Zynga's acquisition of OMGPOP is failing to deliver the goods, with the studio's Draw Something follow up falling short of the success enjoyed by its predecessor.
That's according to research carried about by BTIG, which concludes that the strong debut of Draw Something 2 back at the end of April has been followed by a strong decline in the game's fortunes.
In short, Zynga is struggling to recapture the appeal - and, more importantly, earning potential - of the original game.
Draw Something
anything
That's a trend that won't surprise everyone, however.
The original Draw Something's popularity began to wane shortly after Zynga acquired OMGPOP - a decision that ultimately led to the social gaming giant writing off close to $95 million in revenue in 2012.
Nevertheless, Draw Something 2's start looked promising. The app reached the coveted #1 spot in iOS downloads within two days of its release.
As BTIG's analysis highlights, the game only lingered there for a week, however, before falling to the #2 spot on 2 May that it held onto for three days.
After 5 May, Draw Something 2 plummeted down to the #31 spot all less than a month after its release.
Fudged follow up?
For comparison's sake, the original Draw Something was released by OMGPOP on February 1, 2012 and reached #1 on March 3 2012.
It hovered around the top spot until 4 April (two weeks after the Zynga acquisition) and fell to the #26 spot on 24 May, nearly three months after it peaked at #1.
In terms of grossing ranks, the picture for Draw Something 2 is even bleaker. The original Draw Something peaked at #3 on March 21 2012 before falling down to the mid-70s two months later.
Draw Something 2, by contrast, peaked at #74 on the grossing ranks and has since declined to #151, painting a picture of a game that - to Zynga's cost - isn't monetising as the firm would hope.
[source: BTIG Research]
News
US Correspondent
Representing the former colonies, Matt keeps the Pocket Gamer news feed updated when sleepy Europeans are sleeping. As a frustrated journalist, diehard gamer and recovering MMO addict, this is pretty much his dream job.
Top Stories
News
Apr 18th, 2024
Fortis team boosted by top ex-King, PopCap EA, Microsoft and Warner Bros. Games talent
News
Apr 18th, 2024
UK skills crisis prompts call for games industry-led body to tackle key challenges
Feature
2 hours, 27 minutes ago
Speaker Spotlight: Xsolla's Chris Meredith on making the most of D2C and today's revenue opportunities
Feature
3 hours, 3 minutes ago
Chart Climbers: Brawl Stars, Legend of Mushroom, Sea of Conquest and more rise up the mobile game revenue rankings
News
Apr 17th, 2024
Monopoly GO! celebrates its first birthday and shares its behind-the-scenes story
Events
HIT Games Conference Istanbul 2024 | Apr 18th | |
Game Job Fair – Spring Edition 2024 | Nordic | Apr 18th |
Arts DAO Fest 2.0 | Middle East | Apr 20th |
App Promotion Summit London | Europe | Apr 25th |
Esports Future Summit | Middle East | Apr 27th |
Dubai GameExpo Summit 2024 | Middle East | May 1st |
The MENA Games Industry Awards 2024 | Middle East | May 2nd |
GameDev Atlantic 2024 | May 4th |