two & a half gamers

Felix dives into ad monetization trends, focusing on the surprising rise of prison-themed games dominating the simulation and idle arcade charts.

Key insights:

Prison Life (Supercent)

~$107K/day ad revenue, ~$38M annual run rate.

DAU ~2M, nearly 100% ad-driven.

Rewarded impressions: ~4 per DAU (50% base) = $42K/day.

Interstitials: ~6 per DAU (70% base) = $60K/day.

Clever onboarding: first speed-up (Segway/tricycle) given for free → players experience premium benefit → later higher conversion.

Takeaway: “Give it free first, then charge later.”

Prison Survival (Highgame, Vietnam)

DAU ~600K. Revenue ~$21–32K/day.

Hypercasual-style “convert or die” model → if no rewarded ad, user is forced into interstitial.

Core loop 50–80s → optimized for frequent ad exposure.

Monetization mix: 6–8 interstitials per DAU = $12–15K/day; rewarded = $2–3K/day; banners/app open = $2K/day.

Takeaway: Hypercasual ad-monetization loops still work in 2025.

Prison Escape Journey (X Games Global, Vietnam)

DAU ~560K. Revenue ~$10–15K/day.

Essentially, a supermarket simulator reskinned with a prison theme.

Interstitials on 180s loop; rewarded ads for ramen currency; “remove ads” IAP.

Clever use of interstitial at app open instead of Google’s app open ad → eCPM $8–15 vs $2.

Prison Escape Simulator (Digital Melody)

DAU ~220K. Revenue ~$6–10K/day.

Softer ad strategy: fewer interstitials (~8 per DAU) + hidden rewarded ads.

Monetizes heavier on rewarded app open format.

Launched mid-August 2025, still scaling.

Genre Trend: Simulation → Prison Theme Takeover

A year ago, supermarket manager sims dominated top simulation charts.

Today: Prison Escape Journey is #1 in simulation.

Prison themes resonate globally — from idle arcade to forex to supermarket clones.

Takeaway: Prison is the new supermarket. Expect more reskins, higher conversion funnels, and creative UA exploiting the theme.

Get our MERCH NOW: 25gamers.com/shop

---------------------------------------

This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let’s not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously.

Panelists: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jakub Remia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠r,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Felix Braberg, Matej Lancaric⁠

Podcast:

Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-2um8eguhf-c~H9idcxM271mnPzdWbipg

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Ad Monetization Trends

03:36 The Rise of Prison-Themed Games

08:57 Deep Dive: Prison Survival Game Analysis

14:54 Exploring the Supermarket Simulator Influence

20:43 Conclusion: Future of Simulation Games

---------------------------------------

Matej Lancaric

User Acquisition & Creatives Consultant

⁠https://lancaric.me

Felix Braberg

Ad monetization consultant

⁠https://www.felixbraberg.com

Jakub Remiar

Game design consultant

⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakubremiar

---------------------------------------

Please share the podcast with your industry friends, dogs & cats. Especially cats! They love it!

Hit the Subscribe button on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple!

Please share feedback and comments - [email protected]

---------------------------------------

If you are interested in getting UA tips every week on Monday, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠lancaric.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & sign up for the Brutally Honest newsletter by Matej Lancaric

Do you have UA questions nobody can answer? Ask ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Matej AI⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - the First UA AI in the gaming industry! https://lancaric.me/matej-ai

We scan Steam’s latest hits to predict which games could cross over to mobile success.

🔥 Topics:

Peak ($53M climbing co-op) already cloned on Roblox

Revenge on Gold Diggers -short drama goes interactive

Rematch - 5v5 football sim, wild card for mobile

The Alters - sci-fi survival with clones, Fallout Shelter-style

Nine Kings - roguelite deck + mass battles = Balatro vibes

The Tower - unfolding idle sim ripe for mobile

Cast & Chill - cozy fishing sim with underwater mechanics

Car Dealer Simulator - hypercasual mini-games + forex economy

Cache Cleaner - funky money laundering sim

Get our MERCH NOW: 25gamers.com/shop

--------------------------------------

PVX Partners offers non-dilutive funding for game developers.

