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Pokémon TCG Pocket generated $120m+ in less than 3 weeks [UPDATE4: $500m+ in its first 97 days]

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Lelouch0612

Lelouch0612

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Archivist Genius Staff


  • First four days gross: $12m
  • 1st week gross: $35.8m
  • 2nd week gross: $48.5m
  • 3rd week gross (5 days): $37.2m
pokemon-pocket-three-weeks-revenue_orig.webp

  • Crossed $100m on November 15th (17 days)
  • November 15th peak day to date with $8.2m in player's spend
  • Current gross: $120.8m (as of Nov 17th)
  • Japan remains the biggest contributor (42%) followed by the US (28%)
www.pocketgamer.biz

Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket surges past $100 million in 17 days

Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket has thunderbolted past $100 million in less than three weeks since global launch, continuing to hit new highs in dail...
www.pocketgamer.biz www.pocketgamer.biz
 
They should port this to Switch 2.

Hell, put it on Steam.
 
Lelouch0612 said:
They really nailed down the concept and prepared a very robust post-launch roadmap.

In addition to the various events, there's a new expansion coming this year and Trades will be made available in January.
Click to expand...
I have been playing the game since day 1 (WW release). The main issue right now is that the progression is completely logarithmic and when you finish your tutorials/CPU battles everything is very, very slow. They should add some sort of weekly challenge at least.
 
Just the other day I was searching for Pokémon name on Twitter (for fanart and also Japanese names) and it was literally flooded with TCG Pocket haha, it's doing very very well for sure !
 
Danny said:
Does mobile games even need ports to PC and consoles? Mobile market just blows those platforms out of the water in terms of reach and revenue.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I don't know, maybe.

In my case, if I could have this on Steam, I would certainly play it more, be more willing to play multiplayer, and maybe even buy packs, which I will never do for a free mobile game.
 
Lelouch0612 said:
They really nailed down the concept and prepared a very robust post-launch roadmap.

In addition to the various events, there's a new expansion coming this year and Trades will be made available in January.
Click to expand...
May I see the roadmap? I'm so curious.

This thing has become more of a casual gacha to me (the one I actively play is ZZZ), so I'm curious tos ee what's coming down the pipeline. Even if I missed the Lapras EX event. Fuck. Might be a bit too casual there. I should definitely start battling more instead of just using the game as a pack opening simulator.
 
After playing the game non stop, I understand why. I'm telling yall this will be one of the pillars of pokemon going forward. I just hope they have a competitive side like the main ones

Vgc
TcgL
TcgP
Go
Unite

How does this compare overall to the market of mibile?
 
This game shows the growth of digital entertainment, this card game was what we played with real cards as children, now the children of today will only play the card game in its digital form in the future.
 
Those are huge numbers even for a mobile break-out. On top of that, it is an easy IP to add new content to monetize so, big win for the company.
 
For reference, Marvel Snap generated $100 million in about 11 months
gameworldobserver.com

Marvel Snap tops $100 million in mobile revenue, solidifying its status as top-grossing CCG this year | Game World Observer

Marvel Snap has been a huge hit for developer Second Dinner and publisher Nuverse. Let’s dive into the numbers to see the game’s road to $100 million in revenue.
gameworldobserver.com gameworldobserver.com
Diablo Immortal took 2 months for $100 million according to Sensor Tower

Diablo Immortal Mobile Surpasses $100 Million in Revenue

Blizzard's MMORPG ranks No. 13 for mobile player spending since its launch on the App Store and Google Play on June 1, 2022, Sensor Tower data shows.
sensortower.com sensortower.com

This should make the game the 2nd fastest launch, only behind Pokemon Go, when discounting China.
 
Danny said:
This game shows the growth of digital entertainment, this card game was what we played with real cards as children, now the children of today will only play the card game in its digital form in the future.
Click to expand...

