As Tilting Point readies its latest wave of growth initiatives, including the launch of a $150 million user acquisition fund, Dale Kerr, Senior Game Growth Manager, offers a detailed look at how the company is evolving its UA strategy, shifting away from traditional publishing, leveraging performance marketing across emerging channels, and refining creative execution around high-value IPs like Avatar: The Last Airbender and Godzilla vs. Kong.

Ahead of the Midcore Marketing Panel at Gamesforum Hamburg, in this interview she shares how the new fund is reshaping partnerships, and what metrics truly matter for midcore games.

Tilting Point’s $150M UA fund puts power in developers’ hands

The $150 million UA fund we recently launched is fully dedicated to financing external games and apps, it’s not allocated to our internal Tilting Point portfolio. This fund is part of our broader UA financing arm, one of three core business lines at Tilting Point, alongside our owned game portfolio and M&A activities.

As our third UA fund—following those launched in 2016 and 2018 - this new capital is a critical enabler of our 2025 investment strategy. It significantly expands our ability to back high-potential developers with full UA funding, particularly across mobile and web platforms.

Our approach to working with developers has evolved over the years - we’ve moved away from traditional third-party publishing in favor of UA financing, a model that better aligns with the needs of today’s top developers. Many no longer seek full publishing deals—they want capital and a reliable growth partner, while maintaining control of their product. 

When selecting UA financing partners, we look for games and apps that are already investing meaningfully in UA, with clear potential to scale far beyond their current level. While games remain a core focus we’re increasingly open to non-gaming apps and SaaS products where our performance marketing expertise can drive meaningful, measurable growth.

Tilting Point taps new UA gold in channels beyond the duopoly

Beyond traditional platforms like Facebook and Google, which alternative UA channels have proven effective for midcore titles, and how do you assess their performance?

We are constantly testing new channels across the Tilting Point portfolio. We see success not just with newer channels like rewarded networks, but also see strong performance from Tiktok currently for example.  

Avatar and Godzilla power creatives that convert

I am lucky to work with multiple fantastic IPs like Avatar: The Last Airbender and Godzilla vs Kong. Promoting these titles gives us the opportunity to go beyond showcasing just gameplay, but showcasing an immersive experience that  fans can’t wait to play. For example, players can collect many of their highly recognisable favourite characters (with more constantly being added) so we communicate this in our creatives. 

Blending brand and performance for lasting impact

We have a lot of opportunities to tie in our game with the Avatar brand. One example of this is our recent collaboration with one of the most well known voice actresses from the series, where we offered fans an interactive experience including hosting a live Q&A and giveaway for our players.

Game mechanics take the lead in UA strategy

4X games are unique in that with every new server release, it is in many ways similar to launching a new game. Ensuring the right quantity and quality of players are joining every server is key. More broadly, understanding the player journey is necessary to ensure you are meeting engagement goals - understanding when there are key moments as alliances progress through the map for example. 

Measure twice, scale once: KPIs that drive UA forward

LTV and retention are key for all games, but especially for midcore titles which typically have lower conversion, retention and monetisation metrics Understanding the curve of these metrics is essential to scale with confidence. 

All eyes on 4X at Gamesforum Hamburg

Gamesforum Hamburg is one of my favourite industry events. There are so many great gaming companies here, so it is invaluable to be able to connect with so many fellow industry professionals and share insights for recently released 4X titles.