T34

Ao Jun



Posts: 5,920

Karma: 6,439

Ao Jun Pixonic Phil Interviewed! rags kukurukukuk , and 8 more like this Quote Select Post

Select Post Deselect Post

Deselect Post Link to Post

Link to Post Member Give Gift

Member Back to Top Post by T34 on Interview with Phil below. Also what seems to be a relatively recent article after that (Russian speaking forum members may want to confirm). It is translated so take it with a pinch of salt. From these two excerpts it seems all is good at Pixonic and War Robots. And they had a restructure. Wonder if Ilya was caught up in this.



What I find interesting besides the claim that things are going well is the $5M monthly revenue figure. The Thinkgaming figure represents revenue from iOS users in the US. If we say the recent average figure is $35K then 35,000/.46x30/.5 = $4.5M (.5 is used to include the Android platform). The thinkgaming figure seems to be reasonably accurate. If so then it is not too much of a stretch to say that the download figures are probably reasonably accurate too which in turn would suggest that we had a massive drop in the user base and the user base is sitting somewhere around the 700K mark. Lots of assumptions behind this figure so take it with a huge pinch of salt. The way this was derived is by seeing how a change in downloads affects the user base while assuming a constant attrition rate. Under such assumptions no mater where you start in terms of the initial user base number, a logarithmic curve will basically head towards the same number. It will just take a little longer to get to that number if the initial user base was higher (even if higher by millions).

Also worth while noting that if there are 700K users and revenue is $5M/month than each user on average contributes about $7/month to the revenue. Going one step further (maybe one step too many), Pix could be setting in game pricing in accordance with reaching a target revenue. For example, they target 10M revenue for the next month. Then what they need to do if the user base is not shrinking or increasing is to set pricing so that each user contributes $14/month to the revenue. The degree to which they can raise prices depends on how elastic the demand is (demand elasticity = how sensitive the buyers are to price changes - to price increases in this case). The whole game is about pricing, user base, session numbers and demand elasticity. In order to know if the game is healthy overall we would need to know the outgoings. That is coming in the annual report soon.



Article 1(translated): app2top.ru/industry/itogi-2018-filipp-gladkov-iz-pixonic-o-glavnom-za-god-133426.html

Results of 2018: Philip Gladkov from Pixonic about the main thing for the year



Pixonic CEO Philip Gladkov told App2Top.ru what the outgoing year was for him and his company.



How was 2018 for you personally?



The year passed very intensively: new challenges constantly appeared that needed to be overcome. From the point of view of experience, he was probably the most saturated in the last three years.



How was the year for your company?



The year was quite complicated. Pixonic continued to grow rapidly, War Robots turned 4 years old, continued to develop and test new games. For successful growth, a company needs to grow as a team. Such a growth rate of the necessary skills is very hard. We made a lot of internal changes, there was internal restructuring at the beginning of this year, but everything went well.



What event of 2018 do you consider the most important for the industry?



There are a lot of events, but Fortnite’s refusal to go out to Google Play and subsequent revisions of Steam commissions, and the release of a new app store from Epic Games, is a landmark. It is also important that China suspended the issuance of licenses, but at the same time, Chinese developers are seriously competing in the global market, and this must be taken into account next year.



What trends of the outgoing year would you note?



In general, Russian geymdev continues to burn. A lot of studios are gaining momentum and people, a large number of game studios and projects have been invested, the market is very hot, the battle for cadres is very strong. Many changes are taking place inside the management both in our company and in other companies, more and more articles from Russian developers are published on foreign portals. I think this is a healthy process and a guarantee of the competitiveness of Russian gamedev in the future, as well as the opportunity to communicate more closely with foreign colleagues. In general, I am proud of Russian game development and the fact that we are





What are the third-party projects of this year that you liked the most?



At one time I was actively playing Guns of Glory and admired how beautiful it was with an excellent Excel table with a large pile of monetization mechanics. Also, a number of hyper-casual games have been fascinating for a while: Hole.io, BigBigBaller and similar ones. Vermintide 2 is a great dynamic game where the developers did everything to make the game look cool and not bother about what the game doesn't need. When you are in the kneading, you have no time to look around - there you will just see that the allies are waving their weapons 2-3 meters from opponents, and they die.



Age of Conan - it was a fan month in a co-op, but they didn’t reach the plot, it was often not clear what to do.





