The Benefits and Costs of Going Cross-Platform | Emma Farrow
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Delivered at Casual Connect Europe 2019. As new platforms emerge and attention is split across a multitude of revenue opportunities, it becomes a more complicated matter to decide which platforms to invest into and how to weigh the opportunity costs of each one. As a cross-platform publisher of both F2P and Premium games, and operator of two platforms in Kongregate.com and Kartridge, Kongregate has unique insights into the platform landscape and the effort needed to take a game from one platform to another. Using specific game examples with KPIs and learnings from our experience, we’ll share how we weigh the incremental opportunities and costs of new platform expansions, as well as how we view the cross-platform strategy as a whole.
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The Benefits and Costs of Going Cross-Platform | Emma Farrow
- 1. 1 BENEFITS & COSTS OF GOING CROSS-PLATFORM C A S U A L C O N N E C T E U R O P E 2 0 1 9 Emma Farrow SENIOR BD MANAGER
- 2. 2 KONGREGATE Our three pillars PLATFORM Nurturing indie devs and gaming communities Kongregate.com est. 2006 Kartridge est. 2018 GAME DEVELOPMENT Building and operating chart topping games Ultrabit acq. 2016 Synapse + Chinzilla acq. 2017 3RD PARTY PUBLISHING Launching and growing the best indie games Est. 2013
- 3. 3 KONGREGATE ~200M Mobile Installs since 2013 16M Monthly Active Users 60 Games Published 120k Games on Kongregate.com
- 4. 4 HyperHippo - AdVenture Capitalist, 2015 SOME GAMES WE’VE PUBLISHED F2P and Paid Games Juicy Beast - Burrito Bison, 2016 Double Stallion - Speed Brawl, 2018 Pajama Llama - Flotsam, 2019
- 5. 5 WHY CROSS-PLATFORM? Isn’t it a tech and logistic nightmare?
- 6. 6 Marketing is expensive Viral hits are rare Features are hard-to-get DISTRIBUTION IS HARD
- 7. 7 COMPETITION ON MOBILE Number of Active Games in the US App Store 50 new games every day * Pocket Gamer Report 658 k 279 k 129 k 71 k 816 k 46 k 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018
- 8. 8* SteamSpy Reporting 6.8 k 4.6 k 2.6 k 1.7 k 7.9 k 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 COMPETITION ON STEAM Number of Games Launched 25 new games every day
- 9. 9 NEW PLATFORMS: “GOLD RUSH” Race to get in early Switch: > 1k games
- 10. 10 PC PLATFORM COMPETITION New platforms disrupting the market
- 11. 11 MULTIPLE PATHS TO SUCCESS Getting your game to the right hands
- 12. 12 CROSS-PLATFORM EXPERIENCE Launching games across platforms and business models Console Our Platforms Web & PC Mobile
- 13. 13 WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED?
- 14. 14 MULTI-PLATFORM PLAYERS ARE VERY VALUABLE
- 16. 16 mobile launch WEB GROWTH Mobile launch boosted web performance
- 17. HIGHER SPEND PER PAYER Avg. Revenue Per Paying User (ARPPU) 17 $597 $242 $57 mobile web cross platform 10.5x Mobile vs x-Platform
- 18. 18 91% mobile 6% web 3% x-platform Spenders 61% mobile 32% x-platform 7% web Revenue MOST VALUABLE PLAYERS Play Cross-Platform
- 19. 19 EVERY PLATFORM TAKES TIME & EFFORT
- 20. 20 LEARNING TAKES TIME We’ve always underestimated Getting dev kits Releasing by region Certification times Communicating to platform Schedule PR & marketing beats You don’t know what you don’t know
- 21. 21 MULTIPLE PATHS TO SUCCESS GIF CSF GDNP XGD XDI WOBO XDP XDK MSA TLA NDP OMAS NMAS SLIM NCMS SST NDID GPP TPR FQA LETTER SOUP OF CONSOLE ACRONYMS
- 22. 22 RESOURCES ARE NEEDED From vetting to implementation Engineering QA BD Marketing Cost of porting
- 23. 23 HOW CAN YOU MITIGATE RISKS OF GOING CROSS- PLATFORM?
