Applying the rule 80/20 in mobile games: the "Save the Doge" case

Last week I published about the 80/20 rule in mobile game development and its importance in the first steps and guiding all iterations. [1]

Today, I bring here a recent success case to help us think about this topic: the hyper "Save the Doge", by Wonder Group (Miracle Game Inc).

According to AppMagic [2], "Save the Doge" has had 34MM downloads since its July 12 release.

In August, the game debuted on the list of top 10 downloads of the world in 7th position. [3]

2nd in the hyper-casual list.

And it’s keeping the performance this month.

In other words, "Save" is a hit. A memorable feat.

But, how was it born? And how did it reach such a fast success?

"Save" is not Wonder Group’s first hit game.

On January 1st week, the Chinese studio published "Draw 2 Save: Stickman puzzle", a drawing line game with the same mechanics as the big hits like "Happy Glass" (318MM downloads [4]) and "Love Balls" (146MM [5]) both by Lion Studios and "DOP" franchise by SayGames ("DOP 1" 112MM [6] + "DOP 4" 71MM [7]), with a classic stickman theme (e.g. "Thief Puzzle" 110MM [8] by TapNation ) and famous rescue narrative game (e.g. "Royal Match" $475MM IAP revenue [9] by Dream Games ).

In my opinion, they had a very good idea validation.

(Look here, my friends - this is the 80/20 rule working!)

"Draw 2 Save" has reached 19MM downloads. [10]

Wonder Group still had other small hits and numerous prototypes.

Afterwards, they tried to build other hits by taking advantage of their "Draw 2 Save".

On February 10, they published "Draw 2 Beat", a game more similar to the "DOP 4" and with a dash of action. [11]

February 18, "Draw 2 Shoot", a "Draw 2 Beat" with trajectory physics. [12]

March 11, "Draw 2 Save 2" (originally "Puzzle Line - Draw & Save"), Wonder Group goes back to its first hit, increasing levels and features. [13]

And on April 20, "Draw 2 Save 3", yet another "Draw 2 Save" Series, but with decision mechanics. [14]

Despite all efforts to take advantage of the first hit (look at the game name detail, "Draw 2…", maybe to get some ASO benefits), none of these games became a big hit like the original.

Nevertheless, on the same April 20, Wonder Group published "Draw Master: Brain Puzzles" [15], exploring rope & stacking mechanics (cf. "Rope and Balls", by SayGames [16]), and denoting a reference change in their drawing games series.

Finally, on July 12, "Save the Doge" was published [2]. And once again they changed the reference.

Now the main benchmark is "Happy Glass", rereading "Save Balls" [17] by Azur Games through old mobile hit "Hello Cats" by Fastone Games (37MM [18]), and surfing the TikTok hashtag #savedogs (IMO, this is a key element for the success of the game).

The objective of "Save the Doge" is to save one dog - duh! - (sometimes more than one) from the bees’ attack.

Here, we can see mechanics variations from "Happy".

While Lion’s game works with liquids physics in the gravitational movement from top to bottom, in "Save" the bees come from all directions.

It brought freshness to the game.

For example, some "Save" streamers made hilarious drawings while playing the game (further on I will talk more about streaming importance for "Save")

Besides that, the main core loop goal is also different.

In "Happy" the level ends when the liquid crosses the dashed line on the glass. But in Wonder Group’s game, the level ends when the dog is safe after 6 seconds.

Waiting for those seconds while watching the scene end brings a very interesting tension to the gameplay.

That tension also exists in "Happy", but in "Save" I think it’s stronger because the bees can come from different directions at random, bringing an element of luck to the game.

Another variation between "Save" and "Happy" is the game’s theme.

Face cartoons create good empathy. But pet cartoons tease of immediate care feelings.

Insightfully, the Wonder Group team inserted dog cry sounds at the end of the fail levels.

Hearing dogs whining after bee stings break anyone’s heart.

However, there are a lot of similarities between them.

E.g. the mechanics of drawing a line on the screen that creates a solid element in the gameplay.

Or some game rules and features that maintain its systems, like a star reward for spending less ink to make a line and hint supports.

And the 2D cartoon aesthetics. E.g. "Save" use the same square background as "Happy".

I don’t have a doubt that Lion’s game is an explicit reference to the Wonder Group team.

At the moment, IAA is the only "Save" monetization, and keeps a strong similarity with "Happy".

Interstitial videos during gameplay, and many rewards videos to double collect coins, get tips, recover lost stars, enable skins, and more.

With an average performance of 1 video per minute.

In previous versions, "Save" interstitial videos emerged only between levels [19]. But after the last upload [20], some videos show up while running the level. IMO, that’s a bad shift.

