The Top Ten Free-To-Play Games continued to rake in big profits in 2020, collectively earning over 18 billion dollars, according to reports.
In a report published by SuperData, they listed the Top 10 Free-to-Play games in 2020, along with their individual revenue.
Game | Revenue (USD Billion) |
Honor Of Kings | 2.45 |
Peacekeeper Elite | 2.32 |
Roblox | 2.29 |
Garena Free Fire | 2.13 |
Pokemon GO | 1.92 |
League Of Legends | 1.75 |
Candy Crush Saga | 1.66 |
AFK Arena | 1.45 |
Gardenscapes New Acres | 1.43 |
Dungeon Fighter Online | 1.41 |
(Source: SuperData (2020), 2020 Year In Review: Digital Games And Interactive Media)
Sitting at the top of these earners was Tencent’s Honor Of Kings, followed closely by fellow-Tencent game Peacekeeper Elite. These games earned a whopping 2.45 and 2.32 billion USD respectively, making them not only the most profitable free-to-play titles, but also the highest earning mobile games.
Interestingly enough, Roblox took the number three spot on the list, earning 2.29 billion USD. This accounts for both mobile and PC versions of Roblox, meaning the game has beat out Fortnite in 2020. That being said, it wasn’t an even match, considering Fortnite took a hit in revenue after it was delisted from iOS devices following their row with Apple.
Despite high praise, Genshin Impact did not make the Top 10 Free-to-Play Games, although this is likely due to it only releasing in the last quarter of 2020. We’d have to wait another year for any meaningful data on MiHoYo’s latest gambit.
On the other hand, not even a raging pandemic stopped Pokemon Go, which managed to break in at number 5 with 1.92 billion. This is a sharp contrast to Minecraft Earth, another augmented reality game that relied on going outside, which recently announced they would be ending their service.
Overall, the mobile games market grew 10% from last year, and has a 58% share of the total revenue from games for the year. In total, mobile games reportedly earned 73.8 billion dollars, once again proving that there is a path to profitability in a market full of free games.
With the Epic V Apple feud still ongoing and Genshin Impact having a full year to observe, though, 2020 is definitely a year to watch.