Mobile Games Market Review: Key Highlights from September 2025

GameRefinery, a Liftoff company, released an insightful report on the mobile gaming landscape in September 2025, spotlighting notable game updates, emerging trends, and innovative features shaping the industry.

Roblox Launches “Moments” Tool to Enhance Organic Game Discovery

Roblox introduced a new feature named “Moments”, enabling players to create and share short video clips of their gameplay, akin to TikTok and Instagram Reels. A standout aspect is the “join” button, which allows viewers to directly enter the game featured in the clip, effectively boosting organic game discovery. This development underscores the power of user-generated content (UGC) as a driver for player acquisition.

Rewarded Ads Gain Traction in Roblox

Alongside “Moments,” rewarded advertisements are becoming more popular within Roblox. This aligns with a wider industry shift towards monetization models leveraging player engagement and incentives.

Fortnite’s Unreal Editor (UEFN) Supports Developer Revenue

In a related move, Unreal Editor for Fortnite now permits developers to integrate their own in-app purchases (IAPs) and receive a full revenue share during the first year. This complements the surge in UGC-supported games, which a 2025 UGC Study found earn 31% more revenue over five years compared to games without UGC frameworks.

Major Game Updates and Launches

PUBG Mobile’s New “Unfail” Mode

PUBG Mobile launched version 4.0, introducing “Unfail,” a 1v4 asymmetric mode inspired by Dead by Daylight. Positioned as a permanent mode rather than a seasonal event, “Unfail” is timely ahead of Halloween, enhancing player engagement with novel gameplay dynamics.

Pokémon TCG Pocket Introduces Limited-Time Gacha

Pokémon TCG Pocket debuted its first limited-time gacha event, featuring Deluxe Packs containing existing and Parallel Foil cards. Each pack guarantees at least one exclusive card, effectively increasing player incentives to make purchases. This strategy led to the highest daily revenue spike since April in the US market.

Bandai Namco’s DRAGON BALL GEKISHIN SQUADRA: New Free-to-Play MOBA

Bandai Namco released DRAGON BALL GEKISHIN SQUADRA, the first team-focused free-to-play MOBA based on the Dragon Ball franchise. Despite initial download success and peaking at grossing rank 129, the game faces challenges typical to mobile MOBAs, including connectivity issues. Its performance remains under observation given the inherent market risks for mobile MOBAs.

Industry Insights by GameRefinery

GameRefinery leverages extensive data and expert analysis to unpack mobile games’ feature-level trends and success drivers. Their clients include major studios like Zynga, Wargaming, and King, supporting decision-making from game development through live operations.

For a comprehensive September 2025 market review, visit the GameRefinery website.

Summary: The mobile gaming market in September 2025 saw Roblox innovating with “Moments” to enhance organic player acquisition through UGC-driven discovery. Rewarded ads continue to rise, while significant updates from PUBG Mobile and Pokémon TCG Pocket drive player engagement and revenue. Bandai Namco’s Dragon Ball MOBA launch faces typical challenges but benefits from a strong IP. Overall, UGC and incentivized ads are shaping monetization and discovery strategies in mobile gaming.

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