Scopely’s D2C strategy: exploring the Star Trek Fleet Command and Marvel Strike Force web store

Scopely was established in 2011 and has since grown into one of the industry’s leading game studios. Some of their awards and achievements include getting named to the “TIME 100 Most Influential Companies” list in 2024 and earning Best Publisher at the Pocket Gamer Mobile Game Awards in 2023 and 2024. All this success comes down to the portfolio of hits that Scopely has released over the years, like:

• Monopoly Go
• Stumble Guys
• Star Trek Fleet Command
• Marvel Strike Force
• WWE Champions
• Scrabble Go

But beyond the addicting, high-quality gameplay of these titles, it’s Scopely’s industry-leading D2C strategies that got our attention. Many of Scopely’s titles have web shops that they launched ahead of the curve before these became a game trend - and the company even built an in-house platform and team, Playagmi, to power its central services, including its D2C channels.

“Playgami is the platform that powers our games, including their analytics capabilities, but enables them to do everything from building the game provisioning infrastructure to experimentation to CRM, push messaging campaigns, and everything in-between.” - Jonathan Palmer, VP Data Platform at Scopely

In this article, we’re deconstructing the Scopely web store strategy by zeroing in on the STFC webstore and Marvel Strike Force web store. From these takeaways, you can replicate Scopely’s D2C success for yourself and start driving direct revenue that bypasses the 30% commission fees of Apple and Google. Ahead, we’ll explore:

• Why Scopely went direct-to-consumer
• Key incentives and UA strategies of the Star Trek Fleet Command webstore and Marvel Strike Force web store
• How to launch your own D2C strategy

Table of contents

Benefits of a Scopely web store

• Direct revenue, without the 30% platform commission
• ‍Players spend more‍
• Users get more ways to engage‍
• Easy access to first-party player data

A teardown of the STFC webstore

• Webshop incentives
• ‍Marketing channels

A teardown of the Marvel Strike Force web store

• ‍Webshop incentives‍
• Marketing channels

Take a tip from the Scopely web store

Benefits of a Scopely web store

With their D2C strategy, Scopely is able to enjoy some key advantages:

Direct revenue, without the 30% platform commission

The major platforms like Apple and Google take a 30% commission fee on every in-app purchase. But a D2C channel like a webshop bypasses those fees, which translates to higher margins - and those savings can be passed on to players in the form of steeper discounts or other offers. 

For Scopely, shifting even some of their spend to the Scopely web store can yield huge profit by saving on those platform fees. Let’s take Star Trek Fleet Command as an example and use our interactive fee calculator to help us do the math. In 2023, the game earned $79.1 million in net revenue across both Google Play and the App Store.

Apple and Google take a cut on gross revenue - not net - so without an STFC webstore, the game actually earned $113 million in gross revenue. And the app stores took 30% of that in fees, totaling $33.9 million.

But let’s say Star Trek Fleet Command shifted 20% of player spend - $22.6 million - to the STFC webstore. The web shop generally takes 10% in processing fees from that spend (totaling $2.26 million), and the remaining 80% of spend is still subject to the 30% platform fees ($27.12 million). That adds up to a total of $29.38 million in fees. Compared to the $79.1 million in net revenue without a Star Trek Fleet Command webstore, Scopely is earning $83.62 in net revenue by shifting just some spend to their D2C channel - and saving $4.52 million on app store fees a year.

Players spend more

The Scopely Marvel Strike Force web store and STFC webstore give players access to exclusive offers, missions, offer codes, content, bonuses, and a whole lot more that help create a premium experience. For a game’s most valuable players, these types of channel incentives build value outside of the game itself and encourage them to both shift their spend to the web and spend more. And that’s the whole idea of a web store: build a valuable experience for your high-LTV players so they increase their spend and continue returning to the web shop.

For example, the Marvel Strike Force web store has a milestone rewards feature. Here, players can earn rewards when they acquire enough Strike Points, which is a web-exclusive currency. And how do they earn Strike Points? By making purchases on the shop! Like when they buy a set of 150 Power Cores and earn 200 Strike Points. 

The more Strike Points, the bigger the rewards - and these rewards can then be redeemed in-game, which sends players back to the game to keep playing. Players can also use Strike Points in the in-game Strike Store. So this incentive not only boosts player spend and repeat purchases, but also increases game retention and engagement.

On the STFC webstore, they have a bonus offer - every purchase includes a bonus of Multiphasic credits that players can redeem in-game. The higher the purchase on the web shop, the more bonus credits. And similar to the web store for Marvel Strike Force, this purchase sends players back to the game which increases retention and engagement.