On UA, emerging countries account for more than 85% of the "Save" download target [2]. The US only has 882k ("Happy" reached 37MM [4]).

Perhaps this represents the game’s great potential.

Wonder Group has been making a bold acquisition strategy.

Since the beginning of the growth (July 19), it had an average of 525k downloads per day. In September, leaped to 632k. And this week, 724k. [2]

"Save" creatives have been a good performance.

Notably its playable ads which reached millions in impression rate [21].

Mostly, it brings gameplay videos, sometimes with failed endings, sometimes winning.

Again, very similar to "Happy".

But the Wonder Group team will not have an easy way.

As many of us know, the mobile game market is a red ocean.

And this is truly special in hyper-casual.

In my research, I found at least 36 similar games or simple clones of "Save". [22]

Most don’t have any downloads. But some can become real competitors.

That’s the case of "Save the Dog" by FunSpace [23]. Their game has reached 4MM downloads, with good game art, and has been mentioned by streamers.

FunSpace included 6 new game modes in its version of "Save" for testing. Likely to create new versions of it in the future.

And the competition is not restricted to game development. There are cases in which the "Save" theme is being used in fake ads for UA campaigns [24].

The "X-Hero" by Bingchuan case is impressive. [25]

Despite all the intense competition, will "Save the Doge" be worth it?

In my opinion, yes.

And to understand this answer we need to look at social networks.

Everybody knows that cute animal videos drive a lot of engagement.

But in this theme, there are some niches, like videos about animal rescue.

Hashtags such as #savedogs , #savenature , and #saveanimal have millions of views on TikTok . [26]

On YouTube , animal rescue videos accumulate millions of views. [27]

The game name "Save the Doge" inevitably intersects with these hashtags.

Generating own hashtags. [28]

And videos about its gameplay (and its clones…) with millions of views.

Do you think this happened by accident? I don’t think so.

Their first hit, "Draw 2 Save", already took advantage of the #save hashtag.

Reaching millions of views on TikTok [29] and Youtube [30]

And look this: hashtag #miracle has billions of views on TikTok! [31]

Yes, the same name as the name registration studio of "Save"!

Its ID app is “com.miracle.savethedoge.an”, a strong keyword itself.

"Save" ranking and organic user acquisition performance are incredible (in the US!). [32]

"Save the Doge" became a viral phenomenon.

When we search "Save the Doge" on Youtube, dozens of videos with millions of views about the game appear.

Despite the power of social network hashtags, we can’t forget the importance of mobile game benchmarks.

Some "Save the Dogs" games published before Wonder Group’s game didn’t achieve success. [33]

Following faithfully the 80% of the benchmark in the game development (as "Save" did with "Happy"), is key to capturing mobile gamers’ perceptual memory so important to UA and retention. [34]

IMO, there is still a growth gap to "Save" and its variations.

There are still developed country markets to enter.

There are still gameplay modes to explore.

And different themes to try, like "Save the Dolphin", "the Whale", "the Bird", and so on.

Who knows how to introduce new types of features, such as social features present in "Draw It", the big hit by Kwalee ?

Anyway, the "Save the Doge" future is just beginning.

If you have read this far, thanks for your attention!

I quickly wrote this article to catch up on hyper-casual time.

So, if you have any suggestions, criticisms, or new infos, please, share them in the comments.

#savethedog #savedogs #savethedoge #hypercasual #tiktok #youtube #gaming #games #gameindustry #gamedev #mobilegames #gamedevelopment #gameandmarket #appmagic

SOURCES

[1] https://www.dhirubhai.net/posts/carlospereiragame_gaming-games-gameindustry-activity-6975604226433380352-9I6m

[2] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-doge/com.miracle.savethedoge.an?

[3] https://appmagic.rocks/top-charts/apps?kind=games&date=2022-08-01&aggregation=month&tag=

[4] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/happy-glass/com.game5mobile.lineandwater

[5] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/love-balls/com.supertapx.lovedots

[6] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/dop-draw-one-part/com.playstrom.drawonepart

[7] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/dop-4-draw-one-part/com.playstrom.dop4

[8] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/thief-puzzle-to-pass-a-level/com.weegoon.thiefpuzzle

[9] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/royal-match/com.dreamgames.royalmatch

[10] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/draw-2-save-stickman-puzzle/com.miracle.drawtosave.an

[11] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/draw-2-beat/com.miracle.drawtobeat.an

[12] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/draw-2-shoot/com.miracle.drawtoshoot.an

[13] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/puzzle-line-draw-and-save/com.miracle.drawtosavetwo.an

