Steven Harris wasn't stupid. He knew Alex Parker had many tricks up his sleeve and might find a way to boost his game's sales. So, Harris was cautious with his predictions, not wanting to be proven wrong. However, the idea of Alex actually selling 100,000 copies was something Harris refused to believe. In his eyes, the success of "Flappy Bird" was purely accidental, and he doubted Alex's abilities.
At noon, Alex's "Plants vs. Zombies" was officially launched on the app store. The eagerly waiting players rushed to search for and download it.
Currently, the PC section had fewer interested players and was highly competitive, so Alex mainly focused on the mobile game charts. Although the installation package was available in the PC section, Alex didn't expect to make a significant impact there.
Alex priced the game at $10.
The app store pricing tiers were free: $1, $10, $20, $50, and above $50. Alex chose the $10 tier, aiming for affordability and high-volume sales. He wanted even young students or middle-aged people who typically don't spend much on games to buy them without hesitation.
At the experience store, Paul Wilder and his friends downloaded the game and gave it five-star reviews.
"Boss, we've all downloaded it and left five-star reviews," Paul said.
Alex replied, "Great, thanks a lot. Everyone gets a free milk tea today."
"Thanks, boss!" Paul and the other guys were thrilled.
Paul mentioned, "Jessica and the others might come in the afternoon. They have classes this morning."
Another guy added, "Perfect, we'll all witness the boss's game dominating the new games chart together."
Many were keeping an eye on "Plants vs. Zombies" data. The app store refreshed game data every hour, chart rankings every three hours, and recommendation positions every 24 hours.
Numerous players were downloading the game, drawn by the "Flappy Bird" ads, Alex's tweet, or an interest in the game's theme.
However, many were waiting for the game's ratings before buying it.
At 1 PM, the data was updated.
Paul rubbed his eyes in disbelief, "Whoa, did the download count increase by a digit? This is crazy!"
"Plants vs. Zombies" had 887 downloads and a rating of 9.4 after just one hour.
Even though these students didn't fully understand the gaming industry, they knew this was significant. "Storm Knight Adventures" had 400 downloads in 24 hours, while "Plants vs. Zombies" had 887 in just one hour.
Alex remained calm, knowing this was slightly better than expected but still within his projections. "Flappy Bird continuously drove players to the new game, and several gaming platforms gave Alex free publicity. His tweet had over 1,000 retweets, potentially reaching thousands of people, all potential players.
"Plants vs. Zombies" wasn't yet on any charts or recommendations since the updates hadn't occurred. But its metrics promised a swift rise.
By 2 PM, the downloads reached 1,333.
By 3 PM, the downloads hit 1,914.
Each hour added about 500 downloads, and there was no sign of slowing down. Based on this pace, "Plants vs. Zombies" could exceed 10,000 downloads in 24 hours.
Selling 10,000 copies on the first day was astounding.
Moreover, the game's rating hovered between 9.1 and 9.4, indicating high player satisfaction and likely sustained positive metrics.
Paul exclaimed, "Check out the new games chart!"
"Plants vs. Zombies" had already claimed the top spot in the mobile new games chart.
"Wow, that was fast! It topped the chart on its first update! This is unbelievable," Paul said in disbelief.
Topping the new games chart wasn't unusual for well-promoted releases from major companies, but Alex hadn't spent a dime on advertising. Yet his game topped the chart within an hour of its launch, which seemed surreal.
"Storm Knight Adventures" was third on the new games chart, while "Plants vs. Zombies" was first. Despite its upward trend, "Storm Knight Adventures" couldn't compete with "Plants vs. Zombies."
If "Storm Knight Adventures" had an average start, then "Plants vs. Zombies" had a rocket start, attracting significantly more players right from the beginning.
The gaming media were also stunned, recognizing that "Plants vs. Zombies" could become a massive hit, possibly the most giant dark horse of the month.
Although the final verdict would depend on the 24-hour data, the first three hours for "Plants vs. Zombies" were exceptional, even outperforming some significant titles.
For Alex, this outcome was expected. Topping the new games chart wasn't even a minor goal for him.