Brutally Honest #152

Hey, FAM! What’s up?

🥃 Drink talk

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🦩Tip of the week

Look, testing new channels is always risky, but you can’t grow without taking risks. New channels will underperform at first. That’s normal. Expect 20–30% higher CPIs and lower ROAS initially. Your goal is to learn, not to profit immediately.

Kill Fast, Scale Faster:

• If a channel isn’t showing promising signals (e.g., decent ROAS, install volume, or retention) after 2–3 weeks, cut it. Don’t waste time or money. But if it works, double down aggressively.

When to Say It’s Enough and Move On?

This is where most people mess up. They either give up too soon or waste money chasing a dead end. Here’s my rule of thumb:

1. Set Clear KPIs:

   • Define what success looks like upfront. For example:

     • 
       

       CPI within 20% of your target.

       
       
     • 
       

       D1 retention above X%.

       
       
     • 
       

       ROAS breakeven within Y days.

       
       

2. Give It Time, But Not Too Much:

   • 
     

     If a channel isn’t hitting your KPIs after 3–4 weeks, it’s time to move on. Don’t fall for the sunk cost fallacy. Kill it and reinvest elsewhere.

     
     

3. Look for Trends, Not One-Off Wins:

   • 
     

     A single day of good performance doesn’t mean much. Look for consistent trends over time. If the data isn’t improving, it’s probably not worth it.

     
     

4. Trust Your Gut (But Back It with Data):

   • 
     

     Sometimes, you just know when something isn’t working. If the numbers are borderline but your gut says it’s a dead end, trust it. But always have the data to back up your decision.

     
     

UA diversification isn’t optional—it’s survival. But you can’t just throw money at new channels and hope for the best. Be strategic, test smart, and don’t be afraid to kill what doesn’t work. Remember, the goal is profitable growth, not just growth.

🐊​ Cornelius: The Suspicious Investi-gator

True detective-like exploration of creative trends and historical influences. Delving deep into the world of creatives to uncover hidden patterns and inspirations:

What the F*** is actually happening? Using 𝚖̶𝚊̶𝚔̶𝚎̶𝚘̶𝚟̶𝚎̶𝚛̶ body shaming creatives to drive low CPIs? 𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗲𝘄 𝗣𝘂𝘇𝘇𝗹𝗲 & 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 & 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵𝟯𝗗 𝗴𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗱 is here!

In the last couple of weeks, there has been a significant increase of these bodyshaming/makeover ads on Facebook. First, I thought it was only one game. Nothing major. But then I saw multiple games like 𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗲𝘄 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵, 𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗲𝘄 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝗣𝗶𝗻 𝗣𝘂𝘇𝘇𝗹𝗲 𝟯𝗗, 𝗛𝗮𝗽𝗽𝘆 𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗲𝘄, 𝗲𝘁𝗰..

All these games are using the same combination. Screw Puzzle + Makeover. Having two cores built in the game. Using one core in the creatives to drive low CPIs. Masquerading behind 𝗔𝗦𝗠𝗥 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗳 𝗺𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴. Is this really a stress relief? Am I missing something?

That is not the whole story. Screw Match adding even 3rd core with is Match3D. Sounds familiar, Jakub? When we say you have to study 4X, we mean it. Because then you have these wild combinations, trust me, this is the next frontier of game development. 𝗨𝗔 𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗴𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻!

💀 Dr. Doom is not amused

One of my industry friends amused me with his direct and honest TL;DRs, so we agreed to share it here, too! My friend remains anonymous as Dr.Doom!

“Unity is not united anymore as another round of layoffs hit the news. After doing a fatality on itself last September, when it canceled its runtime fee blunder, it continues to bleed more and more employees and stock price. I think they didn’t read the memo that in order for your engine business to be sustainable, you need to first build your own Fortnite, cough, cash cow. It’s literally on the first page of game engine business for Dummies by Dr.Doom 😎, duh!” Sincerely, Doom

Unity’s Sudden Lay-Offs: 5 AM Email

🎉  “Ha-ha” moment

Because life is too short to be serious.

🎮 two & a half gamers – Creative trends January 2025

𝗨𝗚𝗖 -> 𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗨𝗔 𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼𝘀. Creative trends for January 2025 are live.

This is the best game ever! Yeah? No shit, Sherlock! Nobody wants to hear that anymore!
People are just annoyed by that. Of course, this is the best f****g game ever. Yeah. Thank you very much for saying that. I’m 𝗻𝗼𝘁 going to download it.

𝗨𝗚𝗖 -> 𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗨𝗔 𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼𝘀. While I talk about creative volume in general. With UGC, there are a lot of shitty videos. People want to see ads that grab their attention, look native and don’t feel like ads.

📺 Watch on Youtube

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🦄​ Diary of a Dancing Unicorn

Today was a good day.

Hey hey, would love to work with you.

perfect, here is the deck I usually use.

eeeh, too expensive.

Okay, no problem.

… can I ask you few questions?

Sure, ask.

*Asks 387623762 questions*

*unicorn answers*

.. thanks this is super useful. Would love if you can work with us. What is the price?

same deck, nothing changed …

yeaaaaah….

