Screenshot Strategy Analysis of the Top 5 Grossing Racing Games

Key insights

6 takeaways

01
Top-grossing racing games consistently utilize landscape orientation for screenshots to better showcase vehicles and track environments.
02
Leading titles like Racing Rivals and Asphalt 8: Airborne incorporate explanatory text within their screenshots to highlight gameplay benefits and value propositions.
03
Publishers of top-performing racing games, including CSR Racing and Real Racing 3, use identical screenshot sets across both iPhone and iPad platforms.
04
Successful apps maximize visibility by utilizing all available screenshot slots in the App Store.
05
The addition of explanatory text to screenshots, as observed in the transition of CSR Classics, suggests that descriptive overlays are an effective strategy for increasing user engagement.
06
High-performing apps prioritize high-quality, visually appealing graphics, often featuring the game's most compelling core features in the first screenshot position.

Summary

This analysis examines the screenshot strategies employed by the top five grossing racing games on the US iOS App Store as of September 2014. The primary objective is to provide a framework for competitive App Store Optimization (ASO) by identifying common visual patterns among market leaders. The study emphasizes that while screenshots are a critical component of user acquisition, they function alongside other variables such as advertising spend, gameplay quality, and viral reach.

The research identifies several consistent trends across the analyzed titles, which include Racing Rivals, Real Racing 3, CSR Racing, CSR Classics, and Asphalt 8: Airborne. All five games utilize landscape orientation to showcase vehicle detail and track environments, and each consistently populates all available screenshot slots. A notable finding is the industry-wide practice of using identical assets for both iPhone and iPad versions, rather than device-specific optimizations. Furthermore, the inclusion of explanatory text overlays—designed to highlight specific game features or value propositions—emerges as a prevalent and effective strategy, as evidenced by the transition of titles like CSR Classics to include such text.

The analysis concludes that successful publishers prioritize high-quality, visually striking imagery, often placing their most compelling features in the first screenshot position. The findings suggest that competitive analysis should serve as a starting point for developers, who must subsequently conduct ASO testing to validate which visual elements drive the highest conversion rates for their specific applications. By monitoring competitor updates and tracking changes in visual assets, developers can refine their own store presence to better align with proven industry standards.