The SuperScale Good Games Don’t Die white paper reveals 83% of mobile games die in 3 years and 43% are killed in development 

SuperScale, the revenue growth engine for mobile games, today unveils startling new research about the mortality rate of mobile games development. Based on data from SuperScale’s Good Games Don’t Die white paper published today, it reveals that a staggering 83% of launched games die within three years, and 43% of games are killed in development before they launch, clearly illustrating significant issues prevalent in contemporary mobile game development.

The new study draws on interviews conducted with 500 game developers across the UK and US, carried out by Atomik Research on behalf of SuperScale. The report reveals that regardless of this critical high failure rate, 78% of mobile game developers prefer to work on new titles, creating a catch-22 scenario for the $96.2 billion international mobile games industry. Trends like global recessionary pressures, the redundancy of 6,000+ developers in 2023, and a general downturn in investment throughout the sector are echoed in the report in which 32% of developers conducted layoffs, and nearly a quarter came close to shutting down the business.

The report’s findings also provide insights into the human impact of the high failure rate of mobile games; ranging from loss of motivation, risk aversion and increased commercial focus. Creative unfulfillment from cancellations was reported by 30% of junior developers with less than one year of experience.

Given the endemic high failure rate in mobile gaming, the SuperScale white paper explores the untapped opportunities present in the ‘good games’ that died either in development or since launch. These ‘legacy games’ are titles that no longer receive regular UA investments or live-op updates, or those that are declining in revenue. Based on the study data, a mobile gaming portfolio features an average of 18 legacy games, and these could hold significant further commercial potential for developers and publishers. Across its 18 pages, the Good Games Don’t Die white paper unveils current trends in additional categories such as outsourcing, performance measurement, and monetization methods, which can be utilized to unlock the potential of good games which ‘died’.

Ivan Trancik, CEO and Founder of SuperScale, commented:

“These are volatile times for the games industry. Many mobile game developers are finding it hard to remain profitable in the face of challenges such as ATT, heavy competition in a mature mobile market, and macroeconomic conditions like high inflation. 83% of games are flat-lining in the first three years is an eye-opening statistic, which indicates a new mindset is needed within the industry. Findings from the ‘Good Games Don’t Die’ white paper serve as a wake-up call for the industry, a source of inspiration with actionable data; equipping developers and publishers with insight on how revenue can be maximized across their portfolio – for games both new and old.”

He added:

“The art and business of making games is often borne from a place of indescribable passion, and not always for pure commercial gain. We believe there is an opportunity for the entire games industry to reflect on the incredible gaming content that has already been created, and to take a second look at what can be done to inject new life into them.”

To hear more from Ivan, sign up here and catch the SuperScale team’s deep-dive on how to fix underperforming mobile games.

Key findings:

Recession in Gaming: 32% of studios have made layoffs in the past 12 months, 40% of studios have outsourced development tasks in the last 12 months. Collectible card games and hypercasual developers were affected most. Only a third of studios (32%) said they did not have to make layoffs, downsize or shut down.

Monetizing mobile games: 62% of developers are using LiveOps in their most profitable titles, and 37% of studios update their most profitable titles weekly, with less than half pushing out monthly updates.

Game failure and success: 43% of games in development are killed before they launch, 76% of launched games hit peak revenue within year one, 83% of mobile games die within three years and a mere 5% receive support beyond seven years.

Passion versus profit: 78% of developers prefer to work on new titles, 30% of developers believe a focus on legacy games is the path forward in the current industry climate. 37% of respondents said that industry uncertainty is stopping them from developing new games, while 30% said the market is too difficult to succeed in right now, and 30% also believe their niche is too competitive.

Ski Challenge, the fast-paced esports game by Greentube, the NOVOMATIC Digital Gaming and Entertainment division, has officially surpassed 20 million races and 600,000 downloads following its official launch a year ago.

Available to play on iOS and Android, the high-octane game is based on Greentube’s first-ever published game, Ski Challenge from 1998.