Go to: https://pvxpartners.com/

They can help you access the most effective form of growth capital once you have the metrics to back it.

- Scale fast

- Keep your shares

- Drawdown only as needed

- Have PvX take downside risk alongside you

+ Work with a team entirely made up of ex-gaming operators and investors

---------------------------------------

For an ever-growing number of game developers, this means that now is the perfect time to invest in monetizing direct-to-consumer at scale.

Our sponsor FastSpring:

Has delivered D2C at scale for over 20 years

They power top mobile publishers around the world

Launch a new webstore, replace an existing D2C vendor, or add a redundant D2C vendor at fastspring.gg.

---------------------------------------

This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let’s not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously.

Panelists: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jakub Remia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠r,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Felix Braberg, Matej Lancaric⁠

Podcast:

Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-2um8eguhf-c~H9idcxM271mnPzdWbipg

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Overview

05:34 Full Steam Ahead: Game Dynamics and Trends

13:05 Emerging Games and Market Insights

17:15 Innovative Game Concepts and Future Directions

19:16 Streamlining Gameplay Mechanics

20:28 Exploring Survival Game Concepts

23:14 Roguelite Game Innovations

28:20 Idle Simulation and Unfolding Mechanics

30:04 The Aesthetic of Cozy Games

33:39 Simulation Games and Mini-Game Mechanics

35:52 Unique Concepts in Game Design

---------------------------------------

Matej Lancaric

User Acquisition & Creatives Consultant

⁠https://lancaric.me

Felix Braberg

Ad monetization consultant

⁠https://www.felixbraberg.com

Jakub Remiar

Game design consultant

⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakubremiar

---------------------------------------

Please share the podcast with your industry friends, dogs & cats. Especially cats! They love it!

Hit the Subscribe button on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple!

Please share feedback and comments - [email protected]

---------------------------------------

If you are interested in getting UA tips every week on Monday, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠lancaric.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & sign up for the Brutally Honest newsletter by Matej Lancaric

Do you have UA questions nobody can answer? Ask ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Matej AI⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - the First UA AI in the gaming industry! https://lancaric.me/matej-ai

We dive into Coin Sort, a surprising hybrid-casual puzzler that blends merge + sorting mechanics with clever ad monetization.

Flow-state puzzler: players merge and sort coins, driving a satisfying loop.

Unique twist: players call in new coins themselves, creating agency.

Difficulty ramps as more coins = higher-value merges = more chaos.

Shallow progression today (daily rewards, calendar, boosters).

Likely to expand into menu + cosmetic/meta systems if scale continues.

Early launch style: prove core loop, meta comes later.

Revenue ~$120K/day; ~65% IAP, ~35% ads.

Banner ads: ever-present, likely a decoy to push “Remove Ads” IAP.

Interstitials: after level 3, ~9.7 per DAU. Pop-up after 3rd = strong “remove ads” conversion.

Rewarded ads: clever mechanic where frozen stacks of coins drop mid-level for 5s → high-pressure CTA. Also includes 2x post-level and daily reward.

Explosive scaling since June 2025, 360K DAU → $40K/day ads + $80K/day IAP.

Strong Tier 1 focus: US, UK, Canada, Australia, Japan.

Scaling with playables, though creative variety still thin (3–4 pages).

Coin Sort is IAP-heavy (~65% IAP vs HexaSort’s 88% ads).

Takeaway: Coin Sort proves that hybrid puzzlers don’t need to be ad-first — if you build clever ad funnels that push players into IAPs, you can scale fast in Tier 1 markets.

Get our MERCH NOW: 25gamers.com/shop

--------------------------------------

PVX Partners offers non-dilutive funding for game developers.

Go to: https://pvxpartners.com/

They can help you access the most effective form of growth capital once you have the metrics to back it.

