Uma Musume is the last really big hit in Japan’s mobile game industry, following the popular RPG Dragon Quest Walk from Colopl (3668) in 2019. Released only domestically in February 2021, Uma Musume instantly climbed up not only the download but also up the grossing rankings – and more...
The Pokemon Company Hits Record Profits In 2020
The Pokemon Company (TPC) is seeing record numbers and has, for the first time, its sales numbers disclosed to the public (JP). According to the Japanese government’s Official Gazette, TPC recorded the following financial performance for the fiscal year that ended on February 28, 2021 (numbers...
GLOBAL GAME BUSINESS TRENDS IN 2021 (PREDICTION)
Game industry news site GamesIndustry.biz asked analysts (including myself) for predictions how we think about the gaming business in 2021. Here is a repost from my contribution to their article: Switch Pro launches Yes, I know, I know. I predict a beefed-up 4K device is coming...
Price Breakdown Of A $70 Video Game: Digital Vs Physical
One of the three client groups I serve with my consultancy Kantan Games Inc. is financial institutions interested in the gaming industry. A common question over the last decade from investors has been: “What is the share for digital versus physical video game sales among publishers and retail...
Attach Rates VS Tie Ratios (And Why You Should Forget Tie Ratios Today)
Attach rate and tie ratio are terms that are often used interchangeably in the global gaming industry – even though they shouldn’t be. Generally speaking, games have attach rates – while consoles have tie ratios. Nothing in the following is rocket science, but I am trying to...
Podcast On Nintendo Switch, Playstation 5 and Tencent Games
I was recently interviewed by my friend Casey Lau for his new podcast series on digital entertainment and media technology, Sandwich Society. Not too surprisingly, the 30 minutes are on the game industry, i.e. the upcoming launch of the PlayStation 5, what will happen with Nintendo and the Switch...