Supercell has stated that there is no reason there should not be more mobile games featured at Summer Game Fest

Supercell sees potential for mobile games to gain more visibility at events similar to Summer Game Fest.

Differentiating itself, the Finnish studio was the sole presenter of a mobile-exclusive title during this year's event on Friday, showcasing the live-action trailer for Squad Busters.

Rob Lowe, the marketing director at Supercell, mentioned to GamesIndustry.biz that there was initial resistance from the organizers of Summer Game Fest to include their game.

"It was tough," he revealed. "Geoff [Keighley, the event's creator and host] initially doubted it. They had featured Genshin Impact briefly, but that's available on consoles too. Mobile-only games hadn't really been their focus."

Lowe further shared that a video clip featuring actor and comedian Ken Jeong, dressed as a chicken from Supercell's game Hay Day, played a crucial role in their inclusion. Jeong's appearance in the Squad Busters trailer, discussing Summer Game Fest, added the necessary context.

"I think Geoff found it amusing," Lowe chuckled. "So, we got the green light. Of course, there was a fee involved. But having Ken's segment as an introduction to our advertisement made it work for the SGF audience."

Lowe highlighted that mobile gaming constitutes nearly half of the global game market's revenue, emphasizing the need for mobile games to be featured alongside console and PC titles at major events.

"We aspire to achieve a similar footprint in mobile gaming as Nintendo has in the console sector," Lowe said. "Our game development and marketing strategies are crafted with this vision. Essentially, every smartphone is a portable console."

He added, "There's no reason why top-tier games shouldn't be showcased on smartphones, especially with emerging streaming services from the likes of Netflix and Xbox."

Squad Busters, released on May 29, is a multiplayer action game featuring characters from Supercell's previous games like Hay Day and Clash of Clans. It has amassed over 30 million downloads and earned $1.1 million at launch.

Stay tuned for a detailed interview with Supercell later this week.