Horse racing idols app injects new life into Japan mobile gaming market听
TOKYO 鈥 When an aging racehorse, Makahiki, broke records by winning his first race in five years in Kyoto in early October, Japanese social media was flooded with comments from an unlikely group of racing enthusiasts: gamers.听听
The online outpouring was the latest sign of boundary-spanning for听Uma听Musume听Pretty Derby, the Japanese mobile gaming industry鈥檚 first runaway hit in a decade. The game has found a niche by bridging the historically disparate subcultures of horse racing and women pop stars known as 鈥渋dols.鈥澨听
Players train and race female characters dressed in school- and military-inspired costumes, with the addition of horse ears and tails. Race winners perform a pop concert.听听
The results have been unequivocally spectacular: since it was released in February, the game has generated hundreds of millions of dollars for its creator,听Cygames, and the developer鈥檚 parent, online ad agency听CyberAgent, making it one of the world鈥檚 top-grossing mobile games despite its Japan-only release. At times its user base has rivalled megahits such as Tencent鈥檚听Honor of Kings.听听
鈥淚 was planning to buy a car but figured I don鈥檛 really need one and, since I have savings, why not put all my effort into听Uma听Musume?鈥 said Daiki Minakawa, 25, a software engineer who has spent more than 2 million yen ($18,000) in-game. 鈥淚 can鈥檛 buy a car anymore but I don鈥檛 have any regrets.鈥澨听
The breakout success of听Uma听Musume听鈥 which translates to 鈥渉orse girls鈥 鈥 is a shot in the arm for Japan developers, whose mobile market share has been eroded by an influx of increasingly polished Chinese titles.听听
Gacha, a common mechanic in Japanese titles in which real-world money is used to win special items and power-up characters, is what has made the game so lucrative.听听
Although听Uma听Musume听is free, many users spend on听gacha听鈥 similar to 鈥渓oot boxes鈥 in Western games 鈥 to collect characters and advance.听听
Yohei Tatsumi, 36, a labor and social security attorney, plays in moments of down time and spends 10,000 yen鈥20,000 yen monthly on the title.听听
鈥淚 have no plans to stop,鈥 he said.听听
LED BY GAMERS听
Cygames鈥 assault on gamers鈥 wallets began with the 2018 launch of an听Uma听Musume听animated show, which quickly became a hit.听听
When the game arrived in 2021, industry observers said it was unusually polished for a free-to-play mobile title.听听
鈥淎 lot of leaders in mobile game companies have no connection to the game industry,鈥 said Serkan Toto, founder of the听Kantan听Games consultancy. 鈥淚t鈥檚 different with听Cygames; this company is led by gamers.鈥澨听
Cygames听and听CyberAgent听declined interview requests.听听
The success is all the more notable as gaming firms such as听DeNA听and Nintendo, which both have stakes in听Cygames, have struggled to launch mobile hits.听听
Japan鈥檚 mobile market is dominated by three aging titles:听Mixi鈥檚听Monster Strike,听GungHo鈥檚听Puzzle & Dragons听and听Fate/Grand Order听from Sony鈥檚 music division.听听
Gamers say that听Uma听Musume听is pulling them, and their spending, away from those products.听听
Profit at the gaming unit of听CyberAgent听tripled to 96.4 billion yen ($840 million) in the year ended September, although it slipped in the fourth quarter.听听
The firm declined to make a forecast for the financial year, citing uncertainty over gaming performance.听听
But the game continues to spill over into the real world, with voice artists from the show this month performing at a Tokyo racetrack in costume, with horses running behind them.听听
High-spending users say they remain committed.听听
鈥淚鈥檓 doing听gacha听with love. It鈥檚 for love. I鈥檓 saying 鈥榯hank you鈥 to听Cygames听for giving birth to听Uma听Musume,鈥 Minakawa Said. 鈥斕Sam Nussey/Reuters听听