Lelouch0612 said:
The game didn't gross $120m on the back of children, the revenue is coming from people with disposable income so I don't see your scenario paning out.
Click to expand...
Physical collectible TCGs (especially Pokemon) are absolutely massive money in their own right as well, those aren't going anywhere any time soon.
 
Wow, that is an impressive amount. I haven't put any money into it, but I have played plenty of Pocket since it released.
 
Astrogamer said:
For reference, Marvel Snap generated $100 million in about 11 months
gameworldobserver.com

Marvel Snap tops $100 million in mobile revenue, solidifying its status as top-grossing CCG this year | Game World Observer

Marvel Snap has been a huge hit for developer Second Dinner and publisher Nuverse. Let’s dive into the numbers to see the game’s road to $100 million in revenue.
gameworldobserver.com gameworldobserver.com
Diablo Immortal took 2 months for $100 million according to Sensor Tower

Diablo Immortal Mobile Surpasses $100 Million in Revenue

Blizzard's MMORPG ranks No. 13 for mobile player spending since its launch on the App Store and Google Play on June 1, 2022, Sensor Tower data shows.
sensortower.com sensortower.com

This should make the game the 2nd fastest launch, only behind Pokemon Go, when discounting China.
Click to expand...
Marvel Snap was kinda everywhere but Pokemon is just on a diffrent level when it comes to TCG.
Beastly performance.
 
Even Yugioh with all the succes with Master duel, doesn't even want to retire the physical card Game, there is no way this app replace the original tcg, more likely than not this app complements the Game, hell, i'm playing it and i left the tgc 15 year ago.
 
This is on top of the 2 week trial everyone is getting?? I have played the game since it was released and really enjoyed building the deck

I got my best friend to play it and he was like this is so simple compared to Yu Gi Oh... I was like I don't need a complicated game and there is familiarity for me with Pokemons... at least Gen 1 Pokemon since I beat the original Red/Blue on GB and Let's Go Eevee on Switch... I was never into TCG before but now they are basically expanding the audience with TCG Pocket
 
Danny said:
Does mobile games even need ports to PC and consoles? Mobile market just blows those platforms out of the water in terms of reach and revenue.
Click to expand...
it doesn't hurt to have more options to play games


from raiding stores, to raiding museums, to raiding in-app cash shops

pls put some funding into TCG Live, TPC
 
Mr.Adele said:
Insane! So top 2 mobile games launch is Pokémon Go and Pokémon TCG Pocket?
Click to expand...
If the entire CN market is excluded, this may be true.

There are many larger (revenue) game releases in China. This year's DNFM had a revenue of $700M+ in the first month.
 
What exactly can you spend money on in the game? I only see the premium pass thing, is that monthly or a one time fee?

I feel like they could probably push microtransactions way harder if they wanted to.
 
Gimmick said:
What exactly can you spend money on in the game? I only see the premium pass thing, is that monthly or a one time fee?

I feel like they could probably push microtransactions way harder if they wanted to.
Click to expand...
It is a monthly sub (10$/month) that grants you an extra booster per day and a few extras.

You can also buy gold or boxes to get currencies and stuff but I agree with you that it is not invasive and you can miss it if you are not looking for it.
 
And this is only with single Apex Pack. So there is spending cap for most players especially whales.

The moment more pack show up. There will be more whales dumping more money into the game.
 
Update: $208m in its first month
  • Index
    • Now at $208 million in the first month (Pocketgamer.biz).

    Leapfrogged 'Unite' & 'Sleep' in gross lifetime revenue. 'Masters EX' is next up (it was at $300 million in January 2024, don't know about now).

    Pocket’s first month has already landed it as the bronze medallist among all Pokémon titles on mobile, overtaking 2023 sleeper hit Pokémon Sleep and Tencent’s 2021 MOBA Pokémon Unite in gross lifetime revenue.
    Click to expand...

    A card game app comparison: Marvel Snap grossed $173m on mobile in year one, then $102.9m in year two.

