Deconstructor of Fun

Match-3 is harder than ever to win, clones are getting taken down, and Royal Kingdom is scaling toward the top of the puzzle market.In this episode of Puzzle Monthly, we break down the real state of puzzle games in 2026, from Turkish startup funding to Supercell’s latest attempt, Pixel Flow clone drama, and whether Royal Kingdom can actually challenge Candy Crush.Topics Covered:● Turkish puzzle startups raise fresh funding and why the ecosystem keeps producing hits● Supercell tries puzzle again with Hay Day Match, and why timing might be wrong● Is Match-3 innovation dead? The debate on risk vs scale in today’s market● Pixel Flow clone gets taken down. Are copycats finally under pressure?● The real monetization strategy: UA costs, clones, and ad funnels explained● Royal Kingdom’s explosive growth and whether it can ever reach Candy Crush level● Why most new puzzle games fail, and what it actually takes to win todayCHAPTERS: 01:35 Turkish Seed Funding Wave02:13 Cheer Games and Hexa Sort Playbook05:23 Supercell Tries Heyday Match09:45 Why Match Three Is Stuck10:47 Innovation vs Scale Debate12:52 King Sequels and Meta Lessons15:56 Farm Heroes Saga Hits $2B21:08 Pixel Flow Clone Takedown23:27 Trade Dress And Platform Rules24:57 Why Copycats Make Money26:54 Clone Ads As Strategy29:52 Royal Kingdom Relaunch Story31:39 Growth Charts And Celebrity UA33:13 Can It Beat Candy Crush33:30 Paid Installs Profitability Math35:00 Organic Fame And Payback Window37:08 Cannibalization Versus Incremental38:42 Live Ops Similarities And PVE43:14 Wrap Up And Next Episode

Game Pass just got cheaper, China is rewriting the mobile market, and Ubisoft ships one of the most polished mobile games in years.

Topics Covered:

● Xbox drops Game Pass Ultimate by 23% and pulls Call of Duty from day one, but none of it actually fixes what's broken
● Chinese, Hong Kong, and Singapore publishers now own 30% of Western mobile revenue, up from 16% in 2019
● Pokémon Go surged 52% in downloads during its 30th anniversary, and why it's bigger than just one marketing event
● Why the US should stop competing on mobile content and start owning platforms like Roblox, Steam, and Unreal instead
● Division Resurgence is a genuinely great game with no audience in the West and one last hope, China
● Disney quietly pulls 30 licensed games from Steam with no explanation

CHAPTERS:
01:56 Phil’s China Trip Takeaways
04:19 Joachim Shoutout and Sponsor
06:52 Xbox Game Pass Price Cut News
10:55 Call of Duty Math Debate
15:52 Mobile Market Q1 Snapshot
19:53 Top Games and Pokemon Spike
22:49 China Dominance and New Hubs
36:43 EU: Stop Killing Games
41:21 Does Preservation Matter
43:55 Division Resurgence Numbers
45:18 Why Shooters Need China
49:42 PC Port and Controls
51:02 Mobile vs Console Culture
53:29 What Makes a Platform
54:16 Mods Create Mega Hits
59:21 Japan Builds Game IP
01:01:53 Licensing vs Hybrid Bets
01:03:09 Disney Steam Purge
01:04:01 Hasbro Hybrid Critique
01:06:33 Final Wrap and Thanks

Two kids. Zero filter. All the takes. Rocky and Mickey are back for Twig Jr., and they didn't hold back. From aging out of Roblox to explaining brain rot to calling out in-game money grabs, this is how Gen Alpha actually thinks about games.
Topics Covered:
● Roblox's highs and lows and what's actually gone downhill
● Friend Slop and how it's replacing traditional multiplayer
● Brain-rot games and why kids are starting to walk away
● Why Rocky and Mickey have mostly quit mobile gaming
● Discord vs iMessage and how Gen Alpha talks while gaming
● Graphics vs style and why fidelity isn't everything

The mobile gaming ecosystem is shifting fast this month. We break down the shocking deplatforming of Freecash, a $500M+ rewarded ad network, and what it signals for the future of user acquisition. Then we dive into Unity’s major strategic pivot: shutting down ironSource and going all-in on Vector. Is Vector actually working, or just great marketing?

Topics Covered:
● Freecash ban: what happened and why it matters
● The future of rewarded ad networks
● Unity shutting down ironSource
● Vector performance, growth, and real-world results
● The ongoing battle with AppLovin

We sit down with Joakim Achren, serial entrepreneur, former GP at F4 Fund, and now AI-first founder, to talk about why he walked away from venture capital and what he's building next.Topics Covered:● The founder-turned-VC trap: why it sounds like a natural progression but has a flaw nobody warns you about
● Micro-fund economics: a $10M fund pays you less than a startup salary, and you spend half your time fundraising for the next one
● Why industry clout doesn't move LP capital, and the relationship mistake that cost him the raise
● Gaming VC right now: why LPs burned in the COVID boom aren't writing new checks
● The three-legged stool of VC — LPs, founders, co-investors — and why you're competing and cooperating with the same people simultaneously
● How Claude Code became his entire publishing company and let him ship a book solo
● Distribution is the last human moat: why creativity and authenticity are what AI keeps failing at
● The AI productivity trap: working 18-hour days, thinking less, producing more mediocre output faster
● Why he wrote a sleep book for founders, and what chronic bad sleep does to your brain in the long term

Joakim's new book available now: https://sleepagain.co