"Broke the revenue record," — Daniil Kolesnikov from HeroCraft on the results of 2025

We continue to wrap up 2025 with top managers and experts in the gaming industry. Up next is an interview with Daniil Kolesnikov, Business Development Manager at HeroCraft.

How was the year 2025 for your business? What achievements can you highlight? What conclusions have you drawn for yourself?

Daniil Kolesnikov, HeroCraft: The year turned out surprisingly well. The most exciting events for us were:

the launch of our flagship games, Pirate Ships and Space Arena, on the web platform "Yandex Games";
participating alongside AKI at the Russian games booth at China Joy;
launching a new direction — publishing international games in Russia;
breaking the revenue record set in 2021;
preparing the PC version of Pirate Ships.

The main takeaway for us right now is that it's essential not to focus on just one thing. These are interesting times with a lot of opportunities!

Pirate Ships

How has the situation on the gaming market changed for publishing, from your perspective?

Daniil: The market remains cautious in its decisions, yet the industry seems to be moving towards an investment thaw. Money isn’t being handed out everywhere, but we're beginning to see funds being distributed in certain places. It won't be enough for everyone, of course, but it's progress nonetheless!

There seem to be fewer new projects this year compared to the last. This judgment comes strictly from my experiences at conferences (around 13 this year), both within Russia and beyond. I hope there will be more projects next year as right now everyone seems to be prototyping.

Have the practices in working with developers changed? Has it become easier or harder to work with them? Have developers themselves changed in any way?

Daniil: Indie developers themselves haven't changed (stay true to yourselves!), but our approach to publishing has slightly shifted. We’re still willing to pull every project through blood and tears, but we're now more selective in choosing projects. Working with indie projects requires immense effort, and we've decided to spend more time on the projects we sign.

What was the year like for the niche in which you usually release games?

Daniil: We currently have two main niches: physical puzzles and builders (in the spirit of our Pirate Ships and Space Arena).

It's a bit challenging with the first niche because of ads, whereas good revenue now mostly comes from in-app purchases (IAPs).

The second niche is more intriguing since the core monetization is built on IAPs, so things are going very well. We’re working on solidifying this success.

In 2025, our IAP revenue grew by 30%, while ad revenue increased by 13%.

What conclusions and lessons from 2025 would you highlight for developers who are preparing for release?

Daniil: Engage in more discussions with industry peers about potential pitfalls at every opportunity! There's an abundance of conferences and talks these days, so gaining valuable insights is relatively easy. Also, read market analyses by major analytical firms like Newzoo. Indie strength lies in ideas, but these ideas need to be executed correctly!

What strengthening or emergence of trends in your niche do you expect in 2026?

Daniil: I believe we’ll see a resolution to the cross-platform issue between mobile free-to-play and Steam next year. As a result, the focus on in-game purchases will intensify, since there are no ads on Steam. Incidentally, Steam will soon support Android games!

The web market, in general, allows you to capture PC gamers. Some major mobile games are already being developed with a cross-platform focus. This is already evident with some major Asian projects (and I'm not just referring to Genshin Impact).

I think cross-platform as a feature is truly needed by players of free games, but the key issue remains the quality of these products and their form (full port, web, or a combination).

As potential evidence for my theory, successful indie projects on PC often emphasize addictive core gameplay above all else. Ball x Pit, Megabonk, Balatro (which, although released in 2024, is still popular). Considering most mobile projects are built around core gameplay, demand for quality mobile projects with purchases on Steam might soon increase.

What are the company's plans for the coming year?

Daniil: We plan to continue developing our mobile directions, and on the PC, we have several major releases planned for next year that we're very hopeful about. My personal favorites are Victory Banner and Heart Abyss.

Victory Banner