In the global mobile game market, strategy games, especially SLG (simulation and strategy) games, have become a key focus for mobile game developers to enter the international market. Their unique gameplay, deep strategic elements, and highly engaged user base have demonstrated strong growth momentum and promising prospects on the international stage.

SLGs examples

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In 2024, a wave of high-quality new SLGs emerged, gaining widespread popularity among players worldwide. For instance, Whiteout Survival by Century Games and Last War by FirstFun, which integrate post-apocalyptic ice age themes with deep gameplay mechanics, have rapidly captured the market, becoming dark horse products in the SLG international expansion arena.

This report provides an in-depth analysis of the global marketing performance of SLGs in 2024. It examines how blockbuster advertisers penetrate target markets through creative strategies, observes the impact of AIGC on the SLG creatives, and summarizes the current popular creative approaches in SLGst marketing. This will assist marketers in more effectively leveraging user acquisition marketing to maximize the market potential of their products.

Through this report, Marketing Insights into Global SLGs in 2024, we dive deep into market trends, player preferences, and marketing strategies for SLGs. This will help developers seize opportunities in the global market and achieve significant breakthroughs.

Over 3,000 SLG advertisers monthly

The report analyzes the changing trends of global SLG advertisers from May of last year to April of this year. In 2024, the number of monthly SLG advertisers exceeded 3,000, representing a year-over-year increase of 6.5%. Among these, iOS advertisers averaged over 1,200 per month, accounting for 43.9%, which is 21.5% higher than the global average. Additionally, iOS SLG advertisers showed relatively higher creative exposure, with each piece of creative generating 180,000 impressions, 58.0% more than on Android.

Marketing analysis of SLG advertisers in 2024

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Regarding creative advertising, SLGs in 2024 exhibit an elite effect with faster iteration of top products’ creatives. In 2024, over 2,000 SLG advertisers launched new ad creatives each month, accounting for 66.5% of the total. However, the overall proportion of advertisers deploying new creatives each month is on a declining trend. Observing the monthly trend of new creatives, the ratio of new creatives has already exceeded 51% each month in 2024, with April reaching the highest point in nearly a year at 55.2%.

Marketing analysis of SLGs’ new creatives in 2024

Source: SocialPeta

Casual games lead the way in advertising, European market is most competitive

The report compiles the top 20 SLGs in terms of advertising from January to April 2024. The top spot on the iOS advertising chart is held by Last War: Survival published by FirstFun. The runner-up is Whiteout Survival, which has shown the most impressive revenue performance among SLG products in 2024.

On the Android side, the top advertiser is the underworld SLG game The Grand Mafia, which has over 30,000 unique creatives across both platforms in 2024. This game began its advertising campaign in July 2019 and has been running for over 1,700 days. Overall, top SLGs in user acquisition are still dominated by Chinese developers, with the turnover rate of top products on the leaderboard being faster than before.

Top 20 SLGs by advertising in 2024

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Observing the advertising landscape in various popular countries/regions in 2024, the marketing competition for SLGs is extremely intense in Europe and North America. Europe has the highest number of SLG advertisers, with an average of over 2,200 advertisers per month. The US market follows closely, also with an average of over 2,200 advertisers per month.

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The European market is also the region with the most intensive marketing efforts for SLGs, with each advertiser deploying an average of 155 creatives. Following closely is the North American market, where each advertiser deploys an average of 144 creatives.

Marketing analysis of SLGs in top countries/regions in 2024

Source: SocialPeta

AI has become common in strategy game creatives

SLGs are the most advertisement-driven category among all mobile games, making their marketing strategies particularly valuable for marketers to study and learn from. The marketing creatives for SLGs often emphasize visual impact over strategic gameplay: elements like mini-game user acquisition, dramatic storylines, sensual allure, or threats of death at the beginning of the content can quickly capture users’ attention and create a strong impression.

Patterns of popular creatives for SLGs

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In 2024, AIGC creatives have become a standard creative approach for advertisers in user acquisition marketing. Among the popular SLG advertisements, more than 20% of the new ad creatives this year feature noticeable AI elements. For instance, in video creatives, advertisers use AI to produce content with diverse cultural elements, introduce game worldviews, and create videos featuring AI-generated spokespersons.

AI-generated image materials are even more diverse in form and consistently high in quality. The most common use is creating in-game characters with AI, with some high-quality character illustrations even becoming official characters within the game. Additionally, advertisers use AI to produce in-game items, background elements for world introductions, and other related content.

AIGC creatives for SLGs

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This report also provides detailed analysis of the advertising trends for the popular SLG advertisers in 2024: Last War, Whiteout Survival, and Top Heroes. It breaks down the formulas for their most engaging creative materials.

A surprise hit

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The complete report spans 25 pages, with data up to April 2024. It combines insights from global SLG marketing data with extensive experience in SLG marketing.

For more detailed information, download the full report.