Vickie Chen, Founder & CEO of AviaGames, on the Success of Avia x Foster Love – Wonderland Wishes Campaign

Over time, my passion evolved into building an inclusive platform and company that broadens who games are for and who gets to make them.

Early in my career, I noticed that most games were designed for hardcore players. I loved games, but I wasn’t that type of player, so I thought, “What if we could create competitive games that are fun and fair, but also simple and welcoming?” That was my “aha moment” and what led my co-founder, Ping Wang, and me to create AviaGames in 2016 with the goal of making skill-based games accessible to everyone.

In the beginning, we worked out of a small garage in Mountain View, California, where we built our own desks, worked long nights, and lived on coffee. Today, we have grown significantly, publishing multiple games in-house and building a dedicated team that is more than 40% women, many of whom serve in leadership roles.

At AviaGames, our mission is simple but powerful: to make gaming accessible to everyone and create experiences that spark joy, foster connection, and give players a sense of confidence. That goal has shaped everything we do since launching Pocket7Games, a platform designed to let players enjoy a variety of skill-based games and experience the excitement of competition anytime, anywhere.

What drives our creative process is a combination of ownership, player focus, and strong values. Because we design all of our games in-house, we are able to ensure that every experience meets our standards for quality, fairness, and balance. Just as importantly, we actively listen to our players, and their feedback directly influences how our games evolve.

As we have grown, we have become even more intentional about the culture behind our work. We prioritize the well-being of our team, knowing that a healthy, supported team creates better experiences. That mindset is strengthened by our commitment to inclusivity, and with more than 40% of our team made up of women, including many in leadership roles, we benefit greatly from diverse perspectives that push our creativity further.

We designed Wonderland Wishes as an easy yet impactful way for our community to give back to foster youth during the holidays simply by playing the game they enjoy.

In the campaign, players collected in-game “Wish Stars” while playing Solitaire Clash, which Avia then converted into donations for Foster Love. These contributions funded essential resources like care kits, clothing, bikes, and educational support for foster youth. Over five weeks, our players helped generate more than 691 million Wish Stars, which translated into a $130K donation.

The inspiration for the initiative came from a desire to make giving back more accessible and engaging, removing barriers to participation and embedding purpose directly into gameplay. By combining entertainment with impact, we created a shared experience where players could feel connected to something bigger than the game itself.

The campaign extended beyond the app through partnerships with creator Leo González and a hands-on community event, where players and volunteers came together to assemble care packages and bikes. In the end, Wonderland Wishes went beyond driving engagement to show how games can inspire generosity, connection, and real change.

The most unique aspect of Solitaire Clash is how it transforms a timeless, familiar game into a skill-based competitive experience. Solitaire has always been simple and relaxing, but we’ve reimagined it as something dynamic, where players can test their strategy and speed against others in a fair environment.

What makes Solitaire Clash especially innovative is the way it blends nostalgia and modern gameplay, with exciting events that allow players to make a real-world impact by playing the game they enjoy. Players get the comfort of a game they already know, combined with the excitement of competition and meaningful rewards. This balance enhances the experience by making it approachable, engaging, and easy to pick up, yet challenging and rewarding to master.

We hope our campaign leaves players with a sense of purpose and connection, and shows them that their time in-game can contribute to something meaningful beyond entertainment. Emotionally, we want players to feel inspired and proud to be part of a community that is making a real-world difference.

If players take away one message from our campaign, it’s that games can be a force for real-world good. We want players to feel that even seemingly small, everyday actions, like playing a game, can contribute to something bigger and more meaningful.

At its core, the campaign is about showing that entertainment and impact can go hand in hand, and that a global community of players can come together to create positive change.

We can’t share what’s coming next just yet, but we’re excited to keep creating new ways for players to connect, compete, and make an impact through casual skill-based games. Stay tuned to our social media channels and website for updates!

One of the biggest changes we’ve seen in the gaming industry is the rapid rise of AI and its impact on how games are built and delivered. At AviaGames, we’ve embraced this shift by integrating AI into our development and publishing processes, allowing us to move faster, optimize gameplay, and create a premium experience for our players.

I believe this shift will define the next stage of growth for the entire industry, and we’re preparing AviaGames to lead that change.

My advice would be to trust your vision. If you believe in an idea, don’t wait for validation. Keep building and moving forward, even if others don’t fully understand it yet.

It’s also important to embrace what makes you different. You don’t have to follow someone else’s path or style; your unique perspective is your strength, and it’s what will ultimately set your work apart.