Curveball publishing 🎮, VC rejections 💸, WeChat playable ads 🌏
Studios & Funding Moves 💼
Curveball Games Debuts with Veteran Team and Strong Partnerships
Curveball Leisure has launched Curveball Games, a publisher backing “unique” indie–AA titles across digital and physical formats. Led by ex-PlayStation/PQube veteran Ed Gregory and operating from Cardiff, the label has already partnered with Wales Interactive, Top Hat Studios, Duality Games, Reignite Group, Kevin Toms, and Riddlebit Software. With plans to expand into 2026, Curveball promises resources, transparency, and long-term support to help surface standout talent amid industry turbulence.
Why VCs Say No: Joakim Achrén’s Updated Playbook
VC Joakim Achrén shares 20 updated reasons he passes on game and gaming-adjacent startups—and how to avoid them. Expect scrutiny on market scale, real differentiation, GTM clarity, and team “learning machine” mindset. He flags red-ocean genres, inflated valuations, short runways, and hidden tech debt as frequent deal-killers. Use this as a pre-pitch checklist to turn passes into yeses.
Creator Tools & Pipelines 🛠️
Build Stylized Rockscapes Fast with Titan Rock Generator for Unity
Dot Products’ Titan Rock Generator speeds up stylized environment creation in Unity with 30 base meshes, easy controls for scale, rotation, density, and color, plus 7 shaders and 19 preset materials. Its tri-planar projection removes UV hassle so one material can cover entire formations. Compatible with Unity 2019.4+ across URP, HDRP, and Built-in, the tool’s roadmap promises new rock shapes, generation algorithms, and paint-on-field placement.
ACES 2.0 Lands in Blender: What Artists Need to Know
Blender 5.0 is previewing ACES 2.0 with a new view transform that offers a modern alternative to AgX and Filmic. It’s especially handy for teams in ACES pipelines who don’t need the full OpenColorIO setup. Christopher 3D breaks down HDR behavior, current limitations, and comparisons with previous systems. Blender 5.0 beta is expected October 1, 2025.
Growth, Monetization & Ethics 📈
From WeChat to Worldwide: Screw Master 3D’s Playable Ads Breakout
EOGAMES and Supersonic took Screw Master 3D from a WeChat mini-game to a global hit—without redesigning the core loop. By integrating rewarded video with high-impact IAPs (revenue/skip cards, skin shop) and leaning into playable ads, D30 retention rose 15%, ARPU hit $3.70, and daily revenue topped $100K within three months. Playables scaled installs from 61K in month one to 2.8M by month three. WeChat proved a powerful, underused launchpad and rapid-iteration testbed.
Engagement → Retention → Revenue: Designing Ethical Multiplayer Economies
Monetization can’t be bolted on to multiplayer—it must be designed from day one. This talk explains how to build sustainable, ethical economies with sinks/sources, anchor currencies, and ratchets, balance skill with progression, and make cosmetics matter via a “vanity loop.” Learn how seasonality, predictable surprise, and well-structured battle passes turn engagement into retention—and retention into revenue—without pay-to-win.