Mattel opens new gaming studio for Roblox and Fortnite games

Mattel Game Studios is officially a reality. As highlighted by Variety and the company's official portal, the toy giant has decided that simply lending its IPs to third-party developers is no longer enough. Their clear goal is bringing heavy-hitting franchises directly to Roblox, Fortnite, and the mobile gaming space using their own internal workforce, free from outside dependence.

They aren’t starting from scratch, either. A few months ago, the company fully absorbed Mattel163, the development team they co-founded with tech giant NetEase back in 2018. Now, operating under a new structure led by executive Marcus Liassides, they boast a consolidated staff of nearly 300 professionals—ranging from artists to engineers—based in Los Angeles, USA, and Hangzhou, China.

If you've ever played the incredibly popular UNO! app on your phone, you've already experienced what this team can do. The numbers back them up completely: the division has surpassed 550 million global downloads and actively engages around 20 million monthly active users.

Upcoming Mattel games on mobile and PC

The company's strategy goes far beyond just corporate promises. Mattel has already put its first moves into play, making it clear that their primary focus will be on the free-to-play model. Back in June, they quietly dropped Skeletor: Until Next Time!, an early mobile foray based on Masters of the Universe, but the most interesting stuff is still waiting in the wings.

Currently, their new project UNO Wild is going through a limited soft launch phase to gather performance data and polish mechanics. In parallel, the development team is secretly cooking up a brand-new Hot Wheels title designed from the ground up for mobile devices. The core idea behind these moves is to maximize their massive catalog of intellectual properties, retaining complete control over live-ops updates, marketing, and the lucrative microtransaction revenue stream.

Roblox and Fortnite experiences

What really sets the current strategy apart is the heavy focus on user-generated content. Custom game modes within Roblox and creative islands in Fortnite currently attract a much broader young audience than most conventional triple-A releases.

The short-term plan involves launching official, in-house content for both creator platforms. The toy maker wants to fully immerse worlds based on Barbie or Masters of the Universe into these digital ecosystems. Rather than creating isolated apps that users delete after a few days, the vision is to build social spaces where the community can hang out, chat, and spend time interacting with constantly updated gameplay loops.

What happens to licensed titles?

If you were wondering about their third-party deals, rest easy. Mattel isn't cutting ties with external partners overnight. The broader umbrella division, Mattel Digital Studios, will continue to closely oversee large-scale projects developed by outside teams.

Acclaimed games like Hot Wheels Unleashed and upcoming releases such as Barbie Rewind, Hot Wheels Infinite Rush, and Masters of the Universe: Dragon Pearl of Destruction will stay on their normal development paths with their respective partner studios. Essentially, they are double-dipping: developing agile, free-to-play mobile and metaverse experiences internally, while simultaneously outsourcing premium console games to maintain a strong presence in the traditional gaming market.

Stay updated

Want to be the first to explore Mattel's new worlds or score free Roblox codes? Check out the news section on olagg.io and never miss an update!