Midcore Gaming Apps Report

Jun, 2023 Midcore

Gaming Apps

Report

2023

Download PDF

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

Contents

Introduction

Highlights & Methodology

Benchmarks & Tips

State of the Midcore Gaming Apps Market

Top Trends in Midcore Gaming

About Us

2

3

4

5

15

22

33

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

Introduction

3

The future of gaming looks bright—thanks in no small part to mobile. According to

Insider Intelligence, while the number of console and desktop gamers is expected to

stagnate over the next five years, the number of mobile gamers
is expected to grow

to 172.5 million. As the audience for mobile gaming grows, the market is also evolving.

While casual games still dominate the field, easy growth is tapering, especially for

hyper casual titles. Apple’s IDFA changes introduced new user acquisition challenges

for mobile apps. Post-pandemic, many hyper casual gamers have also peeled off,

and engaged gamers are gravitating toward titles with more depth. Game

developers are looking less to volume and more to the steady streams of revenue a

dedicated following can bring.

It’s no surprise, then, that midcore games represent a growing share of the mobile

gaming market—
they now make up 35% of total US mobile gaming revenue
on iOS.

Midcore titles have higher barriers of entry, but they also have a more engaged

audience and are more likely to have multiple monetization streams. Last year,

GameRefinery
released a
report
that explores the increasing popularity of midcore

games. As top gaming IPs become top mobile titles, AAA game studios are taking

note and prioritizing mobile. We expect this trend to continue as the category gains

more momentum.

As the midcore market grows more competitive, game developers need to reach the

right audience and seize on monetization opportunities that make an impact. Liftoff’s

2023 Midcore Gaming Apps Report makes it easier for midcore marketers and game

developers to get the most from their apps. We break down the essential ad cost

and ROI benchmarks, and our experts at GameRefinery provide an overview of the

top games in the midcore category and the year’s must-know gameplay and

monetization trends.

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

4

Highlights &

Methodology

CPI

Midcore games have higher barriers of entry for new players. So it’s

unsurprising that they also have, on average, higher user acquisition

costs. Overall costs per install (CPI) for midcore games average

around $2.

ROI by Region

EMEA offers the best UA deal for midcoredevelopers. It has a

relatively high 4.4% D7 return on ad spend (ROAS) and the

second-lowest CPI at $0.80.

Day-7 ROAS by Genre

Shooter games have the highest average D7 ROAS at 6%, while

strategy games are a close second at 5.4%.

Player Engagement

When it comes to acquiring and retaining high LTV users, LiveOps has

become the number one success factor.

App Monetization

Mobile game publishers are turning to external web stores for selling

certain in-game items, bypassing Google and Apple stores.

CPI and ROI based

on data from

May 1, 2022 — May 1, 2023

5.5M

Installs

30B

Impressions

1.1B

Clicks

All data for the report comes from
GameRefinery
and
Accelerate
, Liftoff’s

programmatic advertising solution.

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

Benchmarks

& Tips

CPI Overall & by Platform

D7
ROAS Overall & by Platform

CPI by Month

D7
ROAS by Month

CPI by Region

D7
ROAS by Region

CPI by Genre

D7
ROAS by Genre

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

Our cost and ROAS benchmarks cover three of the biggest midcore gaming

genres. Here’s how Liftoff defines them:

How Liftoff Defines

Midcore Game Genres

6

Shooter

Shooter games are a

perennial genre in the

midcore category.

Their core mechanics

involve shooting and

combat that can take

place in military or

fantasy and sci-fi

settings. Examples

include Call of Duty:

Mobile, PUBG Mobile

and Free Fire.

RPG

A popular genre of

midcore game, RPGs

usually involve

playing out a

scenario by

controlling a

character. They are

typically

narrative-driven and

involve progressing

through a storyline.

Examples include

Genshin Impact,

Diablo Immortal and

Marvel Strike Force.

Strategy

For gamers who

enjoy victory through

tactical acumen,

strategy games

involve the

management of

resources, buildings

and troops. They

usually play out war

and battle scenarios

in a strategic setting.

Examples include

Clash of Clans, Clash

Royale and Forge of

Empires.

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

CPI Overall & by

Platform

7

Midcore games have higher barriers of entry for new players. So it’s

unsurprising that they also have, on average, higher costs of user acquisition:

●
Overall costs per install (CPI) for midcore games average around $2. This

is 2x as high as the
overall CPI for casual games
, which averages $1.

