core games, real numbers: asian & western games

Core Games, Real Numbers

Emily GreerNovember 2012

Comparative Stats for Asian & Western Games

What is Kongregate?• Open platform for browser-based games

– Flash, Unity, HTML5, Java, etc.

• 60,000 games, 1300 uploaded monthly• ~200 games selling virtual goods• Revenue from virtual goods (70%) & ads (30%)• 15M monthly uniques, core gamers• Traffic is 40% US, 40% Europe, 10% Asia• Acquired by GameStop July 2010

Select Developers

Background• All stats are lifetime• ARPU: average revenue per user• ARPPU: average rev per paying user• User = Player: a registered user who loaded the

game at least once• Games included have all been on Kongregate at

least 6 weeks• Bubbles on charts represent size of total

revenue

ARPU & ARPPU• ARPPUs for single-player games cluster around

$5-$10• Multiplayer games range $20-$230• Average ARPPU for a game from Asia: $118• Average for Western multiplayer game: $40• ARPPU is the main factor in high ARPU for

Asian game, important factor for all games

ARPU & % Buyer• % Buyer ranges from 0.05% - 3.6%, much larger

range than ARPPU, average is 0.63%• Single-player average 0.9%• Multiplayer game average 0.57%, slightly higher

in Western games, slightly lower in Asian games• Much greater range from top to bottom in %

buyer in Western games• High revenue multiplayer games 1.5% or higher

Big Spenders are a Big Deal

• 4 out of the top 5 games get the majority of their revenue from those spending $500+

• All top 10 games get the majority of their revenue from players spending $100+

How We Look at Retention• % Repeat

– What % of players ever return– Shows initial impressions/interest in the game

• Repeat Reg– What % of players who repeat become regulars (10+ plays)?– How strongly is the player hooked in the early-middle parts of the game?

• Reg Commited Player, aka % Commitment– What % of regulars become committed players (50+ plays)?– Engagement of end-game content

ARPU & % Repeat• Surprisingly little correlation with ARPU

– Games that lose 75% of players immediately are just as likely to have a high ARPU as one that keeps 75%

• But games with higher repeat rates have higher revenue at the same ARPU– Games that have high repeat rates get higher ratings

and viral spread, more players more revenue• Average for Western games slightly higher than

Asian games but top performers much higher

ARPU & % Commitment• Strong correlation with ARPU

– Smaller bubbles to the right are generally newer games, their revenue & ARPU will grow with time

• Correlation slightly weaker with Asian games, but Repeat Regs very strong – Longer sessions lengths & stronger early-game

monetization probably explain

Asian vs Western Style• Asian games: High ARPPU, tight player funnel

– Monetization caters well to big spenders• Western games: Lower ARPPU, wide player

funnel– Monetization focuses more on initial retention and

broad conversion to paid at lower prices– Pay 2 Win is not accepted

• Mixed games: can combine the best of both approaches– High conversion, wide funnel, still create big spenders

Commitment REALLY Matters

Type of Player % Buyers Avg Trx ARPPU ARPU % Players % of RevNon-Repeats 0.03% 2.10 $ 24.69 $ 0.01 43% 0%Repeats (2-9 plays) 0.40% 1.85 $ 19.61 $ 0.08 40% 3%Regs (10-49 plays) 4.68% 2.61 $ 21.35 $ 1.00 10% 12%Committed (50+ plays) 16.53% 7.03 $ 96.92 $ 16.02 7% 84%

First Advice#1 Don’t push too hard too fast

– People are not going to buy the first time they play your game. In the first few sessions focus on fun & giving them reasons to return, not upsells.

– Western players expect & value some level of fairness – pay for advantage (and reduction in grind) okay but non-buyers should feel they have some chance to compete

#2 Don’t underprice, don’t intimidate– There is very little price elasticity below $5. It’s an emotional decision

to spend for progress and status, focus on that.– Use intro paid currency, first time buyer packages & deals to get

people into the habit of purchase– Really expensive items early may scare players away who might

accept them later

Big Spender Advice#3 Make sure players can spend $1,000+

– Games are hobbies, no different from golf, cooking, live music– Those who get deeply involved devote significant time, energy, and

money– Have lots of items that are appealing and useful to a committed

player and price them higher (if possible) than items meant for early/mid-game play. [Higher means $30-100, not $1000]

– If you make a fun game someone will want to spend an infinite amount. Don’t create a situation where spending is capped by availability or utility.

The Most Important Lesson#4 – Retention, Retention, Retention• Every high ARPU and high revenue game on Kongregate has a strongly social and competitive end-game. Common features (mix and match):

– Guilds/leagues– Guild warfare or leaderboards– PvP (either synchronous and asynchronous)– Visible status & character progression– Guilds/leagues (it bears repeating)

• You have to keep feeding the game– New content, new modes, new events – New servers are good but not enough

Fantasy Online: A Coming of Age Tale

• By Pixelated Games (Jeromy Stroh)

• Launched May 2010• 4.20 rating• 7.2M gameplays

Fantasy Online: A Humble Start

• Popular and good retention, but couldn’t monetize well. Only sold aesthetic equips. First month (Jun ‘10) Monthly ARPPU: $5.50

• Added new zones for modest growth to $8.50 in Sept. Minimal updates for next few months.

• Nov 2010: Monthly ARPPU faded to $8.11• Dec 2010: Guilds launched, Monthly ARPPU

jumped to $12.93• Jun 2011: Crafting, mining, XP potions, etc.,

kept growing to $18.66

Fantasy Online: Big Growth

• Jul 2011: “Gem Packs”, expensive “uber” items ($30+) were added to court whales. Monthly ARPPU soared to $32.80

• Nov 2011: New content, new equipment slots, Halloween event, grew to $36.23 in

• Jan 2012: Guild Warfare, peak of $41.86• Mar 2012: New high level content, $54.37• June 2012: 2-year anniversary event. Lots of

revenue, still high ARPPU at $43.97.

Fantasy Online: Monthly ARPPU

Fantasy Online: Monthly ARPPU

Fantasy Online: Summary Stats

• Traffic stayed strong through high rating and repeated Kongregate promotion

• % Buyers generally ~1.1% with promotion, ~1.5% without

• Monthly ARPPU grew from $5.45 to $54.37• Monthly ARPU grew from $0.04 to $0.70

Fantasy Online: Revenue

To learn more visit developers.kongregate.com

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