They’re called “freemium” games and they are slightly addictive according to new research—and generating a lot of revenue.
Games like Candy Crush, which are free to initially download but encourage in-app purchases, have become a major revenue generator and according to research from Go Compare Money, one in 10 adults (11 per cent) say they are addicted to at least one such game app.
According to a report on the U.K.’s cityam.com, in 2014, free games with in-app purchases made up 92 per cent of the total revenue from the games category on the Apple App Store.
The highest grossing game on the Apple App Store in March 2016 was Game of War – Fire Age which makes £1,088,463 per day. Other popular examples of freemium games include Clash of Clans (£859,643 per day), Mobile Strike (£586,829 per day) and Candy Crush Saga (£300,523 per day), according to the report.
According to the research, eight percent of adults admit to playing mobile games at work.
“Free-to-play mobile games might seem like something for nothing. However, most of these games are designed to encourage a “just one more” mentality, and with one in ten adults saying they’re addicted to at least one of these games, this can be a dangerous combination when paired with in-app purchases,” Matt Sanders, credit card spokesman at Go Compare told the website. “Free games tend to keep in-app purchases fairly cheap, with regular small purchases key to their income. However, while something like a £2.99 purchase once a week may not seem like much, it can add up to over £150 a year and some may find they’re spending a significant amount of money on a “free” game.”
