Today, we break down the latest Creative Trends in mobile game advertising, separating physics-based ad monsters from emerging AI hooks.

Key insights:

Golden Goblins & Physics Overload

Still king: physics balls, crystals, pearls, gems.

Production values keep climbing = now full 2-minute mini-films.

Core loop: satisfying physics + resource overload + fail states.

Iteration chains drive CPI drops but blur originality. “UA in a nutshell: copy, tweak, scale.”

Fail States as Hooks

Overstressed trucks, angry exclamation marks, overload explosions.

Players are drawn to chaos + comedy.

Township 2012-style creatives resurfacing.

Cats, freezing families, classic retargeting.

AI real-life actor ads (feet glitches give them away).

AI anime narrators + skits.

Hijacked accounts accidentally running scammy “AI princess” ads.

Still clunky — but iteration speed makes it dangerous.

Police Snake & Match Villains leading with funny story ads.

Humor = harder to copy, longer shelf life.

Output Benchmarks

Top games producing 60 playables/month to sustain UA spend.

Market Winners

Iterative ads + humor + AI spillover fuel growth.

Takeaway: Physics ads still rule, AI is creeping in, and humor/story hooks are the next battleground.

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This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let’s not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously.

Panelists: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jakub Remia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠r,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Felix Braberg, Matej Lancaric⁠

Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-2um8eguhf-c~H9idcxM271mnPzdWbipg

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Creative Trends

03:37 Exploring the Golden Goblins

11:13 Creative Dashboard Insights

14:14 Innovations in Game Creatives

20:12 Analyzing New Game Mechanics

23:24 The Rise of Short-Form Content

26:13 Exploring AI in Gaming

30:19 Idle Lumber and Game Mechanics

41:26 The Future of AI in Gaming

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Matej Lancaric

User Acquisition & Creatives Consultant

⁠https://lancaric.me

Felix Braberg

Ad monetization consultant

⁠https://www.felixbraberg.com

Jakub Remiar

Game design consultant

⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakubremiar

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Please share feedback and comments - matej@lancaric.me

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If you are interested in getting UA tips every week on Monday, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠lancaric.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & sign up for the Brutally Honest newsletter by Matej Lancaric