Plarium's User Spending Hits New Heights at $3B
Plarium has reached a new peak with $3B in user spending with RAID: Shadow Legends contribution more than 50% to the revenue structure.
— by Diana Levintova
Plarium has reached a new peak with $3B in user spending. RAID: Shadow Legends leads their revenue contributions at 57%, Vikings: War of Clans follows with 24%, and Mech Arena adds 4%. It is notable that after the release of RAID: Shadow Legends, the revenue for Vikings: War of Clans has decreased and continues to decline year after year. In the first year, from 2018 to 2019, the revenue fell by 22%, from $74.8 million to $58.5M. The downturn persisted, averaging a 20% decrease annually, culminating in a total of $20.6M for the first 11 months of 2023.
Disclaimer: To calculate user spending we’re adding back store fees and inclusive taxes that stores pay to some countries before making their payment to a publisher to the revenue metric displayed on the app’s page.
It's not uncommon for a new hit game to start cannibalizing the audience and revenue of older titles, particularly when the new release is extensively marketed and gains substantial popularity. However, Plarium seems committed to Vikings: War of Clans' longevity, evident through ongoing updates and new features such as the Jotunheim event, the introduction of Aesir, and the overhaul of the Clans Battle. This dedication suggests an effort to maintain its player base and revenue.
Moreover, the optimization of their development process using a Kubernetes microservices architecture could enhance not just Vikings: War of Clans, but their entire game portfolio. Such backend advancements can lead to faster rollouts of new versions and features, potentially boosting player engagement and financial performance across all their games.
While Plarium is enhancing Vikings: War of Clans with new features and events to retain its player base, it's also worth examining the geographical and platform-based distribution of the publisher’s revenue and downloads. The bulk of Plarium’s user spending originates from the USA, contributing 53%, with Germany at 7%, and the UK at 5%. In terms of platforms, Google Play accounts for 61% of expenditure, with the Apple Store holding 39%.
Additionally, there has been a significant shift in the download patterns for the publisher. The Indian market, in particular, has shown remarkable growth, with a 28% year-over-year increase in 2023, making India the leading market for downloads, overtaking the US by a margin of 9%.
Building on the insights about Plarium's strategic regional focus and platform distribution, download statistics reveal that RAID: Shadow Legends leads with a lifetime total of 73M installs. Mech Arena, introduced in 2021, follows with 45.9M, and Vikings: War of Clans trails with 35.9M. A closer look at the data dashboard shows a significant initial surge in Mech Arena downloads, which eventually leveled off to a steady 1.3 million monthly installs. This consistency positions Mech Arena as the frontrunner in audience reach throughout the first 11 months of 2023.
Plarium's sustained investment in game development and strategic market targeting has secured a robust presence in the gaming industry. As the company moves forward with new optimization strategies, the future looks promising, and it will be intriguing to witness how these changes will shape their global market performance.