A match of Battle Royale is the most common sight today, worldwide. It has become a phenomenon and is still widely growing with numerous different games emerging on several different platforms everyday. There are few games that are immensely popular globally, played globally and is making money in millions.
Fortnite and PUBG Mobile gained huge popularity soon after its release and became one of the most gross earning games of all times. But somehow, PUBG Mobile’s Clone Knives Out apparently made more money in 2018 than PUBG itself and Battleground. So, how did that happen?
Vastly popular in Japan and rightfully so, 80% of Knives Out earnings came from Japan, estimated by Sensor Tower. The fortunate creator of Knives Out – NetEase has grossed $465 million worldwide where as Fortnite is at $455. An analytical report from Sensor Tower also suggests that Knives Out has made more money on iOS and android compared to Epic Games or Tencent. Surpassing PUBG Mobile was a feat and was achieved by being able to monetize in China, which surprisingly PUBG Mobile was not able to do, due to local regulations. This report however doesn’t include Fortnite earnings from Android Platform, only from its iOS.
Mr. Olivr Yeh, founder of Sensor Tower quoted that almost 80% of Knives Out’s revenue came from Japan last year. Players on an average spent $370 in the game across both platforms. Now this is actually 11 times more of what users spent on PUBG Mobile across both platforms in 2018. NetEase only updated their Tokyo map in November (surprisingly) and the earnings are increasing since.
Another point about the earnings, it is noticeable that majority of spenders of Knives Out are android users and iOS users amounting only 18%. Major Benefit that Knives Out has over PUBG Mobile is that it can accept in-app payments in China. That certainly boosts its revenue and considering the fact that iOS mounts up to $81 Million for Knives out, its just cherry on the icing.
Having said all that about the earnings of Knives Out, one should not rule out the fact that these figures and statistics of Knives Out major earnings are only from Japan and China which by the way is its second largest market. Comparing to an entire genre of Battle Royale Space, Epic Game’s earnings on Android are still unknown and its earnings of $455 Million being on iOS alone.
Also not to forget that Fortnite is a cross-platform game so players or users might make in-app purchases n one platform and might actually spend playing it on another platform. So a user can actually make purchases on PC or any gaming console and on the same account can play or continue the same game, say on a Mobile Phone. This does makes us rethink the whole earnings comparison, but no doubt Knives Out has made a lot of money since its release and surely gained tremendous popularity to say the least.
