Why This Matters for Every Mobile Game Marketer
If you're running user acquisition for a mobile game, you know this: creative wins are fleeting, competition is brutal, and attention spans are even shorter than your ad approvals.
So when a game like DC: Dark Legion pulls in $18M in in-app purchases and gets 5M+ installs in just 60 days from launch, it's worth studying. Is it just the IP doing the heavy lifting? Even if so, what is the creative strategy behind the growth?
This is a breakdown of how FunPlus turned superhero drama into a data-backed creative strategy that converts, and what you can take from it to scale your own campaigns.
Also Heres' How Idle Weapon Shop Cracked the Creative Code: 300M+ Playable Ad Impressions
The Anatomy of a Winning Mobile Game Ad (DC Style)
1. Every Top Ad Starts With Urgency
Every single top-performing ad opened with a threat scene - Joker wreaking havoc, Superman falling, cities in chaos. No intros, no logos. Just tension, right out the gate.
Why? Because on YouTube, Facebook, and TikTok, your drop-off cliff starts at 4 seconds.
If you don’t hook fast, you lose the user.
🧠 Try this: Fire, collapsing buildings, or even fake-out gameplay bugs, anything that demands immediate resolution works better than polished branding shots.
2. IP Characters (Still) Do the Heavy Lifting
Segwise’s creative tagging tool analyzed the top creatives and here’s what showed up:
- 62.5% featured Batman or Superman in the first 3 seconds
- 37.5% had Joker as the anchor in the hook scene
- 25% of newer ads showed Aquaman or other lesser popular heroes
- 25% of recent variations used non-IP characters in distress
Familiar characters buy you attention. But FunPlus is smart - they’re already testing life after IP by swapping in generic characters and leaning on emotional storytelling with them instead.
👉 If you're working with limited IP or none at all, focus on universal emotions: rescue, revenge, loss, triumph.
3. Gameplay Shows Up Fast, And It Pays Off
After the hook? Straight into gameplay. No delay.
All winning ads showed:
- Character unlocks
- Base-building mechanics
- Tech upgrades
- Currency visuals (100% of top ads had this)
This isn't just showing off your game, it’s delivering psychological payoff. The viewer needs to feel like they know how it works if they download, what their experience will be like and what they’re winning.
4. The Endings Are Engineered for Curiosity
Not all ads wrap up with a win. In fact, here’s how FunPlus plays it:
Ending Type | % of Ads | Why It Works |
|---|---|---|
Win-State | 50% | Classic payoff, feels satisfying |
Mid-Cut | 37.5% | FOMO. User wants to finish the story |
Fail-State | 12.5% | Builds empathy and challenge appeal |
This mix drives up installs. Why? Because people hate unfinished stories. They’ll click to “finish it” themselves.
What's Changing in Their Creative Tests?
FunPlus isn’t just riding the IP wave, they’re experimenting aggressively.
Here’s what’s new in the last 30 days:
- Non-IP characters used as bait (relatable and cheaper)
- Borrowed hook styles from trending casual games
- Humor and lifestyle tones introduced
- Gameplay depth shown via intro progressions
If your creative library hasn’t evolved in a month, you’re already behind.
Quick Summary: What the Best Ads Had in Common
Creative Element | Seen In | Why It Works |
|---|---|---|
Animated threat hook | 100% | Grabs attention immediately |
Rescue-driven emotion | 100% | Adds urgency, stakes |
Familiar IP characters | 87.5% | Trust + engagement |
Fast gameplay reveal | 100% | Shows value upfront |
Currency visual | 100% | Signals progress and power fantasy |
Mixed endings | 100% | Keeps curiosity high, reduces fatigue |
What Segwise’s AI Tagging Engine Did Differently
You could scroll through every creative and take notes manually.
Or you could let an AI agent/ AI tool like Segwise automatically tag all your creatives and break them down by tag level performance:
- Hook scenes and types
- Characters
- Gameplay mechanics
- Emotions of text or characters
- Ending resolution
- CTAs and Logo placements
That’s what we did at Segwise, but with creative data available on AppMagic, and that's how we surfaced the creative elements and patterns driving installs and ROAS for DC: Dark Legion.
Create high-impact creatives, backed by data
Final Thoughts: You Don’t Need Batman. You Need Better Data.
DC: Dark Legion didn’t just succeed because of DC Comics. It succeeded because the team behind it tested, tagged, and iterated with precision.
They used narrative structure, character psychology, and gameplay payoff, all backed by data.
⚠️ Quick Disclaimer
Performance varies depending on platform, audience, budget, and genre. The above insights reflect observed creative patterns, not guaranteed results. Always A/B test before scaling.
