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Mobile games are trending in the industry for convenience, generating millions of fans yearly.
But did you know every mobile game created today has a publisher behind it to develop and distribute the game?
If you are wondering how they have contributed to the development of this industry and why they have become giants in the mobile game industry, let’s delve into this article!
Overview of Mobile Game Publishing
In the mobile game market, the role of publishers has important meanings as they are the intermediaries who help game developers find players worldwide.
They can even provide resources such as finance or marketing strategies to reach more players.
Game publishers manage other distributions, such as distribution through different app stores or platforms. Besides, some publishers will assist during game development, helping the game increase.
Because of that, the choice of mobile game publisher can significantly influence the success of a game.
The publisher’s network and experience can bring new potential opportunities and help you expand the player market.
Marketing strategies from game publishers can increase a game’s exposure and help to increase downloads, hence getting revenues.
In other words, the right publisher enabler unlocks a game’s possibilities and creates its success in the highly saturated mobile game market.
Criteria for Ranking the Top Mobile Game Publishers
Now you know the vital role of the publishers. However, not all publishers are suitable for all game genres.
Therefore, choose the most appropriate mobile game publisher by following the criteria below.
1. Market Influence
First, market influence is one of the significant factors when assessing the mobile game publisher’s prominence.
This includes the market share that they command. This number represents the scale of their reach in the mobile game market.
A publisher who has established themselves in the market will have a large and loyal fan base, meaning that the publisher will be able to get many users constantly.
From there, you can reach numerous players passively and create a solid foothold in the gaming market.
2. Revenue Generation
Secondly, the revenue was generated, reflecting the extent of a mobile game publisher’s achievement. That is the most crucial metric for evaluating their performance is based on gross income and profitability.
Game publishers with high revenues prove not only the success of the games but also the strategies to make money successful.
When game publishers make steady money, they can use it to make better games, promote them, or new ideas.
3. Quality and Quantity of Games
One noteworthy aspect is that they must attain an optimized balance between quality and quantity.
Although more games can increase their product portfolio and reach gamers, they must have many good games for player satisfaction.
Publishers who regularly offer fun and high-quality games build a strong reputation and attract loyal players even if they don’t always release them.
4. Innovation and Impact
In the mobile game industry, constant change is the driving force behind any game developer’s development.
Leading game publishers always go beyond the comfort zone of current games to pioneer new mechanisms, concepts, and even technologies.
That’s why they are often pioneers in new game areas and set new standards.
5. User Engagement and Retention
Finally, a game publisher’s success assessment factor is its capacity to engage and nourish a healthy and vibrant gaming community. Its user engagement and retention rates show the effectiveness of building a loyal player community.
High engagement indicates the player’s enjoyment of the games published by the publisher. Besides, high retention means players keep returning to this publisher’s games.
Some publishers have done very well in this. Thereby building solid relationships with their player community.
Following the above factors is crucial for selecting the right publisher for your game. So, understanding them will facilitate your decision-making.
Top 5 Mobile Game Publishers
The mobile game industry is booming, and these publishers are leading the charge with innovative games and savvy business strategies.
Let’s look at the top 5 mobile game publishers in this arena!
1. Tencent Games
Tencent Games, a Chinese technology giant and a subsidiary of Tencent has made its mark in the market. The company was founded in 2003 and has grown into a giant with multiple games across various platforms.
Tencent’s portfolio is a list of games that have gained millions of adoring fans around the globe.
Among them is Honor of Kings, a MOBA game that dominates the Chinese market. In addition, there is also PUBG Mobile, a battle royale game with a dedicated fan base from around the world.
Not stopping at their games, they also hold massive shares in other major game publishers and game developers, such as
- Riot Games: League of Legends
- Epic Games: Fortnite
- Supercell: Clash of Clans
Tencent’s success comes from expanding its portfolio and seeking alliances, acquisitions, and investments with promising game studios worldwide.
This strategy allows them to diversify the services and products they offer. Then, the penetration of new markets helps them invest in the most prosperous areas in these markets.
With continuous efforts, Tencent Games has recorded impressive achievements in related areas.
They have hundreds of millions of active customers and players of all their games. Maybe you don’t know, but their revenue is consistently ranked the highest in this industry.
2. Activision Blizzard
Activision Blizzard, one of the giants of the gaming industry, has established a strong foothold in the mobile segment. They have leveraged their rich history and iconic brands to attract players.
Activision Blizzard’s game mobile offerings include heavy hitters like:
- Call of Duty Mobile: a direct adaptation of the first-person shooter game.
- Hearthstone: is an online card game that has attracted so many players.
