🗣 Pokémon GO has been one of the world’s most lucrative mobile games since its launch back in 2016, when it became an instant global phenomenon. In 2021, it was the No. 7 revenue-generating mobile game worldwide, accumulating $1.3 billion, while in Q1 2022 Pokémon GO ranked No. 11 for player spending, picking up $198.2 million. According to Sensor Tower Game Intelligence, it remained by far the top grossing Geolocation AR title in the world during the last quarter, with Dragon Quest Walk from Square Enix generating $90.4 million, while Jurassic World Alive from Ludia racked up $7.2 million.
Let’s Go! Game Facts
👉 The United States ranks as the No. 1 country for lifetime player spending in Pokémon GO, generating $2.2 billion, or 36.6 percent of total revenue. Japan ranks No. 2 with 32.6 percent, while Germany ranks No. 3 with 5.2 percent.
👉 Pokémon GO has generated 678 million downloads worldwide to date.
👉 Since its launch back in July 2016, Pokémon GO has averaged $1 billion per year from player spending. The title remains the world’s flagship Geolocation AR title and is a standout for best-in-class live ops on mobile
👉 Though the industry at large is facing challenging times–player spending in the title was down by close to 45 percent year-over-year in Q1 2022, while wider mobile games market revenue was down by approximately 6 percent–Pokémon GO continues to be one of the world’s top-grossing mobile titles.
When the game was released five years ago, people simply went crazy for it. The title turned into a smashing global phenomenon worldwide. Whole crowds of Trainers were invading all public spaces, noses on their screen, filling their Pokédex, hoping to become ‘the very best.’ It was crazy then, and it is still crazy now, only less pervasive maybe. Yet, the community is still massive and engaged, the numbers generated are still astounding, and the game is more than alive and well. And as you will see, COVID-19 did not stop the PokéFrenzy.
👀 Let’s check out 15 of the latest Pokémon GO statistics and get the most out of them because we “gotta catch ’em all”!
Player, profits, and downloads stats
🗣 Pokémon GO allows players to be the masters of their odyssey, literally going through their own “leaving Pallet Town” story. Players are always part of the formula for success, and the Pokémon GO community has been said to be one of the best.
- Most players are between the ages of 21-30, with the average age of players being 26.
– Pokémon GO attracts people from all walks of life. The game is not violent, easy to play, promotes physical activity and discovering your neighborhood, and interaction with more people.
- The number of daily active users in the US alone and via iPhone is 827,205, Great Britain is second with 272,015 and Japan is third with 269,733.
- The game was downloaded 1 billion times as of August 2019.
- Pokemon GO generated $5 billion in player spending over its 5 years on the market.
– The game accumulated $641.6 million in the first half of 2021 (H1 2021), which means that its revenue went up by 34% compared to H1 2020 and 130% for H1 2017.
- Pokémon GO made $23 million during the first week of the COVID outbreak in the US.
– The game generated a total of $1.3 billion in 2020.
– In 2016, the title made $832 million. On the first day of its release, the game made $3.9 million – $4.9 million, in 2017, it was $589 million, in 2018, it accumulated $816 million and $894 million in 2019.
– Nintendo, The Pokémon Company, and Google invested $30 million in Pokémon GO back in 2015.
- Five Guinness World Records a month after its release.
– The game won 14 awards and was nominated 13 times.
Usage stats
🗣 The game has an addictive nature that makes you want to come back as often as you can. And once you are in, it is difficult not to be engrossed in all the activities Niantic has in store for all Trainers and the excellent spirit of the community.
- Most players spend an average time of 1-2 hours on Pokémon GO daily.
- Pokémon GO is ranked #190 on Twitch.
- There are more than 35,000 sponsored locations in Pokémon Go
– Sponsored locations are an excellent addition for Niantic and the businesses. Niantic can make some extra money, and businesses get extra customers and traffic. McDonald’s in Japan saw their numbers climb even higher after starting the program with Pokémon GO.
- Pokemon GO has been downloaded from Google Play 487 million times and from App Store 144.8 million times as of July 2021.
– Android was the favorite of the crowds. In less than a week after release, the game was already installed on 5% of Android devices in the US, representing 77% of the total number of downloads.
– Players using Google Play have spent the most with a total of $2.7 billion (52.8%).
– Players using the App Store have spent a total of $2.4 billion (47.2%).
Pokémon GO events
🗣 Staying true to its “let’s do this thing outside” origins, Pokémon GO does not have traditional conventions. With PoGO, the fans all meet outdoors and enjoy many fun activities where a lot of walking is involved. Niantic also seized this opportunity to promote some non-profit initiatives.
- Pokémon GO promotes a really tight-knitted social bond amongst Trainers through their events and activities.
– Niantic uses its game to also promote civic activities and non-profit organizations such as with its Earth Day pushing players to help clean their communities.
– The Pokémon GO Safari Zone Philadelphia held in November 2021 was the first big real-world event in the US since 2019. Tens of thousands of Trainers attended the celebration.
– Trainers walked over 260,000 km and caught 4.5 million Pokémon.
- Pokémon GO Fest 2019 generated $249 million in tourism revenue.
– They were held in Chicago, Montréal, Yokohama, and Dortmund, and trainers from all over the world came to enjoy the festivities.
– Chicago brought $120 million, Montréal $71 million, and Dortmund $56 million.
- Despite the pandemic, Pokémon GO Fest 2020 still made a whopping $17.5 million
– Players spent $8.9 million on the first day and $8.6 million on the second day.
- Pokémon GO Fest 2021 generated $21 million in total
– This year too, the event was held online. The first day brought in $11 million and the second day picked up $9.8 million.
Overview
🗣 When the fad died after the summer of 2016, people thought that Pokémon GO would also die before the end of the year. So, they stopped checking it because we were not seeing hordes of players trampling all over the pavement anymore. Only, the game is still alive and is doing more than well. The players who stayed are the ones who matter since they are the ones who, from the beginning, were genuinely involved with the game. Whether it was nostalgia, a recommendation, seeing it on the first page of the App Store, etc., players were there for the game itself and not a quick dash of adrenaline.
Niantic keeps providing a lot of excellent content (with 721 Pokémon running around), and community life is vibrant and heartwarming. Looking at Pokémon GO; you just want to belong for the game does show that it is open to everyone (and even more so now that the new radius allows people with disabilities to enjoy it from home). The title has more years full of prosperity awaiting, and one day, maybe, all those pesky technical issues will be part of the past.
So next time someone says, “Uh?! Pokémon GO still exists?! Who plays that dead game?”, show them this article 😜
