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GAME INTELLIGENCE · LAUREN HOCKENSON · MARCH 2021

Discover Emerging Genre-Level Trends with Sensor Tower Game Intelligence

Sensor Tower's latest product is a dedicated source for the competitive Games category.

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Since the first smartphones were put in the hands of consumers nearly 14 years ago, gaming has been a leader in driving mobile usage and adoption. From viral hits like Angry Birds and Candy Crush to the introduction of new and novel play styles like Pokémon GO and the cross-platform engagement of Fortnite, the growth rate of player engagement and spend has only skyrocketed. According to Sensor Tower data, the mobile games industry alone is expected to reach $138 billion by 2025 across the App Store and Google Play.

In order to meet the needs of the ever-changing and competitive industry, Sensor Tower is proud to introduce a product dedicated solely to the growth and development of mobile games. Game Intelligence, a free addition to our enterprise Store Intelligence product, combines some of the most compelling views from our Mobile Success Suite with a proprietary classification system that highlights the most salient features of the world's top mobile games.

Let's take a look at how Game Intelligence can supercharge your mobile game roadmap, from development to launch and beyond.

Understanding Classifications

The centerpiece to Sensor Tower's Game Intelligence is an industry-focused classification system, built on our Genre Taxonomy feature. Sensor Tower's Genre Taxonomy expanded on its original dataset to classify the top 20,000 mobile games on the App Store and Google play into more than 70 sub-genres that better describe/classify gameplay mechanics, audience, and metagame.

In addition to these classifications, Sensor Tower has created its own proprietary set of characteristics to help you drill down further into the important qualities of a mobile game. Discover the differences in Setting, Theme, Art Style, and Camera POV in order to better understand how artistic and styling choices impact a particular game's target audience and resonance in the market. From 2D Cartoon to 3D Realistic, Military to Lifestyle, or Sci-Fi to High Fantasy, select one of these identifiers or develop a combination of several to uncover key opportunities in the mobile gaming landscape.

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Plus, alongside this release we've included a brand-new Licensed IP feature, which includes comprehensive identifiers for some of the most well-known entertainment brands that are prominent in the mobile games space. From Disney to Dragon Ball Z, My Little Pony to Harry Potter, your team can zero in on the properties that are gaining buzz and leading to success for game studios—and evaluate those properties' potential for licensing partnerships.

All of these classifications will continue to receive regular updates, so your team will be able to stay on top of the latest trends in mobile games.

Inside Product Features

While the core of Game Intelligence is powered by our detailed and context-driven classification system, the product itself brings together some of the most impactful views found within Store Intelligence to create a control center for your games-focused needs. Here are some of the common workflows you can take advantage of directly within Game Intelligence:

  • Downloads and Revenue: Look into the store performance charts over time for any Game Intelligence descriptor. For example, how have downloads changed over time for MMORPG titles?

  • Market Analysis: Compare the size of different markets for identified game descriptors on a per-country basis. How do Match-3 puzzle titles fare in India, compared to Germany or the United States?

  • Publisher Breakdown: Understand which publishers have developed strongholds in certain genres, settings, or IP partnerships. For example, how much of a hold does Playrix have on the Puzzle & Decorate subcategory?

  • Monetization Metrics: Measure the performance of any game descriptor by Sensor Tower's pioneering Revenue Per Download metric. Do 3D Realistic or 3D Cartoon shooters see more spending per install?

  • Taxonomy Exploration: Determine market viability of a new and novel game concept by exploring the games attached to any descriptor. Are there any Horror-themed Puzzle games with a 2D Cartoon Art Style? These are just a handful of examples of the way that Game Intelligence can make a direct impact on your game development roadmap. From product exploration to competitor analysis and merger readiness, many different working groups will benefit from combining key download and revenue metrics with Sensor Tower's nuanced and industry-aligned classifications.

A Commitment to the Games Industry

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Although there's already plenty to dive into and uncover with Game Intelligence at launch, Sensor Tower is dedicated to enhancing this product over time with even more classifications and metrics that are core to the games industry. This product was formed specifically with the purposes and goals of our Enterprise-level gaming clients in mind, in terms they are familiar with.

In that spirit we're committed to integrating a greater number of our customers' favorite data views from across our Mobile Success Suite, so Game Intelligence will grow as a command center for all of your games industry research and strategic planning. Are you interested in learning more about Game Intelligence and the Sensor Tower Mobile Success Suite? Reach out to our sales team for a demo.


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Lauren Hockenson

Written by: Lauren Hockenson, Product Marketing Manager

Date: March 2021