Royal Revolt 2 for Kakao - How we entered the Korean Mobile Games market. In March 2015 flaregames brought a version for Kakao of its worldwide successful mobile game Royal Revolt 2 to Korea. The results were different from what we've expected.

2. Georg Broxtermann
Co-founder / Bizdev flaregames
@broxtermann
georg@flaregames.com
@Global Game Stars 2013: Where the Asian journey began

3. 2 Studios in Karlsruhe
and Frankfurt, Germany.
About 110 people.

5. ROYAL REVOLT 2
• Reverse TD (Single Player)
• Release 09/12
• 12 Mio DL
• Among Top markets: China, TW, KR, JP, TH
• Multiplayer Reverse TD
• Release Q1/14, 16 languages
• 20 Mio DL
• „Best of 2014“ by the Apple AppStore and „Editors
Choice“ by Google Play.

7. Major Shifts in the Korean mobile market
From a Kakao dominated Android market to a more accessible market with two major
OS / App Stores and a relevant Naver.
Google Play Korea, Top Grossing Charts, January 15, 2014
(left) April 29, 2015; source Appannie

8. Flaregames‘ approach to enter Korea
GOALS:
• Learning (social features, marketing,...)
• Keeping control of our IP
• Not losing speed with the global
version of RR2
APPROACH:
• KAKAO Game with a publishing partner

9. Our expectations for RR2 for Kakao

10. Finding the right publishing partner
• Around 20 Korean companies evaluated RR2
• We tracked who understood RR2 best
• We requested and evaluated feedback, the
product concept and marketing ideas
• We‘ve choosen to go with Incross /
TheAppsgames

11. • Initial Kakao concept by Incross with
additional features: Inviting, Friends list,
Gifting, Couponing,....
• Some localization / culturalization
changes, e.g. name change to Royal
Roader for Kakao (only in Korean).
• Some additional marketing SDKs
• Identical tools: Server, tracking, game
management tools,...
• Google Play and Naver version
Set-up

12. Launch 9th of March, No1 Kakao game 10th of March

13. 175K Pre-registrations via
Kakao and Naver
Marketing: Pre-registration

14. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKZeAOZuZnA
Influencer Marketing

15. Emoticon Marketing

16. • March 9: Launch
• 120K Downloads in the
first 24h
• March 10: No 1 Kakao game
• Highest rank Google Play
March 16: 4
• Highest grossing Google Play
March 18: 27
• 6 weeks in Top 100 grossing
charts Google Play
• 20% of the overall revenue
from Naver
First results

17. 0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
1.2
AXISTITLE
ARPDAU
Global US Kakao
Global version vs. Kakao version

18. 0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
450
500
Gems spent per DAU
Global US Kakao
Global version vs. Kakao version

20. Learnings so far
• Korean mobile market changes very fast.
• You need an iOS version to do non-digital marketing (TV,
outdoor media,...)
• Marketing Mobile Games is very different to „western“
methods
• Kakao platform provide exceptional mobile users but doesn‘t
effect virality and retention as expected (RR2 experience or
in general?)
• It is time consuming.....
• It is good to have a PORTFOLIO of great games 

21. Want towork with flaregames
@broxtermann
georg@flaregames.com
Outstanding portfolio of Midcore
Mobile MMO‘s by thebest developers
from the west
Set-up experience in Asia
Invitation to the world famous Munich
Oktoberfest