ANAHATA

Journal

From the studio

Illustration of a game conference hall with demo stations and lanterns in front of a South Indian temple-style gateway

Industry Trends · 3 min

India Game Developer Conference 2026 Is Three Weeks Away: How a Small Studio Should Prepare

IGDC 2026 runs October 28 to 29 in Chennai with 10,000+ attendees expected. A practical prep plan for small Indian studios.

A glowing smartphone showing a cartoon kart game on a winding road at sunset with a power-off icon above it

Industry Trends · 2 min

Mario Kart Tour Is Gone: A Shutdown Checklist for Small Studios Running Live Games

Nintendo switched off Mario Kart Tour after nearly seven years. What the shutdown sequence teaches small studios about ending a live game well.

Illustration of two glowing server towers on either side of a balance scale with a mobile game on a phone in front

Industry Trends · 3 min

AppLovin Sues Unity Over Ad Data: What Indian Ad-Funded Studios Should Check This Week

AppLovin has sued Unity over data collected by its Ad Quality SDK. Here is what is alleged, what Unity says, and a practical checklist for ad-funded Indian studios.

Illustration of a wooden charkha spinning wheel and a game controller on a cotton mat at sunrise, with a line of distant walkers on a long dusty road

Industry Trends · 4 min

Gandhi Jayanti and Games: What the Numbers Say About Violence in Games and Why It Matters in India

India has over 600 million mobile gamers, and shooters lead in-app revenue. On Gandhi Jayanti, a look at what research on about 1,000 teenagers and the APA's 2020 resolution actually say about violent games, with the numbers and their limits.

Illustration of a solo game developer at night working at three monitors, helped by glowing translucent AI assistant figures, with an empty chair beside her desk

Industry Trends · 2 min

A Third of Game Founders Are Skipping Hires Because of AI. What Small Studios Should Take From It

A new industry survey says 35% of game founders have decided against hiring because AI tools could do the work. What the numbers mean for small and indie studios, and where speed from AI helps and where it doesn't.

Illustration of four young Indian game developers working at laptops in a Bengaluru startup office at golden hour, with a budget Android phone running a game and a seedling growing from a game controller

Industry Trends · 2 min

Krafton Is Betting on Budget Phones and Indian Studios: BGMI Lite and KIGI Cohort 4

Krafton has announced BGMI Lite for budget phones by the end of 2026 and opened applications for its India Gaming Incubator with $50,000 to $150,000 in support. Here is what both moves mean for Indian mobile studios.

Illustration of a smartphone with a video player screen, a cartoon runner character bursting out of it with colorful blocks, coins and puzzle pieces, in front of a glowing world map

Industry Trends · 2 min

YouTube Playables Is Now in 50+ Markets. Web Builds Just Got Worth Doing Again

YouTube has expanded Playables, its instant games inside the YouTube app, to more than 50 markets including the EU. With runner games passing 100 million plays and in-app purchases planned for 2027, a lightweight web build is now a real distribution channel for mobile studios.

Illustration of a young Indian gamer on a city rooftop at dusk holding a glowing smartphone, looking toward a distant esports arena lit with stage lights and fireworks

Industry Trends · 2 min

India Plays Esports on Its Phones. Its Asian Games Team Doesn't.

Four of the 11 esports titles at the 2026 Asian Games are mobile games, yet India's 15-player squad plays none of them. BGMI and PUBG Mobile were left out over regulatory concerns, and that tells Indian studios a lot about where competitive mobile games are heading.

Illustration of two smartphones showing block puzzle boards, one original and one faded copy, with a judge's gavel and scales of justice between them

Industry Trends · 2 min

Mechanics Are Free, Art Isn't: What the Block Blast Cloning Case Means for Puzzle Studios

A California court sided with Block Blast maker Hungry Studio in its copyright case against Oakever Games, and Avia Games has a separate suit over copied ads. The lesson for puzzle studios: game mechanics are fair game, but art, interface, sound and ad creatives are not.