Fewer people are into Candy Crush Saga these days, but those that are still playing have shown they have a strong sweet tooth. In an earnings report, Activision Blizzard said today that though its mobile gaming King division is experiencing a downtick in monthly active users (MAUs), the ones that are sticking around are laying down more cash than ever on in-game goods.
Even though King’s MAUs are down year-over-year, its numbers are still pretty huge. In the second quarter of fiscal year 2017, it had 314 million MAUs and its players were showing strong engagement. People were playing its games like Candy Crush Saga more frequently and spending an average of 35 minutes every day.
While user numbers are down, in-app purchases and revenue per user were up, reaching a new record and growing year-over-year. This is likely due to new in-game events, such as the ones promoting the somewhat surreal new Candy Crush Saga television show. Overall, Activision reports that it generated nearly $1 billion from in-game revenue across all its titles for the quarter.
For the past three-and-a-half years, King has claimed two spots in the Apple App Store chart of the top 10 grossing mobile games. According to market researcher App Annie, its smash hits Candy Crush Saga and Candy Crush Soda Saga sit at No. 3 and No. 8, respectively.
According to market analyst Sensor Tower, Candy Crush Saga saw 48 percent growth in revenue from Q2 2016 to Q2 2017, from nearly $146 million to a little over $216 million. Candy Crush Soda Saga grew 29 percent in the same period of time, generating almost $91 million in Q2 2016 and nearly $118 million in Q2 2017. Clearly, even with a decrease in MAUs, King’s reign is long from over.
