Findings shed light on the inner workings of casual gaming, revealing when, where, and how casual games spend their marketing budgets

A new report from global programmatic advertising platform Mintegral charts the impact of casual games, the dominant gaming category on mobile. The report, in partnership with GameAnalytics and Tenjin, demonstrates the continued dominance of hyper-casual games as the driving force behind gaming growth. The report also reveals that, while retention is a difficult challenge, video advertising is the most effective way to engage and re-engage with lapsed app users.

The global report charts ad creative growth and distribution, retention, and other key metrics to benchmark the performance of a typical casual gaming app across 11 sub-categories and four regions.

Here are key takeaways from the report:

  • Hyper-Casual Markets the Most: Hyper-Casual games purchase the most ads of any sub-category, with a 34% share of ad media buys.
  • Retention Strategies Will Make the Difference: The average casual game app has difficulty retaining users. Only 17% play on the second day of use. The top-performing gaming apps (those in the 90th percentile and above) achieve double the retention rate at 35%.
  • Video Ads Lead the Way: Video advertising dominates casual gaming with a staggering 70% market share.
  • The US Market Offers the Best Return: The US market presents the best eCPM (effective cost per mille) globally. Rewarded video ads in the US outperform the next-best country by 70%.

"Casual gaming remains a powerhouse in the mobile app industry," says Erick Fang, CPO of Mobvista, Mintegral's parent company. "Understanding user behavior and advertising trends is key to success in this competitive space. Our report equips marketers with the data and insights they need to develop winning strategies."

Mintegral's partnership with analytics tool GameAnaytlics and mobile measurement platform Tenjin results in a report that allows marketers to draw deep insights from useful sources, creating a fuller picture of performance trends. By leveraging the insights offered in this report, game developers and marketers can develop data-driven strategies to acquire new users, boost retention, and optimize monetization efforts within the casual gaming landscape.

Download the full report here.

Methodology

Mintegral's Casual Gaming report draws on data from several sources across Mintegral, Tenjin, and GameAnalytics product suites. Data was collected between January 01, 2023 and December 31, 2023. The report breaks down into 11 sub-categories, four regions, and two operating systems. Metrics include ad buys, ad creative volume, retention rate, sessions and session length, and eCPM.

About Mintegral

Mintegral is a data-driven, programmatic, and interactive advertising platform dedicated to helping mobile apps bridge the gap among the world's most valuable markets. Mintegral's full-stack programmatic products and services, include a self-service advertiser platform, monetization platform, and a creative automation platform powered by Mindworks, Mintegral's creative studio. Learn more at www.mintegral.com.

marketing@mintegral.com