The above two games from Activision Blizzard are the most apparent evidence for adapting popular PC games to mobile but still attracting many players.
Activision Blizzard’s strategy is to create mobile versions of popular games. Thus, by adapting to develop games as the mobile versions of leading PC games, gain new players and appeal to the existing ones.
This strategy allows them to expand their brand recognition and provide relevant game experiences to gamers across multiple platforms.
Mobile game ventures of Activision Blizzard have proven successful, bringing good revenues and millions of downloads across the world.
Activision Blizzard has raised the bar on quality and innovation, forcing other publishers to tap into the potential of mobile adaptations.
3. NetEase Games
NetEase Games is one of the leading game developers and publishers in Chinese, continuously expanding into the global market. With unique ideas for their games, NetEase has established itself.
To do that, NetEase has focused on creating good mobile experiences in different genres. Their two outstanding battle royal games such as:
- Rules of Survival
- Knives Out
Moreover, they have established cooperation with such prominent developers as Blizzard Entertainment. The collaboration yielded the release of the popular mobile game Diablo Immortal among them.
NetEase understands the Chinese market well and simultaneously cooperates with global partners.
They localize their games to suit local tastes while working with industries across the globe, which means they can grow locally and internationally.
NetEase’s significant milestones are the successful global market expansion and user engagement metrics.
The games they produce always fall among those that generate the most revenue, and many gamers download them from game stores.
From this, players are convinced by the innovation and quality services making NetEase a favorite game development among gamers. Because of that, they have affirmed their position in the game industry.
4. Supercell
Supercell, a Finnish mobile game developer, produces few games but makes them highly unique, focusing on quality rather than quantity.
This has become their game development and publishing style, making them unique. From there, they have developed many successful and long-standing games.
Supercell’s portfolio is not extensive, but it delivers quite a punch. Games they developed like:
- Clash of Clans: a strategy war game.
- Clash Royale: a card battle game.
- Brawl Stars: an online multiplayer battle game.
The exact other games are famous globally and have millions of players. These titles showcase Supercell’s experience creating fun, easy-to-play, and highly replayable best mobile games.
Supercell’s cellular method development is based on small autonomous teams that are fully responsible for a product and have a creative. That’s why they can promote innovation and creativity and focus more on quality.
Supercell also focused on player response. They listen to their community and adjust games according to the response.
The above successes are a testament to their strategy. They do not have many games but create millions of dollars of revenue and always remain on the top list of highest-grossing publishers.
5. Electronic Arts (EA)
A long-standing titan in the video game market, Electronic Arts (EA) recently fortified its position when successfully transitioning to the mobile game sector.
EA’s mobile portfolio leverages its iconic franchises, offering mobile adaptations of beloved games like FIFA Mobile and Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes and The Sims Mobile.
These titles attract the love and enthusiasm of current players. Make gamers switch to playing these fantastic games on their mobile phones.
The EA’s mobile strategy is to leverage its strong brands to penetrate the market. By these, they successfully convert their PC games to the mobile platform.
They consistently sustain high-quality experiences. Moreover, they will focus on mobile games and other appropriate features.
EA’s mobile game brought considerable revenue and an enormous amount of players. All the games they have developed are consistently among the highest-grossing and downloaded games.
Finally, EA has had great success in this industry. That shows that they are not resting but are willing and ready to continue to innovate to remain relevant.
Trends in Mobile Game Publishing
It is a dynamic industry whereby many trends influence how games are developed, published, and made money.
Firstly, the service game model, the games under this genre are getting more popular and give the players constant and lengthy experiences to play.
Secondly, there are microtransactions where players can make small in-app purchases for cosmetic items or gameplay advantages. This model also increases significantly, providing a monetization model for publishers.
Finally, cross-platform integration will erase the boundaries between mobile and traditional games.
Mobile game publishing’s future is bright in the future.
Advancements in AR and VR technologies may pave the way for gamers to incorporate the real world into the game. Besides, advances in the 5G networks will improve the connection and be graphically intense.
The most notable thing is artificial intelligence. It is believed to change how games are made and each gamer’s experience.
All of the above trends will significantly affect future mobile games.
They will grow more and more, and new opportunities will appear. From there, creating more exciting and diverse games for players worldwide.
Conclusion
The mobile game market is continuously growing, and these publishers are pioneers.
Some have succeeded in bringing PC games to mobile phones and creating excitement globally. All of them shifted the way we game on the go.
These industry giants have moved far in their progression. If as predicted, more exciting changes are expected as the technology grows in the future.
Therefore, start watching these game publishers and discover the beautiful games they present. Stay tuned to Gamespublisher.com for all new and up-to-date information about the mobile game field.