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9 truths about game product management.

Every successful game studio knows these 9 truths about game product management. Do you? Most developers learn these the hard way:Success isn’t just about great ideas;It’s about data driven executionand adapting to the market.Here is the reality: Playing other games all day can be exhausting,Adding features is almost a rocket science,Creativity without data means nothing,Launch day is actually the beginning,Success is a marathon, not a sprint,Flawless game balance is a myth,Communication is everything,Making games is not easy,Players are always right.Which one is the most underrated?Cheers! #gamedevelopment #productmanager #videogames

Gökhan Üzmez February 1

Journal

𝐆𝐨𝐨𝐠𝐥𝐞 𝐀𝐝𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐳𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐜 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜

🚨𝐆𝐨𝐨𝐠𝐥𝐞 𝐀𝐝𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐳𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐜 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜🚨 At least for a while.Today, I’m sharing another real case study with a client I recently partnered with.Our goal is to accelerate the growth in one of their key markets (mostly dominated by Android) so, in early January, we launched paid campaigns on Google Ads.When we started the campaign, we were so surprised because the CPA (in this case cost per signup) was ridiculously lower compared to previous tests on Meta or TikTok so we started to monitor the organic traffic to see if Google was just targeting users who searched our brand because we were seeing a huge spend in Serch (screenshot 2)Was Google just targeting users already searching for our brand?Quite obvious right? Since we started the campaign, our organic started a very declining trend as you can see […]

David Vargas February 1

Journal

Tracking Releases and Transfers

TRACKING RELEASES & TRANSFERS# 4 WEEK, JANUARY, 2025 Hi Mobile Gaming Family! 💟Today I bring you another edition of our…💫 Tracking Releases & Transfers 💫This one brings releases and transfers to big publisher accounts from the 20th to the 26th of January.I've found 21 titles. 💪🔎I highlight 2️⃣ of them.✅ “Magic Paint: Water Color Sort” by FreePlayThe big publisher Freeplay, which has in its portfolio Hypercasual classics such as “Count Master” (300MM down.) and “Twerk Race 3D” (182MM), has released a Water Sort Puzzle with a coloring metagame. 🎨What sets “Magic Paint” apart is the tie-in between the puzzle and the coloring. 🧩 🖼️Once a tube is filled, an animation starts with the paint inside it painting the image.In addition to coloring, the game also has a renovation metagame and other features. 👍With “Magic”, Freeplay joins the Sort Puzzle with […]

Carlos Pereira February 1

Journal

The Foundational Rule

Two weeks ago, my post about founder salaries sparked hundreds of comments. It clearly hitting a nerve in the startup community. Given the heated discussion, I decided to dive deeper into this nuanced topic. 💭 Here's what I've learned from both sides of the table - as a founder who started with an extremely low salary twenty years ago, and now as an investor:The foundational rule: Early-stage founders should aim for breakeven, not wealth. Your salary should cover:- Location costs (US vs Europe)- Family obligations- Housing essentials- Basic healthcareThree key factors that actually determine appropriate founder salary:- Company progress (revenue/user engagement)- Deal momentum (investor competition)- Founder track record🚩 Major red flag: Founders taking excessive salaries (think $400K) right after pre-seed funding. This signals misaligned priorities and sets problematic precedents for company-wide compensation.🔑 Key advice: Have transparent salary discussions with investors […]

Joakim Achren February 1

Journal

Economic and Real-life Systems as Monetization and Gameplay Mechanics

Monetization in F2P mobile games and Premium Games incorporating F2P mechanics has largely revolved around a handful of tried-and-true methods such as battle passes, gacha, limited-time offers, and soft friction mechanics. However, there remains a vast, unexplored blue ocean of economic and real-life inspired systems that could redefine how we design F2P game economies, player interactions, and monetization strategies.This article explores how these macro-economic and political systems can be used to enhance player engagement, create new monetization opportunities, and introduce social mechanics that go far beyond e.g., leaderboards and guilds. All from F2P point of view.Note: Inspiration for the article comes not just from my mind but from couple discussions I’ve taken part in via LinkedIn as well as throughout other personal venturing. Big thanks for those involved for giving inspiration for me to explore these topics on a scale!Economic […]

