App Icons

Crowd City presents an interesting case with two distinctive icons across iOS and Android. On iOS, we see a bold red character leading a crowd of yellow figures through a cityscape, capturing the essence of the game’s crowd-dominance mechanic. Meanwhile, on Android, we’re treated to a “Santa crowd” running through a winter landscape—clearly a nod to the Christmas season.

Inconsistency Across Platforms

It’s possible that this icon difference is a strategic move, potentially resulting from A/B testing to see what resonates best on each platform. However, this inconsistency might also create confusion for users who search for Crowd City across both platforms. A unified icon design with only slight seasonal tweaks could help reinforce brand recognition, making it easier for players to identify the game regardless of the platform.

Seasonal Design on Android

The Android icon, with its festive hats and scarves, immediately brings Christmas to mind. But as charming as this “Santa crowd” is, the holiday season doesn’t last all year. It leaves us wondering if Voodoo was a bit too busy with its other games to “take off the hats” after Christmas ended! A seasonal theme is engaging during the holidays but may feel out of place once the season passes, potentially impacting the game’s appeal outside the holiday period.

App Screenshots

On both iOS and Android, Voodoo has opted for just four screenshots for Crowd City—well under the max (10 on iOS, 8 on Android).  With so many extra slots available, they’re missing a major opportunity to enhance the game’s appeal and tell a more complete story.

Lack of Descriptive Text: A Missed Opportunity

While the screenshots capture the general gameplay (crowds, chaos, and city takeovers), there’s something missing: captions! Without descriptive text, it’s not immediately clear to new players what they’re getting into. Imagine a screenshot saying, “Build the Largest Crowd Ever” or “Conquer the City Streets!” It would be like a friendly guide standing by, pointing out the highlights.

Captions like “Compete in Real-Time Battles” or “Dominate the Streets” would instantly help potential players understand the game’s objective and set it apart from similar titles. As it stands, the screenshots are a bit like watching a silent film with no subtitles—there’s a plot, but you’re left guessing the details.

Room for Improvement: Creating a Narrative Flow

Another way Crowd City could up its screenshot game? A narrative flow. Start with an image showing the player gathering a small crowd, followed by screenshots of their crowd growing larger and battling other crowds, leading to a triumphant final image of city domination. This step-by-step visual story could take potential players through the game’s progression and make it even more enticing.

Video Previews

Crowd City currently has a preview video on the Apple App Store but none on Google Play. Given the gameplay’s vertical mode and Google Play’s requirement for horizontal videos, it’s understandable why Voodoo may have opted out of creating a preview for Android. However, this choice might be limiting the game’s conversion potential on Google Play, especially since Android users are left without a dynamic visual overview of gameplay.

The preview video on iOS does a good job of showing the core mechanics, with scenes of crowds clashing and the player’s crowd growing in size. However, there’s one noticeable absence: sound. While sound isn’t required, it can make a significant difference in setting the mood and drawing players in emotionally. Think of how a bit of upbeat background music or sound effects for crowd collisions could amplify the excitement and leave potential players more eager to jump in.

Visual Assets Summary

Overall, Crowd City’s visual assets are nice but fall short of being fully effective in capturing new users and maximizing conversion rates. With a bit more strategic attention, these assets could do a better job of conveying the game’s unique appeal.

To perform a thorough keyword analysis for Crowd City, especially on iOS, having access to the full keyword list and performance data would be essential. As an outside observer, my analysis is based on the top keywords where Crowd City currently ranks well. This analysis is focused on the US market, as evaluating every region where the game is available would be a lengthy process.

On iOS, the game ranks primarily for branded keywords such as “Crowd City,” “mob city,” “voodoo games,” “hole io,” and “count master.” While ranking highly for these terms is certainly positive—especially for competitive terms like “Count Master” (a similar game by Freeplay)—relying heavily on branded and competitor-related keywords limits the game’s visibility for users searching for gameplay-specific terms. Ideally, Crowd City would benefit from ranking well for keywords that directly reflect its unique gameplay, such as “grow your crowd,” “multiplayer city domination,” or “crowd-based strategy game.” These terms would better capture the game’s competitive, crowd-building appeal.

On Android, the situation is similar. The game performs well on a few branded and broad keywords, but there’s room to improve its rankings for terms directly related to the gameplay experience. By optimizing the title, short description, and long description (which I’ll analyze in a later section), Crowd City could expand its reach beyond branded keywords and capture more specific search queries aligned with the game’s mechanics.

Crowd City keeps its title and description consistent across iOS and Android, but this minimal approach leaves several opportunities untapped, especially in areas critical for visibility and conversion.

Subtitle (iOS) & Short Description (Android)

Current Subtitle/Short Description: “The real crowd experience!”

While this subtitle is catchy, it falls short in maximizing the potential of the available character limits, especially on Google Play. On iOS, where subtitles have a maximum of 30 characters, this phrase is suitable but could be optimized for clarity. However, on Android, the short description allows up to 80 characters and plays a significant role in both keyword ranking and conversion. Using only 26 characters here is a missed opportunity to provide more detail and target relevant search terms.

Descriptions

Current Description on both iOS & Android: “Become the biggest crowd in town! Gather people across the city and crush your opponents with your overwhelming leadership!”

The iOS description is short and to the point but feels static and lacks engagement. While the iOS description doesn’t directly impact keyword rankings, it’s still a vital factor for conversion. The two sentences currently in use don’t offer any calls to action or engaging language to encourage downloads, which could limit its effectiveness in converting potential players.

