Matej Lancaric

Your favourite UA & gaming podcasts in one place

two & a half gamers session #42 – Sexist ads admon side, Gold & Goblins full UA, Admon, GD review

10. decembra 2022 19:30

Welcome to our #42 episode of two & half gamers! In this episode we covered various topics:

Agenda

  • 00:00 Intro
  • 03:32 Matej with T-Shirt on (fans want, fans get)
  • 04:05 Good Job Singular Webinar
  • 04:49 Modern Arnold Schwarzenegger
  • 05:12 Battle against the sexist ads begins
  • 05:48 Sexist ads admon perspective
  • 06:47 Decimals – the Signature admon move 
  • 10:38 Jakub thinks FTC blocks the M&A of Activision
  • 12:46 Golds & Goblins intro
  • 14:02 Felix & Jakub take a guess about certain monetisation strategy
  • 15:19 UA channel mix of Gold & Goblins
  • 16:49 How much money are they spending?
  • 17:27 Cats come here for decimals!
  • 17:40 EHM!
  • 18:25 Creative strategy
  • 19:43 Matej makes a surprise prediction
  • 21:21 Ad monetisation deep dive 
  • 21:59 Give me your lunch decimals!
  • 25:17 Scandinavians love Goblins!
  • 26:42 Admon is working super well, dont touch it!
  • 27:11 Jakub and Felix invite you to sign up to Matej’s newsletter at lancaric.me
  • 27:45 Idle genre history lesson
  • 34:49 Gold & Goblins core gameplay
  • 39:19 Pacing is important for exponential growth
  • 40:00 Design space for system and vectors
  • 40:15 Felix wants to hear about the ads, Felix wants to hear about the ads
  • 44:36 Little bit of the game design improvements
  • 45:10 JAKUB HAS SEEN IT ALL 
  • 47:20 People should talk about the game more, its excellent! 
  • 48:28 Retention numbers

Listen in to learn more! 

Please share feedback and comments – matej@lancaric.me

two & a half gamers session #41 – Stop with sexist ads, Q4 Admn round up, Goddess of Victory review

6. decembra 2022 14:04

Welcome to our #41 episode of two & half gamers! In this episode we covered various topics:

Agenda

  • 00:00 Intro
  • 04:12 Felix and his Q4 admon fun stuff
  • 05:06 Jakub yawning because Felix is boring audience with economics and BS
  • 07:35 no wishy-washy predictions – decimals makes a difference for fucks sake
  • 08:34 No BS Felix pls
  • 09:35 Biggest eCPM gains (go big or go home)
  • 11:48 Top Admon tips for Xmas
  • 12:23 Jakub brainfarted on admon networks
  • 14:00 Felix shills his own admon blogpost. Dont read it pls!
  • 14:44 UA intro of Goddess of Victory: Nikke
  • 17:00 Why is the game earning so much money?
  • 19:06 UA mix review
  • 19:41 no fake creatives, but sexist AF
  • 21:48 new wave of sexist ads emerging for match3 and merge games
  • 22:40 tactile games started this new trend unfortunately
  • 24:45 STOP WITH THE SEXIST ADS NOW!
  • 27:25 UA Rant over
  • 28:12 Matej shut up, your surface level review is not enough
  • 29:08 Super boring Jakub intro about Goddess of Victory: Nikke
  • 33:00 5 million downloads and 83 million revenue
  • 33:40 Nerds vs Otakus (gimme your lunch money OTAKU!)
  • 38:45 The secret sauce of Waifu games
  • 40:15 That pool vs deadpool making money
  • 46:11 Azur lane liveops
  • 47:30 Nikke revenue by country
  • 48:30 Remoson was born
  • 53:30 Waifu differentiators

Listen in to learn more! 

Please share feedback and comments – matej@lancaric.me

two & a half gamers session #40 – Q4 Live ops tips, Q4 UA Budget optimisations, Admon bidder updates

20. novembra 2022 20:39

Welcome to our #40 episode of two & half gamers! In this episode we covered various topics:

