iOS game developers: profit mainly by selling digital virtual currency

Beijing Time September 28 news, "Free Value Added" application refers to those who do not charge, but users need to use real money to buy digital virtual currency applications, this application has been in the Apple App Store, the application of the official dominance.

Increasingly popular free value added games The Simpsons: Rebuilding Homes (the simpsons:tapped out) calls its digital virtual currency "donut". The game "Long" (Dragonvale), released nearly a year ago, is still high on the App Store's total game list, which calls its digital virtual currency "food", "gem" and "cash". But whatever the name, money is money; users can slowly earn virtual money in the game, or they can get it quickly by buying it in real money.

Of the top 50 apps in the itunes App Store's game list, only three games don't support the app buying model. This means that small game developers now face a choice: to create a game that uses digital virtual currency or to lose the opportunity to make a lot of money.

Some developers have taken the solution by adding digital virtual currencies to existing games. Mobile game developer Lima Sky recently updated its classic game "graffiti Jumping" (Doodle Jump), adding in-app purchase and upgrade mode, where users can buy using digital virtual currency. As a result, "graffiti jumps" in the overall ranking of the rapid rise in the rankings, which has been released so far nearly three years of the game is an impressive "feat." "Graffiti jumping" is one of the first sensational games to land on Apple devices, but in a world centered around digital virtual currency, the game is already a bit outdated.

Lima Sky President Igor Pusenjak said: "This update is mainly about the current player expectations of the response." Today's gamers expect a game to have an upgraded, open, or customized content. ”

Pusenjak said the company's profits have achieved "considerable" growth, but said it is too early to disclose specific data. He points out that profit growth is partly the result of increasing game sales after any major updates are normally made, but he also points out that the profit performance of the new model, "graffiti jumps", looks really much better than it used to be.

Importantly, most players seem to be satisfied with the update. For now, the "Doodle Jump" score in the itunes App Store is close to the perfect five star ratings.

But not everyone was satisfied. One user scored four stars for the updated graffiti jump, but lamented: "I hate all of these apps." ”

Racing game CSR Racing has been blamed for pushing players to buy their digital virtual currency, but the game earns more than 12 million dollars a month because players pay to buy the digital virtual currency in the game. In other words, CSR racing a day's income more than most games can make in the entire product life cycle. From this point of view, what is the reason for rival development teams such as real Racing 3 to take the same approach as CSR racing?

"Designing a successful free value-added game is more difficult than designing a traditional game," said Jason Avent, head of CSR racing Jason Evante. ”

But a careful examination of the game Rankings at Apple's itunes App Store shows that the situation is not necessarily what he says. At present, the fifth in this ranking is the "Crazy Tiger Game" (Slotomania), this is a simple, ugly interface game.

Game developer Funzio is now a subsidiary of the GRE, a Japanese social-gaming giant, who produced games such as the Modern Warfare (Xiandai War), the City of Evil (Crime) and the Kingdom of Hegemony (Kingdom age), The three games ranked the top 75 in the game Rankings of the itunes App Store. The cost of these games are very low, the design is also nothing new, can play is very low, but still can attract players "bait."

How many games like this will emerge before the player gets tired of the pattern? For now, it looks as if the options that iOS developers should make are clear: either choose to board the "big Boat" of digital virtual currencies or miss out on huge potential profits.