Low risk, long lifecycle games
Stillfront acquires and develops game studios and let them operate freely in a decentralized structure for the purpose of creating a diversified portfolio of games. Our titles are typically long lifecycle games with a loyal user base and stable revenues. The active portfolio, generating revenues every day, consists of some 40 games divided into three categories: Strategy; Simulation, RPG & Action; and Casual & Mash-up. The portfolio mix engenders strong cash flow and enables for positive synergies between studios, leading to organic growth.
Stillfront operates in a highly competitive market, in which we compete with other game developers, as well as other forms of digital entertainment. The industry is consolidating as the major players, especially publishers and distributors, are expanding and acquiring studios globally. What is paramount for Stillfront is that we offer a diversified portfolio of games with broad appeal to gamers, developed and produced organically or through acquisitions, and that we work methodically to improve the retention of our games throughout their lifetime.
Our strategies to mitigate risk
In an industry that produces a profusion of new releases and a few monster hits, we deploy two primary strategies to mitigate risk; the first is to have a diversified portfolio of games and the second is to develop games with long lifetime value that can sustain healthy revenue levels for years and even decades to come. This, in turn, forms the basis and provides the cash-flow for developing and financing new launches.
Stillfront’s studios design, produce and market free-to-play (F2P) games. F2P games enable us to develop games in an iterative fashion with a minor initial investment. The free-to-play segment is a data-driven, process-oriented business. We develop, test, iterate and optimize our games in close cooperation with our users. F2P games allow the user access to the game without paying for it. The users are then able to make purchases or pay for access to new content throughout the lifetime of the game.
Recurring income, at a low cost, is driven by the ability to retain users over a longer period. Our games usually have a long lifecycle and can be extended through continual updates. Regular updates are made continuously in the games to maintain and create new interest among users. This is called live ops. By actively managing the portfolio and working systematically with live ops across our markets, we can increase both retention and monetization in our games.
Positioned to grow
Stillfront is well positioned to grow faster than the market in the coming years with our portfolio of games and game engines across all major platforms, with a focus on the mobile market, which is growing fastest of all.
Stillfront’s platform enables for positive synergies across our gaming studios. By leveraging user data derived from more than 2 billion game downloads, our studios can share best-practice across geographies and benefit from being part of the same group. Our strong brands and marketing skills in the F2P model, paired with a strong track-record of value creating acquisitions, provide a good platform for continued strong growth well above the market for many years to come.