Article 2 Translated tass.ru/ekonomika/5760814

Download the game - for free, the creators earn ($ 5 million each month) on advertising and on direct purchases - players pay for various upgrades of characters and weapons.



The main market for the spread of the game is the United States, accounting for 46% of the players. 10% in Japan and 10% in China - countries where, by the way, it’s difficult for an outside developer to become popular.



According to Nikita Hooke, the life cycle of a game in such a niche is four to seven years, but it depends on how the creators support the product. "We are constantly updating the game - it is still in development. The number of users is growing," says the developer.



Deleted

Deleted Member

Posts: 0

Karma:

Deleted Member Pixonic Phil Interviewed! Quote Select Post

Select Post Deselect Post

Deselect Post Link to Post

Link to Post Member Give Gift

Member Back to Top Post by Deleted on OU812? said:



I feel conflicted though. Glad that War Robots isn’t going away, but concerned that they may have no incentive to course correct from various questionable decisions they’ve made since fall. Bummer. Thanks for sharing. I appreciate it.I feel conflicted though. Glad that War Robots isn’t going away, but concerned that they may have no incentive to course correct from various questionable decisions they’ve made since fall. Bummer.



I have data from a previous skirmish, so I'm going to keep track tonight and see how good the payouts are. I can usually get 3-3.5M Ag for one hour of intense grinding. Maybe I'll apply some of newfangled tactics, and see if I can supercharge my earnings. The best way is to adapt or be left behind. There are a lot of really good farming guides written by several members of this community. I try to farm when the farming is good. Right now, skirmish games are super quick, so you don't need a full hanger of HB. I try to get most beacons and mech out in 3 minutes. If it looks hopeless, then I'll let the game end quicker. You want to lose quick or win quick. Also, first hours of release are best for farming, as many are still sussing out their tactics. By third and last day, even gold league players are doing as well as me in some skirmishes.I have data from a previous skirmish, so I'm going to keep track tonight and see how good the payouts are. I can usually get 3-3.5M Ag for one hour of intense grinding. Maybe I'll apply some of newfangled tactics, and see if I can supercharge my earnings.

T34

Ao Jun



Posts: 5,920

Karma: 6,439

Ao Jun Pixonic Phil Interviewed! Quote Select Post

Select Post Deselect Post

Deselect Post Link to Post

Link to Post Member Give Gift

Member Back to Top Post by T34 on OU812? said:



I feel conflicted though. Glad that War Robots isn’t going away, but concerned that they may have no incentive to course correct from various questionable decisions they’ve made since fall. Bummer. Thanks for sharing. I appreciate it.I feel conflicted though. Glad that War Robots isn’t going away, but concerned that they may have no incentive to course correct from various questionable decisions they’ve made since fall. Bummer. We really need to see the annual report to ascertain if Pix is doing well. Without knowing the outgoings this revenue figure is fluffy (half the story). The thing I was also trying to say above is that Pix can get the same revenue from a user base of 700K or from a user base 3M provided the demand is inelastic (inelastic = small change in demand if they increase pricing). Since the Thinkgaming figure has probably been averaging around $35K for some time now while Pix has been increasing the prices I would say they have some sort of target revenue in mind and set prices accordingly. if so expect more of the same. there will be no course correction but even more of the same especially if the user base continues to decline. This game is about blowing up robots for the players while it is a business for Pix which is based on entertainment and addiction.

But even if Pix was to pull the plug on War Robots tomorrow, they would probably give a 6 months notice before they turn the servers off. that's what they did with Robinsons. I would be utterly stunned if this game goes under in less than a year.



Deleted

Deleted Member

Posts: 0

Karma:

Deleted Member Pixonic Phil Interviewed! T34 ʂωєєтცяєα∂ andlike this Quote Select Post

Select Post Deselect Post

Deselect Post Link to Post

Link to Post Member Give Gift

Member Back to Top Post by Deleted on thorloki said: Soooo is War Robots thriving or not?



They are certainly making money at $5 Mil p.m. They stated that they were making $7 mil p.m. (with a peak of $7.5 mil earlier this year) for the last financial year according to an interview in August 2018. I don't know what their ongoing overheads or Mail.ru performance expectations are after purchasing Pix. Interesting the life cycle comment though. Is that thriving? Define what you mean by thriving?They are certainly making money at $5 Mil p.m. They stated that they were making $7 mil p.m. (with a peak of $7.5 mil earlier this year) for the last financial year according to an interview in August 2018. I don't know what their ongoing overheads or Mail.ru performance expectations are after purchasing Pix. Interesting the life cycle comment though. Is that thriving?

