Mattel and mobile game developer Rollic are collaborating on a new Barbie title that will launch sometime later this year. 

There are no details available about the game yet, but it’s part of a broader strategy in play at Mattel to increase its digital gaming revenue. The toyco is planning to launch more licensed video games in order to expand the reach of its IPs in lucrative consumer markets. 

Istanbul-based Rollic (Merge the Jelly, Punch Machine) has had a lot of success in the mobile gaming space; its titles have collectively been downloaded more than 2.7 billion times worldwide, and are available in more than 175 countries. The company’s model is to make casual games and then update them frequently to tap into trends. Zynga acquired Rollic in October 2020. 

Digital gaming is a hot market for Mattel at a time when most toycos are struggling. In his Q4 earnings call on February 7, CEO Ynon Kreiz called out the gaming division’s success in launching the first stand-alone Barbie Roblox game, which has racked up 130 million visits since October. And joint-venture Mattel163, which makes mobile games based on Mattel IPs, generated nearly US$200 million in revenue last year.