- Scale fast

- Keep your shares

- Drawdown only as needed

- Have PvX take downside risk alongside you

+ Work with a team entirely made up of ex-gaming operators and investors

---------------------------------------

For an ever-growing number of game developers, this means that now is the perfect time to invest in monetizing direct-to-consumer at scale.

Our sponsor FastSpring:

Has delivered D2C at scale for over 20 years

They power top mobile publishers around the world

Launch a new webstore, replace an existing D2C vendor, or add a redundant D2C vendor at fastspring.gg.

---------------------------------------

This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let’s not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously.

Panelists: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jakub Remia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠r,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Felix Braberg, Matej Lancaric⁠

Podcast:

Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-2um8eguhf-c~H9idcxM271mnPzdWbipg

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Vibe Check

03:47 Game Discussion: Coin Sort

06:47 Gameplay Mechanics and User Experience

09:57 Monetization Strategies and Ad Revenue

18:48 Game Launch and Initial Reception

21:47 Creative Strategies and User Engagement

24:47 Scaling Challenges and Market Dynamics

27:55 Comparative Analysis of Game Performance

30:47 Future Trends and Market Predictions

---------------------------------------

Matej Lancaric

User Acquisition & Creatives Consultant

⁠https://lancaric.me

Felix Braberg

Ad monetization consultant

⁠https://www.felixbraberg.com

Jakub Remiar

Game design consultant

⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakubremiar

---------------------------------------

Please share the podcast with your industry friends, dogs & cats. Especially cats! They love it!

Hit the Subscribe button on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple!

Please share feedback and comments - [email protected]

Today, we break down the latest Creative Trends in mobile game advertising, separating physics-based ad monsters from emerging AI hooks.

Key insights:

Golden Goblins & Physics Overload

Still king: physics balls, crystals, pearls, gems.

Production values keep climbing = now full 2-minute mini-films.

Core loop: satisfying physics + resource overload + fail states.

Iteration chains drive CPI drops but blur originality. “UA in a nutshell: copy, tweak, scale.”

Fail States as Hooks

Overstressed trucks, angry exclamation marks, overload explosions.

Players are drawn to chaos + comedy.

Township 2012-style creatives resurfacing.

Cats, freezing families, classic retargeting.

AI real-life actor ads (feet glitches give them away).

AI anime narrators + skits.

Hijacked accounts accidentally running scammy “AI princess” ads.

Still clunky — but iteration speed makes it dangerous.

Police Snake & Match Villains leading with funny story ads.

Humor = harder to copy, longer shelf life.

Output Benchmarks

Top games producing 60 playables/month to sustain UA spend.

Market Winners

Iterative ads + humor + AI spillover fuel growth.

Takeaway: Physics ads still rule, AI is creeping in, and humor/story hooks are the next battleground.

Get our MERCH NOW: 25gamers.com/shop

--------------------------------------

PVX Partners offers non-dilutive funding for game developers.

Go to: https://pvxpartners.com/

They can help you access the most effective form of growth capital once you have the metrics to back it.

- Scale fast

- Keep your shares

- Drawdown only as needed

- Have PvX take downside risk alongside you

+ Work with a team entirely made up of ex-gaming operators and investors

---------------------------------------

For an ever-growing number of game developers, this means that now is the perfect time to invest in monetizing direct-to-consumer at scale.

Our sponsor FastSpring:

Has delivered D2C at scale for over 20 years

They power top mobile publishers around the world

Launch a new webstore, replace an existing D2C vendor, or add a redundant D2C vendor at fastspring.gg.

---------------------------------------

This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let’s not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously.

Panelists: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jakub Remia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠r,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Felix Braberg, Matej Lancaric⁠

Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-2um8eguhf-c~H9idcxM271mnPzdWbipg

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Creative Trends

03:37 Exploring the Golden Goblins

11:13 Creative Dashboard Insights

14:14 Innovations in Game Creatives

20:12 Analyzing New Game Mechanics

23:24 The Rise of Short-Form Content

26:13 Exploring AI in Gaming

30:19 Idle Lumber and Game Mechanics

41:26 The Future of AI in Gaming

---------------------------------------

Matej Lancaric

User Acquisition & Creatives Consultant

⁠https://lancaric.me

Felix Braberg

Ad monetization consultant

⁠https://www.felixbraberg.com

Jakub Remiar

Game design consultant

⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakubremiar

---------------------------------------

Please share the podcast with your industry friends, dogs & cats. Especially cats! They love it!