Unlike iOS, the long description on Google Play directly impacts keyword rankings. However, Crowd City’s Android description mirrors iOS with only two sentences. This approach misses the opportunity to leverage keyword-rich language, which could improve visibility significantly.

Crowd City’s ratings and reviews reveal interesting trends and highlight areas where recent user feedback could be better managed to enhance the game’s performance on both Android and iOS. The game’s ratings on each platform tell different stories about user satisfaction and reflect changes in user experience over time. In this analysis, I will analyze the ratings and reviews of each platform in the US market only. The exact situations in other markets are different, but still show the similar problems.

Android Ratings and Reviews

Current Rating: 3.9/5 based on 1.5 million of ratings

There has been over 2,000 reviews in the past year.

• • Rating Breakdown (For the past year, Sept 30, 2023 – Oct 30, 2024):
    • 55% five-star ratings, 10% four-star ratings
    • 7% two-star ratings, 25% one-star ratings
  • Analysis: The 3.9 average rating reflects a mixed sentiment. While a majority of users (55%) have rated the app five stars, the 25% of one-star ratings highlight recurring user dissatisfaction. With a rating below 4.0, Crowd City misses the threshold for potential placement in Google Play’s Top Charts or Recommendations section, which generally require a 4-star rating or higher. This limits the game’s visibility to new users and can impact organic growth.
  • Common Themes in Reviews:
    • Positive Feedback: Many five-star and four-star reviews praise the game’s addictive gameplay, noting that the simple, competitive crowd-building mechanic keeps players coming back.
    • Negative Feedback: One-star reviews consistently cite issues with the frequency and intrusiveness of ads, which interrupt gameplay and create a frustrating user experience. This dissatisfaction with ads is a major reason behind the significant portion of low ratings on Android, impacting the overall score.

iOS Ratings and Reviews

Current Rating: 4.7/5 overall based on 1 million ratings, with around 200 reviews in the past year.

• • Rating Breakdown (Last Year):
    • 32% five-star ratings, 35% one-star ratings
  • Analysis: Although Crowd City holds a high overall rating of 4.7 on iOS, recent feedback is far less positive, with only 32% of last year’s reviews awarding five stars, while 35% gave it one star. You may wonder how the app maintains such a strong rating despite recent lower user satisfaction. The answer lies in legacy ratings: most of the positive reviews date back to 2019 when the game’s popularity peaked, and these older high ratings continue to support the overall average. Recent feedback, however, suggests that Crowd City is losing its appeal on iOS, with a lower number of new users and a more critical response from the ones who remain active.
  • Common Themes in Reviews:
    • Positive Feedback: Users still enjoy the addictive gameplay, which remains the most praised aspect in the five-star reviews.
    • Negative Feedback: Many one-star and two-star ratings point to excessive ads as a primary frustration, even among users who paid to remove them. In addition, some users complain that the game requires an internet connection, limiting its accessibility for casual, on-the-go play. Frequent bugs are also noted, indicating technical issues that may further affect user satisfaction and retention.

Observations and Impact on ASO

Android Rating Limitations: The average rating of 3.9 on Android restricts Crowd City from achieving more prominent placements in Top Charts or Recommendation sections on Google Play. Addressing ad-related complaints and improving user experience could help the game reach the 4.0+ threshold, enhancing its visibility to new users.

iOS Legacy vs. Recent Performance: While the 4.7 rating on iOS is impressive, it doesn’t fully reflect recent user sentiment, which has turned increasingly critical. The drop in user engagement and the higher share of one-star ratings over the past year indicate that the game may be losing its appeal among iOS users due to frequent ads, bugs, and online-only play restrictions.

Crowd City is one of Voodoo’s standout titles, with impressive download numbers and a strong user base. Despite its past achievements and high ratings—4.7/5 on iOS with around 100,000 ratings and over 1 million ratings on Android—it appears Voodoo has not fully optimized the ASO strategy for this game. This lack of attention is evident in areas that limit Crowd City’s reach and growth potential, particularly in a competitive app store landscape.

Where ASO for Crowd City Falls Short:

• Visual Assets: While effective, the icons, screenshots, and preview videos could be further optimized to increase conversions. Unified icon designs, descriptive captions, and immersive preview videos would enhance the game’s visual appeal and impact.
• Keyword Strategy: The game’s reliance on branded keywords limits its discoverability. Expanding to more gameplay-specific and competitive terms could attract users interested in multiplayer and crowd-control games.
• Descriptions: Both the short and long descriptions lack compelling language and key gameplay details. On Android, the long description could further leverage keywords for visibility, while on iOS, more engaging content could enhance conversions.
• Ratings & Reviews: Frequent complaints around ad frequency and technical issues have not been fully addressed. Actively responding to reviews would demonstrate Voodoo’s commitment to player satisfaction and could improve user sentiment.
• Localization and Promotional Tools: While Crowd City has some localization, it could be more comprehensive and tailored to various markets to better capture a global audience. Additionally, in-app events, promotional content, custom product pages (iOS), and custom store listings (Android) are underutilized. Using these tools strategically could improve engagement and retention across diverse regions.

Despite these limitations, Crowd City retains a loyal player base, with many fans who’ve been with the game since its launch in 2019. By investing in a more thorough ASO strategy, Voodoo has the opportunity to re-energize Crowd City’s app store presence, drawing in new players and re-engaging long-time fans.

A stronger ASO approach—including visual optimization, expanded keyword strategy, enhanced localization, and promotional tools—would not only sustain Crowd City’s legacy but also drive its growth in a competitive market, transforming missed opportunities into sustained success for Voodoo and its dedicated community.