Jean Hardy – Dec 4, 2024

Mobile gaming has exploded into a $100 billion market. Yet many people don’t understand the complex ecosystem behind their favorite games. Our experience in mobile game development shows that successful game creation needs more than just programming and design skills.

Newcomers to the industry often find the relationship between game publishers and developers confusing. Developers create engaging gameplay experiences. Publishers handle significant aspects like market knowledge and expertise distribution, user acquition, live ops, monetization and community engagement. Questions about these distinct roles and their collaborative process come up frequently.

This piece will explore the unique responsibilities of mobile game publishers and developers. We’ll discuss their development through time and how their collaborative effort shapes today’s games and lastly delve into success metrics for both parties and the future direction of this partnership.

Evolution of Mobile Game Development

Remember the mobile game, Snake? 

Mobile game development has come a long way since the game appeared in 1997. The global mobile gaming market has grown tremendously, reaching $94.80 billion in 2022. Projections show it will reach $139.50 billion by 2026, with a CAGR of 12.3% [1].

From Solo Developers to Studio Teams

The industry has progressed from single developers making simple games to professional studio teams. Single developers handled everything from coding to graphics in the early days. Now, specialized teams work together on complex projects. Mojang is one such famous studio which has produced Minecraft that has over 130 million active MAUs, making it one of the most popular games ever.

Technology and Tool Advancements

Game development tools have improved significantly. Powerful game engines and development frameworks have changed how we create games. Developers can now reach broader audiences through cross-platform development across different devices [2]. Game development softwares such as Unity, Unreal Engine, Godot and more are some of the most trendy platforms to develop games.

Impact of Platform Changes

App stores brought a new direction to game development. The launch of Apple’s App Store in 2008 created a central platform for direct audience reach [3]. Mobile game development exploded after this, and developers published over 15,000 apps within six months of launch [4]. Platform diversification is one kf the biggest trends seen in mobile gaming this year. In addition to Google Play to iOS store, Nintendo Switch and Amazon Store are just some of the examples enable cross-platform play, expand playerbase and open up multiple markets at the same time.

Mobile Game Devs and What They Do

Mobile game developers’ roles now extend beyond coding. Key responsibilities include:

• Technical Architecture: Building reliable frameworks and optimizing performance
• Breakthroughs: Adding new technologies like AR and cloud gaming
• Art Direction: Working with artists to create cohesive visual experiences
• Iterative Development: Refining gameplay based on user feedback

Teams Involved

Development teams have become more specialized. Game designers create engaging experiences while programmers code these ideas into reality. Artists develop stunning visuals, and sound engineers craft immersive audio experiences. Development teams typically consist of 7-9 specialists working together [5].

Publisher’s Ecosystem

Through the years, mobile game publishers evolved into sophisticated ecosystem builders. These powerhouses do more than distribute games – they build the foundation that reshapes promising games into market successes.

Infrastructure and Support Services

Publishers invest heavily in reliable technical infrastructure. They deliver significant services like ideation, testing, scaling, server hosting, analytics platforms, and QA testing. For instance, more than 80% of TapNation games’ portfolio are internal ideas. Today’s publishers are known for  their ability to bridge the gap between the creative process and the marketplace. They bring to the table considerable industry experience, industry connections and a deep understanding of publishing engaging and long-lasting titles. They take a slice of the game’s revenue in exchange for these detailed services [6].

What They Do: Publishers fulfill three vital roles in our ecosystem: they act as a “thermometer” to gage development progress, provide consultation on metrics and development direction, and mentor teams through market challenges [8]. Their extensive support includes financing, risk mitigation, distribution expertise, post-launch support including user acquisition, monetization and LiveOps management,  along with app store optimization, as well as community management. Projects that show promising metrics might even get acquired outright by publishers [8].

Global Market Access

Publisher partnerships demonstrate remarkable reach. Companies specialize in specific markets and help developers direct localization, user acquisition, and distribution in regions like the Arabic and Chinese market [6]. This specialized knowledge becomes a great way to get insights when expanding globally.

Community Building and Player Relations

The gaming world sees a remarkable rise in mobile game communities. Players research a game’s online community before installing 19% of the time [7]. Publishers create spaces for player interaction through:

• In-game features like guilds and clans
• External platforms including Discord servers
• Social media channels, Facebook community groups and forums

Teams Involved

Specialized publisher teams bring unique expertise:

• Publishing and Product teams oversee game strategy
• User Acquisition specialists manage player growth
• LiveOps experts handle ongoing game operations
• Marketing and PR professionals build game awareness
• Customer Support ensures player satisfaction

Mobile gaming revenue worldwide will reach $98.74 billion by 2024 [9]. Publishers play a significant role in helping developers capture their share of this growing market.

Success Metrics and KPIs

The right metrics can determine your mobile game’s success or failure. Over the last several years, we learned that both developers and publishers need to understand these key performance indicators (KPIs).