T34

Ao Jun



Posts: 5,920

Karma: 6,439

Ao Jun Pixonic Phil Interviewed! rags likes this Quote Select Post

Select Post Deselect Post

Deselect Post Link to Post

Link to Post Member Give Gift

Member Back to Top Post by T34 on @fixthetridents said: OU812? said:



I feel conflicted though. Glad that War Robots isn’t going away, but concerned that they may have no incentive to course correct from various questionable decisions they’ve made since fall. Bummer. Thanks for sharing. I appreciate it.I feel conflicted though. Glad that War Robots isn’t going away, but concerned that they may have no incentive to course correct from various questionable decisions they’ve made since fall. Bummer.



I have data from a previous skirmish, so I'm going to keep track tonight and see how good the payouts are. I can usually get 3-3.5M Ag for one hour of intense grinding. Maybe I'll apply some of newfangled tactics, and see if I can supercharge my earnings. The best way is to adapt or be left behind. There are a lot of really good farming guides written by several members of this community. I try to farm when the farming is good. Right now, skirmish games are super quick, so you don't need a full hanger of HB. I try to get most beacons and mech out in 3 minutes. If it looks hopeless, then I'll let the game end quicker. You want to lose quick or win quick. Also, first hours of release are best for farming, as many are still sussing out their tactics. By third and last day, even gold league players are doing as well as me in some skirmishes.I have data from a previous skirmish, so I'm going to keep track tonight and see how good the payouts are. I can usually get 3-3.5M Ag for one hour of intense grinding. Maybe I'll apply some of newfangled tactics, and see if I can supercharge my earnings.

I used to farm like mad. Even nowadays I relapse into farming from time to time (so not trying to cast the first stone here). But you really need to ask the question whether you are missing the point of what this game is about (again, said with no disrespect).I mean what do you get out of farming? If you farm on for ever you are playing for the wrong reasons and should quit IMO. Alternatively if you farm to get somewhere that is actually reachable than that becomes a person decision I suppose. If the later, you should also buy premium because the amount of time you waste every month farming is not worth it (provided you live in a country with reasonable personal incomes). IMO opinion income from farming has been nerfed so bad recently and will be nerfed even more in the future that it is not worth the effort. Better option is to tank and not chase the meta. Pay for what you can afford and just play the game.

bayscout

Phantom



Posts: 1,367

Karma: 1,304

Pilot name: bayscout

Platform: Android

League: Champion

Phantom Pixonic Phil Interviewed! via mobile Quote Select Post

Select Post Deselect Post

Deselect Post Link to Post

Link to Post Member Give Gift

Member Back to Top Post by bayscout on @aaarrggghhh said: thorloki said: Soooo is War Robots thriving or not?



They are certainly making money at $5 Mil p.m. They stated that they were making $7 mil p.m. (with a peak of $7.5 mil earlier this year) for the last financial year according to an interview in August 2018. I don't know what their ongoing overheads or Mail.ru performance expectations are after purchasing Pix. Interesting the life cycle comment though. Is that thriving? Define what you mean by thriving?They are certainly making money at $5 Mil p.m. They stated that they were making $7 mil p.m. (with a peak of $7.5 mil earlier this year) for the last financial year according to an interview in August 2018. I don't know what their ongoing overheads or Mail.ru performance expectations are after purchasing Pix. Interesting the life cycle comment though. Is that thriving?

Don't know, but #5 top grossing on Google Play Store is definitely not failing. Don't know, but #5 top grossing on Google Play Store is definitely not failing.

Deleted

Deleted Member

Posts: 0

Karma:

Deleted Member Pixonic Phil Interviewed! T34 Owen andlike this Quote Select Post

Select Post Deselect Post

Deselect Post Link to Post

Link to Post Member Give Gift

Member Back to Top Post by Deleted on bayscout said: @aaarrggghhh said:



They are certainly making money at $5 Mil p.m. They stated that they were making $7 mil p.m. (with a peak of $7.5 mil earlier this year) for the last financial year according to an interview in August 2018. I don't know what their ongoing overheads or Mail.ru performance expectations are after purchasing Pix. Interesting the life cycle comment though. Is that thriving? Define what you mean by thriving?They are certainly making money at $5 Mil p.m. They stated that they were making $7 mil p.m. (with a peak of $7.5 mil earlier this year) for the last financial year according to an interview in August 2018. I don't know what their ongoing overheads or Mail.ru performance expectations are after purchasing Pix. Interesting the life cycle comment though. Is that thriving? Don't know, but #5 top grossing on Google Play Store is definitely not failing.