Hit the Subscribe button on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple!

Please share feedback and comments - [email protected]

---------------------------------------

If you are interested in getting UA tips every week on Monday, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠lancaric.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & sign up for the Brutally Honest newsletter by Matej Lancaric

Today, we fire up the Soft Launch Sonar - scanning the seas of upcoming mobile games to spot which soft launch titles might sink or scale.

Key highlights:

Monopoly Go & Moon Active’s spree – Multiple new soft launches (Monopoly Go, All in Hole, Match Dreams). The hosts argue it’s either IP hubris or a UA-driven funnel experiment. “Where’s the pig? Where’s the bacon?”

Rovio + Sega’s Sonic Blitz – A Marvel Snap/Hearthstone hybrid with Sonic IP. Hosts skeptical: “Sonic IP is too core to carry this.”

Rovio’s Angry Birds Rush – A genius comeback: Coin Master meta + slingshot mechanic + Monopoly Go mini-games.

Microfun’s Icy Hearts – Gossip Harbor clone with icy meta. Hosts roast the reviews but admit: “Nobody cares, it still works.”

Playrix surprises – Match Around (merge + match hybrid) and Austin Odyssey (energy adventure + match 3). First real Playrix innovation in years. “Too much innovation, guys. Step by step.”

Small Giant’s new TD - Tower defense PvE hybrid with heavy meta. “Complexity is not going to help here.”

Up for Fun & Vizor persistence – Endless iterations of forex hybrids with sexed-up creatives.

Warner Bros’ Game of Thrones: Dragonfire – Forex with dragons & real actor rights. Will IP help?

Takeaway: Soft launch is alive and messy — clones, hybrids, and bold experiments everywhere. Rovio’s Angry Birds Rush and Kitka’s Drill game stand out as the most promising.

Get our MERCH NOW: 25gamers.com/shop

--------------------------------------

PVX Partners offers non-dilutive funding for game developers.

Go to: https://pvxpartners.com/

They can help you access the most effective form of growth capital once you have the metrics to back it.

- Scale fast

- Keep your shares

- Drawdown only as needed

- Have PvX take downside risk alongside you

+ Work with a team entirely made up of ex-gaming operators and investors

---------------------------------------

For an ever-growing number of game developers, this means that now is the perfect time to invest in monetizing direct-to-consumer at scale.

Our sponsor FastSpring:

Has delivered D2C at scale for over 20 years

They power top mobile publishers around the world

Launch a new webstore, replace an existing D2C vendor, or add a redundant D2C vendor at fastspring.gg.

---------------------------------------

This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let’s not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously.

Panelists: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jakub Remia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠r,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Felix Braberg, Matej Lancaric⁠

Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-2um8eguhf-c~H9idcxM271mnPzdWbipg

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Soft Launch Sonar

02:04 Exploring Recent Game Releases

03:55 Analyzing Monopoly Go and Coin Master

06:42 Rovio's New Direction with Sega IP

10:16 Innovations in Game Mechanics

13:45 The Rise of Merge Games

16:34 Conclusion and Future Trends

17:45 The Evolution of Game Mechanics

19:05 Exploring New Game Releases

20:44 Innovations in Game Design

24:34 The Rise of Tower Defense Games

26:20 The Persistence of Game Themes

28:47 Ad Creatives and Marketing Strategies

29:35 The Forex Game Landscape

32:59 Unique Game Concepts and Predictions

Matej Lancaric

User Acquisition & Creatives Consultant

⁠https://lancaric.me

Felix Braberg

Ad monetization consultant

⁠https://www.felixbraberg.com

Jakub Remiar

Game design consultant

⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakubremiar

Please share the podcast with your industry friends, dogs & cats. Especially cats! They love it!

