Turning your special offers into a Revenue Machine?

How to turn your special offers into a revenue machine (without annoying your players) Special offers aren’t just about discounts - they’re about design, psychology, and timing.Done right, they boost engagement, LTV, and retention.Done wrong, they just collect dust.Here are a few of the strategies from this week’s carousel: 👇🔹 Bundling value without overwhelming the player🔹 Using scarcity without feeling scammy🔹 Segmenting offers by player type, session behavior, and UA source🔹 Creating a “flow” of purchases with chained deals🔹 Why visuals (not pricing) often make or break the sale💡 If you’re running a free-to-play game and want to actually monetize it, this deck is worth a swipe.

Michael Khripin May 7

Journal

Royal Match really knows how to make small wins feel huge.

Royal Match really knows how to make small wins feel huge. Loved this moment where just before starting a new level, you're reminded you finished first in the event — and boom, that glowing reward chest drops in with a satisfying animation. Super clean design. Super motivating. One of the best at turning UI into a celebration.

Michael Kopelovich May 7

Journal

Gacha Accessibility Range?

Warning ☢️ Heavy Game Design podcast ahead. Do you know the main difference between the 3 most common Gacha (lootbox) types on the market? 🤔 ▪️ 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐝 𝐓𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐧 𝐆𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐚 (𝘎𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯, 𝘙𝘢𝘪𝘥, 𝘚𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘳'𝘴 𝘞𝘢𝘳)This is the initial setup introduced in Japan. Monster strike already passed $8 Bill. lifetime revenue with it. Tokens can consume only few of their duplicates. The key is to upgrade all of their other progression vectors such as skill trees, equipment, skills, level, etc. Low rarity characters are used as upgrade fuel. Collection number dramatically increases through the lifecycle of the game into hundreds or thousands. 🎰 𝘈𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺: Best characters are extremely hard to get and are dropped from timed exclusive drop pools.💰 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘶𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘦: Characterized by spiky revenue, that jumps always with a new content release and then goes down dramatically until the next content drop. 👀 […]

Jakub Remiar May 7

Analysis

The gaming industry’s next big growth story: Middle East

The gaming industry’s next big growth story? It’s happening in the Middle East right now. Billions in investment. A booming Gen Z population. Government-backed gaming initiatives. A royal family obsessed with games. The region is rapidly becoming the new global force in gaming, and most studios aren’t ready for what’s coming.Did you know Saudi Arabia plans to invest $38B into gaming and esports?Or that the UAE and Egypt are quietly building major player bases with some of the world’s highest mobile engagement?The Middle East is perhaps the most interesting, and fastest growing region in all of gamingdom. The last few years it has been undergoing a profound transformation, one that is redefining its position in the global gaming industry. For years, MENA was considered a promising but underdeveloped market. Today, it’s rapidly becoming a key player, backed by visionary national […]

John Wright May 6

Journal

Fishdom by Playrix: Fantastic Results

What I truly admire about Playrix’s games is their innovative approach to monetization and retention. Let's explore the event that led to fantastic 📈 results according to Sensor Tower data:+32.3% 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐮𝐞+44.4% 𝐀𝐑𝐏𝐏𝐔+13% 𝐃𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐒𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬+16.6% 𝐃𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐭 Over the past two years, Fishdom has introduced long-term meta-events that run for nearly a month. These aren’t just side content—they’re strategic systems with independent mechanics layered over the core gameplay, keeping players engaged on multiple levels.🔍 On the Playliner calendar below, you can see two examples: One with a Merge mechanicOne with an Expedition mechanicLet’s dive deeper into the 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭—especially how it evolved in 2024 with the introduction of the 𝐆𝐞𝐦𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐥 𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭.🗺️ Expedition is an exploration event with its own map, storyline, and energy system. Players explore, clear obstacles, collect resources, and help characters progress.💎 Gemstone Trail runs alongside […]

Oxana Fomina May 6

Journal

The fastest-growing mobile games of 2025

The fastest-growing mobile games of 2025 (some of these numbers are insane)Here’s who’s topping the charts so far this year:🧩 Puzzle• Sort Puzzle (Rollic Games) – +15,805,000% 🟢• Screwdom (iKame) – +597%• Knit Out (Rollic Games) – +1,580,500% 🟢⚔️ RPG• 英雄没有闪 – +177,329,100% 🟢• Chiikawa Pocket (Applibot) – +118,676,700% 🟢• 마비노기 모바일 (NEXON) – +404,149,000% 🟢🕹️ Arcade• Idle Weapon Shop (HOT GAMES) – +48,159,200% 🟢• Fancy Hole (Tuan Anh Nguyen) – +39,583,600% 🟢• Chainsaw Juice King (SayGames) – +283%🏗️ Simulation• I Am Cat (Estoty) – +956,613,000% 🟢• Good Coffee, Great Coffee (TapBlaze) – +894,890,100% 🟢• Dreamy Room (ABI Games) – +706,464,400% 🟢🧠 Strategy• DC: Dark Legion (FunPlus) – +310,723,300% 🟢• Kingshot (Diandian) – +302,210,800% 🟢• 엉망 특공대 - 8282회 뽑기 증정 (Kingnet) – +7,335,000% 🟢🎯 Shooter• Armor Attack (Kek) – +159%• Arena Breakout (VNGGames) – +27%• Delta Force (Tencent) – […]

Anton Slashcev May 6

Journal

Top Grossing Mobile Casual Games

Hit games aren’t born from just ideas! They scale with relentless data-driven creative decisions over time. Top Casual games of 2024!Let's check 5 things:1- Market is growing rapidly,2- Live ops matter more than ever,3- Long term retention drives IAP revenue,4- Puzzles still offer the best sticky mechanics,5- Player segmentation boosts profits significantly.