- 24. 24 POLISH, UI AND UX MATTERS
- 25. 25 REALM GRINDER Launched August 2015, Kongregate.com Top 10 grossing Great long-term retention, 6% d180
- 26. 26 REALM GRINDER 2017 launched on iOS, Android, Armor & Steam iOS featuring, #3 New Games we Love Steam charts, What’s Being Played
- 27. 27 PER PLATFORMS UX Different platforms have different interactions CLICK on PCTAP on mobile
- 28. 28 MAKE YOUR GAME SPECIAL ON EACH PLATFORM
- 30. Xbox One, Launched July 2017 Xbox exclusive for several months Xbox One X enhanced, 4K and HDR support Rating - Metacritic (Xbox One) 30 GRIDD: RETROENHACED Something unique on each console Nintendo Switch, Launched June 2018 ‘Power Glove’ style control option Joy-Con HD rumble support
- 31. 31 FIND PLATFORMS WHERE YOU CAN ITERATE & TEST Polished gameplay Players do not need Engaging games Players want
- 33. 33 WEB PROTOTYPE Launched May 2014
- 34. 34 GREAT RESULTS Strong retention d1 25% d30 15% Promising monetization #6 in revenue Great reviews 60% d1 to d30 retention 4.2 rating
- 35. 35 MOBILE LAUNCH Launched February 2015
- 36. 36 MOBILE SUCCESS Retention d1 60% d30 20% Monetization improved IAP strong ad revenue Audience Reach installs 40M+ 30% d1 to d30 retention $0.11 arpdau
- 37. 37 Web Platforms PLATFORMS FOR TESTING Different platforms for different types of tests PC Alphas / Betas Google Play Early Access Mobile Test Markets & Steam Early Access
- 38. 38 HOW CAN YOU PREDICT (CROSS-PLATFORM) SUCCESS?
- 39. 39 SIGNAL: USER RATINGS Kongregate.com: 3.8 is good, 4.0 is great Google Play: > 4.0 for featuring Steam: number & sentiment matter
- 40. 40 Improving Retention At the core of the game Hard to get right Even harder to improve SIGNAL: LONG-TERM RETENTION Consistent x-Platform Translates across mobile, web, and PC Platform ConsiderationsGoogle Play Strong d30 for featuring Steam Better surfacing
- 41. 41 A TALE OF TWO GAMES Similar Environment May 2017 June 2017 Previously live on web and mobile Steam launch spring 2017
- 42. 42 0 125000 250000 375000 500000 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 months since launch Realm Grinder Throwdown SIMILAR STEAM REVENUE But… Throwdown arpdau is 10x of Realm Grinder
- 43. Publishing 43 Animation Throwdown 25% day 1 4% day 30 1.5% day 90 0.75% day 180 COMPARING RETENTION At day 180 Realm Grinder retains double the players than Throwdown Realm Grinder 35% day 1 10% day 30 3.5% day 90 1.5% day 180
- 44. 44 0 5,625 11,250 16,875 22,500 May-17 Jun-17 Jul-17 Aug-17 Sep-17 Oct-17 Nov-17 Dec-17 Jan-18 Feb-18 Realm Grinder Throwdown 10x at launch 35x HIGHER DAU With more players Realm Grinder can have lower monetization
- 45. 45 0 1,500 3,000 4,500 6,000 7,500 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 days since launch 2x 7x Realm Grinder Throwdown HIGHER CONCURRENT USERS With more players Realm Grinder can have lower monetization
- 46. 46 0 35,000 70,000 105,000 140,000 175,000 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 days since launch +80% downloads Realm Grinder Throwdown CUMULATIVE DOWNLOADS In the first month Realm Grinder had 80% more
- 47. 47 SIGNAL: TEAM’S REACTION “I knew that AdVenture Capitalist was something special when I looked around the office and realized the entire office was playing it!”
