An online strategy game from Hamburg has now earned 1 billion euros

The real-time strategy game Forge of Empires from the company InnoGames from Hamburg has reached the sales mark of 1 billion euros, they proudly announce. Despite the success, the studio cut 75 jobs in April.

This is the success message: InnoGames announced at the beginning of August that their strategy game Forge of Empires has achieved some impressive figures since its release in March 2012:

  • Over 130 million players have registered for the building strategy game so far.
  • InnoGames has now broken through the 1 billion euro mark in sales. InnoGames as a whole had already reached this sales mark in 2019.
  • Most money, between 2012 and 2022, came from the US (36%), followed by Germany (19%); France (8%) and UK (4%).
  • Forge of Empires also reaches new players through TV advertising:

    Forges of Empires “Resources Ad” from 2018

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    A third of the revenue comes from long-term players

    This is what the studio says: Long-term players are mainly responsible for the success:

  • 34% of revenue comes from players who have been playing for 3 years.
  • 18% of revenue comes from players who have been around for 5 years.
  • The studio emphasizes that the recipe for success is giving “long-term loyal players” reasons to stay in the game, while also keeping Forge of Empires accessible and attractive to new games.

    You have to listen carefully to the feedback from the community.

    It is also an important step that players in Forge of Empire can easily switch between browser and mobile device (iOS/Android).

    So is everything great at InnoGames? No not really. After Ubisoft Düsseldorf, InnoGames is the largest employer in the video game sector in Germany with 350 employees, but that used to be more.

    In April 2023, InnoGames cut 75 jobs (via gameswirtschaft). The studio reported that this was part of a “comprehensive strategic reorientation”.

    In 2022, the company had still gained plus points when the specific salary ranges for individual areas in the company were published.

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