Agenda

  • 00:00 Intro
  • 03:05 Kudos to us
  • 05:10 Newzoo forecast clickbait 
  • 07:10 Felix can’t write headlines
  • 08:15 but can predict 2023 industry growth (only after thanksgiving though)
  • 09:00 Google struck a deal with Activision – getting sued
  • 12:38 Felix is looking forward to the best days in his life
  • 13:09 Google bidder update (approach your Admob friend for beta)
  • 14:50 Amazon Publisher Services update
  • 16:51 Predictions suck
  • 17:13 Q4 is tough (only Felix is happy)
  • 19:09 Redecor stopped UA totally
  • 21:00 Budget scenarios
  • 23:53 How to decrease budget efficiently?
  • 26:04 Q4 UA tips for Megacorps 
  • 27:30 CARPE YOLO!
  • 27:57 Rapid creative testing
  • 28:23 No Holiday BS pls
  • 28:40 No UA experiments
  • 30:54 Getting pleasure from watching Ads
  • 32:57 Heroes vs Hordes is growing
  • 33:40 Q4 Liveops tips & prep
  • 43:34 Azur lane & Township adding mini games as Liveops events

Listen in to learn more! 

Please share feedback and comments – matej@lancaric.me

two & a half gamers session #39 – How to do a game review? Rush Royale full UA, GD, Admon analysis

12. novembra 2022 19:40

Welcome to our #39 episode of two & half gamers! In this episode we covered various topics:

Agenda

  • 00:00 Intro
  • 04:04 My.games was removed from App store & GP
  • 05:00 Why did it happen? Oligarchs much?
  • 08:11 How do you do a game review properly?
  • 08:40 UA review in general. What to look for?
  • 10:20 Unfortunate news. Diversify the diversification t-shirts stuck in China. 
  • Pre-order now at matej@lancaric.me
  • 13:27 Reviewing individual UA channels
  • 14:40 UA benchmarks
  • 15:50 Rush Royale creatives strategy
  • 19:40 How to approach the game review from the product side?
  • 20:50 Wild Detective Pikachu appears
  • 25:40 Product trick how to do a fast review
  • 29:00 You need to know the archetypes 
  • 29:50 Jakub & his balloons
  • 31:00 Habby examples
  • 31:23 What is the difference between the core gameplay and game meta with examples?
  • 33:27 Explaining excel sheets to random industry peeps
  • 34:15 Pacing is a delicate balancing act
  • 36:33 My.games portfolio 
  • 36:35 Jakub is geeking out on the Rush Royale product review 
  • 42:50 Jakub is happy Maria is on the pod 
  • 43:35 The BEST part of the product review – Ad monetisation
  • 45:30 6 ads placements 
  • 46:52 Hypothetical question: Should you add ad monetisation to the game or bank on the premium feel? 
  • 48:30 Marvel Snap AdWINK
  • 48:50 Felix magical Daily Ad revenue estimate calculation 
  • 51:15 How critical is it to hire an expert in Admon?
  • 54:00 Ad network mix review
  • 56:00 What to add into the mix to get ARPDAU higher by 5% 
  • 58:50 How to select the games for review?
  • 1:00:00 How do you know what to look for? 
  • 1:01:00 How do you define interesting live ops?
  • 1:03:00 Please share the podcast with your industry friends, dogs & cats. Especially cats! They love it

Listen in to learn more! 

Please share feedback and comments – matej@lancaric.me

two & a half gamers session #38 – Q4 Admon pro tips, Survivor.io clone Heroes vs. Hordes, TikTok SPC

5. novembra 2022 19:15

Welcome to our #38 episode of two & half gamers! In this episode we covered various topics:

Agenda

  • 00:00 Intro
  • 02:30 Podcast agenda
  • 04:18 How to maximise Ad revenue for a holiday season? 
  • 05:33 Mariah Carey made over 50mil! Devs, please look at her..
  • 06:50 Q4 Admon tip 1
  • 08:52 Q4 Admon tip 2
  • 10:20 Q4 Admon tip 3 (how to make $26k extra/year)
  • 13:38 Mr.Robot Remiar gives a compliment to Felix 
  • 14:40 Admob people please leave here!
  • 14:42 Q4 Admon super pro tip 4
  • 16:37 Admob people please come back here!
  • 16:43 UA Q4 intro
  • 17:43 Seasonal creatives in UA
  • 20:40 New TikTok SPC campaign
  • 23:00 SPC campaign perfomance
  • 23:52 Noob question from non-UA Jakub
  • 24:50 How could you get the best performance on SPC campaign? 
  • 25:52 Facebook UA vs TikTok UA?
  • 27:57 War of Clones – Heroes vs. Hordes intro
  • 28:42 Brief UA check 
  • 30:11 Jakub’s excitement about Heroes vs. Hordes is immense
  • 32:10 Timelines
  • 33:40 Heroes vs. Hordes numbers 
  • 34:40 Vectors & systems
  • 39:00 Is survivor.io or Heroes vs. Hordes niche?
  • 41:14 Marvel Snap patchnotes

Listen in to learn more! 

