Monopoly Go has been storming top charts, but how?
Monopoly GO released on April 12, 2023, by Scopely, has taken the mobile gaming world by storm. With over 20 million downloads in its first month alone, Monopoly GO has climbed to the top of the charts on both the App Store and Play Store in Tier-1 Western countries, and it doesn’t seem to stop. But, how did they do it?
Monopoly IP: Win before they start?
The power of the Monopoly intellectual property (IP) cannot be overstated. With a legacy cherished by billions worldwide for decades, the Monopoly brand brings an unparalleled advantage to any game it touches.
However, that shouldn’t make you think it is the only reason for Monopoly GO’s success story. There are different games from different genres that use the same Monopoly IP which are not even close to Monopoly GO in terms of success. For example “Monopoly Tycoon” by Nvizzio Creations was released February 2021 and downloaded by 4 million players worldwide, which was surpassed by Monopoly GO in a week. Moreover, you can think about other games with Monopoly IP, such as “Monopoly Slots” by SciPlay or “Monopoly Solitaire” by MobilityWare, which have about 10 million downloads, where Monopoly GO downloaded more than 20 million in the first month of release.
It can be understood that Monopoly GO’s extreme success does not rely on only an iconic IP. Probably, the most important issue is finding the right core loop for the great Monopoly name.
Proven Core Loop: Do not reinvent the wheel!
When you have an IP such as Monopoly, it gives a head start on the competition. But, there is a crucial question to ask. What will the game be? What will players do? What kind of games will the players play? According to Massimo Maietti, General Manager of Monopoly GO, Their goal is to add as many features from the board game as possible while placing even greater emphasis on evoking the emotions players experience when playing Monopoly.
However, there is an issue about that. Monopoly board games are enjoyable and fun as board games. Turning the board game to a mobile game is already done by Marmalade Game Studio. So there should be a unique solution to transform the Monopoly experience we loved into something different from the game itself without losing the total experience and feeling. And they found the solution. What they did is take a proven game play that fits the Monopoly experience, from super-successful games, such as Coin Master, and without changing the core loop, integrating it to a Monopoly theme.
The core loop is simple. Throw dice on the board, Earn Cash, Build structures and complete the location. Moreover, there are additional features, like “Bank Heist” and “Shut Down,” where you can destroy other players’ buildings or steal their money. This core loop is familiar from all Casual Casino games such as Coin Master, Dice Dreams, Board Kings and more of them. That is probably one of the most important factors behind Monopoly GO’s performance. They didn’t reinvent the wheel, but they found the right idea to select while they wanted players to feel similar emotions when they played the original Monopoly board game. Wealth, Progression and Competition.
While they take lots of features from the board game to Monopoly GO, in the end, the game has nothing to do with the Monopoly Board game. Players coming for the original Monopoly experience will not find what they want, and as you see, it was not a bad decision. In the end, this statement can be argued and it can be said that there can be more features from board games, but I think it can be a necessary sacrifice of long-term monopoly fans, for billions of simple casual players who are just looking for enjoyable games.
Social Aspects
Monopoly has always been known as a social board game, bringing friends and family together. In “Monopoly GO,” the developers aimed to recreate this social aspect within the game. The game features leaderboards, allowing players to compare their progress with others and the timeline feature keeps players informed of attacks they’ve faced, fostering a sense of community and interaction.
Additionally, Monopoly GO includes game modes like “Community Chest,” designed to be enjoyed with friends. These social attractions not only enhance the gameplay experience but also encourage players to invite their friends, creating a self-sustaining cycle of engagement.
Beyond these, in Monopoly GO, there are card collections where players can trade their cards with friends. There are groups on Facebook and Twitter that are for people who want to trade their cards for the ones that they do not have. All these features are enough to create a huge community and social connections.
Aggressive User Acquisition Strategy
Scopely was acquired by Savvy Games Group for $4.9 billion in April. In terms of Monopoly GO, I do not believe the fact that Acquiring by Savvy and Launching Monopoly GO occurred almost simultaneously is a coincidence. With such a strong partnership, you can create super-aggressive campaigns without worrying about costs, if you believe in long term potential, as they do. Moreover, with the Monopoly IP, I believe they can reach much more players than other studios and publishers ever imagined with lower CPI.