EDIT: Just checked Google play store top grossing apps That's interesting. Thinkgaming have them at RANKED #130 on Top Grossing Games for iOS as of today. Seeing through the blur (because I don't have a subscription) they are ranked #305 Top grossing across all devices and all countries and ranked #81 for Google US only.EDIT: Just checked Google play store top grossing apps play.google.com/store/apps/collection/topgrossing?hl=en and War Robots is ranked #142. Don't know what you were looking at???

joshfishyu

Hades



Posts: 546

Karma: 516

Pilot name: joshfish

Platform: Facebook

League: Champion

Server Region: Asia

Hades Pixonic Phil Interviewed! Quote Select Post

Select Post Deselect Post

Deselect Post Link to Post

Link to Post Member Give Gift

Member Back to Top Post by joshfishyu on pilotunknown said: thorloki said: Soooo is War Robots thriving or not? How are they thriving if they are making less money than before???



Yes, a lot of free-to-play or small-spending players quit or stopped spending, but Pixonic's main target groups are still dumping money in this game.



The ranks of app store proved it, and I saw many Ares in Champions League on first few days when it released, so I guess they will keep this pay-to-win business model until the game is dead. I don't think they make less money than before...Yes, a lot of free-to-play or small-spending players quit or stopped spending, but Pixonic's main target groups are still dumping money in this game.The ranks of app store proved it, and I saw many Ares in Champions League on first few days when it released, so I guess they will keep this pay-to-win business model until the game is dead.

T34

Ao Jun



Posts: 5,920

Karma: 6,439

Ao Jun Pixonic Phil Interviewed! rags likes this Quote Select Post

Select Post Deselect Post

Deselect Post Link to Post

Link to Post Member Give Gift

Member Back to Top Post by T34 on pilotunknown said: thorloki said: Soooo is War Robots thriving or not? How are they thriving if they are making less money than before??? I'd say they are not thriving. Their user base is on a decline as well as revenue (over a longer period of time). In order to squeeze out revenue they need to increase prices, dump new stuff at a high frequency and thereby further unbalance the game. I cannot see how unbalancing the game and increasing pricing leads to an better user experience. In this sense I would say the game would be thriving if the user base is increasing, session times are increasing, download numbers are on the up, game play is more balanced and overall the game provides a better user experience while Pix is making more money. The word thriving does not describe a shrinking business.

Having said the above and despite holding the view that the game is not thriving that is not the same as asking if the game is commercially viable. At the moment it seems like it is commercially viable. But again, need to see the outgoings .



T34

Ao Jun



Posts: 5,920

Karma: 6,439

Ao Jun Pixonic Phil Interviewed! Quote Select Post

Select Post Deselect Post

Deselect Post Link to Post

Link to Post Member Give Gift

Member Back to Top Post by T34 on joshfishyu said: pilotunknown said: How are they thriving if they are making less money than before???



Yes, a lot of free-to-play or small-spending players quit or stopped spending, but Pixonic's main target groups are still dumping money in this game.



The ranks of app store proved it, and I saw many Ares in Champions League on first few days when it released, so I guess they will keep this pay-to-win business model until the game is dead. I don't think they make less money than before...Yes, a lot of free-to-play or small-spending players quit or stopped spending, but Pixonic's main target groups are still dumping money in this game.The ranks of app store proved it, and I saw many Ares in Champions League on first few days when it released, so I guess they will keep this pay-to-win business model until the game is dead.

In terms of revenue, it is an absolute fact that they are making less money (revenue) compared to previous times. Provided thinkgaming's figures are not totally up 「dookie」 creek. This is not a question about what one thinks but what the facts are. During the dash release the figure was in the mid $90K region per day and now it is in the mid $30K region per day. there you have it.