●
Android is the more cost-effective platform. At $0.73 per install, Android

users cost 5x less to acquire than iOS users, who average $3.86 per install.

●
CPI for specific games can range from less than $1 per install to over $30.

Marketers should note that average CPIs are taken across genres,

regions and over 12 months. They are not intended as a target CPI.

$2.03

$0.73

$3.86

Overall

Android

iOS

$0.00

$1.00

$2.00

$3.00

$4.00

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

D7 ROAS Overall & by

Platform

8

Midcore games can be lucrative, but they also have longer ROI breakeven

points than their casual game counterparts. Day-7 return on ad spend (ROAS)

is a helpful indicator for midcore games to gauge the ROI trajectory of new

users, but it’s not the only metric they should consider.

●
The average D7 ROAS on Android is 6.1%, nearly 2x as much as the D7

ROAS on iOS.

●
While D7 ROAS for
casual games
averages around 7% across platforms,

midcore game D7 ROAS is comparatively lower at 4.3%.

●
New users are indispensable, but midcore games rely on engaged

audiences for revenue. Marketers should also consider lifetime value

(LTV) metrics to evaluate their success.

4.3%

6.1%

3.4%

Overall

Android

iOS

0.00%

2.00%

4.00%

6.00%

8.00%

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

CPI by Month

9

Acquisition costs for midcore games can fluctuate markedly depending on the

time of year. Looking at CPI for the past nine months:

●
Costs were comparatively higher in the summer, peaking in August at

$2.81.

●
Costs hit nine-month lows in October and remained below $2 in early

2023.

●
Overall, midcore acquisition costs hovered between $1.50 and $3. This is

$1 higher than the average range for
casual games
.

Jul

$0.00

$1.00

$2.00

$2.40

$2.16

$2.08

$1.94

$2.30

$1.66

$1.89

Sep

Nov

Jan

Mar

2022

2023

$3.00

$1.72

$2.81

$1.76

Aug

Oct

Dec

Feb

Apr

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

D7 ROAS by Month

10

D7 ROAS for midcore games fluctuated dramatically in the past nine months.

●
Costs were high in July 2022, but high costs also corresponded with high

returns. Midcore games hit an average D7 ROAS of 6.3% that month.

●
Fall and spring saw comparatively lower install costs but also a lower

average D7 ROAS—between 3.1% and 5.7%.

●
On average, D7 ROAS for midcore games is over 2% lower than that of

casual games
.

0.0%

2.0%

4.0%

6.0%

3.6%

5.7%

3.1%

4.4%

3.5%

5.6%

6.3%

4.02%

4.3%

3.5%

8.0%

Jul

Sep

Nov

Jan

Mar

2022

2023

Aug

Oct

Dec

Feb

Apr

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

CPI

by Region

11

The gaming market and the habits of midcore gamers vary significantly across

different regions. Here’s a snapshot of how this impacts cost:

●
Acquisition costs in LATAM tend to be lower across verticals, and the CPI

for midcore games reflects this trend at $0.27 per install.

●
EMEA has the second-lowest CPI at $0.80.

●
North America has the highest CPI at $5.45 per install. This is more than 4x

APAC, the next highest region.

$5.45

$0.80

$0.27

NAR

EMEA

LATAM

$0.00

$2.00

$4.00

$6.00

$1.37

APAC

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

D7 ROAS

by Region

12

Regional differences also translate into different ROIs. Here’s what D7 ROAS

looks like across the globe:

●
While acquisition costs in North America are comparatively high, this

market also yields the best D7 ROAS at 4.5%.

●
EMEA offers the best UA deal for midcore games. It has a relatively high

D7 ROAS at 4.4% and the second-lowest CPI at $0.80.

●
While LATAM has low acquisition costs, it offers lower D7 returns at 1.5%.

4.5%

4.4%

1.5%

NAR

EMEA

LATAM

0.00%

1.00%

2.00%

3.00%

5.00%

2.6%

APAC

4.00%

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

CPI by Genre

13

We looked at three genres of midcore games—shooter, strategy, and RPG. Each

is a midcore gaming genre staple, but they attract different audiences with

varied motivations.