…

…

…

*appears again and asks 3872638723 questions*

eeeehm… nope…

Today was a good day.

🤺​ Quote of the week

“You are in every conversation ahah (almost). the team talked with the creative producer of Playrix, he says he watches your YouTube quite often” – Renata, DM

Creative trends in Mobile Gaming – January 2025

🧞 The Song of the Week

We launched a music album. Yes, that’s correct. We are putting a ton of energy into creating valuable (and crazy) content that I think you’ll like. Check out the latest songs, and give us a like and subscribe. Play ehm. Listen now!

👾  THE AI (R)EVOLUTION

The AI revolution is here, and it’s transforming the way we approach mobile games marketing.

From creating scroll-stopping ad creatives to optimizing user acquisition strategies, AI is the game-changer we can’t ignore.

🥦​ Before you go

Ask Matej AI a question. It’s actually quite good!

We produced one more episode at 2.5gamers. Check it out now:

We are also starting a new segment, give it a go:

🍿 Fun starts in two & a half gamers Slack! Join now

We are opening up a Slack channel for everybody. It is the most inclusive slack for the gaming industry. Female, male, non-binary, juniors, mid-level, seniors, vendors, developers = EVERYBODY! We are waiting for you ♥️

Feel free to join here!

🧙 Thanks for reading this week’s newsletter!

Please do me a favor and share this with someone in your network who you think would benefit from the insights and brutal honesty. It would mean a lot to me!

Take care, everyone! See you next Monday!

👇 Reach out for feedback or questions, or say hi!

Give me some love (or hate) & Subscribe everywhere! ♥️

💡 PS: The latest UA & marketing jobs for you prepared by Gamigion:

VP, Marketing Scopely
Performance Marketing Manager Scopely
Senior Performance Product Manager Scopely
Live Ops QA Analyst – Monopoly Go! Scopely
Marketing Manager, LATAM Supercell
Regional Marketing, Korea Supercell
Marketing Manager Supercell
ASO Specialist Supercell
Live Operations & Monetization Lead Supercell
Product Manager, Monetization Zynga
ASO Manager MobilityWare
Social Media and Content Coordinator PLAYSTUDIOS
Senior Monetization Product Manager PLAYSTUDIOS
Monetization Manager SciPlay
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Monetization Manager InnoGames
Marketing Specialist (New Grad) Peak
Senior Marketing Specialist Peak
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ASO Analyst Socialpoint
ASO Specialist Socialpoint
Senior User Acquisition Analyst Socialpoint
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Strategic Projects Manager Monetization Voodoo
Director of Economy & Monetization Voodoo
Senior Monetization Associate – Games Voodoo
Senior Product Marketing Manager Gameloft
Product Marketing Manager Gameloft Brisbane
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Growth Specialist SKIDOS
Growth Specialist (User Acquisition) Fugo Games
User Acquisition Manager MY.GAMES
Marketing Officer RJ Games
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User Acquisition Manager (GameDev) Tatem Games
Senior User Acquisition ABI Game Studio
Product Monetization Lead – Amanotes
Analyst, Growth AppLovin
Vice President of Marketing AppLovin
Sr. Analyst, Growth AppLovin
Product Marketing Manager AppsFlyer
Senior Event Marketing Manager AppsFlyer
Email Marketing Manager – Lifecycle Sensor Tower
Social Media Manager Almedia
Supply Growth Manager adjoe
Growth Manager Unity
Chief of Staff – Marketing Xsolla
Digital Campaign Manager (AdOps) – Italian Speaking Ogury
Field Marketing Manager – Japan Ogury
Manager, Business Marketing Liftoff Mobile
Performance Strategist I Liftoff Mobile
Sr. Performance Strategist Liftoff Mobile
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Marketing Manager, Southern APAC (On Contract) PubMatic
Senior Manager / Assoc Director, Product Marketing PubMatic
Events Marketing Manager LoopMe
Marketing Manager LoopMe
[REMOTE] VP Marketing CrazyGames
Programmatic Campaign Manager (Argentina) Jampp
Customer Advocacy & Marketing Manager Amplitude
Tech Partner Product Marketing Manager Amplitude
Design Director, Foundations & Growth Amplitude
Field Marketing Manager Amplitude
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Industry Marketing Lead Braze
Senior Lifecycle Marketing Manager Braze
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User Acquisition Manager exmox GmbH
Senior Account Executive tvScientific
Product Marketing Manager Adapty.io
Head of Marketing Adapty.io
Content Marketing Manager Adapty.io
Growth Product Manager – Adapty.io
Growth Product Lead – Adapty.io
Mobile Growth Manager AppAgent
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Marketing Manager (Contract to Hire) Fluent, Inc
Account Manager (Digital Marketing) Fluent, Inc
Growth Manager Moloco
Senior Strategic Growth Manager Moloco
Senior/ Data Scientist II, Growth Analytics Moloco
UA Marketing Producer Playrix
Lead User Acquisition Manager Playrix
Senior UA Manager Playrix

Find out more here!