Users get more ways to engage

The features and capabilities that you can offer in-game don’t always translate (or are possible) on the web - and vice-versa. Making the most out of the web medium on a game website or web shop is the best way to create a premium experience that boosts spend, retention, and engagement. And that includes giving players the ability to engage with your game on a deeper level beyond the gameplay itself - think lore, game guides, matchmaking, and esports.

For the Scopely web store, the studio tapped into the motivations of their players for each title to consider which engagement features would resonate most. For example, the Star Trek Fleet Command webstore has a News section. Here, players can find strategy guides, event announcements (and tips for success during the event), new character and feature releases, and more - all separated into In-Game News vs. News & Updates sections so players can easily find the type of content they want. This speaks to the strategy-focused players whose goal is to make progress and feel a sense of achievement. And since it’s all fully on-brand with the Star Trek IP (e.g. referencing the lore, characters, and ships from the IP), it keeps players immersed in the brand universe and speaks to those who are loyal fans of the IP even as they leave the game and head to the STFC webstore. 

The Marvel Strike Force web store speaks to their core players with tactical-focused content and IP-based features. A section called Stats Table, for example, lets players view a character’s stats at different levels and upgrades - it’s a full-on analytics tool for deeply engaged players that even includes the option to download to a CSV.

And for the fans of the Marvel IP, the Scopely Marvel Strike Force web store has features like a Characters page and downloadable desktop and mobile Wallpapers that give players another way to engage that feels like a natural extension of the game’s Marvel universe.

Easy access to first-party player data

Players can’t access the Scopely web store for either game without logging into their Scopely ID (the web store for Marvel Strike Force does also allow Facebook sign-in). Once users log in, their player accounts are automatically synced to the store - which connects their in-game and web behavior immediately. Now Scopely can access these analytics, along with first-party data like email that players share to get purchase receipts and confirmations. Since Apple and Google don’t share this player information with developers, it’s a valuable advantage of using a D2C channel like a web shop. 

With player email, Scopely can run retargeting campaigns, create lookalike audiences, and communicate directly with users. In a post-IDFA environment where this first-party data is pretty much impossible to access through traditional ad campaigns, getting it through a D2C channel like a web shop is a highly valuable strategy. 

A teardown of the STFC webstore

Now let’s take a deeper dive into the Star Trek Fleet Command webstore and explore their on-site offers that get players to purchase and keep returning, and the UA strategies they use to let users know about these deals.

Webshop incentives

The STFC webstore needs to offer players enough value that they will leave the game and open a browser. It’s not a frictionless experience, so incentives like discounts, engagement features, and web-exclusive offers make it worth it for the user - and encourage them to keep coming back.

• Bonus credits: We briefly went over this earlier, but to reiterate: every purchase on the STFC webstore gives players a bonus of Multiphasic credits. This currency can be redeemed in the in-game store, and is the main value proposition of the webshop. The more that players purchase, the bigger the Multiphasic bonus - leading to more purchase volume and spend. These bonus credits are also the foundation for other webshop offers, like the milestone feature we’re getting into next 

• Milestone and exclusive events: Star Trek Fleet Command runs web-exclusive events that give players a reason to return to the store and complete more purchases. For example, they ran a limited-time Multiphasic Hunter event that rewarded players as they earned Multiphasic credits and reached specific milestones. And they could only earn these credits through purchases on the STFC webstore. As players tried to reach the next milestone before the event ended, they spent more

• Daily gifts: The STFC webstore rewards players with a web-exclusive free gift - which keeps users coming back each day. And when they’re already on the web shop, they’re more likely to keep browsing and make more purchases

• Limited offers: Time-sensitive and offers with purchase limits create a sense of urgency in players to buy before the deal expires. The Star Trek Fleet Command webstore uses both to increase conversions and spend
• Offer codes: Players can get codes from the game’s social media and community channels that they redeem for in-game rewards by heading to the STFC webstore. Often, they’re shared during event times, which can help increase engagement. These codes also help foster a community around the game, increase retention, and boost spend as players land on the web shop and stick around to shop

• Liveops: Star Trek Fleet Command runs frequent events - from incursions and character-based quests to recruit missions. These are often tied to offers on the STFC webstore, giving players products and rewards they can use to progress during event times

Marketing channels

Star Trek Fleet Command was launched on mobile in 2018 - and the STFC webstore was established a few years later in September 2021. So the team needed to figure out how to let existing players know about the new web shop, and why they should head there to make purchases. This comes down to effective UA strategies, which even beyond launch the STFC team continues to use to get players to keep returning to the webshop and spending. One note about this: Scopely does an extremely good job of building an engaged community - and all of these strategies work well because of this loyal audience. Make sure you have a process in place for growing an organic community, too, so your marketing approach is effective.

