A new report by Niko Partners and AppMagic analyzes the mobile game market in Asia and MENA regions in relation to game genre.
The report analyzes the performance of 5 main genres namely RPG, strategy, MOBA, puzzle and battle royale according to several key metrics. The criteria considered were monetization, engagement (including aspects such as average playtime per week and length of time before leaving the group), attractiveness (including gender disparity. between players and financial and age gaps), and e-sports activity.
Top popular game genre.
RPG proves to be the biggest grossing genre in Asia and MENA in 2022, with total spend 50% higher than strategy, MOBA, puzzle and battle royale genres combined. The success of the genre in East Asian countries in particular has resulted in it having the highest revenue per download of all genres.
The genre also ranked first in engagement among the five categories analyzed, but fell short in terms of e-sports due to the lack of competitive elements. Notably, this genre has a broader appeal than other genres with a male percentage of 61%, compared with other genres with a male percentage above 70%. The genre has been a particular success in South Korea, where it accounts for 75% of all mobile game sales, and players of the genre have the highest average earnings of all genres analyzed.
Strategy is the second largest genre in terms of revenue and the third largest in terms of downloads, however, it is ranked 4th in terms of revenue per download and the lowest of all genres in terms of revenue. interaction score. The average player plays strategy games about 5.1 hours a week. Even so, the genre has the second highest appeal, with players unlikely to be dissatisfied and more likely to try new games.
Puzzle games have more downloads than any other genre in the study, thanks to high total downloads and downloads per player. This is enough to make up for the fact that, with 3.9 hours per week, players spend less time on puzzle titles than in any other genre in the report.
Puzzle gamers have the lowest percentage of in-game spending, yet they have the second highest average income after RPGs. Demographically, the genre has the highest average age players and the second most evenly split sex ratio. Fans of the genre are also least likely to engage with e-sports, being least likely to compete in online steam e-sports tournaments or events.
Innovation in the puzzle genre has seen a number of subgenres, such as fusion games, perform well throughout 2022. Fans of the genre across Asia and MENA are more than likely ability to appreciate the localization of the genre the most.
Asia has a diverse market and while some regions like Japan are slow to adapt to mobile games, other regions like Southeast Asia and China show how popular mobile games are.