Hit the Subscribe button on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple!

Please share feedback and comments - [email protected]

In this Two and a Half Gamers special, Matej and Felix sit down with Lemon (柠檬游戏说) — WeChat Mini-Game blogger, founder of Hyperjoy, and consultant for Scopely — to unpack the Chinese mini-game gold rush.

Key insights:

2024 market revenue: $7B+ (¥50B RMB).

500M+ MAU, 400K+ dev teams

183% YoY increase in advertisers; dev cycles: 4 weeks (hypercasual) to 3–6 months (hybrid/midcore).

Balanced demographics: gender 50/50, strong 24–40 y/o core.

Winners: 4X/SLG, Tower Defense Roguelike, Merge/Match.

Declining: Hybrid RPGs, Simulation.

Stable: Idle Card RPGs.

60% of UA spend is concentrated in RPG, SLG, and TD.

Day-1 payer retention is highest in RPG/4X (18–85%).

Top Games

Ice War: Three Kingdoms – Whiteout Survival clone w/ localized 3K theme.

Bangbang Survivor – Top-grossing $1M+/day, IP expanding into 4X.

Penguin Go! – Lucky Defense survivor, meta system differentiates it.

Plant Master TD Go – Backpack TD hit (#5 grossing).

永远的蔚蓝星球 (Summon & Merge TD) – $30M/month, global Q4 launch.

Human Leap: Evolution – Top Douyin ad-mon game

Save the King – Royal Match UA creative turned into a WeChat hit ($70K/day ads).

East ↔ West Expansion

West → East: Supercell, Century Games, Scopely already entering WeChat mini-games.

East → West: Galaxy Defense, Legend of Mushroom, Banban Survivor meta systems fueling crossovers.

Success requires simplification of meta for Western markets.

Takeaway: Mini-games are not “mini.” They’re a $7B industry with complex metas, ruthless UA competition, and growing East–West crossover potential.

Get our MERCH NOW: 25gamers.com/shop

---------------------------------------

This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let’s not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously.

Panelists: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Lemon Choi

https://www.linkedin.com/in/lemon-minigame/

Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-2um8eguhf-c~H9idcxM271mnPzdWbipg

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to China's Minigame Market

03:01 Minigame Market Overview

07:26 Minigame Genres and Trends

14:56 Successful Minigames and Case Studies

29:04 Key Takeaways and Future Outlook

---------------------------------------

Matej Lancaric

User Acquisition & Creatives Consultant

⁠https://lancaric.me

Felix Braberg

Ad monetization consultant

⁠https://www.felixbraberg.com

Jakub Remiar

Game design consultant

⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakubremiar

---------------------------------------

Please share the podcast with your industry friends, dogs & cats. Especially cats! They love it!

Hit the Subscribe button on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple!

Please share feedback and comments - [email protected]

---------------------------------------

If you are interested in getting UA tips every week on Monday, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠lancaric.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & sign up for the Brutally Honest newsletter by Matej Lancaric

Do you have UA questions nobody can answer? Ask ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Matej AI⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - the First UA AI in the gaming industry! https://lancaric.me/matej-ai

Today, we revisit 15+ mobile games we’ve covered in the past to see which ones are growing, peaking, or dying. From Vita Mahjong’s $200K/day AdMon empire to Century’s King Shot at $3M/day, here’s the brutally honest state of mobile gaming right now.

Highlights:

Vita Mahjong: 7M DAU, $200–300K/day

Love & Deep Space: $7M/day gacha spikes

Magic Villains: Backed by $60M raise, scaling fast

King Shot: Our pick for “Game of the Year” (so far)

Supercell’s Mo.Co flop vs Clash Royale comeback

Last Z: $6.6M/day forex monster from Vietnam

DramaBox/RealShort: Short drama apps making $100M+/month

Disney Solitaire: Movie tie-ins fueling $650K/day

Chess.com: 14M DAU, $200K/day from app alone

Takeaway: The curse of the podcast is broken (mostly) — nearly all games are still growing, proving 2025 is the year of scale in AdMon, forex hybrids, and gacha monsters.

