Hero-Based Progression

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Impact Driver

A new update in Brawl Stars introduces two connected features: 

Mastery gives each hero a unique reward meter that players fill by winning matches with that hero. Because Brawl Stars’ roster includes over 70 heroes, this system adds over 70 new progressions to keep players engaged. Mastery also supports Brawl Stars’ other main progression system, Trophies, as both features incentivize players to use as many heroes as possible to maximize rewards.

The final ranks of each Mastery progression award multiple types of exclusive cosmetics for the second new feature, Battle Card. In Battle Card, players display up to four cosmetics they’ve earned from various features at the start of each match. These cards also show heroes’ Mastery rank, which gives Mastery even more significance.

Release Trends

The number of level features released by tracked core apps (such as the Mastery feature) has declined significantly in the past year, averaging 0.14 releases per quarter in 2022 compared to 0.26 in 2021. This trend has continued in the first quarter of 2023. 

The MOBA subgenre, which includes Brawl Stars, released 0.5 level features per app in the past two years—significantly below the averages for the core market and the strategy genre.

Breakout Apps

Street Fighter: Duel is an idle squad RPG largely inspired by genre mainstays like AFK Arena. The app uses its Street Fighter IP to introduce innovative tweaks to its auto-battle system, including retro 2D graphics, combo chains, and meters that trigger special moves.

Alien Invasion: RPG Idle Space takes a stripped-down approach with a basic core loop, a clean visual design, and very few live ops. Its revenue growth is largely driven by its aggressive ad monetization, which includes frequent disruptive ads, W2E ads that offer substantial rewards, and purchases that disable ads. 

Other Noteworthy Features and Events

Expansion Event — In Call of Duty Mobile’s Goliath Clash!, teams of players use upgradable mech suits to capture locations.

Mission Event — In Identity V’s Verdant Dreams, players complete challenges to unlock clues that help them locate items on a map.

Challenge Event — In LifeAfter’s Choose Your Accessories, players choose items and then complete daily tasks to increase the drop rate of those items.

Download the March Core Report for our complete analysis.