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Join us for exclusive interviews with gaming industry giants! In our first series, the Sandpit Sessions, we're focusing on the Middle East, discussing all the exciting opportunities emerging from the region.

LATEST EPISODE

EPISODE 9: Mobile Gaming Industry Predictions for 2025

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Ivan and I chat about what we think will happen in the mobile games industry in 2025, from Direct-to-Consumer to Web3 and rewarded UA networks.

YOUR HOSTS

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Farhan Haq

Performance marketing, user acquisition and ad monetisation gaming veteran.

Farhan has over a decade of experience leading performance marketing teams in mobile gaming companies such as Socialpoint, Nanobit, Sybo, and Carry 1st. He is now running his own boutique games marketing consultancy - hyperhq.io, has a passion for building indie games, and wants to share more about the business of gaming with the world.

His dedication, knowledge, and expertise within the gaming industry have earned him recognition as one of the top networkers out there.

Ivan  Trančik

Forbes 30 under 30, Slush Top 100, Startup Sauna Alumni.

Entrepreneur, game growth-hacker and gamer.

 

Ivan and his team at SuperScale have helped scale over 150 games, totaling more than 2 billion downloads on mobile and over 20 million copies sold on PC/Console.

Ivan has collaborated closely with leading game companies worldwide, including EA, Big Fish Games, LEGO, Google Play, Fingersoft, Paradox, BoomBit, and others, assisting them in analyzing hundreds of millions of players on their flagship titles.

To address technical challenges in game business analytics, he co-founded a scalable real-time analytics platform known as Exponea (raised $35M VC capital, acquired by Bloomreach in 2021).

Driven by his true passion, Ivan founded SuperScale in 2016, a growth platform that helps mobile/NFT games reach their maximum potential.Ivan frequently speaks at various conferences about game business analytics and game growth/retention hacking.

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EPISODES

EPISODE 1: Gaming in the Middle East UNFILTERED

Live from Dubai, Farhan and Ivan unveil how and why the Middle East has become a major player in the gaming industry. They share exciting opportunities brewing in UAE & Dubai's scene, insights on securing investment, the latest marketing trends, and cutting edge monetization strategies.

EPISODE 2: How to build a gaming company in Saudi Arabia

We spoke with the winner of BEST GAMES STARTUP AWARD in the MENA region at PGC Dubai, Muslih Alzahrani, a Co-Founder of Starvania Studio about living out his dream of building a games company in his native Saudi Arabia, with backing from NEOM.

EPISODE 3: How Yallaplay successfully moved their company to the UAE

We spoke to Kareem Seddik, the CEO of Yallaplay, on how he moved his games company from the USA to Abu Dhabi, UAE, and how he raised money from non tech investors. Must listen if you want to know more about gaming in the United Arab of Emirates.

EPISODE 4: The HUGE potential of gaming in Saudi Arabia

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In Gamepod Episode 4 we met with Magdy Shehata from SöderhubReflect Festival in Limassol, Cyprus, to talk about the big moves going on in the world of gaming in Saudi Arabia, and how he helps Nordic companies setup shop in the Middle East.

EPISODE 5: Baghdad Game Lab -The hidden gem of the Middle East!

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We interviewed, during ‪@gamescom.global‬, Abdul A. Majeed, from Baghdad Game Lab, about the Iraqi gaming scene and how 6 companies have been brought together by BGL, to look for foreign investment into this hidden gem of cultural games!

EPISODE 6: Neom backed Murder Mystery Game with an Arabic Twist

We spoke to Abdulaziz Alghamdi, CEO of from Lucky 7 Studios, a @neom backed gaming company at @gamescom.global at the @neom booth itself, about their latest Murder Mystery game, Private Eye coming out soon, and what's it like to make games in KSA.

EPISODE 7:  Kwalee discusses the pros and cons of gaming in KSA

In this episode, I met Sayeed Rahman, from ‪@KwaleeGames‬ to discuss why Kwalee have taken a keen interest in Saudi Arabia and looking for games in the region, plus their possible partnerships and views on ‪@neom‬

EPISODE 8: From Hyper Casual to VR in Tehran

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I met with Sahand Melaei, CEO of Dropout Games, who I met at the HIT Games Conference in Abu Dhabi. Amazing to talk to our first Iranian games studio in Tehran on Gamepod, about shifting from hypercasual to a new breed of casual VR gaming, and what it's like to operate in Iran!

EPISODE 9: Mobile Gaming Industry Predictions for 2025

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Ivan and I chat about what we think will happen in the mobile games industry in 2025, from Direct-to-Consumer to Web3 and rewarded UA networks.

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