Shooter games have the highest CPI at $7.47. Their players cost over

twice as much as strategy players to acquire.

RPG is the most cost-effective genre at $0.60.

$6.00

$7.47

$2.77

$0.60

Shooter

Strategy

RPG

$0.00

$2.00

$4.00

$8.00

“In today’s data-driven landscape, creatives play a

crucial role in audience targeting despite the

challenges of dealing with highly aggregated data. By

gaining insights into what motivates your players and

incorporating those elements into your creatives, you

can effectively target an audience even when direct

access to user-level data is unavailable. This approach

allows creatives to do the hard work to reach the right

audience. This is especially true for midcore games

where the right audience fit is critical to

high-performing marketing campaigns.”

ALEXEY GUSEV

Head of Growth, Kwalee

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

D7 ROAS by Genre

14

D7 ROAS can vary depending on how engaged an audience is and how much

time users spend in the game. Looking at the three midcore game genres, we

found:

●
Shooter games have the highest average D7 ROAS at 6%, while strategy

games are a close second at 5.4%.

●
Although RPG games have lower CPIs, they also post substantially lower

D7 returns at around 1.7%.

●
Compared to
casual gaming
genres, midcore genres have a lower

average D7 ROAS.

6.0%

5.4%

1.7%

Shooter

Strategy

RPG

0.00%

2.00%

4.00%

6.00%

State of the

Midcore Gaming

Apps Market

How Does GameRefinery Categorize Mobile Games?

Midcore Games in the US: A Market Overview

Midcore Games: Winners and Challengers

Analyst Overview:
Honka:i
Star Rail

Analyst Overview: Call of Dragons

Analyst Overview: Marvel Snap

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

How Does GameRefinery

Categorize Mobile Games?

16

GameRefinery divides gaming apps into four categories, genres and subgenres. The

second biggest category after casual games, midcore games fall into four genres:

RPG, strategy, shooter, and card games.

Drawing on this taxonomy, we looked at top-performing games and new

developments in the category.

Midcore

Casual

Sports &

Driving

Casino

RPG

Action RPG

Tower Defense RPG

Turn-based RPG

Fighting

MMORPG

Puzzle RPG

Idle RPG

Survival

Sovereign Games

Strategy

4X Strategy

Asymmetric Survival

Build & Battle

MOBA

Tactic Battler

Shooter

Battle Royale

Classic FPS/TPS

Snipers

Tactical Shooter

Card Games

Card Battler

Puzzle

Action Puzzle

Board Games

Bubble Shooter

Match 3 Puzzle

Merge Games

Other Puzzle

Word Games

Trivia Games

Hidden Objects

Solitaire/Mahjong

Lifestyle

Customization

Interactive Story

Music/Band

AR/Location

Based

AR /Location Based

Arcade

Platformer

Shoot/Beat’ em Up

Other Arcade

Tower Defense

Hyper Casual

HC – Puzzle

HC – Top

HC – Steer

HC – Swipe/Drag

HC – .io

HC – Other

Simulation

Adventures

Breeding

Tycoon/Crafting

Sandbox

Time Management

Idler

Sports

Arcade Sports

Realistic Sports

Driving

Arcade Driving

Realistic Driving

Casino

Bingo

Casual Casino

Other Casino

Poker/Cards

Slots

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

Midcore Games in the

US: A Market Overview

17

Midcore mobile games are a growing business.
Currently, the midcore category’s

market share accounts for around 35% of mobile gaming revenue on iOS in the US.

Above are the top 10 midcore games on iOS from Q1 of 2023 according to

GameRefinery data.

Here are a few takeaways from the top games:

●
Strategy (4X strategy, build & battle) make up the lion’s share of the top midcore

games. Seven out of 10 of the top games belong to the strategy genre.

●
Genshin Impact is the only RPG title among the top ten grossers, and Call of Duty:

Mobile and PUBG Mobile round out the shooter genre.

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

Midcore Games: Winners

and Challengers

18

Above are the midcore and casual games released in the past 365 days on iOS in the

US that have held their position in the top-grossing 200. Notably, we only see five

casual games compared to ten midcore games, signifying longer staying power for

midcore winners.

In the next few pages, we’ll look at what the new top challengers in the midcore

category look like—and why they’ve proved so successful.

