“3 billion dollars in 15 months”: a closer look at the incredible rise of the mobile game Monopoly Go!

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Launched in April 2023 by Hasbro in collaboration with the American studio Scopely, Monopoly Go! quickly captivated players around the world. In just over a year, the application has generated an impressive $3 billion in revenue. This dazzling performance makes it the mobile game to have reached this symbolic milestone the fastest in history (only 473 days according to Sensor Tower data).

The success of Monopoly Go! is not limited to its astronomical revenue. For 2024, Hasbro is forecasting a huge return, with $105 million expected in licensing revenue alone. Maxime Demeure, CEO of French video game company Madbox, is not hiding his admiration. “It's one of the biggest successes of the last 15 years in mobile gaming” he tells Les Echos. He highlights the perfect alchemy between the power of the Monopoly brand and a bold marketing strategy. Indeed, Scopely spared no expense, investing no less than €500 million in advertising over a few months when the app was launched.

Rue de la paix

The triumph of Monopoly Go! is based on several key ingredients. First, its nature as a “casual mobile” makes it accessible to a wide audience. The simplicity of its gameplay allows everyone to dive into it quickly, without any entry barriers.

The social aspect of the game also plays a key role. Although fundamentally an individual experience, Monopoly Go! incorporates regular group events, encouraging players to share moments with family and friends. This community dimension strengthens user engagement and loyalty.

As Maxime Demeure explains, “Monopoly Go! is a game for everyday life. It fits very well with what mobile represents in people's lives, with the possibility of playing short sessions at any time of the day. This flexibility fits perfectly with modern consumption habits, where the smartphone has become the companion of all moments.

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Behind its free appearance, Monopoly Go! hides a well-known but extremely effective economic model. The application multiplies the incentives to spend, regularly offering paid mini-games or stickers to collect. These elements, often necessary to fully progress in the game, subtly transform the free experience into a constant source of income. This pay-to-win economic model has made other games successful, including on consoles. We think for example of Fifa, Call of Duty Warzone or even Fortnite. But “mobile gaming has been a market that has been growing extremely for the past fifteen years” insists Maxime Demeure. It is now the world's largest entertainment market, with a market value approaching $200 billion.

The triumph of Monopoly Go! is all the more remarkable because it comes in an ultra-saturated sector. Every year, millions of new applications try to break through, facing firmly established giants like Candy Crush or Pokémon Go. In this unforgiving environment, Monopoly Go! has managed to stand out thanks to what Maxime Demeure calls a “double bonus for innovation and size”. On the one hand, the app offers a simple and accessible gaming experience, perfectly adapted to the expectations of mobile players. On the other hand, it benefits from the incomparable marketing power of the Monopoly brand, allowing it to instantly stand out in app stores.

• Monopoly Go! generated $3 billion in revenue in 473 days, becoming the fastest mobile game to reach this milestone.
• Its success is based on the simplicity of the gameplay, the social dimension and the flexibility of use, perfectly adapted to mobile consumption habits.
• This phenomenon illustrates the potential of the mobile gaming market, valued at nearly $200 billion

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