Assassin's Creed Mirage and More AAA Games Reportedly Underperforming on iOS
Estimates for Resident Evil 4 and Assassin's Creed Mirage's Apple versions are dismal.
Apple devices like the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max might be capable of handling AAA games like Assassin's Creed Mirage, Resident Evil 4, and Resident Evil Village, but that doesn't mean a lot of people are actually doing so. According to a new report from Mobile Gamer, it seems that AAA games are selling pretty poorly, with estimates of around 3,000 purchases for Assassin's Creed Mirage, 7,000 for Resident Evil 4, and 5,750 for Resident Evil Village. All of these games offer trial downloads for free, and those numbers are significantly higher for each game, but it seems the percentage of people actually buying them is pretty low.
Readers should note that these are only estimates, and some outlets have what Mobile Gamer calls "more optimistic" numbers. Regardless, it seems very few people are actually spending money to experience AAA gaming on their iPhones and iPads, despite this push from Apple. This likely won't have an immediate impact on future games coming to the platform; we already know that Capcom has plans to bring more Resident Evil games to Apple devices, including Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 7 Biohazard. However, it doesn't bode well for the future!
As part of its report, Mobile Gamer compared mobile revenue for Assassin's Creed Mirage to Assassin's Creed Rebellion, a 2018 game that was built from the ground-up for mobile. Revenue for Rebellion was 612% higher in its first week, bringing in $981,000 versus $138,000 for Assassin's Creed Mirage since June 6th.
Taking all of this into consideration, it sounds like mobile users are interested in the gaming industry's biggest franchises, but they aren't willing to pay prices like $49.99 for a game on mobile, regardless of whether it comes critically-acclaimed. There are many potential reasons for that; some gamers might not want to spend that kind of money to play a game developed for next-gen systems on a much smaller phone screen. There's also the fact that the average life cycle for phones and mobile devices is a lot shorter than that of a console, or the fact that mobile games are frequently delisted and can't be downloaded after.
Whatever the case might be, these numbers clearly aren't what Apple is hoping for. Mobile Gamer suggests that the company is paying Capcom and Ubisoft to bring these games over, but it remains to be seen how long it will continue to do so if there isn't a financial incentive.
Have you bought any of these games on an Apple device? Is there a reason you won't buy a AAA game on a mobile device? Share your thoughts with me directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp, on Bluesky at @Marcdachamp, or on Instagram at @Dachampgaming!
[H/T: GamesRadar+]