“To get a sneak peak into the midcore trends of

tomorrow, look at Gen Alpha’s gaming habits.

Roblox and Minecraft dominate their playtime,

but each game is not a monolith. Developers

and publishing teams can observe what specific

Roblox experiences and Minecraft mods are

trending today to extrapolate what genres and

IP-styles might be popular in the next 2-5 years

as Gen Alpha ages up. ”

OLIVER WANG

Head of Growth, Mushroom.gg

MIDCORE GAMES

CASUAL GAMES

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

Analyst Overview:

Honkai: Star Rail

19

Genre & Style

Honkai: Star Rail is a turn-based RPG with exploration from the makers of Genshin

Impact. The game is set in a colorful sci-fi world and features cel-shaded anime

characters from the Honkai mobile game series.

Features & Progressions

Core:

●
A turn-based character collector RPG. The main core gameplay of all the

game modes consists players building a team of 1-4 characters to battle in

turn-based combat.

●
Exploring maps with enemies that can be attacked to initiate a battle scene

●
Turn-based battles:

○
Break enemies by attacking them with their weak element

○
Shared skill points for the whole team, which can be changed by regular

attacks

For a detailed breakdown of Honkai: Star Rail, try
GameRefinery
today.

HONKAI: STAR RAIL

Analyst notes:

●
Honkai: Star Rail stands out from the crowd with its

high-quality visuals, exploration elements, and meta

elements first proven to work with Genshin Impact.

●
The game features many high-quality cutscenes that help

give the game a AAA console/PC game feel.

●
Honkai: Star Rail is a crossplay title and can be played

outside mobile.

Teemu Palomäki

Chief Game Analyst

GameRefinery,

A Liftoff Company

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

Analyst notes:

Analyst Overview:

Call of Dragons

20

Genre & Style

Call of Dragons is a 4X strategy game where players choose different factions to build

their armies. It is the spiritual successor to Rise of Kingdoms. The game comes from the

same team and has a lot of similarities. This time, the theme is more fantasy-based.

One crucial change is that the whole game is season-based, and the combat is more

hands-on (see below).

The game has incredibly high production values. The cartoon-like art resembles a

Pixar movie.

Features & Progressions

Combat:

Combat is one factor that makes Call of Dragons stand out in the 4X strategy market:

●
You’re moving legions freely on the world map, just as in Rise of Kingdoms.

For a detailed breakdown of Call of Dragons, try
GameRefinery
today.

Call of Dragons is a unique title in the 4X strategy market for a

few reasons:

●
It has a season-based gameplay loop.

●
Real-time RTS combat familiar from Rise of Kingdoms is

taken to the next level with active skills.

●
Highly polished audiovisuals & voice-acted narrative

level up this 4X strategy game.

Erno Kiiski

Chief Game Analyst

GameRefinery,

A Liftoff Company

CALL OF DRAGONS

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

Analyst notes:

Analyst Overview:

Marvel Snap

21

Genre & Style

Marvel Snap is a turn-based collectible card game where you play real-time matches

against other players using a deck you’ve compiled containing cards from your

collection.

The art style pays homage to the Marvel IP, with electric blue, black and pink

dominating the dark-hued color palette. The quality of graphics, animation, and

sounds is very high, with unique character animations giving the final touch to the

polished audiovisual experience.

Features & Progressions

Core game:

●
Matches are very short (a couple of minutes), making Marvel Snap very

approachable and easy to play in quick stints. This differs significantly from the

average mobile CCG, where matches usually last much longer.

For a detailed breakdown of Marvel Snap, try
GameRefinery
today.

Joel Julkunen

Vice President of Games

GameRefinery,

A Liftoff Company

●
Marvel Snap took the CCG genre by storm with an

innovative card collection system (no card packs!),

easy-to-learn gameplay, and quick matches that were

always a bit different, thanks to area mechanics.

●
With a constant, steady flow of new content and features,

Marvel Snap has sustained its stellar performance on the

charts with no decline in sight.

MARVEL SNAP

Top Trends in

Midcore Gaming

New in Shooter Games: Innovative Subgenres

Monetizing Battle Passes: Event Passes

Monetizing Battle Passes: Battle Pass Stores

Season-Based Systems to Boost Engagement

Shortcuts to External Web Stores

LiveOps—the #1 Strategy for Upping Engagement

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

New in Shooter Games:

Innovative Subgenres

23

The shooter market has been dominated heavily by battle royale titles for a while, but

new subgenres are finally starting to gain traction.