The modern iteration sees players representing their favourite teams and countries competing head-to-head in organised tournaments with real-money prizes. It features seven of the world’s most famous downhill skiing tracks including Zermatt, Bormio, and Zauchensee.

Players can also collect skill points by winning competitive races, which sees them reach new heights by ranking in one of several categories – Bronze, Silver, Gold and Master. In addition to being ranked, players can etch their name in history by appearing on new time-based leaderboards, showcasing which skiers really are king of the hill.

Ski Challenge has been produced in collaboration with three of the world’s most successful ski associations, Austria’s ÖSV, Swiss-Ski, and Deutscher Skiverband, adding to the authenticity of a product that has proven to be a major hit with players over the past 12 months.

Michael Bauer, Greentube’s CFO/CGO, said: “Our year-long journey towards this fantastic milestone has been a collective effort marked by innovation, perseverance, and a shared vision. In an industry where excellence is the benchmark, our game’s achievement is proof of the high standards we uphold.

“We are extremely excited as to what the future holds for Ski Challenge as it continues to grow day by day. We’d like to extend our appreciation to each and everyone who contributed to helping us reach 20 million races and 600,000 downloads.”

Fans everywhere can compete to win $1,000,000 in crypto and enter to win over $50K worth of CS2 skins during the Roobet Cup, October 25 to November 2

Roobet, the pioneering entertainment brand and next-generation crypto casino, is revolutionizing the way fans can experience eSports tournaments with a first-of-its-kind $1,000,000 Roobet Picks contest. The million-dollar tournament will be held on the company’s completely free-to-play social casino, Roobet.fun, for the 2023 Roobet Cup CS2 Tournament running October 25 to November 2.

In honor of the tournament’s second year, Roobet will give fans the chance to win up to $1,000,000, with nine days of pick’ems if participants guess eighth questions correct daily about the Roobet Cup.

Every participant who enters the Roobet Cup pick‘em contest will also be entered into a daily CS2 skin raffle for the tournament’s duration. Over the nine-day period, the daily raffle will award over $50,000 in factory-new CS2 skins including four Bayonet Fade skins per day (32 in total) leading up to a grand prize Dragon Lore on the final day of the tournament.

To commemorate the event and the launch of CS2, Roobet will also be selling limited edition shirts for the Roobet Cup event on Roobet.style.

“Roobet is not just a casino, it’s a club for every kind of sports and gaming enthusiast,” the co-founder and Head of Partnerships for Roobet, Anthony Brennan, said. “We are always seeking out new ways for fans to participate in their favorite sports and to empower community connection through competition and our pick‘em contests on Roobet.fun provides them with the chance to participate in the fun and win amazing prizes, all completely free.”

The 2023 Roobet Cup will feature 16 of the world’s top CS2 teams competing over nine9 days for a $250,000 prize pool. Teams include Virtus.pro, 9INE, FNATIC, 9z, BIG, Ninjas in Pyjamas, Furia, Astralis, Heroic, Aurora, Monte, Eternal Fire, OG Esports, Movistar Riders, Apeks and Team Spirit. Casters will include hosts/analysts Veracity, kassad and Bleh alongside commentators Dinko, HenryG, Moses and Anders.

Players can look forward to enjoying a variety of separate predictor quizzes on Roobet Picks, completely free, every day. Picks cover the biggest competitive sports in the world with daily games ranging from the National Football League, UFC, boxing and the English Premier League to eSports with more leagues and competitions coming soon.

Available now to most* fans in the United States and worldwide, Roobet Picks is a free-to-play prediction platform where players will be eligible for millions in cash prizes, paid out in crypto. The game is available on Roobet.fun and uses a quiz-based approach where users answer eight questions about upcoming game outcomes and player performance. The more they get right, the higher their max potential crypto reward.

* Roobet.fun is available in all United States states and territories except Kentucky, Florida, New York, Washington and Nevada and worldwide except the United Kingdom, Australia, North Korea, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, India, Philippines, Malta and Iran.