Nexon recorded the world's highest revenue growth rate among mobile game publishers, driven by the success of core intellectual properties (IP) including "MapleStory Idle RPG" and "Mabinogi Mobile."
According to digital data analytics firm Sensor Tower on Wednesday, Nexon's mobile game revenue rose approximately 200% from a year earlier, ranking seventh in global revenue. The figures are based on an analysis of mobile game download trends and changes in in-app purchase revenue over the past year since March of last year. Nexon also overtook NCSoft, which had held the domestic lead, to claim the No. 1 spot among Korean mobile game publishers.
"MapleStory Idle RPG," jointly developed by Nexon and Ablegames, delivered better-than-expected results in North America, Europe, and Southeast Asia, proving a strong performer. "Mabinogi Mobile," developed by Nexon's development subsidiary Devcat, has continued to gain popularity. In the second half of this year, Nexon will release "Dungeon & Fighter Idle," a mobile idle game using a popular IP, to solidify its profitability.
Last year, global mobile game in-app purchase revenue reached $18.4 billion, maintaining a level similar to 2022 and 2023. Over this period, average revenue per download increased 12% from the previous year.
U.S. mobile game revenue rose 14% year-on-year in 2024 to $5.3 billion, overtaking Japan to become the world's largest market. By contrast, while Japan maintained a high level of average revenue per download, its dollar-based revenue showed a declining trend due to falling downloads and a weaker yen.
By genre, the role-playing game (RPG) category, which had maintained the top revenue position in mobile games, saw its share of the overall market shrink from 38% in 2020 to 20% in 2025, showing a downward trend.
Tencent's Honor of Kings recorded more than $2 billion in revenue based on China iOS over the past year, reclaiming the No. 1 spot in global mobile game revenue. Over the 10 years since its release, it has earned cumulative revenue of $17 billion, setting a new all-time high in the category. Bandai Namco's SD Gundam G Generation Eternal surpassed $350 million in global revenue just 11 months after its release, emerging as the mobile game with the most notable growth over the past year.
Meanwhile, total downloads across console game platforms including Steam, PlayStation, and Xbox surpassed 320 million last year.
