Amanotes Embraces Hybrid-Casual Movement to Enhance User Experience and Drive Growth

Amanotes, the leading music-based mobile game developer, is making a major strategic shift towards developing hybrid-casual games, with new releases already in development. 

Grounded in thorough market research and user feedback, the move aims to enhance engagement and attract new users, responding to growing player preferences for more complex features like visual progression, in-game events, character stats and more. It also seeks to diversify Amanotes’ revenue streams by introducing in-app purchases. 

The emerging hybrid-casual genre sees super-simple and addictive core games enhanced with features like simplified progression systems and live operations, while generating revenues from both advertising and in-app purchases. This gaming category has seen rapid growth, with a market value reaching $1.4 billion in 2023, according to SensorTower.

A Billion Licensed Songs

By offering immersive gaming experiences and a vast music library of over one billion licensed songs, Amanotes has consistently set itself apart in the mobile gaming industry, positioning itself at the unique crossroads of music and gaming. This has seen its games amass three billion downloads to date. 

Unlike the short life cycle typical of hyper-casual games, Amanotes’ unique proposition of “simple music games” has allowed its titles to enjoy sustained popularity. This focus drives continuous innovation, with the team regularly updating their music library to reflect current trends, and enhancing gameplay based on extensive data analysis.

Most Downloaded Music Game In History

As well as collaborating with partner studios to bring new, innovative gaming experiences to market, the implementation of Amanotes’ hybrid-casual strategy will extend to transforming its existing titles. In the case of Duet Cats, this is already underway, with Amanotes’ introducing a currency system to boost user engagement. Meanwhile, the company has plans for Magic Tiles 3, its flagship title and the most downloaded music-based game in history, to add competitive modes that cater to players’ desire for mastery and competition. 

Within the next five years, the company will aim for its portfolio to comprise a balanced mix of hyper-casual and hybrid-casual games, with at least 50 percent of its offerings leaning towards the latter. This diversification is designed to ensure longevity and sustained engagement across its global user base. To support this, Amanotes plans to invest in expanding its team’s capabilities, with the recruitment of experienced game designers.

Tremendous Potential

Huy Tran, Head of Games & Simulation at Amanotes, commented on the strategic shift, saying, “We see tremendous potential in hybrid-casual games to deliver richer and more engaging experiences to our users. This strategy not only aligns with current gaming trends but also leverages our unique position in the music gaming sector. We invite passionate talents who love music and gaming to join us on this exciting journey.”