Fallout Shelter Brings In Over $5 Million in Two Weeks

[Steven Bogos]

Fallout Shelter Brings In Over $5 Million in Two Weeks

If you're wondering why more and more devs are going down the route of smartphone development... well, here's your answer.

Fallout Shelter, Bethesda's Fallout mobile app [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/141169-Fallout-Shelter-Mobile-Game-Launches-for-itunes], has been doing pretty well for itself since its launch last month. Extremely well, in fact, as sales tracking organization SuperData reports that the game raked in over $5 million dollars in just two weeks. If you're wondering why more and more devs are going down the microtansaction-heavy mobile game path, well, there's your answer right there.

Fallout Shelter is, like a vast majority of iOS titles, free-to-play with "optional" microtransactions. In Fallout Shelter's case, the microtransactions entail lunchboxes full of goodies that help build up your vault quicker. While it is possible to play the whole game free, coughing up a few bucks here and there certainly helps.

For some context, Fallout 3 sold just 610,000 units in its first month, which is fairly impressive for a full-priced console/PC game but only adds up to a mere $18.3 million.

Have you played Fallout Shelter? Have you spent any money on its in-game store yet, and if so, how much did you spend?

Source: Games Radar [http://www.gamesradar.com/fallout-shelter-sales-51-million-two-weeks/]

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[Jeyl]

I've pent $20 on it during it's 4th of July sale because I was actually enjoying the app to a degree that I thought $20 would be what I would have paid for a game like this before the FTP model was utilized. The game is still solid, if a bit quick to finish. The lunchboxes gives weapons, armor and some named character from the previous games, but nothing that I would consider essential.

For example, there are no pay walls in this game. Everything that requires time will never last more than a day (Excelption being sending out a dweller to look for stuff), and there is no "pay to finish now" method which is really refreshing. I felt like that making my own vault would be on par with everyone else. And lunchboxes? You'll earn quite a few the more objectives you complete, so don't worry about not ever seeing them.

Only downside is that if you play your cards right, you could lose your interest in the game pretty quickly once you have at least one of every room. About the only thing you have to look forward to are future updates that promise more stuff, or getting more caps to re-orginize your vault to your liking. Once you've got a lot of production facilities, caps will rise quite steadily enough.

So yeah. Give it a spin and see what kind of treats you get on your first go. Also, Enclave Armor!

 

[Darth_Payn]

Now if it would stop crashing on my iPad, I would like it more. As soon as I get 30 dwellers and/or 4 floors to my Vault, it won't even load anymore.

 

[Zontar]

My feelings on any mention of the game.

Spoiler

 

[harrisongrimms]

If I could, id play the shit out of this game, as it is a rare example of a GOOD free to play game.

But alas, it wont be available on android for abojt another month.

If it made this mouch on ios devices, which only have an estimated 13% market saturation, imagine what it would do with android.

 

[Eternal Visitor]

what most micro-transaction heavy titles fail at, and where fallout shelter succeeds, is not forcing the cash store stuff down your throat. I've been playing happily for weeks and never once felt the game was trying to milk me, I send my two wasteland explorers out, they come back with sweet gear (my best weapons were from expeditions, a pair of plasma rifles I use to defend my vault from raiders) and my vault is perfectly supplied with no issues unless I do something stupid, and I'm always able to rebound. to date, I've not spent a single penny on the game, and it's still fun.


it's a shame more games aren't built that way, cause mobile gaming would be SSOOO much better if they were.

 

[newwiseman]

I haven't paid a penny for the game. Maybe I would if I could play the game past 30 vault residents, my 5th gen iPod and iPad crash constantly.

I think its a RAM issue, I'm planning on getting the new 128GB iPod to stay in the Apple ecosystem. Hopefully it will handle the game better, if not I'll just have to keep waiting for an Android version (that ideally will run fine on my Nexus 5)

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

My feelings on any mention of the game.

Spoiler

I too am curious as to why there wasn't a simultaneous launch.

 

[chozo_hybrid]

If it would run without crashing every 5 minutes, that would be great.

My feelings on any mention of the game.

Spoiler

I too am curious as to why there wasn't a simultaneous launch.

Because the apple guys helped create the game? They said something like that when they announced ti at e3.

 

[aaronexus]

If it would run without crashing every 5 minutes, that would be great.

My feelings on any mention of the game.

Spoiler

I too am curious as to why there wasn't a simultaneous launch.

Because the apple guys helped create the game? They said something like that when they announced ti at e3.

It wasn't so much that they helped build the game as it was they worked with Bethesda to get it launched without the usual red tape, or at least that was my impression.

My opinion of the game is that it's buggy but adorable. I think it wasn't meant to be run on anything but the newest iPhone/iPad, and my iPad 3 struggles, sometimes. Ah, well. And I do know an Android user who is quite put out that he has to wait so long. I figure they just didn't have the manpower to do simultaneous development. They've only got a hundred guys to do everything, after all.

 

[Shiftygiant]

It's almost like making micro-transactions optional and not putting up pay walls make people want to play the game.

 

[BarskeLars]

I don't even have one of them clever telephones..

 

[Something Amyss]

I would probably play this if it was on Android, but alas.

It's almost like making micro-transactions optional and not putting up pay walls make people want to play the game.

Are you suggesting that players might actually volunteer money if not tricked and trapped by publishers? I have never heard such tripe!

...but yeah. I'm more likely to put money into a game that doesn't nag or coerce me. Weird, eh?

 

[Fijiman]

My feelings on any mention of the game.

Spoiler

That image is awesome, mostly because I find it hilarious to see the Vault Boy angry/annoyed. I agree though that it's annoying that android users are being forced to wait, but at the same time I probably wouldn't play it anyway because I don't play game on my phone.

 

[Tireseas_v1legacy]

My feelings on any mention of the game.

Spoiler

Damn you Bethesda! We'll whore ourselves out to you if you just drop it for Android... I mean, I've already got the dress and fishnets for Fallout 4...

 

[RJ 17]

Anyone more depressed rather than impressed by this news due to how it fully encourages the microtransaction culture of game development?

 

[hazydawn]

I don't even have one of them clever telephones..

Me neither.
All these youngsters with their crazy thingamajigs. Let me tell you, back in my day, ho, ho, we'd be ashamed of paying to get ahead in a game! However miniscule!

Anyone more depressed rather than impressed by this news due to how it fully encourages the microtransaction culture of game development?

Me :0 The first post here mentions spending 20 bucks on it. In my opinion far too much for such a cheap to make game. I really hate microtransactions...

 

[Ylla]

So, you have an awesome IP, you make a mobile game with optional microtransactions and a multiplatform RPG with paid DLC....
And you earn hecktons of money....

WHY COULDNT YOU DO THE SAME FRIGGING THING KONAMI!!!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

 

[Dalek Caan]

Calling it now. This Free-To-Play App game that has completely optional content to buy and no pay-walls will make more money than the DICE/EA Battlefront game.

 

[AngryPuppy]

I've got an iPhone 4s. I can't play it.