In 2016, Pokémon Go triggered a real hype. After that, it became much quieter around the augmented reality game. But what does that mean? Nothing! Pokémon Go 2020 is synonymous with success, because the game has never generated more revenue. An analysis.
It feels like an eternity, and yet it was an epic day: on July 6, 2016, Pokémon Go kicked off in Germany. And it wasn’t just any launch, it was the launch of one of the most successful mobile games of all time.
By July 19, 2016, ten million players had already registered. This record was only to be broken by Super Mario Run, a game that was also hyped, but with far less success.
Pokémon Go 2020: One billion US dollars in sales for the first time
And the game developer Niantic’s coffers were also ringing. In the first month alone, the game brought in 207 million US dollars. By the end of 2020, no mobile game – not even Fortnite – had managed to generate more revenue within a single month.
Viewed over the entire year, however, the release year 2016 was not the most successful year for Pokémon Go, despite the launch bonus. A look at the data from Sensor Tower shows that:
- 2016: $0.83 billion
- 2017: 0.59 billion US dollars
- 2018: 0.83 billion US dollars
- 2019: 0.90 billion US dollars
- 2020: 1.00 billion US dollars
The interesting thing here is that the figures for 2020 only include the months of January to October. If the game keeps its revenue stable, Pokémon Go 2020 could end up with an even higher record total of $1.2 billion by the end of the year.
Niantic responds to Corona regulations
For many people, Pokémon Go’s success in 2020 may come as a surprise. After all, imposed exit restrictions in Germany and many other countries around the globe have ensured that players just can’t move around too much.
Multiplayer events such as raids were also impossible for most of the year. After all, large crowds were forbidden at almost any time.
In order not to lose its players to the competition, game developer Niantic implemented a number of new features. These have allowed fans of Pokémon Go to have fun and progress in the game from the comfort of their own homes.
German Pokémon Go players are among the top spenders
Another exciting fact about five years of Pokémon Go: German players are among the most generous spenders in the entire world. Since its launch in 2016, Germans have invested the equivalent of 240 million US dollars in the game. That puts them in third place in an international comparison.
Only Japanese players, with spending of 1.3 billion US dollars, and US players, with spending of 1.5 billion US dollars, have invested more money.
However, it should be noted that the USA has pretty much four times as many inhabitants. And Japan is the motherland of Nintendo and Pokémon. There is probably no larger and, above all, more enthusiastic fan base around the globe.
Conclusion on Pokémon Go 2020
Pokémon Go has once again impressively proven in 2020 that it is still one of the most popular apps in the world and continues to captivate its players in its fifth year.
This is illustrated by one final figure: during the 2020 Pokémon Go Festival, Niantic generated a combined $17.5 million on July 25 and 26. The daily high of July 25, 2020 ($8.9 million) is only surpassed by July 29, 2016. At that time, it was 13.3 million US dollars in one day.
So one thing is certain: Not even output restrictions will ensure that this vein of gold from Niantic dries up.
