuring anime graphics, this game follows Closers Online, an action-RPG exclusively available in China. With this new game, the studio Naddic Games puts you in command of the Hippogriff team and focuses on the conflict between humans and creatures in the world beyond.

It's unclear if this will be a truly innovative title with different gameplay from Closers Online or just an overall improved version of the original title that takes place in the heart of Seoul where dimensional portals open up to unleash hordes of enemies. We'll be learning more about the worldwide release of Closers RT: New Order soon, so keep an eye out for the news.

Street Fighter: Duel pre-registration opens

Described as a light strategy game with idle and a classic gacha RPG system, Street Fighter: Duel opens its pre-registration on mobile. Join Ken and Ryu on their adventure to the Fighting Tournament in PvP and PvE, alongside other iconic characters from the Street Fighter license.

In auto or manual mode, multiply combos, farm enemies and develop your team to dominate the ranking. The studio A Plus Japan has announced that the release of the game will take place before the end of the month, so take the opportunity to pre-register for Street Fighter: Duel and get the free rewards launchers that will certainly boost your best Hadoken.

Roadmap Clash Royale 2023

With the beginning of the year, games reveal the roadmap of their content for 2023. It's Clash Royale 's turn to present its upcoming updates. In Supercell's official post, we learn that the Finnish studio plans in the near future :

• to integrate new skills of troops
• to add a level 15 for your cards
• to offer a new feature with the black elixir
• and to rethink the seasons, the royal pass and the temporary challenges.

So you can expect a lot of changes in the next 6 months and new announcements for the different Supercell contents.

Partnerships of the week

We take this opportunity to present the partnerships that have marked the week. First, Fortnite has proposed a major update with a bonus collaboration The Witcher that allows players to access Geralt, who was already seen in the trailer of Chapter 4 Season 1.

Then Free Fire unlocked its content in partnership with Devil May Cry 5 to boost pre-registrations for the next game in the Devil May Cry license and finally NIKKE: Goddess of Victory teamed up with Chainsaw Man in a cocktail of blades and gore.

NetEase's Ace Racer enters pre-registration before its worldwide release

NetEase has definitely taken a step into the future. After announcing the integration of ChatGPT in one of its titles, the publisher decided to invite players from all over the world to pre-register for Ace Racer, its flying car game. Between AI and vehicles capable of floating in the air, NetEase leaves Square Enix in charge of retro games to better target the future with futuristic races. Thus, it will be able to leave Square Enix in its rear-view mirror.

Nexon Block Corporation - Nexon forms new branch dedicated to blockchain games

While NetEase is already moving towards the integration of ChatGPT's AI in its NPC interaction system, Nexon is starting its turn towards blockchain and decided to open a new subsidiary, Nexon Block Corporation dedicated to play-to-earn. This subsidiary works on MapleStory Universe which contains 4 projects, Maplestory N Mobile, its PC version, its SDK version and Mode N, each in blockchain.

We hope that Nexon will make a slightly more interesting use of blockchain than its competitors who have so far been content to reinforce the gacha aspect of their games with more unique items to collect and a business model that tends to harm the substance of the gameplay.

Victory Belles gacha RPG to be released on February 22

Mobile game releases are progressing well in February and Victory Belles will soon join the titles already released this month. Scheduled for release on February 22, Victory Belles will bring a new World War II game with female ships. In-game, collect waifus to create your squad of Belles and defeat the Morganas, the opposing shipwomen.

Develop relationships with the characters you unlock from the 160 heroines available at launch and secure your victory in streamlined naval battles. Playable free-to-play on February 22 on Android and iOS, Victory Belles attempts to make World War II sexy in 2023.

GMF Interactive Ten Dates offers you the opportunity to participate in a romantic comedy

Valentine's Day is behind us, but maybe your need for love isn't being met. If that's the case, you might enjoy trying out the interactive FMV Ten Dates on Android and iOS. Published by Wales Interactive, this all-media romantic comedy takes the live action shots from its movie and offers you the chance to participate in the experience that follows Five Dates.

With a swipe left or right, choose your match as either Misha or Ryan in search of your soul mate. Entirely in English, this title immortalizes the worst of the pickup lines, lame romantic comedy jokes and eccentric personalities of your romantic dates. Ten Dates is available now on Android and iOS to test your dialogue choices in the face of love.

The excellent narrative adventure game Lost Words: Beyond the Page announced on mobile

If the power of words were to be embodied in a video game, aside from Baba is You, Lost Words: Beyond The Page would surely deserve the trophy for one of the best interpretations. Currently available for pre-registration on stores, Lost Words immerses you in Izzy's adventure as she reveals all her humanity in her poignant diary, written with confidence by Rhianna Pratchett.

The world of Estoria will have you playing with words, with words and against words with infinite 2D poetry on the pages of Izzy's book of life. Awarded by the press, Lost Words will offer 2 free chapters at its release with a full premium version available for a few euros to reach the status of Fireflies Guardian.

City Builder Terra Nil to arrive on Netflix Games in spring

After the rising waters presented by Highwater, Netflix Games believes that it is finally possible to save humanity from an ecological tragedy. That's what Terra Nil, a smart and peaceful simulation game from Devolver, is all about. The game should be released in spring and will be available in your Netflix subscription. So, if you are curious about its gameplay, go and discover it in our detailed article.

COD Warzone Mobile gets a season 2 in some regions the world is still waiting for it

Even though it hasn't been released here yet, Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile is already presenting its season 2 to the mobile community. Only available in Australia since November, the game enters a new season with an original Battle Pass, additional weapons and operators and new features.

Unless you're playing it with a VPN, I doubt you'd want to hear all the details of an update for a game you don't have access to and that still doesn't have a release date! But considering that the game is getting improved features like shader compilation, iOS compatibility for games, addition of Spanish and French languages and content development, we start to feel that the game has waited long enough before opening up to other countries, even if there is no worldwide release date yet.

Supercell is thinking about other media than mobile

In parallel to the progress made by Clash Minithe Finnish studio that created the game reveals some future projects and past regrets. Despite more than 4 years without a worldwide release, Supercell has continued to relentlessly develop new games, trying to invent new ways to play. The studio's CEO also talks about Supercell projects on PC and consoles in the future, with great development possibilities. I'll detail the content of Supercell projects for 2023 and beyond in a full article to be discovered without delay if you are a fan of their games!

Kids would have spent more time on Roblox than any other app in 2022

To conclude this recap with some stats, let's talk about the most used application by kids in 2022... Roblox. Kids spent more cumulative time on Roblox than on any other mobile application with an average of 3 hours per day, 1 hour more than TikTok.

The game was also the most blogged about by parents in 2022 and was chosen as the favorite game by 59% of kids, ahead of Clash Royale and Minecraft according to Qustodio. In addition, Roblox confirms its place at the top of the charts with the release of official Sonic content as Speed Simulator Roblox, Ninja Turtles and even SpongeBob soon.

Thank you all for reading this far, and see you next week for more mobile gaming news! If you missed last week's news, our previous recap #96 was about the release of Tower of God: Great Journey, the possibility of a Horizon Zero Dawn game on mobile, the opening of HunterxHunter pre-registrations and much more to be found in our news.