Best Fiends increased iOS U.S. revenue 109% due to strong downloads and feature releases
Hard Levels that unlock discounts spurred a 21% WoW revenue increase for Pet Rescue Saga
A Task List with a ‘skip-a-day’ option boosted revenue 16% 2Wo2W for Fishdom
Epic Games’ decision to bypass the Google Play Store indicates a shift in power from platforms to developers. If Epic Games is successful, this will lead to profit growth for developers
Dragon Ball Z Dokkan Battle released 30+ days of events and an event-specific daily bonus that drove +1,000% 2Wo2W revenue
Jam City hired social media stars to market their app, driving engagement with YouTube videos and community contests. This campaign did not drive meaningful downloads. However, continue to test high-risk, high-reward marketing channels. Justify the ROI using a Venture Capital investment model: 10 bets will lead to 1 big win
King’s new app, Diamond Diaries Saga, offers an innovative combination of gameplay features: physics-based trajectory with linker mechanics and link-3 techniques
The organic installs from Google Play Instant (GPI) are currently modest. Consider waiting until GPI is available for AdWords before incurring the development costs
Home Design Makeover by Storm8 Studios is now a top 50 grossing Puzzle iOS U.S. app. Hard-launched in January 2018, the app has match 3 gameplay with a custom home design meta-game
Regulation risk is increasing. Loot boxes are now reviewed by Apple … GDPR was released in the EU … Washington State has outlawed social casino games … and now, the Belgian Gaming Commission recommends prosecution for illegal loot boxes. Remember to think long-term, and act with accountability and responsibility
A strong IP does not automatically yield a sure-win title. Capcom is already retiring Puzzle Fighter, which was released in November of 2017. Capcom never invested in paid user acquisition, and downloads dropped to 1K by January 2018, shortly after the launch surge. IP-driven games must still iterate post-launch to produce top-grossing titles
The market is shifting towards more complex and polished features … A primary reason is that these type of features, while costly to build, are harder to replicate. For successful features, this means your app reaps the value of the innovation for a longer period of time
To alleviate upkeep costs on select features, consider a new option: temp-features (features that are released with a fixed time frame for about a month)