Get our MERCH NOW: 25gamers.com/shop

--------------------------------------

PVX Partners offers non-dilutive funding for game developers.

Go to: https://pvxpartners.com/

They can help you access the most effective form of growth capital once you have the metrics to back it.

- Scale fast

- Keep your shares

- Drawdown only as needed

- Have PvX take downside risk alongside you

+ Work with a team entirely made up of ex-gaming operators and investors

---------------------------------------

For an ever-growing number of game developers, this means that now is the perfect time to invest in monetizing direct-to-consumer at scale.

Our sponsor FastSpring:

Has delivered D2C at scale for over 20 years

They power top mobile publishers around the world

Launch a new webstore, replace an existing D2C vendor, or add a redundant D2C vendor at fastspring.gg.

---------------------------------------

This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let’s not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously.

Panelists: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jakub Remia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠r,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Felix Braberg, Matej Lancaric⁠

Podcast:

Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-2um8eguhf-c~H9idcxM271mnPzdWbipg

Chapters

---------------------------------------

Matej Lancaric

User Acquisition & Creatives Consultant

⁠https://lancaric.me

Felix Braberg

Ad monetization consultant

⁠https://www.felixbraberg.com

Jakub Remiar

Game design consultant

⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakubremiar

---------------------------------------

Please share the podcast with your industry friends, dogs & cats. Especially cats! They love it!

Hit the Subscribe button on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple!

Please share feedback and comments - [email protected]

---------------------------------------

If you are interested in getting UA tips every week on Monday, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠lancaric.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & sign up for the Brutally Honest newsletter by Matej Lancaric

Do you have UA questions nobody can answer? Ask ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Matej AI⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - the First UA AI in the gaming industry! https://lancaric.me/matej-ai

Today, we dissect Little Farm Story Idle Tycoon — SayGames’ latest farming-idle hybrid that feels like a mashup of Dreamdale, My Perfect Hotel, and Idle Breaker.

Key insights:

Gameplay Loop:

Clearing grass → unlocking fields → harvesting → selling resources.

Heavy reliance on ads for progression (resources, boosts, even eggs).

“Annoyance monetization”: progress gates force you to watch ads or buy “No Ads” pack.

Monetization:

~$67–70K/day in revenue.

~53% from ads, ~47% from IAP.

Ad breakdown: ~$24K rewarded, ~$10K interstitials, ~$500–700 from banners (“why bother?”).

“Remove Ads” pack is likely the top IAP — players pushed into it by frustration.

Design Choices:

Map expands with resource conversions (tomatoes → ketchup, chickens → eggs, wood → upgrades).

Inventory/capacity upgrades disguised as RPG-like gear, but tied to ad rewards.

Cosmetic shop + IAP items scattered on map.

UA & Creatives:

Ads mirror Township / Playrix resource ads and Century Games’ UA tricks (suction devices, backpacks).

Low-poly art style keeps CPIs down, but LTVs capped.

Playables + AI-generated UGC, but “Township-from-Wish” vibe.

Heavy interstitial cross-promo inside SayGames portfolio (even multiple in a row).

Market & Scaling:

Currently SayGames’ #1 title by IAP revenue.

~$2M monthly run rate, growing but not viral like Dreamdale or My Perfect Hotel.

Audience skew: ~63% US revenue, Tier 1 heavy.

Takeaway: Little Farm Story is a polished ad-driven idle hybrid, but its top IAP being “Remove Ads” caps its growth potential.

PVX Partners offers non-dilutive funding for game developers.

Go to: https://pvxpartners.com/

They can help you access the most effective form of growth capital once you have the metrics to back it.

- Scale fast

- Keep your shares

- Drawdown only as needed

- Have PvX take downside risk alongside you

+ Work with a team entirely made up of ex-gaming operators and investors

---------------------------------------

For an ever-growing number of game developers, this means that now is the perfect time to invest in monetizing direct-to-consumer at scale.