    The new mini card expansion is possibly coming out in 2 weeks.
     
    Last edited:
  • Index
    • I have become quite addicted to the feeling of trying to collect the cards in the couple of weeks I've been playing. Feel like this is gonna be a long term revenue stream for the parties involved instead of a pum and dump like a lot of mobile titles tend to be. Not like Pokemon needed more revenue but hey.
     
    SquidEnthusiast said:
    I have become quite addicted to the feeling of trying to collect the cards in the couple of weeks I've been playing. Feel like this is gonna be a long term revenue stream for the parties involved instead of a pum and dump like a lot of mobile titles tend to be. Not like Pokemon needed more revenue but hey.
    Click to expand...
    I only meant to play this casually especially since I have a gacha game already, but here I am trying to get the event Venusaur card. xDD

    And I think Pokemon's generally pretty committed to their mobile games. Pokemon's certainly a big enough brand to power through mistakes and mishaps (I played Pokemon Masters before they added the EX), and the upsides can be astronomical.
     
    It's a surprisingly well-made game. I didn't expect it to be this polished. The subscription price is also not as bad as I feared. I know people who never put money into mobile games who ended up doing it for this.
     
    Deserved, if for nothing else but modernizing a 25 year old tabletop card game for the digital age incredibly well. It is truly amazing how much this feels like the Pokemon card game we all know and love despite actually being almost completely new, and way, way faster.
     
    Bernd Lauert said:
    I'm doing my part. Ten bucks a month for premium is a fair price imo.
    Click to expand...
    It's a much fairer rate than you'd be paying for the equivalent premium currency at any rate, plus you get the extra premium unlockable bonuses. I would never pay money for the premium currency but I would consider maybe doing a month or two of the premium pass at some point..
     
    Littleterritory said:
    Pokémon TCG Pocket matches 91% of Pokémon Go’s launch month revenue

    www.pocketgamer.biz

    Pokémon TCG Pocket matches 91% of Pokémon Go’s launch month revenue through the power of playground rumours

    In just one month since its global release, Pokémon Trading Card Game Pocket is already well on its way to becoming the Pokémon franchise’s second-biggest mobile...
    www.pocketgamer.biz www.pocketgamer.biz
    Click to expand...

    Thats crazy success..... Pokemon GO is supposed to one in a generation level of mobile success there. For TCG Pocket to come close to its success is just great success all around.
     
    To be fair, GO barely had any kind of monetization in it's early stages and like it has already been said, it had a staggered launch, so I feel we could do with a lot less of this type of sensationalist headlines and comparisons, unfortunately, even "experts" rely too much on making clickbaity headlines, like, we already know it's doing quite good with the $200m headline, they feel super unnecessary.
     
    Drblitzk said:
    To be fair, GO barely had any kind of monetization in it's early stages and like it has already been said, it had a staggered launch, so I feel we could do with a lot less of this type of sensationalist headlines and comparisons, unfortunately, even "experts" rely too much on making clickbaity headlines, like, we already know it's doing quite good with the $200m headline, they feel super unnecessary.
    Click to expand...
    Exactly! Go only really started making huge amounts of money later with increased monetization.
     
    SquidEnthusiast said:
    This runaway success just make me scratch my head more about why Pokemon TCG video games didn't become a staple side series of games.
    Click to expand...
    Despite what it may seems this is a VERY different game than the regular TCG.

    But also, there are several PC/mobile clients where you can play it, it just costs the same as playing the real deal so the appeal is super limited.
     
    Undead Warrior said:
    Despite what it may seems this is a VERY different game than the regular TCG.

    But also, there are several PC/mobile clients where you can play it, it just costs the same as playing the real deal so the appeal is super limited.
    Click to expand...
    TCG Live has the benefit of being able to get codes from physical card packs. so there's some incentive at least. the biggest problem with live is that TPC doesn't support it. it's purely on TPCi and pretty undercooked because of it
     
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