Rise of Kingdoms
Documents about Rise of Kingdoms
Chinese Game Three Kingdoms Tactics Published by Alibaba Surpasses $1 Billion in Revenue
The mobile strategy game Three Kingdoms Tactics, published by Alibaba, has achieved significant commercial success, surpassing $1.2 billion in lifetime revenue as of April 2021.
- The mobile game Three Kingdoms Tactics, published by Alibaba, has surpassed $1.2 billion in lifetime revenue since its September 2019 release.
- As of April 2021, the title became the highest-grossing 4X strategy game on the App Store and the 5th top-grossing iOS game globally for that year.
- China drives the vast majority of the game's financial success, accounting for 96.2% of its total iOS revenue.
Infinity Kingdom: Monetisation Analysis
This analysis examines the monetization strategy of Infinity Kingdom, a mobile strategy game released in early 2021.
- Infinity Kingdom shifts the traditional 4X strategy power balance by assigning 90% of player power to heroes and troops, compared to the 50-70% typically allocated to construction and research in the genre.
- The game utilizes a 'water team' meta to drive early-game monetization, incentivizing players to purchase Merlin via a first-time buyer offer and subsequent VIP chests totaling approximately €45.
- Scaling IAP bundles are used to monetize hero progression, with specific 'Crowned King' packs requiring a total spend of €205 to fully upgrade a single hero to seven tiers.
Rise of Kingdoms: Analyzing How It Became a $2 Billion Game
Rise of Kingdoms has established itself as a dominant force in the mobile 4X real-time strategy genre, surpassing 100 million downloads and generating over $2 billion in lifetime revenue since its 2018 debut.
- Rise of Kingdoms has generated over $2 billion in lifetime revenue since its September 2018 release by developer Lilith Games.
- The game maintains strong performance with over 100 million total downloads and consistent monthly revenue exceeding $20 million.
- Monetization relies heavily on in-app purchases, including a tiered gem store, subscription-based supply depots, and a battle pass system known as Lucerne Scrolls.
Rise of Kingdoms: A Player Perspective on Monetization
This analysis provides a player-centric examination of the monetization strategies employed in the mobile strategy game Rise of Kingdoms.
- Rise of Kingdoms utilizes a tiered VIP system that gates exclusive commander sculptures behind specific purchase levels, creating a logical progression path that encourages players to continue spending to complete their investment.
- The game features a high-frequency premium currency drain through the VIP shop, which offers personalized, level-dependent access to essential items like XP boosters and speed-ups.
- Daily special offers provide high value by bundling premium currency, keys, and VIP points, often serving as a preferred alternative to direct gem purchases for players looking to maximize their spend.
White Paper on Global Mobile Games
The white paper argues that mobile-game advertising has entered a new phase of intensity and sophistication, driven by rapid creative growth, the dominance of video formats, and evolving privacy regulations.
- Mobile advertising has shifted toward a video-first model, with video ads now accounting for over 85% of total spend and vertical formats outperforming horizontal ones with conversion rates near 0.15%.
- Privacy regulations have forced a move toward probabilistic attribution models like SKAN, shifting industry focus from granular user targeting to high-quality creative design.
- Ad creative volume surged 200% year-over-year in 2021, while CPMs increased by 34%, reflecting a period of intense market competition.
Top Mobile Games by Worldwide Revenue: September 2020
The mobile gaming industry experienced significant revenue growth in September 2020, characterized by strong performances from established titles and successful new market entries.
- Tencent’s Honor of Kings was the top-grossing mobile game worldwide in September 2020, generating approximately $240 million in revenue, an 87% increase year-over-year.
- PUBG Mobile ranked second globally with over $198 million in revenue, representing 13.3% year-over-year growth, with 56.5% of its earnings coming from China.
- Coin Master achieved its best month ever in September 2020, earning nearly $113 million, a 121% increase year-over-year.
Top Mobile Games by Worldwide Revenue: June 2020
The mobile gaming industry experienced significant revenue growth in June 2020, driven by strong performances from established titles and successful regional expansions.
- Tencent's Honor of Kings was the highest-grossing mobile game worldwide in June 2020, generating over $193 million in revenue, a 50.4% increase year-over-year.
- PUBG Mobile ranked second globally with $168 million in revenue, achieving 12.8% year-over-year growth with 53% of its earnings coming from the Chinese version, Game For Peace.
- Supercell’s Brawl Stars reached its highest-grossing month ever at $84 million—a 300% increase from June 2019—following its launch in the Chinese market.
Top Mobile Games by Worldwide Revenue: February 2020
This analysis details the top-grossing mobile games worldwide for February 2020, utilizing data from the Store Intelligence platform.
- PUBG Mobile was the top-grossing mobile game worldwide in February 2020, generating over $191.6 million, a fivefold increase compared to February 2019.
- Honor of Kings ranked second globally with $121.6 million in revenue, with 92.6% of its earnings originating from China.
- Several top titles, including PUBG Mobile, Monster Strike, Coin Master, and Rise of Kingdoms, achieved their highest-ever monthly user spending in February 2020.
Top Mobile Games by Worldwide Revenue: January 2020
The mobile gaming landscape in January 2020 was characterized by significant revenue growth, driven largely by the influence of the Chinese market.
- PUBG Mobile was the top-grossing mobile game globally in January 2020, generating $176.3 million, nearly four times its revenue from January 2019.
- Honor of Kings ranked second with $151.3 million in gross revenue, marking a 25 percent year-over-year increase.
- Lilith Games' AFK Arena experienced a significant surge to $88.3 million in revenue following its launch in China, nearly tripling its previous monthly record of $31.2 million set in August 2019.
2020 Predictions #5: The Clash of Ice and Phasers
The mobile strategy game sector stands as the highest-grossing genre in Western markets, generating approximately $5.5 billion in in-app purchases annually as of early 2020.
- Strategy games are the highest-grossing mobile genre in Western markets, generating $5.5 billion in in-app purchases and growing 25% year-over-year, outpacing puzzle games by nearly $1 billion.
- The 4X sub-genre grew 23% in 2019 to reach $3.2 billion in revenue, driven by new game launches rather than the cannibalization of existing titles.
- Chinese publishers dominate the 4X market, accounting for 76% of all 4X revenue in Western markets despite representing only 7% of the sub-genre's revenue in China.