Our sponsor FastSpring:

Has delivered D2C at scale for over 20 years

They power top mobile publishers around the world

Launch a new webstore, replace an existing D2C vendor, or add a redundant D2C vendor at fastspring.gg.

---------------------------------------

This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let’s not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously.

Panelists: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jakub Remia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠r,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Felix Braberg, Matej Lancaric⁠

Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-2um8eguhf-c~H9idcxM271mnPzdWbipg

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Game Overview

03:48 Gameplay Mechanics and Features

07:25 Monetization Strategies and Ads

12:42 In-App Purchases and User Experience

17:17 Revenue Insights and Conclusion

18:15 The Decline of Traditional Ads

19:23 User Acquisition Strategies in Gaming

21:17 Ad Monetization Archetypes

23:46 Comparative Analysis of Game Creatives

25:57 Performance Metrics and Revenue Insights

28:30 The Future of Game Scaling and IAPs

---------------------------------------

Matej Lancaric

User Acquisition & Creatives Consultant

⁠https://lancaric.me

Felix Braberg

Ad monetization consultant

⁠https://www.felixbraberg.com

Jakub Remiar

Game design consultant

⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakubremiar

---------------------------------------

Please share the podcast with your industry friends, dogs & cats. Especially cats! They love it!

Hit the Subscribe button on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple!

Please share feedback and comments - [email protected]

In this special Two and a Half Gamers episode, Matej and Felix sit down with Zino Rost van Tonningen (TyrAds) to deep dive into the history, present, and future of rewarded monetization & offerwalls.

Key insights:

History of rewarded ads:

Early “incent installs” → rank-boosting campaigns (TapJoy, FreeMyApps).

Multi-reward systems (TapJoy, IronSource, Fyber).

Misplay breakthrough: timer-based playtime rewards + personalization.

AdJoe & others scaled Misplay’s model into SDK solutions.

The shift to personalization:

Old offerwalls = one-size-fits-all.

New generation = hyper-personalized rewards per user.

Use of media source data (Google, Unity, AppLovin, etc.) to adapt rewards based on traffic quality.

Publisher perspective:

Offerwalls can contribute 5–30% of game revenue depending on genre.

Biggest impact: retaining non-payers & dolphins by giving them an alternative to IAP.

Integration fights today echo old mediation wars (bonuses, rev guarantees, exclusivity deals).

Best practices for choosing an offerwall partner:

LiveOps environment — events, hot deals, timed offers.

Transparency — explain revenue spikes/drops & media source impact.

Personalization — reward scaling, segmentation by user type & UA source.

UI/UX — aesthetics matter; no more “Windows 95” offerwalls.

Zino’s TyrAds SDK v3.0:

One-time integration, no updates needed.

Customizable design to match game branding.

Hyper-personalized rewards, dynamic leveling systems.

LiveOps events triggered per user (push, in-app messages).

Takeaway: Rewarded monetization has entered its 4th generation: hyper-personalized, data-driven, and LiveOps-powered.

https://tyrads.com/

Get our MERCH NOW: 25gamers.com/shop

---------------------------------------

This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let’s not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously.

Panelists: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Felix Braberg, Matej Lancaric⁠

Special guest: Zino Rost van Tonningen

https://www.linkedin.com/in/rovato/

[email protected]

Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-2um8eguhf-c~H9idcxM271mnPzdWbipg