Developer Performance Indicators

Developers focus on engagement metrics. Top-performing games show retention rates of 35-50% on day one [10] and maintain 15-25% by day seven [10]. These early metrics give us vital signs about a game’s future success.

Publisher Evaluation Metrics

Publishers pay close attention to monetization metrics. We look at:

• Average Revenue Per Paying User (ARPPU) – top performers generate 3-4x more revenue than other titles [10]
• Conversion rates – leading games convert players up to 3x more than average [10]
• User acquisition costs – gaming companies invest about 25% of their revenue in marketing [11]

Market Performance Measures

GameAnalytics tracks over 60K+ titles and 3 billion players [10], giving us clear performance tiers. Games in the top 15% show higher engagement and monetization metrics consistently [10]. Role-playing games stand out with up to 2x better conversion rates than other top-performing genres [10].

Working Together: Devs and Publishers

Quality assurance plays a vital role in the shared process. Regular testing throughout development helps avoid mistakes that get pricey – an untested build could lose up to $50,000 in mere hours [12].

Publisher partnerships need careful milestone planning and testing cycles. A/B testing is used for new features. This can challenge developers [12], but it helps optimize game performance and monetization effectively.

Future of Developer-Publisher Relations

The mobile gaming landscape shows remarkable changes in developer-publisher relationships. A period of transformation has begun in the industry through massive consolidation and technological advancement.

Emerging Business Models

Game funding and development methods are changing rapidly. Teams face new challenges and indie and mid-sized development studios heavily rely on securing funds to further their game projects. Therefore, new collaboration models and hybrid monetization approaches that combine in-app purchases, advertising, and subscriptions help us adapt.

Evolving funding mechanisms and hybrid monetization strategies—combining in-app purchases, advertising, and subscription models—are reshaping the landscape. As indie and mid-sized studios face mounting challenges, these models enable more sustainable growth and foster stronger, mutually beneficial partnerships between developers and publishers.

Technology Trends Effect

Technological advancement reshapes developer-publisher relationships continuously. The mobile gaming market will reach $164.80 billion by 2029 [13]. Cloud gaming and emerging technologies power this growth. These developments excite us:

1. Cloud Gaming Progress
   • Hardware constraints disappear
   • 5G enables better streaming
   • Players gain better access

Industry Consolidation Effects

The industry sees unprecedented consolidation levels. M&A deals hit $85 billion in 2021 [15], which tripled the previous year’s numbers. This wave changes our industry through:

• Major players gain market-leading positions
• Companies access huge user communities
• Cross-platform gaming opportunities grow

Small studios see challenges and opportunities in this consolidation. Independent competition gets tougher, yet acquisition opportunities grow as large companies seek fresh talent and experiences [14]. Creative teams can still succeed, though staying independent might become rare.

Modern gaming deals extend beyond successful IP acquisition. They now include platform strategies and metaverse investments [14]. Mobile game developers should note this trend as smartphones become the default gaming platform [14].

Conclusion

The mobile game development landscape has changed dramatically since we began our experience in this industry. A field that once belonged to solo developers now needs sophisticated teams, reliable publisher partnerships, and evidence-based decision-making.

Great game design alone doesn’t guarantee success in today’s mobile gaming market. Publishers provide crucial expertise in distribution, marketing, and monetization that perfectly complements our development capabilities. Their significance grows as the industry moves toward a $164.80 billion valuation by 2029.

Metrics paint a clear picture – day-one retention rates and user acquisition costs shape our development and publishing decisions. Successful developers and publishers collaborate closely and use these insights to create games that both involve players and drive revenue.

Would you like to be part of this thriving ecosystem? Submit your game and let TapNation take your game to the next level!

References

[1] – https://www.hp.com/us-en/shop/tech-takes/game-developers-vs-game-publishers
[2] – https://stokeventures.com/cross-platform-mobile-game-development/
[3] – https://www.gameopedia.com/the-history-evolution-and-future-of-mobile-gaming/
[4] – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_mobile_games
[5] – https://richestsoft.com/blog/game-development-team-structure-roles/
[6] – https://www.instabug.com/blog/mobile-game-publishers
[7] – https://maf.ad/en/blog/mobile-game-communities/
[8] – https://devtodev.medium.com/what-does-a-game-publisher-do-47c0590c2997
[9] – https://www.statista.com/outlook/dmo/digital-media/video-games/mobile-games/worldwide
[10] – https://investgame.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Mobile_Benchmarks_Industry_Report_2018_GameAnalytics.pdf
[11] – https://www.bain.com/insights/boosting-marketing-performance-in-mobile-games-gaming-report-2024/
[12] – https://www.pocketgamer.biz/why-collaborating-with-a-mobile-games-publisher-is-so-painful-its-good-for-you/
[13] – https://mobileecosystemforum.com/emerging-trends-in-the-mobile-gaming-industry/
[14] – https://www.gameopedia.com/consolidation-in-gaming/