While Western parents wistfully spam social media walls to get another attempt at Stage 145 of Zynga’s latest rehashed puzzle game, mobile players on the other side of the world are taking part in gaming’s biggest tournaments virtually every other weekend. Endless runners and Match 3 puzzle games top the charts in the West, but in China, India, and even Japan, it’s hypercompetitive games like Arena of Valor, PUBG Mobile, and puzzle/RPG hybrid Puzzle & Dragons that attract spending in excess of hundreds of millions of dollars a month.Īccording to Sensor Tower, recent worldwide hit Genshin Impact collects 74.2% of its global revenue from Asia. The conniving monetization practices are seen as a scourge slowly leaking into full-priced titles, threatening to turn classic franchises into money-grabbing, soulless shells of their former selves that commercialize a key aspect of gameplay.įor the rest of the world, though, free-to-play games are more universally accepted by gamers. In the West, mobile games continue to be seen as the enemy by some: Casual titles with lackluster visuals, gameplay-limiting timers, and copious reasons to nickel-and-dime players for the privilege of continued play.
Image used with permission by copyright holder The mobile market We’ve had a few years to calm down, and with the game’s release on the horizon, it’s time to admit that Blizzard’s most controversial title could very well be its biggest business venture yet. The mistake Blizzard made with Diablo Immortal wasn’t its creation, though, but simply where the company chose to announce it. It was like the moment we watched Ralph Wiggum’s heart break in that classic Valentine’s Day episode of The Simpsons.
The event spawned the now infamous “Don’t you guys have phones?” meme that will, for generations to come, remind us of the moment Blizzard’s player-friendly mask cracked to reveal gaming’s great villain.
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