"Foreign players are learning Song Dynasty history through the game." Since its global launch on November 7, NetEase's MMORPG "Sword of Justice" has generated trending discussions across major social media platforms worldwide. In the game, players explore the Hongqiao Bridge in Bianjing, experiencing the scenery of 'Qingming Shanghe Tu'. Through interactive storylines, they also engage with classical Chinese poetry. This international release has successfully introduced traditional Chinese cultural elements and aesthetic values to global gaming audiences. From the very first day of launch, the game dominated charts in multiple countries, topping the free sections of App Store and Google Play in Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, and other nations.   01. Light Character Progression + Heavy Social Interaction As a highly culturally […]

In recent years, Bilibili's ACG games have struggled, with more than 10 titles discontinued. Among the shutdowns are notable titles like "Strode," featuring 3D aerial combat, and "千年之旅:ELF," known for its extreme ML theme. Recently, AppGrowing found that Bilibili's casual ACG game Trickcal: Chibi Go released overseas on October 9 and quickly climbed to the top of the iOS free charts in Japan. The game has already surpassed $1 million in revenue, with over 60% coming from the Japanese market. The success of 'Trickcal: Chibi Go' appears to be breaking the stereotype of Bilibili's 'ACG Game Depression.'   01. Korean Audience Base + Differentiated Themes Actually, the achievement of 'Trickcal: Chibi Go' should not be entirely unexpected. You might not […]

The following analysis of mobile games marketing trends for September 2025 is based on advertising data from AppGrowing across 50 countries and regions, and 28 global media platforms.In the ranking of overseas mobile game advertising by category, casual, entertainment, and puzzle games occupy the top three spots. Among new app releases, entertainment games maintain the lead, accounting for 48.11%. Casual games come second, with nearly 29.67% of new app releases. puzzle games account for 18.72%. Notably, although the overall number of arcade game ads is relatively small, new arcade apps constitute 24.09%, surpassing puzzle titles. The top three in advertising volume are casual, puzzle, and role-playing games. However, when considering creative material count after de-duplication, puzzle games surpass casual titles. […]

On September 11th, American casual game developer Hitapps Games officially launched Solitaire Associations: Words. According to AppGrowing, the game reached the Top 2 in the US iOS free charts within just two weeks of launch. Source: AppGrowing Solitaire Associations: Words clearly indicates its core gameplay integrates two elements: “Solitaire” and “Word” . Both genres have substantial download volumes and high DAU in overseas markets, representing large user-base game categories. Meanwhile, Hitapps Games, the developer behind Solitaire Associations: Words, has long specialized in word-based games, having launched several hit titles. These include the word puzzle game Figgerits, which surpassed 2 million downloads in a single month, and the word association game Associations, which has amassed 10.4 million downloads on Google Play. […]

At the end of last month, Destiny: Rising made its global debut, immediately claiming the No.1 spot on the U.S. iOS download chart and peaking at No.22 on the top-grossing list. Seven years have passed since NetEase invested $100 million in Bungie in 2018 and announced a new joint project. In that time, the mobile shooter landscape has been largely dominated by incumbents. Why, then, has Destiny: Rising managed to shake up the market—and what does this breakthrough mean for NetEase? 01.Why Destiny: Rising Stood Out Part of the success lies in the strength of the Destiny IP. The original Destiny launched in 2014 with first-day sales reaching $500 million, while Destiny 2 became the best-selling U.S. title of 2017 […]

In Sensor Tower's latest global revenue ranking, Kingshot joined Whiteout Survival at the top, securing both the No.1 and No.2 spots for Century Games. Meanwhile, its newly launched merge title, Tasty Travels: Merge Game, also entered the chart at No.29. The company has become nothing short of a hit factory. Riding its momentum, parent company Century Huatong's stock price has surged, with market capitalization surpassing ¥100 billion (≈ US$13.8 billion) in July 2025—cementing its status as a leading A-share gaming giant. Looking back, Century Huatong's ¥6.939 billion acquisition of Century Games from FunPlus was seen by many as a high-stakes gamble. A decade later, it is now considered a masterstroke. 1. A ¥6.9B Acquisition and the ¥2B Performance Gamble Rewind […]

Here is an analysis of the global non-gaming App user acquisition marketing trends for July 2025, based on ad data from 50 countries/regions and 28 global media platforms, according to AppGrowing's report. In July 2025, tool apps continued to account for the largest share of active advertisers among global applications, with the highest proportion of new advertisers as well, rising further to 26.16%. Beyond tools, the share of new advertisers also exceeded 10% in both the entertainment and education categories. From an ad volume perspective, entertainment once again topped the charts, with short-drama and novel apps maintaining large-scale ad placements. Yet when measured by the number of unique creatives, shopping apps retained the lead. Looking at creative formats and video length […]

The following analysis of mobile games marketing trends for July 2025 is based on advertising data from AppGrowing across 50 countries and regions, and 28 global media platforms. In July’s ranking of new game launches by genre, Casino, Casual, and Puzzle took the top three spots. Casino titles saw their share of new launches rise further to 45.27%, far ahead of other categories. Casual followed with nearly 30%, while Arcade titles accounted for 26.26% of new launches. By ad volume, Casual, Puzzle, and Role-Playing ranked in the top three. Puzzle titles recorded fewer ads than Casual games, but the gap in the number of unique creatives was relatively small. In terms of creative formats, video continued to dominate global mobile […]

Habby may not be a permanent fixture at the center of the mobile gaming industry, but whenever it drops a new title, the spotlight inevitably follows. Its latest release, Wittle Defender, launched globally in early June and quickly climbed into the top 10 on the iOS grossing charts across Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan of China. According to Sensor Tower, the game has generated $2 million in iOS revenue over the past two weeks. Following the successes of Capybara Go! and Archero 2, Wittle Defender marks Habby's third breakout title within a single year. It's almost as if the studio has cracked a repeatable formula for success—one that consistently delivers solid results. Despite feeling familiar in both gameplay and marketing […]

Generative AI is no longer just a buzzword—it’s becoming the backbone of a new wave of mobile apps. According to AppGrowing, active AI app campaigns jumped 20% from Q1 to Q4 2024, marking a clear acceleration in the space. As global competition heats up, Southeast Asia is gaining traction as a growth frontier. One standout is Vietnam’s XTECH, which made generative AI its strategic focus in 2024 and recently launched its flagship photo app, PixArt. In this exclusive interview, AppGrowing talks with XTECH’s CMO Minh Chau Pham and CGO The Anh Tran about the evolving role of generative AI in mobile, and how they’re building for both local users and global ambitions. The following is the edited transcript of the […]