[14] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/draw-2-save-3/com.miracle.drawtosavethree.an

[15] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/draw-master-brain-puzzles/com.miracle.braingofour.an

[16] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/rope-and-balls/com.game.rope.and.balls

[17] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-balls-brain-teaser-games/com.qaibo.protectballs

[18] https://appmagic.rocks/ipad/hello-cats-/1435753634

[19] https://save-the-doge.en.uptodown.com/android

[20] https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.miracle.savethedoge.an

[21] https://appmagic.rocks/ad-intelligence?appId=1_com.miracle.savethedoge.an

[22] Clone list

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/dog-rescue-draw-to-save/com.savethedog.drawtosave.savethedogfrombee

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dog/com.funspace.savedog

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-doge-brain-line-game/game.doggy.king

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dog-2-dop-puzzle/com.savethedog2.dogvsbee.doppuzzle

https://appmagic.rocks/iphone/save-the-doggy/1638262763

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-doggo/bounce.Save.TheDog

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-cat/com.halogame.savethecat.an

https://appmagic.rocks/iphone/draw-to-save-dog-vs-bee/1637469662

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dog-dog-rescue-game/com.gameease.savethedoggy

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-cat-draw-to-save/com.save.dog.cat.draw2022

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-doge/com.doge.a.ace.save.do

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/draw-to-save-save-the-dog-bee/com.wizardsplay.dogvsbee

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-shiba-doge-rescue/com.save.the.dogebee

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-doge-bee-vs-dog/com.mxhd.SaveTheDogeBeevsdog

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dog/draw.line.bees.dog.savethedog.savedog

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-doge-save-poor-doge-/com.fashionqueen.catwalk

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dog-bee-vs-doge/com.save.dog.bee

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dog-dog-rescue-game/draw.line.prevent.bees.rescue.save.dog

https://appmagic.rocks/ipad/save-the-doge-puzzle-game/1644443500

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-doge-guide-and-tips/com.highapps.savethedogeguideid

https://appmagic.rocks/ipad/save-the-dog-and-cat/1640185546

https://appmagic.rocks/ipad/draw-to-save-the-dog-balloon/1641151394

https://appmagic.rocks/ipad/save-the-dog-rescue/1644574852

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dog-draw-one-line/com.Save.The.Dog.DrawToSave

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-doggie/com.jamcoco.savethedoggie

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dog-doge-rescue/com.savethedoge.rescue.drawtosave

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dogee-balloon/com.lbdev.ballon

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dog-angry-bees/com.rkigames.SaveTheDog

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/epic-heroes-save-the-dog/com.Epic.Heroes.Save.The.Dog

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dog-roll-over/com.Awagit.SaveTheDogRollOver

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-doge-guide/com.tgmsstudio.savethedogeguide

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-dogs/com.mxt.savedogs

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dog-draw-puzzle/com.tapbikeracinggames.savedog

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dogi-from-bee-draw/com.savedogbee.puzzlesave.savethedogbeedraw

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dogi-dog-vs-bee/com.savethedogi.drawtosave

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/guide-for-save-the-doge/com.osamatgn.Save_the_Doge

[23] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dog/com.funspace.savedog

[24] https://lancaric.me/fake-ads-in-user-acquisition-the-untold-story/

[25] https://mobilegamer.biz/x-hero-is-the-weirdest-hit-game-yet-earning-its-maker-52m-from-14m-downloads-to-date/

[26] https://www.tiktok.com/tag/savedogs

https://www.tiktok.com/tag/savenature

https://www.tiktok.com/tag/saveanimal

[27] https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=save+the+dog&sp=CAM%253D

[28] https://www.tiktok.com/tag/savethedoge

https://www.tiktok.com/tag/savethedoges

https://www.tiktok.com/search?q=savethedog&t=1663509364614

[29] https://www.tiktok.com/tag/draw2save

[30] https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=draw+2+save&sp=CAM%253D

[31] https://www.tiktok.com/tag/miracle

[32] https://app.sensortower.com/overview/com.miracle.savethedoge.an

[33] https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dog-escape/com.MRPet.BrainDog

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/save-the-dog-draw-2-save-game/com.MRPet.SavePets

https://appmagic.rocks/iphone/save-the-dog-2-brain-test-game/1567556946

https://appmagic.rocks/iphone/save-the-dog-draw-2-save-game/1579435244

https://appmagic.rocks/google-play/draw-to-save-the-dog-game/com.gameashes.drawbridge.puzzle.drawpath.draw.the.road.drawroad.drawbridge

[34] https://www.dhirubhai.net/posts/jachren_gamedesign-learning-activity-6977992379542712320-T8GG