All You Need to Know About Hyper-Casual Games

Ever since the first smartphone as we know it was launched, casual games were all the rage. Players enjoyed their simplicity, their addictive nature, their colorful design, and their innovative gameplay. Recently, casual games took an evolutionary step: the first hyper-casual games were born, creating a completely new subgenre that’s taking the world by storm. Today, let’s take a look at hyper-casual games to find out what they are, who they are for, and what makes them so successful.

What is a hyper-casual game?

Basically, hyper-casual games are casual games that go all out on simplicity, both when it comes to design and gameplay. Their gameplay mechanic is simple, and so are its controls: players can usually use a single finger to play them. Their visuals are also simple, almost minimalistic, and they can be highly addictive.

Some classify slot machine games as hyper-casual, which is a mistake. While pokies are also simple, easy to learn, can have minimalistic designs, and can be truly addictive, they are almost never played in short sessions, especially not the games listed at AustraliaInternetPokies. While short pokies sessions on the go are played quite often, players can get immersed in these games for much longer. Not to mention the fact that slots developers often outdo themselves when it comes to elaborate visuals.

The characteristics of hyper-casual games

• Simple mechanics and gameplay: The gameplay mechanics of these games are simple, easy to understand, often involving simple actions such as tapping, swiping, or dragging.
• Minimalistic design and visuals: The visuals of these games are plain, uncomplicated, and often minimalistic. They focus only on the essential elements, reducing clutter as much as possible.
• Easy-to-use controls: The controls of hyper-casual games are usually simple, intuitive, and very easy to understand. The goal is to get the players to jump into the gameplay instantly, without tutorials.
• Short gameplay sessions: The goal of hyper-casual games is to entertain quickly. This means short, intense gaming sessions, perfect to be “consumed” on a coffee or bathroom break.

Why developers love hyper-casual games

Hyper-casual games are the perfect choice for developers because of the speedy and cost-effective development cycle, the app marketplace-based distribution model, and the easy monetization:

• Quick prototyping and iterative design: Developers can quickly build and test game concepts in the spirit of “fail fast, iterate faster”, quickly refining the gameplay, visuals, and user experience based on player feedback.
• Low development cost (and time): The simple mechanics and visuals of hyper-casual games translate into lower development costs and shorter development times.
• Simple monetization: Hyper-casual games earn revenue by showing ads, either in between gaming sessions or throughout them.
• Simple publishing: The publishers of hyper-casual games rely almost exclusively on the app store distribution model, quickly reaching a potential player base of millions. It provides visibility, discoverability, and accessibility to players.

The most successful hyper-casual games to date

If some of the most successful hyper-casual games look familiar, do not be surprised: their basic concept is similar to the games played in the golden age of arcades. One of the most successful hyper-casual titles lately is “Crossy Road”, a Frogger clone from Hipster Whale. Voodoo’s Helix Jump is a dead ringer for the C64 game Nebulus, and let’s not even get started about the hosts of endless runners, a genre popular on personal computers since at least the 1980s.

Hyper-casual games usually don’t make billions, but they can become surprisingly successful. Just take “Subway Surfers”, the endless runner that has been dominating the charts since its release, with over 4 billion (!) total downloads, and over 30 million daily active users.

Final words

With their simplistic mechanics, minimalistic design, easy controls, and short gameplay sessions, hyper-casual games offer a quick and addictive form of entertainment for players of all backgrounds. Developers are drawn to hyper-casual games due to their low development costs, rapid prototyping capabilities, integration of ads for monetization, and seamless publishing through app stores. While they may not reach the billion-dollar revenue mark, successful hyper-casual games can still achieve remarkable levels of popularity and engagement. So, whether you're looking for a quick gaming fix or exploring the game development landscape, hyper-casual games have definitely made their mark and continue to captivate players worldwide.

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