The developer of the free-to-play mobile game Clash of Clans, Supercell, has finally released its first title in over five years despite the industry slowdown after a decades-long winning streak.
The Finnish company has officially released the video game Squad Busters which combines characters from all its previous games. Teams are formed and the characters fight it out in four-minute contests.
The mash-up idea has been in the works for some time but is now available for all to play. On the Google Play Store, the game has had over one million downloads so far.
In an interview with the Financial Times, the co-founder and chief executive Ilkka Paananen told the journalist that preparing for the launch was “stressful.”
“We haven’t released a game in a very, very long time. That’s because our teams have very high standards. We kill lots and lots of games [before they are released]. Now finally we have our game that has exceeded that quality bar.”
Tricky time to launch games as industry is in a decline
The Clash of Clans developer Supercell is also known for the hits Hay Day, and Clash Royale. While the company saw success with hitting peak sales of €2.1bn and €917mn profit in 2016, revenue has declined in the following years.
The gaming industry as a whole has seen sales slump and interest wane which has led to a year of mass layoffs. In 2023, US gaming revenue fell 2.3% over the previous year and gaming usage is down too.
Consumer spending on mobile gaming declined last year and Data.ai predicts low single-digit growth in 2024.
Paananen expanded on his thoughts about the current situation: “The industry at large, and us included, should probably take more risk, to do things that haven’t been done,” he said. “What needs to happen is more innovation, more risk-taking. That is the only way to grow the market.”
Featured Image: Via Deviant Art