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Rewarded User Acquisition

04:30 The Evolution of Rewarded Monetization

07:10 The Shift from Incentivized Installs to Quality KPIs

09:51 Innovations in Rewarded Advertising: Multi-Reward and Playtime Solutions

12:33 The Role of Personalization in Rewarded Monetization

14:56 Challenges in Current Rewarded Solutions

17:48 Evaluating Monetization Solutions: Key Considerations

20:15 The Importance of LiveOps in Engagement

23:06 Transparency and Optimization in Offer Walls

28:34 Differentiating Offer Walls for Monetization

30:44 The Importance of Data in Monetization Solutions

31:28 Personalization and User Engagement in Offer Walls

33:18 SDK Evolution: From Version 1 to Hyper-Personalization

36:14 Leveraging Machine Learning for Offer Wall Optimization

40:14 Engaging Users with LiveOps and Hot Deals

44:01 Dynamic Leveling Systems for Enhanced User Experience

46:58 Criteria for Effective Offer Wall Implementation

48:47 Revenue Impact and Client Engagement

---------------------------------------

Matej Lancaric

User Acquisition & Creatives Consultant

⁠https://lancaric.me

Felix Braberg

Ad monetization consultant

⁠https://www.felixbraberg.com

Zino Rost van Tonningen

CEO of TyrAds

https://www.linkedin.com/in/rovato/

[email protected]

---------------------------------------

Please share the podcast with your industry friends, dogs & cats. Especially cats! They love it!

Hit the Subscribe button on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple!

Please share feedback and comments - [email protected]

Today, we break down Galaxy Defense, a sci-fi-themed tower defense/survival clone that’s generating $100K/day in IAP with only around 135K DAU.

🎯 Topics covered:

Gameplay breakdown: lasers, turrets, force fields & randomizer

Monetization: IAP heavy, ~12% ads, “Remove Ads” pack as a top purchase

Why CPIs are likely $50–100+ in Tier 1 markets

Revenue: ~$220K/day combined, with Android more than iOS

UA creatives: TikTok memes, fake interviews, AI actors — mostly 3.5/10 execution

Why this isn’t yet the “Western prophecy hit” for tower defense

👉 Subscribe for brutally honest deep dives into UA, monetization & game design.

👉 Comment: is Galaxy Defense the next Rush Royale, or just another clone?

Get our MERCH NOW: 25gamers.com/shop

--------------------------------------

PVX Partners offers non-dilutive funding for game developers.

Go to: https://pvxpartners.com/

They can help you access the most effective form of growth capital once you have the metrics to back it.

- Scale fast

- Keep your shares

- Drawdown only as needed

- Have PvX take downside risk alongside you

+ Work with a team entirely made up of ex-gaming operators and investors

---------------------------------------

For an ever-growing number of game developers, this means that now is the perfect time to invest in monetizing direct-to-consumer at scale.

Our sponsor FastSpring:

Has delivered D2C at scale for over 20 years

They power top mobile publishers around the world

Launch a new webstore, replace an existing D2C vendor, or add a redundant D2C vendor at fastspring.gg.

---------------------------------------

This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let’s not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously.

Panelists: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jakub Remia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠r,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Felix Braberg, Matej Lancaric⁠

Podcast:

Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-2um8eguhf-c~H9idcxM271mnPzdWbipg

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Galaxy Defense

04:02 Gameplay Mechanics and Strategies

07:12 Ad Experience and Monetization

10:09 Comparative Analysis with Other Games

20:55 Energy Systems and Progression

23:50 Customization and Gear Enhancement

34:03 Chinese Market Dynamics and UA Strategies

37:06 The Stability of Waifu Games

38:07 Emerging Trends in Tower Defense Games

41:48 Creative Strategies in Game Marketing

44:02 The Role of AI in Game Advertising

47:57 Cultural Influences on Game Development

49:35 Final Thoughts on Game Trends and Predictions

---------------------------------------

Matej Lancaric

User Acquisition & Creatives Consultant

⁠https://lancaric.me

Felix Braberg

Ad monetization consultant

⁠https://www.felixbraberg.com

Jakub Remiar

Game design consultant

⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakubremiar

---------------------------------------

Please share the podcast with your industry friends, dogs & cats. Especially cats! They love it!

Hit the Subscribe button on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple!

Please share feedback and comments - [email protected]

---------------------------------------

If you are interested in getting UA tips every week on Monday, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠lancaric.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & sign up for the Brutally Honest newsletter by Matej Lancaric

Do you have UA questions nobody can answer? Ask ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Matej AI⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - the First UA AI in the gaming industry! https://lancaric.me/matej-ai