Gökhan Üzmez May 6

Journal

A Might and Magic TCG powered by Immutable?

A Might and Magic TCG powered by Immutable? 😮 As of April 23, Ubisoft said 'coming soon' to mobile and PC.And, I'm here for it!TGC's and NFTs certainly feel made for each other. 💕As a kid who grew up on Magic The Gathering, 🤓 3rd party marketplaces for buying & selling cards is very intuitive.Not saying this is a groundbreaking first.NFT-powered TCG's already exist in spades: Gods Unchained, Splinterlands, Sorare, Skyweaver, Parallel Alpha to name a few.But it's fun to see this going mainstream via Ubisoft. 🚀The NFT TCG Market was valued at $1.2B in 2024, and is forecasted to grow at CAGR of 18.5% from 2026-2033, reaching $5.6B by 2033 (verifiedmarketreports(dot)com).

Matthew Emery May 5

Journal

Forget the 30% – Bring Back IDFA!

𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗚𝗘𝗧 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟯𝟬%—𝗕𝗥𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗕𝗔𝗖𝗞 𝗜𝗗𝗙𝗔 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗟 𝗠𝗢𝗕𝗜𝗟𝗘 𝗜𝗡𝗡𝗢𝗩𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 Blake Robbins and Mitch Lasky argue in Gamecraft Ep.18, "The Mobile Gaming Duopoly," that Apple and Google have squeezed innovation out of mobile gaming. Mobile innovation hasn't vanished; instead, it has splintered. And while it didn't vanish, it 𝘩𝘢𝘴 slowed, but the culprit isn't IAP or a top-grossing chart—it's ATT. Robbins and Latsky state, "There's this race to the highest ROI category…casino, match3, etc. Because the UA spend required to bring those games to mass market scale forces you out of innovative content and into these tried-and-true play patterns." Yet, this is how *all* markets work!As capital expenditure rises, it seeks less risky returns. Venture capital is a perfect example; investors need more market traction at each successive investment stage to write bigger checks. "Tried-and-true" genres like match-3 (M3) run dry of innovation as they […]

Phillip Black May 5

Journal

Game over, Apple? Unlock 50% of iOS revenue via web for every game!

🚨 EMERGENCY EPISODE🚨 Game over, Apple? What you need to know & do NOW! This ruling could unlock 50%+ of iOS revenue via web for every game! 👇 Historically, only the biggest players like Playtika, Scopely, and Moon Active could justify the investment in web stores — using concierge programs, retargeting, and even shipping iPads to VIPs to get around Apple’s restrictions.Now, even small studios can tap into:Higher LTV from off-platform purchasesLower transaction fees (vs. Apple’s 30%)Direct player relationships (email capture, re-engagement, bundling)This ruling dramatically lowers the barrier to entry. If you’re not rethinking your monetization funnel today, you’re likely giving away 30% of your profits for no reason.The Numbers That MatterBefore the ruling, best-in-class midcore games saw 40–50% of revenue via web after years of investmentCasual games managed 20–25% at bestNow, with direct promotion allowed, any game could hit […]

Matej Lancaric May 5

Journal

Screwdom: Top Grossing Game In Screw Puzzle Genre

Screwdom — The Top Grossing Game In The Screw Puzzle Genre 🔥 In our new Hybridcasual report for Q1 2025, we shared that Puzzle games are dominating the market, with Screw Puzzles accounting for 20% of total Hypercasual Puzzles IAP Revenue 🧩Screwdom is already leading the subgenre — and this is just the beginning. In April 2025 alone, it earned $6.7M — almost twice as much as in Q1 2025 🚀Part of the success goes to iKame Global experience — they already have 9 Screw Puzzle titles in their portfolio 👑But what truly sets Screwdom apart is its leap from 2D to 3D. This shift makes gameplay more tactile and challenging — rotating the camera adds spatial depth, making every move count 🔩

Andrei Zubov May 5

Journal

You don’t need a list of ‘final talent’ to vet an Influencer Marketing agency.

📣 You don’t need a list of ‘final talent’ to vet an Influencer Marketing agency. Something I’ve seen many brands do: ask for a final list of influencers to see if the agency (or even influencer marketing itself) is worth considering. Quite frankly, that’s a waste of time. For the brand, for the marketing agency, AND for talent managers. A list of ‘final talent’ isn’t something you should be asking for if you’re in an exploratory or discovery phase. Which influencers could be a good fit for your campaign depend on SO many factors- Your Objectives- Your Target Audience- Your Budget - Your Timelines Unless you have these confirmed, it’s impossible to have a FINAL list. You can ask for a sample, or examples of influencers who have worked for close competitors.But take these with a pinch of salt too. […]

Marion Balinoff May 5

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