JoulesWest

Destrier



Elena's submissive Posts: 88

Karma: 97

Favorite robot: Elena's Hitachi

Destrier Pixonic Phil Interviewed! ʂωєєтცяєα∂ likes this Quote Select Post

Select Post Deselect Post

Deselect Post Link to Post

Link to Post Member Give Gift

Member Back to Top Post by JoulesWest on T34 said: pilotunknown said: How are they thriving if they are making less money than before??? I'd say they are not thriving. Their user base is on a decline as well as revenue (over a longer period of time). In order to squeeze out revenue they need to increase prices, dump new stuff at a high frequency and thereby further unbalance the game. I cannot see how unbalancing the game and increasing pricing leads to an better user experience. In this sense I would say the game would be thriving if the user base is increasing, session times are increasing, download numbers are on the up, game play is more balanced and overall the game provides a better user experience while Pix is making more money. The word thriving does not describe a shrinking business.

Having said the above and despite holding the view that the game is not thriving that is not the same as asking if the game is commercially viable. At the moment it seems like it is commercially viable. But again, need to see the outgoings .

This, my friends, is the death spiral. Think very carefully before spending another dime on this game. Might not get your dollars worth out of it before it's either obsolete or the game is gone altogether.

pilotunknown

Blitz



Posts: 310

Karma: 250

Platform: Android

Clan: Death Row

League: Champion

Server Region: North America

Blitz Pixonic Phil Interviewed! Quote Select Post

Select Post Deselect Post

Deselect Post Link to Post

Link to Post Member Give Gift

Member Back to Top Post by pilotunknown on joshfishyu said: pilotunknown said: How are they thriving if they are making less money than before???



Yes, a lot of free-to-play or small-spending players quit or stopped spending, but Pixonic's main target groups are still dumping money in this game.



The ranks of app store proved it, and I saw many Ares in Champions League on first few days when it released, so I guess they will keep this pay-to-win business model until the game is dead. I don't think they make less money than before...Yes, a lot of free-to-play or small-spending players quit or stopped spending, but Pixonic's main target groups are still dumping money in this game.The ranks of app store proved it, and I saw many Ares in Champions League on first few days when it released, so I guess they will keep this pay-to-win business model until the game is dead.

Pix used to average 50k+ a day. Now they are around 30k a day. 50k > 30k ..... GG Pix used to average 50k+ a day. Now they are around 30k a day. 50k > 30k ..... GG

thorloki

Hades



Posts: 729

Karma: 263

Hades Pixonic Phil Interviewed! via Tapatalk Quote Select Post

Select Post Deselect Post

Deselect Post Link to Post

Link to Post Member Give Gift

Member Back to Top Post by thorloki on pilotunknown said: joshfishyu said:



Yes, a lot of free-to-play or small-spending players quit or stopped spending, but Pixonic's main target groups are still dumping money in this game.



The ranks of app store proved it, and I saw many Ares in Champions League on first few days when it released, so I guess they will keep this pay-to-win business model until the game is dead. I don't think they make less money than before...Yes, a lot of free-to-play or small-spending players quit or stopped spending, but Pixonic's main target groups are still dumping money in this game.The ranks of app store proved it, and I saw many Ares in Champions League on first few days when it released, so I guess they will keep this pay-to-win business model until the game is dead. Pix used to average 50k+ a day. Now they are around 30k a day. 50k > 30k ..... GG That's just on iOS right? Android, Amazon, Facebook, and Steam money doesn't count?

pilotunknown

Blitz



Posts: 310

Karma: 250

Platform: Android

Clan: Death Row

League: Champion

Server Region: North America

Blitz Pixonic Phil Interviewed! T34 ʂωєєтცяєα∂ andlike this Quote Select Post

Select Post Deselect Post

Deselect Post Link to Post

Link to Post Member Give Gift

Member Back to Top Post by pilotunknown on thorloki said: pilotunknown said: Oh yeah, I'm sure the Amazon, FB/Steam money will save the day LMFAO. You do realise those player base are so sad, the MM is a joke. However, you are still missing the point. If you go from 50k to 30k on the iOS platform, you are also down 40% on Android .... Tell me how your business would be doing if you are down 40% LOL Apple users and Android users are like apples and oranges. But since War Robots is no longer in the top 100, I will just agree that Pixonic has fallen.

So are you saying that while Apple War Robots players are so disgusted with War Robots that revenue is down 40% on iOS, Android War Robots players are so happy with War Robots that Android revenue would not be down 40%? Where are all these happy Android War Robots players? So are you saying that while Apple War Robots players are so disgusted with War Robots that revenue is down 40% on iOS, Android War Robots players are so happy with War Robots that Android revenue would not be down 40%? Where are all these happy Android War Robots players?