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To help get you primed and ready for another week in mobile gaming, we’ve curated the biggest stories you need to know from the last seven days.
Super Smash Bros. series creator Masahiro Sakurai released another video recently sharing insights into game design and industry trends. This time, Sakurai discussed market research and why developers should treat such data with a “grain of salt” and that they “shouldn’t get too hung up on these kinds of things”.
“The practices can be very effective in some industries, but if you’re trying to think up new game ideas, I’d recommend not taking them too seriously,” he said. “Targeting isn’t as reliable as people claim, and market research is based on past results.”
2) Wuthering Waves sails past $100 million in under two months
Kuro Games’ Wuthering Waves has generated $100 million in mobile gross revenue ($70m net) worldwide across the App Store and Google Play, according to AppMagic estimates.
The title’s most lucrative country to date has been Japan, accounting for 23% of revenue, while China accounts for 22%. South Korea, meanwhile, represents 17% and the US makes up a further 17%. It should be noted that these estimates do not include revenue from third-party Android stores, such as those available in China.
3) Zenless Zone Zero surpasses $50 million in 11 days
More AppMagic estimates, this time showing that HoYoverse’s latest release Zenless Zone Zero has amassed $52m from gross player spending ($36.4m net) on mobile in the 11 days following its official release. China represented 47% of player spending, while Japan made up 27%.
While a big launch, HoYoverse’s previous titles generated even more revenue during their first 11 days. Genshin Impact picked up $90.1m, and Honkai: Star Rail accumulated $108.6m.
4) Ark: Ultimate Survivor Edition coming to mobile later this year as original nears $50m in revenue
Studio Wildcard is launching Ark: Ultimate Survivor Edition on mobile later this year, which includes the base Ark: Survival Evolved game and a variety of DLC from Scorched Earth to Genesis Part 2.
AppMagic data estimates show the original Ark: Survival Evolved on mobile has racked up nearly $50m in gross revenue to date, ahead of the new version’s release.
5) Global advertising revenue to hit $1 trillion in 2026
Global advertising revenue is projected to reach $1 trillion in 2026 and will account for 55% of total entertainment and media (E&M) revenue over the next five years, according to a new report from PwC.
The firm claimed advertising is increasing its share of revenue in games. Ads generated $72.4 billion in 2023, just behind app-based social and casino games revenue at $82.9bn.
