When to Scale a Mobile Game?

Hey, FAM! What’s up? 🥃 Drink talk First, it was vibe coding; now, I have started seeing vibe prompting and even vibe marketing. Jesus fucking Christ. Are you serious? 🦩Tip of the week When to Scale a Mobile Game? 1. Analyze Soft Launch Performance Before scaling, a game must pass a soft launch and ideally some time after global launch. This phase serves as a litmus test for: Cohort Profitability: Tracking how different cohorts of players perform in terms of lifetime value (LTV). Retention Metrics: This includes Day 1, Day 7, and Day 30 retention rates. Successful scaling typically requires a minimum of 10-15% retention after Day 30. Monetization Consistency: Ensure that in-app purchases (IAP) and ad revenues are consistent and can be predicted over time. 2. Confirm Cohort Consistency While early cohorts may perform well, consistency is key. The […]

Matej Lancaric April 3

Journal

Good RV Placement in Cake Await

Good RV Placement in Cake Await Really like this approach to rewarded video at the level start screen. Instead of a generic RV offer, the game presents three boosters—giving players a clear and immediate benefit for watching an ad. This placement makes the decision feel natural, reinforcing the value of RV while improving gameplay. A small but effective way to boost engagement and monetization without disrupting the player experience.

Michael Kopelovich April 3

Journal

Beyond Battle Passes and Gacha: Retention-Driven Monetization Models

Battle passes and gacha mechanics have become standard monetization strategies in F2P games. However, they often lead to predictable engagement patterns and don’t always foster deep, long-term player investment. This post explores several new innovative monetization models designed to drive engagement and retention without relying solely on battle passes (including event and season passes) and/or gacha mechanics. These models explored in this article can create monetization opportunities that align with player behavior, community participation, and overall game experience. 1. Prestige & Legacy Systems (Monetizing Long-Term Engagement) Example: A game where high-level players can “retire” their progress in exchange for exclusive content. How It Could Work: Players who reach a certain milestone (e.g., max level, final tier of progression) can ‘prestige’ to gain exclusive benefits from a premium track (of e.g., cosmetics, skills, or VIP content). Monetization comes from prestige passes, premium tracks or premium currency […]

Antti Kananen April 3

Highlights

Mobile Gaming Today: April’1 Week

Hey Fam, Was Ramadan Festival week! I had the best time playing Mo-co, Squad Busters & Brawl Stars with my nephews! Lots of laughs & sweet moments all around (: 👌🏻 Top Gaming Content » Helping Your Players In a Smart Way 🌿 Top puzzle games know the secret: support players, even if it means less short-term cash. From Royal Match’s smart propeller targeting to Toon Blast’s clean levels, these subtle touches help players win without feeling squeezed ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Help is Help. Royal Match’s “take a look” before end-game offers might lower conversions, but it builds trust. These aren’t just kind gestures; they’re smart, player-first design that drives long-term loyalty and revenue. And it’s not just puzzles. A helpful AI or clear progression works wonders in any genre. Quick wins are easy, but great games play the long game by […]

Ömer Yakabagi April 3

Journal

Roblox Levels Up Advertising With Google Partnership

Roblox just pressed play on a major ad power-up, teaming up with Google to bring immersive ad formats, like Rewarded Video, straight into the game world through Google Ad Manager. This move lets brands seamlessly tap into Roblox’s massive Gen Z audience, reaching tens of millions of daily players. Advertisers can now buy video spots directly or programmatically, turning in-game moments into marketing magic. And? For creators, it’s a game-changer. Rewarded Videos offer players real perks—watch a 30-second ad, and score in-game rewards. Early tests? A jaw-dropping 80%+ completion rate. That’s what engagement marketers dream about. So? To boost credibility, Roblox is also partnering with heavyweights like Nielsen, Kantar, DoubleVerify, IAS, and Cint to give advertisers sharp tools to measure impact. This isn’t just ads in games—it’s a new era of immersive, measurable, and meaningful marketing.

Gamigion April 2

Highlights

2025 Mobile Gaming Report: Key Insights for Marketers

Sensor Tower recently released a 50-page report about the state of mobile gaming in 2025. I spent several hours reading and preparing a TL: DR version for you. I added some custom graphs and creatives for visual experience! Enjoy .. Key KPIs: Growth & Engagement In-App Purchase (IAP) Revenue: Mobile game spending returned to growth in 2024, with global IAP revenue up about 4% YoY (reaching roughly $82 billion). Notably, 84% of this revenue came from games with live operations features, underscoring the importance of ongoing content and events. User Engagement: Players spent more time and came back more often—total hours in-game rose ~7.9%, and sessions jumped 12% compared to 2023. This indicates that existing users are playing more frequently and for longer durations, even as new user growth slows. Daily engagement per user increased, helping offset a 6.6% drop in new game […]