- 49. 49 ACRONYM DICTIONARY KPI = Key Performance Indicator DAU = Daily Active User ARPDAU = Average Revenue Per Daily Active User ARPPU = Average Revenue Per Paying User F2P = Free to Play CCU = Concurrent Users IAP = In-App Purchases UA = User Acquisition X-Platform = Cross Platform RPG = Role Playing Game CCG = Card Collecting Game
Notes de l'éditeur
- Intro T = Cross-platform learnings
- C = Kongregate platform publisher game developer T = In 12 years…
- C = Kongregate installs (200M) MAU (16 M) pub (> 50) kong.com (120k) T = some games…
- C = some games we’ve launched - Started f2p mobile but expanded strategy as we answered question of how we can best support devs through our publishiung offerings AdCap –first on kong.com, looked very differe BB – long running franchise on kong.com, upcoming game Speed brawl -2d combat racer, 2nd premium game published and first simultaneous launch with console Flotsam – upcoming floating garbage town survival game, think waterworld the game, non-finalized launch plans T = with context of why we feel fit to talk about cross platform as a strategy behind us, let’s jump into the question
- Yes, but Going cross-platform increases your potential audience, pleases your current userbase, and can grow your lifetime revenue. Important to evaluate the potential opportunity size for any project
- Can help solve many challenges to distribution of a game biggest: distribution is hard marketing High UA costs viral hits Games like Fornite are few and far between Platform features competing for attention with limited editorial spots T = looking at some numbers around competition
- C = mobile super competitive, as most devs know and many have discussed with me anout why they’ve switched away from mobile just iOS,10 years more competitive every year, 20x more in 2018 than 2008 slowed down but… 1 million actives 50 new games T = PC?
- C = Steam smaller scale also competitive 25 new games T = even on new platforms
- C = new platforms / consoles, which offer hope to be one of the first on an uncrowded platform gold rush race to get there Switch, more popular (2yrs) May see something similar with new platforms like Apple Arcade T = not meant to discourage from game launches but rather shows the need to define a distribution strategy, and growing numbers of platforms will open up additional opportunities for featuring and discoverability. Take PC for example
- a market that has been dominated by a single player for more than a decade "As there's a rise of other stores. Developers should look at this as a move away from the default expectation that only Steam matters and be more open to distributing in different places, finding different audiences, not making APIs and technical decisions that make it difficult to be off Steam. It can lead to a healthier ecosystem. "PC is an oddity in the games market in that there was one dominant platform. Mobile has iOS and Android, with consoles there are three main vectors, and different storefronts means that different customer bases and brands can hold up in a real way. If you think about a Nintendo collection of games versus a Microsoft collection of games, you already have a picture that they're different and their audiences are going to be a bit different. My hope for PC is that we can build up that kind of ecosystem.” "But when there's only one storefront, there's only one editorial slot," Greer said. "Let's break that up and I think it will eventually shake out better for most people involved."
