Mobile apps are getting a closer look, thanks to a series of viral videos breaking down how some of the world’s most popular games make money.
Ayo O, co-founder of YC-backed startup a0.dev, has been posting detailed “reverse engineering” videos on X, examining the advertising, monetization and user retention strategies behind popular mobile apps.
His recent breakdown of Subway Surfers attracted attention, and his latest video on Candy Crush is now going viral.
Why This Matters
Mobile gaming is a massive business, driven by sophisticated advertising and monetization strategies. And there’s a lot more happening behind the scenes than most players realize.
Some key takeaways from Ayo’s breakdowns:
Candy Crush: According to Ayo, the game tracks how close players are to completing a level using a metric called “pass proximity,” adjusting difficulty in real time to keep players engaged. That same metric also influences monetization. For example, the closer a player is to winning, the smaller the reward they may receive for watching an ad. It also feeds into a machine learning model that determines the value of in-app purchase offers.
Subway Surfers: Ayo found that the game evaluates up to 158 factors about each player, including spending history and ad exposure, to personalize everything from shop prices and power-ups to gameplay. He also identified 112 different versions of the game being tested simultaneously, with each ad impression tracked for revenue and tied to a specific test version.
The big takeaway — these games are constantly adjusting gameplay, advertising and monetization to keep players engaged and generate revenue. It’s impressive!
Experts React
Here’s another breakdown from Ayo, this time examining Tinder’s business model:
Our Take
These videos are going viral precisely because mobile app monetization is such a black box for most consumers.
Mobile games are wildly sophisticated in how they attract users, keep them coming back and turn that engagement into revenue. Everything from the user experience to the advertising strategy can be carefully designed to maximize retention and monetization.
What’s interesting here is that we’re getting a mobile app expert to pull back the curtain and show, in considerable detail, just how sophisticated these businesses really are.