Please share feedback and comments – matej@lancaric.me

two & a half gamers session #37 – Marvel Snap global launch case study UA, GD, Admon view

31. októbra 2022 19:20

Welcome to our #37 episode of two & half gamers! In this episode we covered various topics:

Agenda

  • 00:00 Intro
  • 03:20 Second Dinner company intro
  • 05:40 Jakub being rude!
  • 06:50 Channel mix (Facebook is the biggest spender)
  • 07:30 How to stop pouring UA money down the drain
  • 08:55 GEO revenue mix
  • 09:40 GEO mix both Android and iOS in terms of spend
  • 10:45 Shotgun UA approach
  • 11:30 how to run CCG UA on ad networks?
  • 15:05 Tiktok UA strategy
  • 16:50 Creative strategy 
  • 21:42 Admon intro
  • 22:55 Ads vs Marvel license?
  • 24:50 Highest AdARPDAUs 
  • 25:00 Ad realm of speculations
  • 26:40 Missing out on $500k of Ads? 
  • 28:10 Game design & Second dinner team intro 
  • 28:45 Good old mulligan
  • 31:00 Gwent vs Marvel Snap comparison
  • 33:45 what can you buy for hard cold cash?
  • 34:00 pre-scripted pools of cards
  • 37:30 Rock-paper-scissors 
  • 39:20 You can’t speed up the game with money!
  • 40:50 calculating the spending depth
  • 45:57 Win rate increases retention

Listen in to learn more! 

Please share feedback and comments – matej@lancaric.me

two & a half gamers session #36 – Google AdROAS campaigns, Admon Exchanges, Survivor.io update

17. októbra 2022 22:16

Welcome to our #36 episode of two & half gamers! In this episode we covered various topics:

Agenda

  • 00:00 Intro
  • 03:23 Google AdROAS campaigns
  • 09:25 Hamburger optimisation approach
  • 10:30 Proxy events BS
  • 12:30 Proxy event test suggestions
  • 15:20 Ads are beautiful
  • 16:00 Exchanges are growing
  • 20:40 Inventory LOL!
  • 22:31 Admon Super secret & super helpful tip
  • 24:00 IT’S JUST ONE LINE OF CODE! 
  • 26:18 Admon tip no.2
  • 26:44 Survivor.io observations & updates
  • 28:08 Props to us
  • 30:40 What is a horizontal content?
  • 35:10 1.5Mil USD /day revenue!
  • 35:20 Retention metrics Archero vs Survivor.io

Listen in to learn more! 

Please share feedback and comments – matej@lancaric.me

two & a half gamers session #35 – Charge Champions in SL, Facebook UA tech checklist, Amplify update

17. októbra 2022 22:13

Welcome to our #35 episode of two & half gamers! In this episode we covered various topics:

Agenda

  • 00:00 Intro
  • 03:40 Amplify update
  • 05:50 App open ads getting Interstitials 
  • 08:10 Wild hostile Remo appears 
  • 10:10 Branding comes to Applovin exchange
  • 12:25 High five to Felix (check on youtube!)
  • 13:10 How developers earn more money from Brand ads?
  • 14:05 Vessel – a new NFT marketplace
  • 23:30 Facebook User Acquisition tech checklist
  • 29:43 App-ads.txt importance
  • 31:00 Is Tiktok as complicated as Facebook?
  • 32:00 This week in Japan 
  • 32:18 Charge Champions soft launched by Small Giant Games 
  • 33:10 Uma Musume Pretty Derby intro 
  • 36:00 Demographics of Uma Musume Pretty Derby
  • 38:40 Definition of a Horse Girl
  • 41:30 Small giant games soft launch release 

Listen in to learn more! 

Please share feedback and comments – matej@lancaric.me

two & a half gamers session #34 – Low budget UA, Sheep a Sheep game in China, APS Update, Amazon UA

5. októbra 2022 10:51

Welcome to our #34 episode of two & half gamers! In this episode we covered various topics:

Agenda

  • 00:00 Intro
  • 01:50 PGC vibe & news
  • 04:20 Amazon Publisher Services update
  • 11:40 UA on Amazon
  • 18:02 Global launch newsletter tip humiliation 
  • 22:30 Low budget UA tips
  • 26:30 When to increase budgets?
  • 28:40 Sheep a Sheep game exploding in China
  • 37:20 Is this game making 7 Million revenue a day?

