Developer raises $80 million in series C funding
Linekong, a developer of mobile games based in China, has announced that it has raised $80 million in series C funding. China is quickly becoming a prominent market when it comes to mobile app development, especially when these apps have to do with gaming in some way. Mobile apps are quite popular among consumers throughout the country and the demand for more engaging and entertaining applications has been on the rise for some time. The funding that Linekong has managed to acquire may help it compete with the multitude of developers that are already active in China.
Market continues to prove accommodating of mobile games
China’s mobile app development market is saturated. There are numerous organizations that are working to engage consumers with their applications and many of these groups are copying one another in an attempt to find success. It can be difficult for any one company to stand out amongst the crowded market, but Linekong has managed to attract a great deal of attention with its games. The funding that the developer has received will be used to further its growth in the gaming sector through the development of games that have already proven quite popular among consumers.
Linekong intends to release 15 new games this year
Linekong specializes in online role-playing and action games, two genres that are quite popular throughout China. Notably, Action RPGs are the most popular types of games among Chinese gamers, with 64% of consumers spending money on these types of games every month. Linekong intends to release 15 new mobile games this year, the majority of which will adhere to the developer’s genre preferences. Two of the games that the developer plans to release are to be classified as “leisure” games.
China establishes itself as prominent market for mobile games and gaming in general
China’s online games are expected to generate approximately $16 billion in revenue throughout 2014. This makes China one of the most attractive markets in the gaming world. The country is still relatively closed to foreign developers, but the Chinese government recently lifted a ban that had been imposed on foreign console platforms.
Digital market reaches new heights with the help of mobile games
This has been a very promising year for the digital gaming sector. More consumers are becoming involved in games now than ever before in the past, largely due to the proliferation of smartphones and tablets. These devices have allowed consumers to play games virtually anywhere in the world, but are not the only platform through which these consumers have access to digital games. Large-scale titles, like Blizzard’s World of Warcraft, continue to perform well in the market despite being more than a decade old. A new report from SuperData, a market research firm, shows that the digital game market is reaching new height and this growth may be largely due to the popularity of mobile games.
Market reaches $1.1 billion
According to the report from SuperData, the digital games market has hit $1.1 billion. In July alone, revenue in this sector jumped by 5.4% over what it had been during the same month in 2012. In the U.S., much of this growth is being seen in the mobile sector, where mobile games have become quite popular. Revenue in the mobile games market has jumped by 32% since July of 2012. The report notes that Candy Crush, one of the most popular mobile games, leads the market with more than $438,000 in daily revenue.
MMOs continue to show strong performance
The digital games market is dominated by big-name multiplayer titles, like League of Legends and DOTA 2. These games account for the majority of the money that consumers are spending in this particular market. The report shows that World of Warcraft continues to maintain its spot as the highest revenue generator in the digital games market, at least where multiplayer games are involved.
Consumers are leery of mobile games with strong similarities to one another
Mobile games are expected to continue seeing a major increase in popularity in the coming years. This may directly translate into higher levels of revenue generation. The problem, however, is that many consumers are fickle when it comes to mobile games. Games like Candy Crush have managed to achieve a significant level of success, but whether other games can do the same is a dubious matter. Consumers often show a great deal of ire toward games that are too similar to one another, and these games tend to perform poorly in the market.
