News

Pokémon Go Gets 10 Million Downloads in Japan on 1st Day, 75 Million Worldwide

The New York Times newspaper reported last Friday that 10 million people downloaded the Pokémon Go game in its first day of release in Japan last Thursday. Web analytics company Similarweb reports that 24% of Android users in Japan have downloaded the game, surpassing the users of Snapchat, WhatsApp, and KakaoTalk in the country.

In addition, data gathering company SensorTower revealed that the game has 75 million downloads worldwide. The game is now the fastest mobile game to reach 50 million downloads. It achieved the feat in its first 19 days, compared to Color Switch's 77 days.

McDonald's is involved with the introduction of the app to Japan. As part of the deal, the restaurant chain is the game's first official sponsor, and McDonalds restaurants in Japan are now key locations for players.

The Pokémon Go app launched in select countries including the United States on July 6, and has since launched in more than 35 countries. Developer Niantic Labs revealed the team leader characters for the game during San Diego Comic Con last weekend, and is considering adding breeding to the game.

Source: The New York Times (Jonathan Soble), Similarweb (Joseph Schwartz), SensorTower (subimago) via Hachima Kikō (link 2)