Now with over 5 million downloads, Battle Cats gears up to move merchandise

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So while I’m on the topic of Japanese tower defense games today (see my post from earlier today on GotchaWarriors), I thought I’d take a moment to update you on Battle Cats, a game that has been a favorite of mine over the past year. Since its initial release back in November, the game has gone on to hit three million downloads on February 25th, and then 4 million on March 26th. And keeping up that million-per-month pace, the game hit 5 million downloads just over a week ago.

nyanko
bbxx.jp

Now I don’t want to make any radical comparisons here, but that’s not far off the pace of Gungho’s hit game Puzzle & Dragons, which has been picking up a million downloads every three weeks or so. Of course Battle Cats – or Nyanko, as it is called in Japan – doesn’t have non-stop TV ads like P&D, so I think this is a pretty impressive feat. Serkan Toto today pointed out a Battle Cats collaboration with Princess Punt Sweets, and I’m sure efforts like this certainly help out a little.

When I interviewed Kyoto-based Ponos last month, the publisher behind the uber-cute game, they confirmed that merchandising was in the works for Battle Cats. And now fans of the game can pre-order some gear right now, as branded mugs, tote bags, and phone straps will go on sale this July (h/t Appbank).

But it’s really encouraging to see such strong character branding here in Japan, where game companies can capitalize on an entirely separate revenue stream.

If you have yet to play Battle Cats check out our video primer below.