Pixel P&L: Moonton Pushes Next MLBB World Championship to 2026
Moonton has revealed that its marquee Mobile Legends M7 World Championship will skip 2025, with the event now rescheduled for 2026. In today’s Pixel P&L, we examine the company’s revamped esports circuit for 2025, detailing the slate of tournaments and regional leagues slated to fill the gap and the rationale behind the delay of its flagship championship.
Elsewhere, we recap The Game Awards 2024, spotlighting the biggest winners and groundbreaking announcements shaping the industry. This edition also reports on a new THE FINALS tournament for India and analyzes China’s record-setting gaming revenue in 2024.
Moonton Games Unveils 2025 Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Esports Roadmap
MOONTON GAMES announced its 2025 esports roadmap for Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) during the M6 Summit, detailing its flagship competitions and key third-party tournaments. The MLBB Mid Season Cup (MSC) will take place from mid-July to early August, while the M7 World Championship has been rescheduled to January 2026. MLBB will still feature prominently in December 2025 at the 33rd Southeast Asian Games in Thailand, with medaled events for men’s and women’s categories.
The roadmap highlighted third-party events such as the Snapdragon Pro Series, a mobile esports ecosystem by ESL FACEIT Group - EFG and Qualcomm . Moonton also reaffirmed its commitment to its half-yearly MLBB Professional Leagues (MPL), which span regions like Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia, LATAM and MENA.
In addition, Moonton signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Jordan Esports Federation to develop Jordan’s gaming ecosystem. “MLBB’s global expansion continues to thrive,” said Mike Chu , Head of Regional Esports at Moonton.
The Game Awards 2024 Roundup: Winners and Reveals
Big Winners:
Astro Bot stole the spotlight at The Game Awards 2024, taking home four awards, including the prestigious Game of the Year. The PlayStation 5 exclusive celebrated Sony’s console history with charming gameplay and heartfelt nostalgia. Studio Director Nicolas Doucet, in his acceptance speech, paid tribute to Nintendo’s Super Mario Bros., without naming the competitor, saying, “I want to pay tribute to the company who showed us innovation and quality consistently.”
Indie game Balatro, a poker-inspired title from solo developer LocalThunk, also made waves, winning Best Debut Indie, Best Independent Game, and Best Mobile Game. LocalThunk’s representative highlighted the indie scene, calling out pixel western Arco as a standout. Other notable winners included Metaphor: ReFantazio and Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2, with Melina Juergens earning Best Performance for her role in the latter.
Big Reveals:
High-budget premieres thrilled fans throughout the night. CD Projekt Red debuted the first trailer for The Witcher 4, while FromSoftware surprised audiences with Elden Ring: Nightreign, a co-op spin-off of the 2022 hit. Hazelight Studios, creators of It Takes Two, unveiled Split Fiction, a cooperative adventure set for March 2025.
The star power continued with Aaron Paul and Laura Bailey showcasing their roles in Dispatch, a tongue-in-cheek superhero story. In a final twist, Naughty Dog unveiled Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, marking the studio’s entry into a new franchise.
Host Geoff Keighley also addressed industry challenges, honoring Tencent’s Amir Satvat with the inaugural “Gamechanger Award” for supporting displaced developers.
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⚡Quick Bytes
• THE FINALS Announces Influencers Armageddon to Close 2024
The tournament will be hosted by Skyesports and run from Dec. 18 to 27 and feature ten teams led by prominent Indian gaming creators. Details about the prize pool and participants remain undisclosed.
• China’s Gaming Market Hits Record $44.8 Billion in 2024, Growth Slows
China’s video gaming industry expanded 7.53% this year, achieving record sales of 325.8 billion yuan (US$44.8 billion), according to the China Audio-Video and Digital Publishing Association. The domestic market, the world’s second-largest, marked its highest annual sales since tracking began in 2003, though growth slowed from last year’s 14%.
Mobile games dominated with 238.2 billion yuan in sales, up 5%, while PC games contributed 68 billion yuan. Overseas sales climbed 13.4% to US$18.6 billion, the first increase in three years. The association credited policy support and hit titles for the gains, as China’s gamer base grew to 674 million.
• Epic Games Partners with Telecom Company to pre-install Fortnite and Epic Games Store.
Telecom giant Telefónica will pre-install Epic Games' apps on Android devices across Spain, the U.K., Germany, and Latin America through 2025. Telefónica is also the first mobile carrier to introduce Direct Carrier Billing for Epic Games, allowing users to charge purchases directly to their phone bills. The collaboration aims to boost accessibility for players while leveraging Telefónica’s extensive market reach.
💡 Did You Know?
Mahatma Gandhi, the leader of India's independence movement, is featured in the 1993 educational video game Mario's Time Machine. In this game, players control Mario as he travels through time to return stolen artifacts to their rightful places in history.
One mission takes Mario to Calcutta (now Kolkata) in 1947, where he meets Gandhi and returns the Indian flag. The encounter introduces players to Gandhi’s philosophy of nonviolence and his pivotal role in India’s struggle for independence.
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