A year ago, we launched zaphira.games at Gamescom 2025. In our bag: Multiplayer Snake as our first game, and an idea we believed in from day one. Casual games don’t have to be an afterthought. When gameplay, community, and incentive come together, they can become something bigger. Twelve months later, we’re looking back and taking stock: what has become of that idea?
From Launch Game to Our Own Word Game Family
First off: more games. Multiplayer Snake was our starting point. Funded by Germany’s Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space and built with roughly 10,000 hours of development work, it was more than just a launch title for us, it was proof that our idea worked.
Since then, a lot has happened, especially in daily word puzzles. HelloWords and Spelling Hex brought two daily formats in the spirit of Wordle and Spelling Bee, and Word Lines followed as a third variant, inspired by the New York Times’ Strands. Just how well the concept resonates became especially clear when streamer Huebi tried several of our games with his community, including Multiplayer Snake, Spelling Hex, and HelloWords, and his community couldn’t get enough of them. Moments like that are what tell us we’re on the right track.
A Giveaway That Surprised Us
In May, we ran a six-day giveaway with daily prizes and a grand prize of €1,000, in partnership with Deutsche Fernsehlotterie. The response caught us off guard. Several thousand users took part. For us, that was a clear signal: the combination of a daily quiz and bonus chances in Bubble Shooter creates exactly the kind of recurring engagement we were hoping for.
Cashback: Playing Pays Off
One thing that sets us apart from most casual gaming portals: we let our players share in our ad revenue. In partnership with the established cashback provider rewardo.de, users who reach us through rewardo get a share of that revenue back, based on how much they play, with no extra sign-up required on our end. Playing for fun turns into a small but real financial incentive, a model that goes beyond the usual advertising or subscription logic. That’s something we’re genuinely proud of.
Embed Games: Our Offer for Publishers
Since November 2025, Zaphira Embed Games has offered a free entry point for publishers, blogs, and content sites. The idea is simple: the integration works like a YouTube embed. Readers play right on the page, ad-free and without us collecting any personal data, and are directed to zaphira.games at the end. If a reader follows that link, the publisher earns a share through our affiliate model. In October, kress.de covered games for publishers in depth and specifically highlighted Embed Games as a relevant offering for smaller publishers, which we were especially glad to see.
What Comes Next
Our goal for the years ahead is clear: we want to make our games even more playable. More fun in the actual gameplay, more reasons to come back, whether through new mechanics, additional cashback opportunities, or community formats like leaderboards. Our first year was about building the foundation. Now it’s about steadily improving the experience for everyone who plays with us.
Thank you for playing with us this past year. Here’s to the next one.
