Hybrid-casual games consistently rank high on download top charts.
Known for their hyper-casual accessibility and mid-core depth, these games can not only attract a broad range of players but also keep them engaged for a long time.
But, for this to happen, they need strong user acquisition strategies that will help them reach the right audience and stand out from the competition. Let’s explore the most popular and effective hybrid-casual UA strategies for 2025.
Ad Network Diversity
Diversifying ad networks is one of the hottest trends in mobile game user acquisition right now—especially for hybrid-casual games.
As we mentioned, these games are able to attract a variety of players.
To reach as many potential players as possible, hybrid-casual marketers typically leverage a mix of different ad networks, including gaming ad networks, social media, and rewarded ad networks.
Which ad networks dominate this genre?
According to Tenjin, the top ad networks by hybrid-casual ad spend in 2023 on Android were Google Ads, AppLovin, Mintegral, Meta, and Unity Ads. On iOS, the list is largely the same, with ironSource replacing Unity Ads in the top five.
In addition to the standard video ad networks, more and more hybrid-casual UA teams are exploring rewarded channels to complement them. For example, for game studio Mystery Tag, which works with over 20 ad networks, offerwall networks like MyChips are among the top performers.
Following Genre Ad Creative Trends
The impact of hybrid-casual UA campaigns on video ad networks largely depends on the ad creatives you put out there.
The first step toward making competitive ad creatives is to analyze what your competitors are doing and identify their top-performing ads. If you aren’t using a paid tool for this, you can find it out on ad transparency platforms like Facebook Ad Library, TikTok Creative Center, and others.
Generally, some practices that work well in hybrid-casual include UGC videos, AI-enhanced creatives, and catchy hooks.
AI personas and voiceovers are particularly widespread. This is something you can experiment a lot with—for example, you can repurpose a high-performing TikTok ad by swapping the content creator with an AI persona and voiceover and still get great results.
When it comes to ad creative hooks, they change frequently. Some long-standing practices include using ASMR videos and relatable real-life footage. One recent trend in hybrid-casual games is simulating the slingshot mechanic. Simple and familiar, this concept effectively grabs the attention of potential players.
Leveraging Different Player Motivations
Hybrid-casual games are rich with features like progression systems, exploration, and social elements.
How can you take advantage of this in your ad campaigns?
Leverage these features to attract players driven by different motivations.
For example, achievement-oriented players might be drawn to ads that highlight leveling up, rewards, or leaderboards. On the other hand, exploration–driven players might enjoy ads showcasing hidden treasures, side quests, or new areas to discover.
Playable ads are particularly effective here—they allow users to experience these features directly. By highlighting different mechanics in playables, hybrid-casual marketers can directly engage different player personas.
Besides ad visuals, this strategy can also be useful for designing offerwall ad campaigns. For example, offerwall campaigns can target achievers by setting tasks like reaching levels 5, 10, and 15. On the other hand, a version designed for social players could prompt them to send a certain number of friend requests, join a guild, etc.
Not Optimizing Solely for CPI
The average CPI on the top ad networks for hybrid-casual games in 2023 ranged from $0.10 to $0.24 on Android, and from $0.45 to $0.82 on iOS (Tenjin).
The CPIs have drastically risen in the last few years, and they continue to grow. So, although it’s good to be aware of the genre benchmarks and control your CPI, it is not the main metric you should be optimizing your hybrid-casual UA campaigns for.
TapNation’s Head of UA Jatin Mittal explains this well: “From our experience, focusing only on achieving a low CPI often results in acquiring users who might meet the CPI target but don’t contribute significantly to the game’s profitability.”
Finally, don’t forget about the CPI versus LTV balance.
Your game’s LTV should always exceed CPI to sustain profitability— if LTV can’t be increased, focus on reducing CPI to maintain a sustainable balance.
ROAS Optimization
So, if you’re not focusing on CPI as your primary metric, which metrics should you be optimizing your hybrid-casual campaigns for?
Those that reflect user value and engagement.
One such metric is ROAS (return on ad spend). ROAS optimization is a big trend in mobile gaming where marketers prioritize revenue from acquired users instead of just trying to acquire them cheaply.
In light of this shift from CPI to ROAS, the leading ad networks have included different ROAS optimization in their campaign options. Most of them support ROAS optimization for both ad revenue and IAPs, either as separate or unified campaigns, and allow advertisers to optimize for D0 or D7 ROAS.
Some of these options include Facebook’s Value optimization, Google Ads’s tROAS and Hybrid ROAS, AppLovin’s Blended ROAS, and Unity’s Hybrid ROAS campaigns.
Note that, when it comes to hybrid-casual, a lot of marketers keep track of D30 ROAS as a key benchmark for achieving 100% return and proving campaign success.
For quicker ROAS gains, it’s a good idea to consider offerwall advertising, which naturally attracts high-value players. For example, MyChips recently helped a game studio reach a 71% higher ROAS than video UA networks on day 14.
Optimizing for Retention and Engagement
You can’t count on positive ROAS or any sort of profitability without the ability to retain and engage players.
To assess if a hybrid-casual title has long-term success potential, it’s recommended to pay special attention to Day 7 retention and beyond, along with user engagement metrics like session length and playtime.
How do leading hybrid-casual games perform with this benchmark?
In the previous month, Mob Control by Voodoo scored 25.1% D7 retention, while Pizza Ready! by Supercent reached 23.7%(AppMagic).
While these numbers of top games came over time and through careful optimization, hybrid-casual games should generally aim for a D7 retention of 15-20% to remain competitive and profitable.
*The data in this section was gathered using the premium version of the AppMagic tool.
Cross-Promotion Between Games
You have some games with solid user bases in your game portfolio?
Don’t miss out on the opportunity to cross-promote your hybrid-casual titles.
Many hybrid-casual publishers, especially those who started with hyper-casual games, use their large player bases to drive traffic to their hybrid-casual titles. The goal of this strategy is to transition players to games with better engagement and monetization potential.
To make it effective, cross-promote within games with at least 10,000 to 20,000 DAU. Since the average conversion rate for cross-promotion is only 1% to 2%, promoting in smaller games won’t bring significant results (GameAnalytics).
When it comes to ad formats, cross-promotion is quite flexible. You can go either for built-in native placements or buy your supply to host interstitial ads, banners, or rewarded video ads.
Hybrid-Casual UA Strategies Wrap-Up
To sum things up, hybrid-casual UA is all about tracking down high-value players. There are different strategies that can help you achieve this goal, so don’t hesitate to mix it up to find the winning formula.
Interested in expanding your hybrid-casual UA mix with offerwall advertising? Get in touch and find out how MyChips can help your game grow!
