The number of downloads of the new IronMonkeys game in the first week turned out to be more than the total number of downloads of Real Racing and Real Racing 2 for the entire time of their existence on the market. Is it a success?
Nick Earl, vice president of the mobile and social divisions of Electronic Arts, said in an interview with CNET that freemium, without options, was the right move for the company, including from the financial side.
“An active minority has met freemium with hostility,” Earl noted. “We respect them and understand, but the market has already said its weighty word.”
Now the question is whether everything is so good for Real Racing 3. The game took first place in the free apps chart in 90 countries. Now it is at the top of the top in only 2 countries. For example, in the USA it is on the 17th place. But free charts, as you know, are far from the defining indicator of the success of the application.
In the American App Store for iPhone, the Real Racing 3 project reached a maximum of 8 positions, but now it is only 23. Of course, this is a very good place, but did EA itself count on more?
The first 20 days of Real Racing 3 on the American market (iPhone App Store)If, for example, we compare with the results of Real Racing 3 the cash figures of Need for Speed Most Wanted for a similar period (the first 20 days from the date of release), it turns out that they are not much different.
Moreover, according to the maximum cash position, Most Wanted overtakes Real Racing 3 in the American store.
The first 20 Days of Need for Speed Most Wanted on the American Market (iPhone App Store)But there is one point: after the first weeks, Need for Speed began the usual decline for any single project.
This is not yet observed in the third part of Real Racing. This is with the general mechanics, engine and development team (both projects were done by IronMonkey Studios).
John Jordan from PocketGamer generally believes that racing games will not be able to overcome projects like Clash of Clans and Rage of Bahamut for earnings. In his opinion, the whole point is that in such games there is a lack of a more unambiguous PvP. The second place on the track is not too motivating factor for enmity, but the looted base is a completely different matter.
As an additional argument, he cites a drop in interest in another, conditionally, racing game – CSR Racing, which has significantly lost in cash over the past three months. Back in December last year, she was in the top ten, and now she is huddled in the top 30.
The last three months CSR Racing in the American top (iPhone App Store)However, Jordan somehow misses two important points.
Firstly, the NaturalMotion game was released back in May 2012 and until February 2013 it was never missed below the 20th position in the box office top (in the summer the game earned $ 12 million a month). As a rule, she kept much higher. Secondly, the drop in interest was most likely caused by a long delay between updates. There is a window of almost a month and a half, which happened only once before.
So, as you can see, the races are quite successful in the market. In addition, what, if not a race, can games like Temple Run be called?
But if we talk specifically about Real Racing 3, can the game become another box office hit?
We think not. Real Racing 3 will not overtake F2P competitors. She is hindered by the classic racing gameplay. For this game, you need to sit down, focus on the process, and this may well scare off a significant part of the paying audience.
On the other hand, Kabam’s example demonstrated that narrow niches should not be underestimated. Not many people play hardcore economic farms, but they really spend a lot on them. If EA is able to touch the audience of fans of car simulators with its project, high revenue will not take long to wait.