Antti Kananen February 1

Journal

The Evolution of F2P Monetization in Premium Games

In recent years, the gaming industry has witnessed a significant convergence between F2P monetization strategies and premium, full-priced games. Developers are increasingly integrating F2P elements such as microtransactions, DLC, battle passes, and premium currencies into premium titles to enhance (in well executed cases) player engagement and generate additional revenue streams.Microtransactions and DLC in Premium GamesTraditionally, premium games offered substantial content upfront, with occasional expansions or DLCs providing additional gameplay, storylines, or characters.However, the landscape has evolved, and many premium titles now incorporate microtransactions — small, optional purchases that allow players to acquire in-game items, cosmetics, characters, or other enhancements. For example, games like Diablo 4 and Helldivers 2 have implemented in-game stores focusing on e.g., cosmetic items and battle passes, generating revenue beyond other means. Helldivers 2, in particular, has been perceived positively (mostly, whilst some of their package prices […]

Antti Kananen January 30

Journal

“Welcome Back!” screen from Travel Town by Moon Active!

Absolutely love this "Welcome Back!" screen from Travel Town by Moon Active! 🎉 This is the first time I’ve seen a welcome-back feature that spans multiple days instead of being a one-time reward. Such a smart way to keep players engaged and coming back for more! 😊

Michael Kopelovich January 30

Journal

Mobile Ad Monetization Newsletter #8

Are Relgious-themed games the best advertising revenue niche in the mobile industry? One of the most profitable ad revenue generators are word games. Games like Words of Wonder (IAA $3m/month), Word Scapes(IAA $4.3/month), and Word Connect (IAA $400k/month) combined have about 20 million DAU and consistently top the charts for the most downloads. The genera is hyper-competitive, but one game has been able to navigate it since 2018 by appealing to a clever niche and thus avoiding going head-to-head against the other word game incumbents. Bible Word Puzzle is a word puzzle game that has been downloaded 27 million times and generated $2 million in IAP revenue since its launch. It has a massive 200k DAU, half of which is in the USA, and based on eCPMs, I estimate that it generates between 600-800k/month in ads. That means this title […]

Felix Braberg January 30

Journal

25 Live-Ops Features Starter Pack

25 Live-Ops Features Starter Pack Here's a list of FREE feature references from top games from Playliner: 💰 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗙𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀• Piggy Bank - https://lnkd.in/emVf-HFK• Double & Tripple Offers - https://lnkd.in/e33TSHeZhttps://lnkd.in/eAtg-ZWz• Rolling Offer - https://lnkd.in/eiAY8dkuhttps://lnkd.in/eyYq5Swjhttps://lnkd.in/eZ_deifj• Starter Pack Offer - https://lnkd.in/efmsKB5N🕹️ 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗠𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗰𝘀• Happy Hours - https://lnkd.in/ezYv9bkxhttps://lnkd.in/e2sSrQbj• Daily Quests - https://lnkd.in/eGkvtAyX• Race Tournament - https://lnkd.in/eHPT2EyY• Solo Tournament - https://lnkd.in/eh-nXFdC• Win Streak - https://lnkd.in/eeCi2AB2https://lnkd.in/eNVuA2Zm• Milestone Tasks - https://lnkd.in/eXQKuMiihttps://lnkd.in/eUNBP9Wf• Time pressing challenge -https://lnkd.in/e8BjptVzhttps://lnkd.in/er7GdTj2🔄 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗠𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗰𝘀• Daily Bonus - https://lnkd.in/e3Sq6hYf• Push Notifications - https://lnkd.in/e3Git_br• Album Collection -https://lnkd.in/eWP8Yty2https://lnkd.in/eyS6VTuV👥 𝗦𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗙𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀• Partners - https://lnkd.in/ePZnKd2Y• Clans - https://lnkd.in/enpPEUqE• Friends - https://lnkd.in/emC7jhVP• Team Tournament - https://lnkd.in/eaSwymN9https://lnkd.in/edxn4R3c 🎲 𝗠𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 \ 𝟮𝗻𝗱 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗲• Board Minigame - https://lnkd.in/ett2T2yMhttps://lnkd.in/esrMWych• Treasure Hunt Minigame -https://lnkd.in/e9r-UqM3https://lnkd.in/eZTvkkSxhttps://lnkd.in/eViQeQRb• Plinko - https://lnkd.in/evmF83kK• Slot Machine / Wheel Minigame -https://lnkd.in/eMwVp8MUhttps://lnkd.in/e2Gsstmf• Puzzle - https://lnkd.in/ekTH7aQp🗝️ 𝗦𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗮𝘀𝘀• https://lnkd.in/eaqVUqFW• https://lnkd.in/ekpCBh_J• https://lnkd.in/es5sGa5w

