Why isn't Minecraft Selling Well? Or, How Accurate is the Top Paid Games List?

[coip]

What is a sizeable chunk? And how is this information measured?

I also dont think the Xbox Live integration on WP is that big of a draw. Every gamer I know (those who play hardcore and those who play casually) owns an Xbox of some sorts. Earning achievements is one of the few things I tout about WP. And yet, they absolutely show no interest other than slight amusement. I've also seen that a number of gamers are so elitist, not even achievements will get them to acknowledge mobile gaming as a valid form of gaming.

A sizeable chunk is one that is large enough to effect best-seller lists in the app store. The number of Xbox gamers on Windows Phone is large enough, in terms of who actually buys games from the Windows Phone Store, to affect store rankings.

It's not as big of a draw as it was at the start of WP7 when Microsoft seemingly was all-in on supporting mobile gaming on Windows Phone, but it definitely still is a big deal for a lot of gamers. There are many active online communities where you can track this information.

 

[coip]

I never doubted that the stats are wrong. What I called into question was our assertion in your first quote here that a sizable chunk of Windows Phone owners are Xbox aficionados and hardcore gamers. Your second statement here seems to indicate you don't even believe what you said first.

You are misinterpreting what I meant by that statement. I'm not talking about the percentage of Windows Phone users. I'm talking about raw numbers, particularly if you consider who actually spends money on games in the Windows Store: mobile Xbox gamers spend way more money on games than the average Windows Phone user. That's what I mean, and I believe that to be true because I've monitored what happens to games and franchises when they gain or lose the Xbox label in the Windows Phone store. You can have a million users, but if only 100,000 of them are spending money in the store, and 50,000 of those 100,000 are diehard Xbox gamers, that's a sizeable chunk.

 

[Laura Knotek]

The answer is simple.....Not very many kids own & use Windows Phone or tablets. My 8 year old plays it on his IPad & I would bet that most of the IOS & Android downloads for it are for tablets, then phones. End of story.

I believe Minecraft isn't a big seller, since it ISN'T available as a Windows Store app for Windows 8.1 tablets. If it were a Universal App available for both Windows 8.1/Windows Phone (buy once, play on both), it might be a better seller. For instance, someone with an iPhone/iPad or an Android phone/Android tablet could buy it once and play on both the phone and the tablet.

I wouldn't spend $7 for an app that isn't Universal.

 

[coip]

I believe Minecraft isn't a big seller, since it ISN'T available as a Windows Store app for Windows 8.1 tablets. If it were a Universal App available for both Windows 8.1/Windows Phone (buy once, play on both), it might be a better seller. For instance, someone with an iPhone/iPad or an Android phone/Android tablet could buy it once and play on both the phone and the tablet.

I wouldn't spend $7 for an app that isn't Universal.

I think that's part of it. The other big part is that it doesn't have Xbox Live integration. They really need to patch that in and make it a universal app. I think that the fact that Windows 10 is coming soon, though, has made that unlikely.

 

[Laura Knotek]

I think that's part of it. The other big part is that it doesn't have Xbox Live integration. They really need to patch that in and make it a universal app. I think that the fact that Windows 10 is coming soon, though, has made that unlikely.

I don't care about Xbox Live integration, since I don't own an Xbox or any gaming console. I'm a Steam PC gamer. However, I do buy Universal apps. If I'm going to pay more then $0.99 for apps, they need to be Universal apps.

 

[wuiyang]

i think this is how it calculate
sort by: total download of the period of the time it published till now

while it should be like this
sort by: total download of the period within 30 days

 

[Darthbobcat]

I wonder if the Top Paid section is All Time, rather than current? Sonic CD has been on there since the Windows Phone 7 days (and it's a really awesome port), so by dint of having a lot of time in the store, it would accumulate purchases. Same with Plants.

 

[Visa Declined]

App Annie App Store Stats | Windows Phone Top App Charts United States - All

 

[rhapdog]

You are misinterpreting what I meant by that statement.

Exactly! I never interpreted what you meant, but instead I interpreted what you wrote.

The moral of this story is to write what you mean.

 

[coip]

I wonder if the Top Paid section is All Time, rather than current? Sonic CD has been on there since the Windows Phone 7 days (and it's a really awesome port), so by dint of having a lot of time in the store, it would accumulate purchases. Same with Plants.

A developer once said that using the number of user ratings in the store is a decent proxy for total sales. Sonic CD's total ratings in the U.S. market do not indicate that the game sold that well (which is also supported by the fact that Sega soon thereafter bailed on Windows Phone development), certainly not well enough to dominate the Top Paid list for years--unless it is an anomaly where everyone buys it but no one rates it.

 

[Darthbobcat]

A developer once said that using the number of user ratings in the store is a decent proxy for total sales. Sonic CD's total ratings in the U.S. market do not indicate that the game sold that well (which is also supported by the fact that Sega soon thereafter bailed on Windows Phone development), certainly not well enough to dominate the Top Paid list for years--unless it is an anomaly where everyone buys it but no one rates it.

I know I bought it first thing, but neglected to rate it.

 

[coip]

I know I bought it first thing, but neglected to rate it.

According to developers, the rate of ratings is pretty consistent. It's unlikely that Sonic CD is one extreme anomaly to that rule, despite your forgetfulness.