Pokemon Go is making LOADS of money and has a surprising number of active players
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Loading... - Nina Debevec
- 07 Nov 2021
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Pokemon Go might get less attention from young people than Fortnite these days, but it's still massively profitable after raking in $73 million through in-app purchases in October.
The bumper October this year is a big increase over the same time last year when the company made $43.6 million according to estimates by Sensortower.
The big money made by the game means the publisher, Niantic, has now made more than $2 billion from it.
Estimates suggest that around 5 million people are still playing the game every day. Japan has a slight lead in total players with 33.2 per cent of the total, but US players are still active too with 32.9 per cent of the total
And while the game might be less popular with casual gamers now, it's clearly still popular with those who matter - paying customers.
While Pokemon Go is free to play, there are a number of in-app purchases that help keen players progress or just create a character style.
Sunglasses for your avatar cost between 160 and 400 coins. Hats cost as much as 200, although many options are also free.
Players can also buy so-called loot boxes for as much as 1500 coins. It costs around £0.80 to buy 100 coins so the most expensive loot box is more than £10.
Niantic offers keen players the chance to buy 14,500 coins for a staggering £99.99.
Pokemon Go is even proving to be more popular than Fortnite, occupying number seven in Sensortower's estimates. Fortnite is at number eight in the chart.
Naturally, Pokemon Go is somewhat sensitive to seasonal weather. Last year the game was less popular during winter months as by its nature it demands players head outside to enjoy and catch a good range of Pokemon.
Niantic is also just about to update its original game, Ingress. The company used data collected from Ingress players as the basis for Pokemon Go, using it to decide where to place Pokestops.