One of these emerging subgenres is extraction shooters, where you enter a map to

loot, kill, survive, and then get extracted back to safety. Extraction shooters feature

more tactical, realistic, and slower-paced gameplay than battle royale games. While

the Western mobile game market is still waiting for a hit extraction shooter, PC already

has a handful of popular titles, such as Escape From Tarkov.

In the Chinese mobile game market, however, the best-performing new mobile

shooter and the 3rd highest-grossing shooter overall is an extraction shooter
暗区突
围

(Arena Breakout). We are waiting for a global launch for the game. PUBG Mobile also

introduced an extraction game mode titled Metro Royale—now a recurring event

mode.

EXTRACTION SHOOTER
暗区突
围
(ARENA BREAKOUT)

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

24

A handful of other PC shooter subgenres—RPG shooters with established titles like Tom

Clancy’s The Division and Destiny, for example—are coming to mobile. One of the

best-performing new RPGs on mobile, Goddess of Victory: Nikke, also features

shooter-core gameplay.

One of the key success factors for new mobile games is the ability to differentiate their

gameplay in a saturated field with new features and mechanics. It’s great to see the

shooter market evolving and innovating.

ACTION RPG

SHOOTER GODDESS

OF VICTORY: NIKKE

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

Monetizing Battle Passes:

Event Passes

25

Battle Pass is a proven monetization and engagement feature. It can be a standalone

recurring event or a game-wide progression system. Due to the vast potential of battle

passes, more and more midcore games have been adding it to their events for

additional monetization layers and progression layers.

LEAGUE OF LEGENDS: WILD RIFT –

LUNAR FEAST

Some implementations of

event passes are League of

Legends: Wild Rift in their Lunar

Feast event, Goddess of

Victory: Nikke in chainsaw Man

collaboration event, and Clash

Royale in each of their

Tournament events.

On top of the game’s regular battle

passes, some of their events are

monetized through an Event Pass with

both free and premium reward layers

included. This can be interpreted as a

more player-friendly way to monetize

the event rewards compared to, for

example, gachas.

25

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

CLASH ROYALE – TOURNAMENT EVENTS

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

Monetizing Battle Passes:

Battle Pass Stores

26

Another trending battle-pass implementation in the highest performing midcore games are

in-Battle Pass stores. There’s usually a special currency gained from the Battle Pass reward

tracks, often as a bonus reward once the main track is completed.

This special currency is used in a limited time shop found inside the Battle Pass menu to get

additional exclusive prizes. As a feature, the battle pass store adds a new interesting layer to

the Battle Pass, further incentivizing players to purchase and progress in the premium layer.

For example, Diablo Immortal uses a battle archive shop that features past seasons’ rewards.

These rewards are available for purchase with battle archive coins, which you can get only

with the more expensive version of the premium battle pass layer. League of Legends: Wild

Rift, on the other hand, has a Wild Pass Emporium shop that features exclusive skin upgrades.

This is in addition to the main reward, Wild Pass. Players can also purchase other related

cosmetics directly, or with Wild Stars gained from the battle pass.

LEAGUE OF LEGENDS: WILD RIFT – WILD PASS EMPORIUM SHOP

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

Season-Based Systems

to Boost Engagement

27

Another trend we’re seeing is the increased use of season-based systems. Changing

the game season to season offers a chance to introduce new content, boosting

engagement.

The hit strategy game Call of Dragons stands out from the market precisely this way. A

lot of the progression vectors reset season to season. Even when not everything is

reset, the change still brings a “fresh cyclical feel” to the game and tackles the

problem of the game becoming very stale.

This has also expanded outside of the strategy market. For example, RPG games like

Torchlight: Infinite rely on a similar seasonal approach to refresh their gameplay loop.

Clash Royale is another game that recently overhauled its event systems to create an

interconnected season with a seasonal currency and shop.

