Dutch mobile game publisher Spil Games announced it has hit 300 million installs for its mobile games. That’s a testament to the company’s method of testing titles on the web and then reposting the most popular titles as mobile apps.
Amsterdam-based Spil Games said it focuses on intellectual properties with good prospects. The web portal shows which games people are playing and which ones keep them engaged, and then the company reimagines the games for mobile. Spil Games achieves about 95 percent of its downloads without user acquisition spending.
So far, the most successful titles are the Troll Face Quest series, which has had 100 million installs in 2.5 years; Uphill Rush, 25 million installs in a year; and Operate Now: Hospital, with 15 million installs in nine months.
“Hitting 300 million installs shows our web portal to mobile strategy is paying off,” said Tung Nguyen-Khac, Spil Games CEO, in a statement. “This year we will build on our mobile IP momentum and constantly improve our player’s experience while boosting the promising results we’re starting to see on retention and revenue.”
The web data also helps identify game genres that people enjoy, which is how it spotted the popularity of surgery simulation games. Before bringing a game to mobile, Spil Games assesses the market saturation and the quality of competitive offerings on mobile.
Market research also showed the opportunity of mobile games with resource management and engaging storylines. Back in 2015, Spil Games said it had 50 million installs.
In addition to mobile, Spil Games has seen good results with messenger games. The company’s Endless Lake on Facebook’s Instant Games has exceeded 40 million unique users to date.
Spil Games has 130 employees, and it is profitable. The company said it grew 370 percent in 2017 in mobile games, and it hopes for a similar revenue growth percentage in 2018.