- C = way we think about cross platform is multiple paths to success T = we’ve had to do this
- C = experience many platforms kong web & pc mobile console T = pass on top learnings
- C = successes and learnings try (some work, some don’t) learn, iterate, improve help you avoid pitfalls T = top 8 learnings…
- C = lesson: First of all, a main reason is multi-platform players love your game T = for example…
- C = Bit Heroes Juppiomenz Accessible MMORPG on Kong, mobile, and steam T = each subsequent platform we launched on helped build success of the game
- C = Web reach new heights after mobile launch true x-platform web looks great, go deep on strategy mobile check-in & progress on the go, quick gameplay sessions T = Not only audience growth, but…
- C = If allow payers x-platform —> invest more ARPPU mob web x-platform 10.5x T = not saying this will improve your KPIs, instead
- C = valuable players want x-platform viewed a diff way 3% spenders 32% of revenue give them that opportunity to engage with the game in a way they prefer, and that will drive spending from most engaged users T: But with every opportunity, there are costs
- C = lesson: time & effort don’t underestimate every platform: adapt learn launch Maintain Every platform has both a learning curve to get onto the platform and ongoing costs associated Will be an opportunity cost associated with any new platform T = for example…
- C = learning takes time underestimate & mis-time launch things we’ve had to learn [list] T = don’t know what you don’t know, often trial by error or working with the right partner to take the game to launch
- C = had to learn, console acronyms after 3 games across 3 consoles and PC platforms like learning a new language! T = and many other “quirks” per platform
- Between evaluation of a platform, relationship building, SDK/ platform integrations, a lot of ongoing resources go into moving to a new platform
- C = So it seems worthwhile, but risky given all the costs associated T = So how can you mitigate risks, these first two tips are about not wasting time on something that won’t work
- C = lesson: polish matters once you have a good base Look and play of the game matters esp on mobile and switch T = show example
- C = another game, RG not great looks yet, great KPIs rev retention T = small team, longer to polish
- C = two years later great featuring on iOS great traction on Steam T = polish not only about good looks, but around playability on a given platfrom
- C = UX for platform remember: diff platform diff interactions mobile – tap, bigger buttons for easy tapping, no double clicking, take into account hand locations pc – click, less bouncy FTUE, no finger drag animations, no social media sharing buttons T = embrace controls (controller, mouse, touch)
- C = lesson: something unique & special platforms ask: What makes this version of your game on our platform the most special one available? answer w/true variation T = for example…
- C = GRIDD PC steam, kart consoles xbox, switch, ps4 Kong’s first console game T = What was special?
- C = highlights unique to the platform xbox exclusive, xbox one x nintendo controls unique to switch T = no need to change the whole game, but do need to cater to platform and their specific audience
- C = lesson from early on at Kong: iterate & test to mitigate risk early feedback in some platforms… forgiving audiences engaging games T = show example
- C = AdCap Idle Game HH T = game started as
- C = Web Prototype learn unity upload to kong T = Game took off
- C = Great Stats see stats T = Needed to polish
- C = launched on mobile polished monetization improvements rewarded videos T = success translated to mobile
- C = strong mobile KPIs see stats T = not every platform good for testing
- C = where can you test? and how? diff platforms, diff tests general - audience understanding T = Doesn’t make sense to take every game cross platform, if it’s not successful on one platform, moving to a new one won’t magically change your results, but here’s what we’ve found to be important in prediction
- Caveat that you can never fully predict success, T = Look for the signals
- C = external: user ratings and reviews Kong GP Steam surfacing algos take into account T = can’t predict success but we do know
- C = found this to be the KPI that crosses over most reliably at the core of design hard to improve live: hard to get right, and improve consistent strong in one platform strong in others platforms GPs most imp KPI, feature Steam, ret => concurrent => algo => surfacing T = model this out with 2 comparative game from our portfolio
- C = Journey of Two games two very diff games launched in similar environments top, AT bottom, RG T = How did they do?
- C = Similar revenue trajectory Throwdown —> Stronger monetization T = What’s driving revenue
- C = First, Compare Ret AT RG by d30 at least double T = Strong retention => higher DAU
- C = RG has much higher DAU 10x higher 8 months out, even higher DAU (daily summary of CCU) T = Steam algo cares about, CCU
- C = Unpack Concurrent Users Higher ret —> players online means —> high num concurrent users first month RG vs AT red RG blue AT early 2x —> thanks to strong retention only due to ret —> would expect diff to be const later 7x, something else at play steam surfacing favors concurrents T = all of this together
- C = higher cumulative downloads 80% more downloads, first month become well oiled machine strong ret > conc > surfacing > downloads > conc T = retention good for players & platform
- C = Internal: team’s reaction [story] a good game will draw you in T = But can be biased, but games that excite and engage players have a greater chance of success
- THANK YOU!