CALL OF DRAGONS

TORCHLIGHT: INFINITE

CLASH ROYALE

“
One interesting development in multiple games in the

midcore market is the popularity of season-based

systems. This means tighter seasonal cycles in the

gameplay loops.
“

ERNO
KIISKI

Chief Game Analyst, GameRefinery,
a Liftoff Company

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

Shortcuts to External Web

Stores

28

One interesting trend we’re currently seeing, especially among Midcore games, is that

mobile game publishers are pushing users to external web stores. Instead of selling

in-game items in Google and Apple stores, games are choosing to bypass them

entirely.

In the
Apple
v
Epic lawsuit
, Apple prevailed on most claims, but Epic won on one crucial

count—Apple must allow links to apps to sell in-app purchases outside of the Apple

App Store. Apple has already appealed against this decision, so the trend may be

short-lived. However, many games are already turning to external alternatives, and

more are likely to follow if the decision holds.

Notable games such as Game of Thrones: Conquest, Clash of Clans, Star Wars: Galaxy

of Heroes, and Star Trek Fleet Command are already actively utilizing external web

stores to give their players better deals and enticing offers.

GAME OF THRONES:

CONQUEST WEB STORE

SUPERCELL STORE FOR CLASH OF CLANS

STAR TREK FLEET COMMAND WEB STORE

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

LiveOps: The #1 Strategy for

Upping Engagement

29

In today’s mobile game market, attaining new, high-LTV players is harder than ever,

and retaining your user base is crucial. In addition to having great core gameplay and

appealing meta elements, an active LiveOps framework is now a key way for top

games to expand the experience and keep their players engaged.

This is especially true with midcore games, where all top-performing titles have huge

LiveOps content cadences. They not only introduce new features, game modes, and

items or characters, but they also boast rich event frameworks.

“I’m seeing more midcore games creating

consistent live events for their communities. This is

a great reengagement strategy that drives users

back to the game with fresh content. It’s also a fun

way to introduce more competition among

players. Some games even encourage users to

post their results on social media to increase

community engagement. When midcore games

can tap into building their brands, they have a

powerful community more motivated to monetize.”

GABBY PIGOTT

VP Partnerships, Candywriter

The event frameworks usually consist of

recurring looping events (e.g. battle

passes, competitive seasons) and more

unique non-recurring events with new

twists. These can be e.g. limited-time

game modes or large-themed events.

Additionally, a constant flow of IAP

bundles and limited-time gachas are a

“must-have” if you want to boost your

monetization and attain top-tier status.

CALL OF DUTY: MOBILE – RANKED SEASON

2023 MIDCORE GAMING APPS REPORT

Download
PDF

30

Having a variety of

events can reenergize an

audience and boost

revenue. If we look at Call

of Duty: Mobile as an

example, we can see

how installs and

revenues correspond

with season cycles,

promotions, and events.

F
or a closer look at live events for midcore and casual games,

try GameRefinery’s
Live Events Tracker
.

●
Event cadence among the top midcore games is remarkably high. The average

number of unique events active simultaneously is 15, even when excluding IAP

offers & gachas.

●
Midcore games are heavy in PvP/competition, with 88% of top games running

permanently looping PvP seasons and 56% running guild-related competitions.

●
Most successful RPGs offer a wide variety of player versus environment (PvE)

modes for players, with an average of seven unique recurring or limited-time

PvE modes available at the same time.

●
Top-grossing shooter titles are all heavily monetized through gacha, with a

whopping 15 limited-time gachas available simultaneously, having average

durations of 23 days.

Insights from the GameRefinery

Live Events Tracker

Did you know?

Build better mobile games

with GameRefinery, the #1

trusted mobile game

intelligence tool.

Who is

?

Intelligence to Build Better Games

GameRefinery

speaks to game and product teams throughout the development

process, from pre-production to LiveOps, to help them build better games. Leverage

industry-leading market research, competitor intelligence, and player insights.

31

Improve your LiveOps with

our new
Live Events Tracker

Liftoff
is the leading growth acceleration

platform for the mobile industry, helping

advertisers, publishers, game developers and

DSPs scale revenue growth with solutions to

market and monetize mobile apps. Liftoff’s

solutions, including Accelerate, Direct,

Influence, Monetize, Intelligence, and Vungle

Exchange, support over 6,600 mobile

businesses across 74 countries in sectors

such as gaming, social, finance, ecommerce,

and entertainment. Founded in 2012 and

headquartered in Redwood City, CA, Liftoff

has a diverse, global presence.

www.liftoff.io

Who is

?