Anton Slashcev January 30

Journal

Color Block Jam by Rollic scaled to $300K A Day

Color Block Jam by Rollic scaled to $300K 🤑 a day in just 2 months 😱 Developed by Gybe Games, this is another successful Hybrid-casual puzzler in Rollic's portfolio, and we couldn't wait to review it for you 😎 Core gameplay is deterministic puzzle, with a timer as loose condition. This is again similar to games like Twisted Tangle, where levels are not randomized and you build up your strategy in trial/error fashion. If you lose, there is literally a "Fail Offer" as per the good Hybrid puzzler standard nowadays 😅. As said, Rollic has lots of experience with this specific setup and of course Hybrid-casual puzzlers by itself, so no wonder this game is scaling like crazy currently 💹. Core idea is a great iteration on tile moving puzzles, where you have limited space to work with. The iteration […]

Jakub Remiar January 30

Highlights

Surprise, You’re Hooked: The Fun World Of Gacha Games

Here’s what’s covered in this analysis article on Gacha; What is Gacha? Why Do People Love Gacha Games? Types of Gacha Systems: Not All Are Created Equal Supercell’s Secret Sauce: How They Do Gacha Right The Depth of a Gacha System: Why It Matters Trading Cards, Gacha-Style: A Familiar Twist The Psychology Behind Gacha: Why We Keep Coming Back Ethical Concerns: Is Gacha Gambling? The Gacha Balancing Act Analysis by Aylin Yazıcı. Feel free to contact me. What is Gacha in Mobile Gaming? A Beginner’s Guide to the Fun (and Madness) If you’ve ever played mobile games, or even just browsed the app store, you’ve probably stumbled across games that boast vibrant characters, cool weapons, or flashy loot. And somewhere in those games, you’ll hear the word “gacha.” But what does it mean? And why do people go crazy over it? Let’s break […]

Aylin YAZICI January 28

Highlights

Mobile Gaming Today: 44

Hola Fam ☃️ We were celebrating the new year and almost February hereee! TIME FLIES! 🦋 Have you seen our GOAT series? Check it out 🕺🏻 Mobile Marketing » Block Blast: Largest IAA Revenue Game? 📱 Behind Archero 2 💰 Mobile Ad Monetization #7 🤖 AI-Powered Performance Marketing 🎯Top Casual Games LiveOps Strategy 🧩 Most Downloaded Puzzle Games 🎮 Archero 2: Onboarding Done Right! 📉 90% of Games Fail at Monetization 💵 Block Blast by Hungry Studio: $1M/Day 📈 Shorter Payback Period: Sustained profit growth 📊 Seasonality Adjustments in Google Ads to Spend More! Subscribed Industry Highlights » Moon Active laid off staff despite $2B revenue in 2024 🎮 Gaming vs. Tech: Where Are Investors Heading? 🎨 10 Game Design Rules You Must Know 🏰 Level Mechanics of Royal Kingdom 🤖 Analyze 1000 Games in 5 min with AI 📈 […]

Gamigion January 28

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