4X is the only type of strategy that has both high downloads and high RPD

In its new study, Sensor Tower decided to look at mobile strategies. Analysts have divided the games into seven subgenres: 4X strategies, strategic RPG, MOBA, Card battles, Tactical battles, Build & Battle and Tower Defense. In each of them, Sensor Tower looked at the revenue/downloads statistics for the last ten months.

The unambiguous leader in both categories were 4X strategies:

• the subgenre collected almost $2 billion in January-October 2020. Note that this is not just more than other subgenres. This is two-thirds of the total revenue of mobile strategies in the US market ($2.8 billion);
• the volume of downloads also turned out to be rather big — 44.2 million (39% of the number of downloads of the entire genre);
• one download accounted for approximately $43 of the entire revenue of the subgenre;
• games of the subgenre entered the tops by cash register and installations. For example, State of Survival became the most downloaded title in the United States for the first ten months of 2020. Rise of Kingdoms and Game of Thrones: Conquest took second and third place among the most profitable titles (the first place went to Clash of Clans in the Build & Battle subgenre).

Sensor Tower notes that there are different numbers of games in different subgenres. But even if we divide the income of the subgenre into all the titles in it, then 4X strategies still remain the leaders.

But the Tower Defense subgenre has become the fastest growing in terms of player spending. It immediately increased by 131% in annual terms. And downloads grew fastest in the card buttler subgenre — there were 5.9% more of them than in January-October 2019.

However, despite the success of individual subgenres, mobile strategies themselves were no longer so popular among American gamers in 2020. The volume of downloads was slightly less than last year — 113 million versus 120 million. At the same time, the genre’s revenue increased by 21.7%.

Also on the topic:

• Sensor Tower: revenue of games in the post-apocalypse setting doubled in 2020Sensor Tower named the most successful publishers in mobile genres
• Opinion: the genres most represented on Steam have the lowest average income
• Is there any news?