While geolocation game Monster Hunter Now has got off to a strong start in its first six months, racing into second place among Niantic’s revenue makers, it still has a long way to go to catch up to the genre’s star Pokémon Go.
Comparing lifetime revenues thus far shows just how dominant Go is, having generated over $6 billion so far compared to Monster Hunter Now's $150 million. Quite the disparity between Niantic’s gold and silver medallists, but not exactly a fair comparison given Go’s seven-year head start.
Then again, Go’s first half-year brought in approximately $1 billion, still far exceeding Monster Hunter Now.
But this by no means suggests Now is a failure - it has fast become one of the mobile gaming industry’s biggest geolocation games in Japan, landing a spot in the top five alongside the likes of Dragon Quest Walk, Nobunaga’s Ambition: Departure and, of course, Pokémon Go.
Furthermore, there are some key metrics where Now is outperforming Go, as per AppMagic data. For example, comparing lifetime revenue per download, Now is making over $3 more per player than Go - generating an average $11.47 per download versus Go’s $8.23.
Another metric worth measuring is each game’s retention rate, also higher in Now than Go. While Now has 40.4% day one retention, Go’s figure lands at 38.7%. Day seven retention is 30.6% versus 28.4%. And at day 30, 20.3% of installers are still playing Now compared to only 18.3% in Go.
Target (audience) acquired
Unlike Pokémon Go’s worldwide success, Monster Hunter Now’s earnings have come overwhelmingly from Japan so far; the region accounts for 71% of its revenue despite players in Japan only representing 35% of downloads.
This evidences how effectively Now has targetted and appealed to Japanese players - also the primary audience of Capcom’s console and PC Monster Hunter games - and combined with the title’s stronger retention rate than Go’s, demonstrates Now’s viability and longevity as a game that fans want to keep playing.
As for the latest reason to jump in and get outside hunting, the Monster Hunter Now team has just revealed a limited-time event taking place from March 25 to April 7; the Coral Pukei-Pukei will be introduced during this time, with successful hunters unlocking the ability to forge new water-based weapons and gear. This next event begins after the six-month anniversary celebrations wrap up.
