Profit is running to millions, says Wargaming.net chief exec
MMO is supported by large Russian market
Military MMO World of Tanks is generating profits in the “double-digit millions” and up to 30 percent of its user base is purchasing content within the game, according to an interview with Wargaming.net chief executive Victor Kislyi on GamesIndustry International.
He said, “We probably have one of the highest payment ratios in the industry. It’s around 25-30 percent, because people love the game. Ironically, the game is not squeezing monetization; it’s not rough. There’s no velvet rope over the gates and you have to buy a key to open it. Some MMOs are like this but we are not. It’s smooth and non-intrusive.
Although reluctant to talk about specific numbers, he said, “Those would be millions of dollars [of profits] per month. Many millions. I’m not going to give you the exact number, but double digits. Not high double digits.”
He added, “For casual gameplay, which most players do most of the time, people don’t usually use gold or expendables. Of course, if you want to win a tournament, if you’re competitive, if you play clan wars, if you want to be at the top, we think it’s appropriate to expect a little bit of money from you because you already spent hundreds of hours in our game and that’s much more than the value of any $50 box.”
Worldwide, the game has gained 20 million registered users. It launched in Russia in April 2010 and later extended into China, North America, and Europe. The bulk of its player base is in Russia where it has 423,000 concurrent users. China is close behind, roping in about 150,000 and the lowest stems from the North America, which sets around 25,000 users.
Given the success of the game, the team has expanded from 120 employees to 800 around the globe. There is also a small team working on World of Warplanes and World of Battleships.
“If you count the last year and a half, we might be the fastest growing company ever, headcount wise and revenue wise. When you see the numbers of Twitter, Facebook or even Google for a year and half we probably outperformed them.”
Wargaming.net plans to expand even more, especially in the Asian regions with the middle-east and Brazil not too far off its radar.