In terms of organic install, again with the help of the Monopoly IP, a considerable number of players will install the game from the store by searching the keyword “monopoly”. Moreover, more installs make the game more visible in the store page. Right now, when you write the keyword, it is the first game you will see, and I think it should not be underrated.
Moreover, thanks to the social aspects of the game, there can be a considerable amount of organic installs by invitation. Players can invite their friends and family members to play together.
S-Tier Execution
Other than game design and user acquisition strategies, there is the another most important thing about the game: Execution. Colors, models, textures, VFXs and animations are all part of the game and experience and they should be designed and created carefully. In Monopoly GO, I can assure you that the game is visually stunning! Well-selected colors, various themes with great models, super cute animations, satisfying sound effects and all the other beautiful things are creating a beautiful experience for the players. To be honest, this giant project deserves this level of execution, and less should not be acceptable.
The execution of games is directly relatable with the engagement of the players. This is because, even though players do not classify games as beautiful or polished, they tend to play these games more because well-executed games make players get into flow state more easily, and engaged more. So it can be said that better execution means bigger revenue.
Well-designed Retention Layers
The core loop is enjoyable and due to the structure of the game, players should login and play regularly, to gain more shields to protect their buildings from attacks and fix the attacked buildings. While they are inactive, their money can be stolen. So the advantage of playing regularly should not be ignored. Moreover, in the core loop, there are some randomly occurring mini games that breaking the monotony of the game.
The core progression of the game is convincing for players and there are an unlimited number of different boards on the game that are waiting to be completed. Players gain points by upgrading buildings which lead to new features on the game.
However, I think one of the most effective features to make players fell the progress is the Card Collection System. It is a well designed addition to core game play and makes players collect different stickers to complete various card collections. While they are playing hard to collect missing parts, they are focusing on something outside of the core progress without losing the stability of the main core loop. The game also uses the opportunity to improve social interactions and create stronger communities. In the end, it is a key feature to provide motivation to play again. This motivation to play more and more is important for long-term playability.
While the core loop is fun and there is lots of content for players to progress, to keep players more engaged for a long time, there should be additional features for players. Progressive events, regularly occurring tournaments, limited-time bonuses and events and all the other live ops features are mostly crucial for retention, so for monetization.
IAP Monetization
In Monopoly Go, there is only In-App Purchase in the monetization strategy, rather than hybrid monetization,the combination of Ads and IAP, similar to the lots of casual games on the store. I believe this “No Ads” approach has positive effects on user engagement.
In terms of IAP, there are different types of approaches, as I see. First of all, there is a shop segment where you can buy Rolls and Cashes. They are simple and not aggressive, and players can reach whenever they need.
The more creative approaches come with limited-time offers. The monetization strategy is getting more aggressive here, and shows the offers to the players when the game is opened, and the icon of the game is always reachable through the main screen. The limited-time offers are not just profitable, but they are interesting for players too. Different types of strategies can be useful for non-spenders to spend, and whales to spend even more. Moreover, this kind of limited-time offers can be helpful to increase retention.
Casual Casino: The king is dead, long live the king!
Taking inspiration from the king of the casual casino genre, Coin Master, Monopoly GO succeeded with remarkable efficiency. Coin Master’s impressive 300 million downloads worldwide set the bar high, but Monopoly GO has swiftly emerged as a strong contender for the throne, even in a few months. By combining the allure of the Monopoly brand with the proven core loop, Monopoly GO has captured the hearts of millions of players, solidifying its place as a potential new king in the casual casino genre. Although it is too early to say that they have already taken the throne, it will be exciting to watch what will be happen next.
Conclusion
Monopoly GO is super successful in the current situation and it seems that it won’t stop soon. What sets this game apart from other mobile games is its clever utilization of the iconic Monopoly intellectual property (IP) and its incorporation of a proven core loop from the successful games. In the end, it is a great product with millions of downloads and revenues, in a short time. The success story will be an example for other studios and publishers for a long time.