Matej Lancaric April 2

Journal

Dreamy Room: Home Design With Puzzle Touch

Dreamy Room: Home Design With Puzzle Touch ✨ ABI Games Studio’s new hypercasual hit Dreamy Room has taken off—surpassing 7.2M downloads within its first month and attracting 309K daily active users (and counting!) 🚀In the game, players are challenged to strategically arrange all the furniture, considering space layout and functionality, to complete levels that progressively increase in difficulty 💪To maintain engagement, developers are continuously adding new levels, daily challenges, progress tracking, and rewards 🏅Try it out yourself

Andrei Zubov April 2

Journal

Top 1% Game Producers?

Want to become a top 1% game producer? 𝟭. 𝗣𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 ❤️ • You have to love games to make great ones.𝟮. 𝗢𝘄𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 ⚠️ • Hiding errors breaks trust.𝟯. 𝗡𝗼 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝟭𝟬𝟬% 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 🤔 • Every choice comes with trade-offs.𝟰. 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗽 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗿𝗲𝘁 𝘀𝗮𝘂𝗰𝗲 🧪 • There's no magic formula for success.𝟱. 𝗜𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲, 𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲, 𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 🔁 • No game is perfect from the start.𝟲. 𝗘𝘅𝗲𝗰𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗯𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘀 💡 • Cool concepts are common — delivery is rare.𝟳. 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀 🙏 • Treat them like guests, or they’ll leave.𝟴. 𝗙𝘂𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 😄 • No feature can save a boring game.𝟵. 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹, 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝗶𝗴 📦 • If you can’t ship a small game, more resources won’t help.𝟭𝟬. 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 💰 • Downloads mean nothing if the game isn’t sustainable.𝟭𝟭. 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻’𝘁 […]

Anton Slashcev April 2

Journal

New Take in Coin Master: Team Up for Daily Challenges

Teaming Up for Daily Challenges – A New Take in Coin Master Daily challenges have been a staple in mobile games, but Coin Master is testing an interesting twist. Instead of completing them solo, players can invite a friend or a team member to tackle the tasks together. This adds a social layer to progression, making the experience more engaging while increasing retention. Haven’t seen this approach tested before in daily missions – curious to see how players respond to it!

Michael Kopelovich April 2

Journal

Revenue Drop? Here’s Your Detective Kit

🕵️‍♂️💸 Revenue Dropped? Here's Your Detective Kit! Tired of staring at analytics with no clue what's going on? I built a simple spreadsheet that cuts through the noise.🔎 What This IsA no-BS template to track why your app’s revenue is up or down. It helps you quickly figure out if:✅ Fewer people are buying✅ Prices changed✅ Ad impressions dropped✅ Refunds went crazy⚙️ How It Works1️⃣ Grab the template 👇2️⃣ Input your numbers from two time periods3️⃣ See exactly what moved the needle🚀 Why This MattersWhen someone asks, “What happened to our revenue?”, you’ll have a clear answer—instead of mumbling something about "changing market conditions..."Worked great when I was managing thousands of campaigns at AppLike. Saves hours of digging through data.Kudos to the BI team who came up with this (original article)My Excel Template💡 Bonus: For teams wanting to level up, […]

Sven Jürgens April 1

Analysis

Take-aways from playing Block Blast

Want to know what’s wrong with Block Blast from Hungry Studio ? The game is #1 in the casual category at the moment (March 20), but from a monetization perspective it is pure AdMon and much more simple that many other casual games on the market. Static banners at the bottom. Interstitials after every level, short ones, easily skippable. The only case of rewarded videos – revival after losing. In this case, the video ad is long because the player is motivated to wait, providing better CPM. Revival happens only one time. If you lose again, it will be final. There are no IAPs, so there is no game shop, no offers, no resources, no energy, no lives, you name it. Players can play as long as they want. Game sessions are not limited. But absence of IAPs also means […]

Michael Khripin April 1

Highlights

Helping Your Players In a Smart Way

The point of making a game is to provide players with entertainment they value enough to spend money on. At its core, a game’s success hinges on this simple principle. But how you deliver that entertainment varies dramatically between genres, and each genre comes with different monetization strategies. Some games rely on energy or life systems, where players hit a play limit unless they spend to continue. Others focus on boosters and power-ups that enhance the player’s chances of clearing a level. Some offer skip or ease options that allow players to pay to bypass difficulty spikes. The most successful games do not rely on just one method. Instead, they carefully combine and calibrate these levers to appeal to the broadest possible audience. This balancing act between challenge, friction, and monetization is constantly discussed and optimized. Yet, what often gets […]

Ahmetcan Demirel April 1

Journal

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