Stumble Guys: A Fall Guys Clone Shows How It's Done

Introduction:

"Stumble Guys" is a clone that outshone its parent, Fall Guys, in terms of popularity, being the second most downloaded mobile game of 2022 and developed by only five people. It had surpassed even top-tier franchise games. In today's blog, we shall learn of its complete saga: how it all began, and how it grew to such heights. Moreover, I'll explain why Fall Guys might never make it to the mobile platform and why that could be the biggest mistake of its developers.

Development and Concept:

"Stumble Guys" was developed by Kitco Games, a new game development company in Finland, with only five people. That's right, a band of five brought out the second most downloaded game of 2022. Furthermore, it was their debut game. I mean, the developers had experience, with one having previously worked at Fingersoft and others on games such as Critical Ops. The concept was borrowed from Fall Guys, but the lead developer revealed he had originally meant to create a fast-paced racing game for mobile devices. However, market research showed people were more inclined toward other elements. So, taking inspiration from multiplayer games, they curated this game, adding a twist of their own.

Release and Growth:

What made "Stumble Guys" stand out from other clones is that where other developers simply latched onto the title of Fall Guys in a bid to realize quick money and fame, the developers behind "Stumble Guys" were working to bring out a game that would last with players. They had spent a significant amount of time perfecting the gameplay, striking a balance between its elements, and providing an overall fine experience. Next, we come to its release. As of October 2020, the game had a soft launch on Android just months into the release of Fall Guys. Daily downloads saw a steady increase to reach 80 to 90,000 in January 2021. When the game was released globally across iOS and Android, there were no doubts about large numbers, but their exponential growth had yet to begin. In fact, for a whole year, it remained below the charts, with only a few thousand active players. This proved to be good for the developers as a quick release funneled in player feedback, and not shooting to peak popularity allowed the little team to steadily work on the gameplay elements. Before the end of 2021, daily downloads had climbed to three to four hundred thousand, and then over a million in 2022. On June 25th, it saw 1.5 million downloads, the highest recorded. Likewise, earnings from the game had been increasing exponentially.

Factors Contributing to Success:

The timing was crucial. When "Stumble Guys" came out, people were in quarantine, and social games as a whole received a major push. "Stumble Guys" also saw a surge in downloads when Fall Guys was declared free to play, as people searched for the latter on their phones. It reached the height of its popularity on June 25th. Going ahead, Fall Guys would wear off, but this one is still going strong. A noteworthy reason behind the popularity of "Stumble Guys" was that the original Fall Guys was never made available on the mobile platform, and perhaps it would not arrive for a long time.

Closing Remarks and Call to Action:

One might wonder how Stumble Guys has managed to survive. Well, it wasn't the only clone out there. Another deceptively similar title, Full Gang Knockout, had been removed from the Apple Store after Developer Digital, the former publisher of Fall Guys, reported the game. So why did Stumble Guys not meet a similar plight? We don't know the exact reason, but presumably, Stumble Guys is on a very tightrope between inspiration and copy. It remains to be seen how the game plays out. 

At present, it is extremely popular, even more so than Fall Guys ever was. Then, in collaboration with the YouTuber known as Mr. Beast, the game features new skins, events, and maps based on his unique sets. Even in collaboration with the Hollywood movie Barbie, led more players to discover the game. Already available on Xbox, the game is likely to surface on PlayStation and Nintendo consoles soon. If the developers can pull off interesting collaborations and somehow make them a part of pop culture, then the game can surely stick around for a long time. Otherwise, as is the case with such games, they run wild for a couple of years and then die down for want of innovation.

Conclusion and Future Prospects:

"Stumble Guys" caught the attention of a large mobile game publisher, Scopely, who bought it from Kitty Games. But it was not disclosed how much it was bought for. To sell off the game was the right decision since the team was too small, and with the rates at which the game was climbing in popularity, it could have gotten out of hand before long. On the other hand, Scopely expressed willingness to carry the game to the next level, and they had the resources to do so. The entire story goes to show what a blunder it was to release Fall Guys on mobile devices. 

If Mediatonic had given priority to porting the game to mobile devices from the beginning and released it on time, they could have achieved the success that went to Stumble Guys, and what an even bigger title it would have become. Now, even if a mobile version of Fall Guys does come around, it will have Stumble Guys for competition, whereas Stumble Guys has already broken ground on PCs and has just been released on Xbox. It would go up against Fall Guys on its turf. Thus, in the mobile games business, it is essential to be able to move fast, as thousands of developers would clone a game as soon as it shines.

External Links and Additional Information:

For those who have not Read the blog on the rise and fall of Fall Guys, Click on it. Do Comment, and see you in the next blog. Till then, Goodbye!