Fire Emblem Heroes is Nintendo’s most popular mobile game, makes $1 billion

gamepur.com:

Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes is the big talking point among the fanbase, what with it having just released and being a massive hit with fans and critics alike. While that game is set to be another financial hit for Nintendo, the company is also seeing success with the mobile game spin-off Fire Emblem Heroes.

It was already a proven success even during the early days of its life cycle, grossing over $400 million only a year after it launched. More recently, the game managed to surpass $1 billion, reiterating it as Nintendo’s most popular and profitable mobile release.

This is according to a new report by Sensor Tower, which adds that Mario Kart Tour and Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp share second place, having made $282 million each since they launched. Dragalia Lost comes third with $168 million, although it will soon be shutting down in July.

Funnily enough, Fire Emblem Heroes only comes fourth in terms of download numbers. Since it launched in 2017, it’s been downloaded 17.8 million times, whereas Super Mario Run (which has only made $87 million) takes the top spot with a whopping 310.7 million downloads.

This is probably because Mario has far more mainstream appeal, plus the game being much simpler to play as it’s just an endless runner platformer. Fire Emblem Heroes, by comparison, retains the series tactical strategy gameplay. What has likely made it more profitable, however, is its gacha mechanics, which allows players to recruit a wide range of characters across the series’ history. With it still being updated to this day, we wouldn’t be surprised if Three Hopes protagonist Shez is included at some point.

Japan has been where Fire Emblem Heroes has made most of its money, raking up $540.6 million, which is