U.S. Consumer Spending in Mobile Action Games Doubled in H1 2021, Led by Genshin Impact

Player spending in Action genre mobile games in the United States grew by nearly 104 percent in H1 2021 when compared to H1 2020, Sensor Tower Store Intelligence estimates show, making it the fastest-growing genre during the first half of the year by revenue.

Utilizing Sensor Tower’s Game Taxonomy and Game Intelligence features, which segments games into relevant genres and subgenres to support publishers in efficiently identifying key trends, we analyzed each of the 14 main game genres in 1H21 compared to 1H20, looking at U.S. revenue and downloads in each category across the App Store and Google Play. By focusing on the first half of the year, as well as the second quarter, we can get a clearer picture of how the global COVID-19 pandemic and resulting lockdowns impacted specific genres and how the market is performing as the global vaccination program continues to roll out.

Action Stations

Action was the fastest rising genre, with player spending up 103.8 percent year-over-year to $435.7 million. The largest Action subgenre for player spending was Fighting, which generated $183.3 million, up 27.7 percent Y/Y. The No. 1 Action game by player spending was Genshin Impact from miHoYo, which generated close to $174 million in the U.S. during the first half of the year. It was followed by Marvel Contest of Champions from Kabam at No. 2, and Dragon Ball Legends from Bandai Namco at No. 3.

The second fastest-growing genre by revenue in 1H21 was Hypercasual, which increased by 60.4 percent Y/Y to approximately $59 million. Tabletop, meanwhile, ranked No. 3 for growth, with player spending rising by 41.7 percent Y/Y to almost $389 million.

Puzzle was the largest category by spending in 1H21, picking up $2.6 billion, an increase of 18.6 percent Y/Y. It was followed by Casino, which generated $2.5 billion, and Strategy, which accumulated $2.2 billion.

Analyzing just Q2 2021, the same genres dominated the fastest growing and top revenue generators. However, unlike the full first half-year, Q2 saw some genres experience a drop in player spending, with Lifestyle seeing a decline of approximately 12 percent Y/Y.

State of Downloads

Every genre saw downloads decline in the first half of the year compared to 2020–the height of the first COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns. The genre that saw the smallest decline was Strategy, with installs shrinking by 4.4 percent Y/Y in 1H21 to 71.7 million. The top Strategy subgenre for downloads was 4X Strategy, which saw downloads climb by about 2 percent Y/Y to approximately 28.6 million installs. The No. 1 Strategy game for downloads was Top War from Top War Studio, which accumulated 4.2 million downloads, followed by State of Survival from FunPlus at No. 2 and Clash of Clans from Supercell at No. 3.

Hypercasual ranked No. 1 with the most downloads during 1H21, generating 830.2 million installs, a decline of 6.5 percent Y/Y. Puzzle, meanwhile, ranked No. 2 for downloads, while Arcade ranked No. 3.

Analyzing just 2Q21, the market saw steeper declines across each genre, with Casino experiencing a 54.7 percent decrease in installs Y/Y.

A Positive Outlook

Typically, mobile game revenue and downloads are largely expected to increase each year as the market grows. The COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns, however, created some uncertainties as the mobile sector saw a surge in growth as consumers looked to their mobile devices for entertainment and necessities. Meanwhile, 2021 has also seen Apple introduce changes to the IDFA in iOS 14.5 onwards, sparking further uncertainty in the market. While there has been a decline in installs during the first half of the year, player spending has continued to rise across all categories. This suggests that the outsized gains in 2020 have not been lost, and that the mobile games industry continues to grow, even with recent headwinds like Apple’s privacy changes.