Very few people are downloading the major console games that have been ported to the iPhone in the last year—and an even smaller number are paying $15 to $50 to unlock the full version of the games.
Apple has unveiled games like Resident Evil 4, Resident Evil 7, Death Stranding and Assassin’s Creed Mirage in its keynotes over the past 12 months, all of which run on high-end iPhones and iPads. But even by the most optimistic revenue estimates, they’re all commercial failures. (We’d bet Apple is paying Ubisoft, Capcom and 505 Games to port the titles so the tech giant can use them to showcase its latest devices.)
Our calculations, based on estimates from Appfigures, suggest that fewer than 3,000 people have paid $49.99 to play Assassin’s Creed Mirage on iPhone since its release on June 6. According to Appfigures, it has been downloaded about 123,000 times so far and generated gross revenue of $138,000. The game is only playable on the iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, and high-end iPads.
The charts above and below show that Assassin’s Creed Mirage’s estimated daily download and revenue numbers are tiny compared to the average free-to-play mobile game. Appfigures provided data for Ubisoft’s mobile-focused title Assassin’s Creed Rebellion to illustrate this point: upon release on November 21, 2018, Rebellion was downloaded 1.9 million times, while Mirage was only installed 123,000 times during the same period.
Rebellion’s gross revenue is 612% higher than Mirage’s over the same period: $981,000. Rebellion’s downloads dropped 45% in its second week (compared to a 69% drop for Mirage) and revenue increased 82% (compared to a 79% drop for Mirage). Appfigures also says that daily downloads of Assassin’s Creed Mirage are already averaging under 3,000 and the game struggles to generate $4,000 most days – that’s about 80 paying users per day.
Other big-brand games like Resident Evil 4, Resident Evil Village and Death Stranding, all of which were featured in Apple keynotes, have also failed to deliver. Appfigures estimates that Resident Evil 4 has been downloaded 357,000 times, with revenue estimated at $208,000. Based on the game’s price of $29.99, that means that in the six months the game has been on the market, around 7,000 people have downloaded the game and paid for the full version.
Resident Evil Village fared even worse: Appfigures estimates downloads at 370,000 and sales at just $92,000. This means that the number of players who actually paid $15.99 for the full version of the game is around 5,750.
Death Stranding by 505 Games is a premium game that costs $20. It hasn’t yet generated enough downloads to register in Appfigures’ tracking data, but some quick calculations based on its estimated revenue of $212,000 suggest that it has seen around 10,600 downloads since its release on January 29, 2024.
Appmagic, another data company, has more optimistic estimates. Its data suggests that Assassin’s Creed Mirage has generated around $221,000 in revenue (excluding Apple and Google’s 30%) from 279,000 downloads, meaning around 5,750 players have paid to unlock the full game. Resident Evil 4 has seen around 710,000 downloads since its release six months ago, earning Capcom around $347,000 so far. That means only 15,000 people have paid $29.99 to unlock the full game in the six months since release.
According to Appmagic, Resident Evil Village has been downloaded around 817,000 times and generated revenue of $420,000. That means about 34,000 players paid $15.99 for the full version of the game. The $20 premium game Death Stranding has so far grossed $348,000 and been downloaded around 23,000 times, according to Appmagic estimates.
“These numbers are far from a success, especially when compared to the revenue that AAA games generate on their main platforms,” says Andrei Zubov, head of content at Appmagic. “This suggests that these games have already generated a large portion of their potential revenue and will now generate significantly lower revenue.”
“When we look at the most successful premium mobile games, we see that many of them are originally indie titles,” Zubov continues. “These games tend to have simpler controls, emphasize unique art styles over high-end graphics, and are suitable for shorter play sessions. These are the usual characteristics of successful free-to-play mobile games.”
“Equally important, premium indie mobile games typically cost between $5 and $10. This price range is more in line with the average spending habits of mobile gamers. This likely explains why these games have an easier time breaking into the mobile gaming market and why AAA releases aren’t as successful.”
“It looks to me like these markets will remain separate for at least some time,” Zubov adds. “Gamers who can afford flagship mobile devices and $50 for games will likely also have the means to enjoy games on PC and console. On the other hand, gamers who can’t afford gaming devices or high-performance phones are unlikely to make a one-time $50 purchase.”
Randy Nelson, head of insights at Appfigures, agrees that these console ports are a tough sell to the average mobile gamer. “While the hardware in the hands of consumers has made tremendous strides toward technological parity with current-gen consoles, it’s uncertain how many actually realize this and, consequently, even consider being able to play the latest Resident Evil or Assassin’s Creed on their phone,” he tells us.
“I fear that even if consumers realize they can play AC Mirage on their phones and tablets, the $50 in-app unlock price will immediately end the decision-making process. Consumers using Apple’s latest hardware will also likely be more likely to own current-generation gaming consoles that can play these games in 4K with cinematic sound quality for the same price – or less,” Nelson added.
“Convincing the average iPhone 15 owner that it’s worth buying the game again at full price, even if it also runs on the iPad and Mac, is clearly a problem, as the data shows.”
Ubisoft confirmed during this year’s WWDC keynote that it will bring the latest Assassin’s Creed game, subtitled Shadows, to high-end iPads later this year. In its 2022 WWDC keynote, Apple also announced that No Man’s Sky will be coming to Mac and iPad. The Mac version was released in June 2023, but the iPad edition is still unavailable.
“Overall, the story of AAA titles coming to Apple devices makes more sense from a marketing perspective,” adds Appmagic’s Zubov. “News of another project coming to mobile is guaranteed to generate publicity and perhaps motivate a small number of people to buy the Pro version of the phone.”