Listen in to learn more! 

Please share feedback and comments – matej@lancaric.me

two & a half gamers session #33 – The UA (r)evolution, from fake ads to fake core gameplay in games

25. septembra 2022 21:17

Welcome to our #33 episode of two & half gamers! In this episode we covered various topics:

Agenda

  • 00:00 Intro
  • 05:00 Why developers use fake ads?
  • 06:00 Why is it happening? 
  • 08:00 Reviews? 
  • 12:00 Facebook banning the fake ads? how about nope
  • 13:20 Fake ads as a funnel
  • 14:30 What affects the CPI?
  • 16:50 fake core gameplay as an evolving trend
  • 18:30 evolution fake ads
  • 24:00 8 million a month revenue for 5 year old game with 0 changes
  • 27:20 Is Jakub a changed man after getting covid? 
  • 27:30 Is Kingdom Guard a tower defense? WRONG!
  • 34:40 X-Hero example
  • 36:00 Fake ads = game play illusion 
  • 37:00 Best predictor of creative performance? 
  • 38:20 End cards 
  • 39:10 3 click end card template
  • 42:55 „You don’t need to have great creatives“, Felix
  • 45:20 Real data for longer end cards

Listen in to learn more! 

Please share feedback and comments – matej@lancaric.me

two & a half gamers session #32 – Global launch games like a pro, Playrix GL rumour, Google updates

19. septembra 2022 21:24

Welcome to our #32 episode of two & half gamers! In this episode we covered various topics:

Agenda

  • 00:00 Intro
  • 03:20 Admob Bidder update
  • 05:19 Google tROAS update
  • 07:24 Roblox bringing ads into the experiences next year
  • 10:35 New Marvel AR game is coming
  • 14:43 Marvel snap launches in October
  • 17:31 Global launching like a pro intro!
  • 18:26 What does global launch mean for ad mon?
  • 19:59 Top Ad networks to start with 
  • 20:30 strong GEO centric Ad networks
  • 23:00 Admon first game launch ever I’d say start with in USA:
    • iOS
      • $210 iOS – on RVs $200 iOS – on Inters $9 iOS – Banners
    • Android
      • $200 Android – Rewarded $200 Android – Inters $10 Android Banners
  • 26:00 What are add.app.txt & info.plist files
  • 27:30 A/B testing during Global launch
  • 29:00 Game Design starting with content pipeline
  • 29:53 99% of games don’t make money during soft launch
  • 30:30 Please hire Jakub Remiar for motivational speeches / motivate your company
  • 32:00 Optimal content for global launch
  • 33:30 Simulate your spend depth & how to do it?
  • 36:20 Have conversion offers ready (ideally in monetisation stage)
  • 38:00 Events!
  • 39:00 Balance game as fast as you can!
  • 41:00 Global launch black screen issues
  • 42:00 What questions do you need to ask yourself?
  • 42:54 Gardenscapes rumour
  • 43:43 Big splash GL over
  • 45:20 Cashflow for global launch
  • 46:30 UA team experience
  • 47:10 Creatives 
  • 49:00 Budget scenarios
  • 51:10 Simplified UA structure for global launch

Listen in to learn more! 

Please share feedback and comments – matej@lancaric.me

two & a half gamers session #31 – survivor.io redemption story, You scaled your game, now what?

11. septembra 2022 21:23

Welcome to our #31 episode of two & half gamers! In this episode we covered various topics:

Agenda

  • 00:00 Intro
  • 02:11 Survivor.io redemption story
  • 09:10 Matej was correct about $500k/day IAA estimation
  • 11:50 UA tips article
  • 12:50 You scaled your game, now what?
  • 13:50 What does scale mean in terms of Ads monetisation? 
  • 15:00 Top Ad networks you need in mediation at scale
  • 17:00 Never put interstitials or banners in your game (or?)
  • 19:00 What is refresh rate for banners?
  • 20:30 Cool rewarded video placements
  • 26:00 Game design vectors intro
  • 29:10 Talent grid system example
  • 33:00 Lazy game design or efficient
  • 36:30 in UA „I scaled a game doesn’t exist“
  • 37:45 Golden cohort explanation
  • 40:30 Experimenting in UA
  • 41:00 Incrementality tests
  • 42:30 Top UA channels to work with
  • 44:00 UA is changing at scale on a weekly basis
  • 44:30 More creatives at scale
  • 46:30 New pair of eyes in UA

Listen in to learn more! 

Please share feedback and comments – matej@lancaric.me