#United States #San Francisco #Mobile Gaming #Digital Economy #Sensor Tower

Mobile Gaming Trends in 2024

In 2024, the mobile gaming industry experienced a significant revival, demonstrating the resilience of this dynamic sector. According to Sensor Tower's annual State of Mobile Gaming Report for 2025, mobile gamers spent an impressive $82 billion on in-app purchases (IAP), marking a 4% increase from the previous year. This growth was accompanied by a noteworthy surge in player engagement, with users collectively spending 3.5 trillion hours on mobile games, which was an 8% increase year-over-year. Additionally, the total number of gaming sessions increased by 12%, reflecting a renewed enthusiasm for mobile gaming.

Despite a slight decline in new app downloads, which fell to 49 billion (a 7% decrease year-over-year), developers are now placing a stronger emphasis on retaining existing players. This pivot signifies a strategic shift in focus from merely attracting new users to enhancing the experience and monetization of current ones. Games that adopted a hybrid monetization strategy—leveraging both in-app purchases and advertising—demonstrated remarkable growth, achieving a 37% increase in IAP revenues compared to the previous year.

The United States continues to dominate as the largest market for mobile gaming, generating approximately $24 billion in IAP revenues, up by 8% from the previous year. Meanwhile, China and Japan retained the second and third spots, although Japan saw a 6% decline in IAP revenue compared to 2023. The report highlighted that Strategy and RPG genres continued to lead in performance, although Casual games reigned as the highest-grossing category in the U.S. market.

Advertising strategies have also evolved significantly in 2024. TikTok emerged as the premier platform for discovering mobile games, capturing a staggering 67% more mobile game ad impressions compared to the previous year. Applovin, another industry player, experienced a dramatic 397% surge in mobile game ad placements, emphasizing the shifting dynamics in audience engagement through social media platforms.

The game publishing landscape adapted to treat games more like live services, regularly delivering fresh content to enhance user retention and engagement. This approach proved successful, as games leveraging Live Ops models claimed 84% of IAP revenues in 2024.

Oliver Yeh, CEO and Co-founder of Sensor Tower, remarked, "The mobile gaming ecosystem has matured, with developers now focusing intensively on retention, engagement, and monetization. With rising user acquisition costs, studios are adopting strategies like Live Ops and hybrid monetization to optimize long-term revenue streams."

Key Findings

• - Billion Dollar Club: In 2024, new members of the billion-dollar revenue club included popular titles Last War Survival, Brawl Stars, and MONOPOLY GO!, each surpassing the $1 billion mark in consumer spending.
• - Hybrid Monetization Growth: There was a 37% growth in IAP revenue for hybrid-casual games, showcasing the effectiveness of blending advertisements with purchases for increased profitability.
• - Expanded Genres: The Shooter and Simulation categories saw increased player engagement, while Casual puzzle games like Royal Match dominated IAP revenues in Western markets.
• - Emerging Markets: Latin America and the Middle East demonstrated impressive growth at rates of 13% and 18%, respectively, amidst a 3% drop in revenue from Asia. Notably, Brazil has solidified its status as a crucial soft-launch hub for global game publishers.

In conclusion, despite the challenges posed by an evolving digital landscape filled with growing competition from social media and video applications, 2024 reaffirmed the robustness of mobile gaming. The industry's continued engagement and revenue growth promises another year filled with innovation as developers refine their monetization strategies and explore new markets. For more detailed insights into category-level and regional gaming trends, find the complete State of Gaming Report 2025 published by Sensor Tower, paving the way for strategic decisions in this flourishing industry.