• Social media: Star Trek Fleet Command maintains an active social media presence on channels like Facebook and Instagram. And they often use these platforms to talk about offers on the STFC webstore. For example, during events, they share codes on Facebook for players to redeem on the webshop for in-game rewards

• Community channels: Similar to social media, community channels like Discord are also a place to spread the word about a webshop. Star Trek Fleet Command uses a dedicated announcement channel to share codes, advertise new offers, and call out other features on the web store. Since Discord is usually the place for a game’s most dedicated players, the STFC team also uses the platform to provide more in-depth information about how to use the Star Trek Fleet Command webstore and redeem their rewards, like this post announcing daily login rewards:

• On-site links: In addition to the Star Trek Fleet Command webstore, the game also has a dedicated website. Here, there’s a button to direct visitors to the webshop directly in the top menu bar. And on the storefront homepage, there’s also a callout to get players over to the offer page. These types of directional links help drive traffic to the STFC webstore - then guide users to the offers page to boost conversions

• Blogs: In the News section of the game website, the STFC team publishes blogs, patch notes, and announcements about the web shop. For example, when the webstore first launched, they published a blog to highlight its value (“exclusive bundles…a free Epic Officer Shard…continue to earn Multiphasic Credits with every purchase you make!”) and inserted a link directly to the shop to direct players over to it

A teardown of the Marvel Strike Force web store

Next up: it’s the Scopely Marvel Strike Force web store deconstruction. Let’s take a look at their channel incentives and UA strategies.

Webshop incentives

The Marvel Strike Force web store uses a lot of similar offers, discounts, and content as the STFC webstore to convert players, increase their purchase volume, and encourage them to keep returning to the storefront. But these incentives are tailored to the game’s audience and unique gameplay.

• Bonus points: Every purchase that players make on the Marvel Strike Force web store earns them bonus Strike Points. These can then be redeemed towards milestone events and in a dedicated Strike Store in-game for all sorts of rewards - from orbs and training cards to gear. Since the points are redeemed in-game, this incentive is a great way to direct players from the store back to the game to increase engagement. And the bigger the purchase, the more Strike Points. For example, a bundle of 750 power cores gives players a bonus of 1,000 Strike Points, while a case of 1,580 cores has a 2,000 Strike Point bonus. Sounds pretty similar to the Multiphasic credit system of the STFC webstore, right?

• Web-exclusive offers: The web store for Marvel Strike Force has a mix of offers that are the same as in-game and those that are exclusive to the web. Incorporating limited-time web specials creates value for players and gives them a good reason to visit the webshop. And since they rotate, users feel an urgency to purchase and then return to the MSF store to check out the next batch of web-exclusive offers

• Milestone rewards: Strike Points also come in handy for the Bang for Your Buck milestone feature on the webshop. Here, players complete milestones to earn rewards - and they make progress by accumulating Strike Points. Each sequential milestone yields bigger rewards and are for a limited time, so users feel incentivized to move through them quickly by making purchases on the store to earn points

• New player offers: There are a whole set off offers on the Marvel Strike Force web store that are for new players only. Some of these are exclusive to the web and others are duplicates of in-game - but all come with the Strike Point bonus. Introducing new players to the web shop is an effective strategy for making sure they’re familiar with the value on the shop and know how to use it early on. This way, they’re likely to keep using it over the course of their lifetime playing the game, leading to higher spend, retention, and LTV

• Progression-based offers: There are some offers and discounts that only appear on the Scopely Marvel Strike Force web store as players progress through the game. They won’t see this content until they reach a certain level in-game - and players don’t see these offers greyed out or have any other indication they can unlock them. As a result, users receive a pleasant surprise as they progress through the game, visit the shop, and see a whole bunch of new discounts and products available. Then they’ll keep returning to see what else becomes available as they move through the game, which leads to more repeat purchases and higher retention
• Liveops: There are tons of rotating events, character releases, and more in Marvel Strike Force. And offers on the webshop can support all of them, giving players related discounts, exclusive items, and content. For example, for the Thanos (Endgame) release in August 2024, players could get a series (they were chained to each other in steps) of increasingly valuable items exclusively on the web shop that related to the character drop

Marketing channels

Like the Star Trek Fleet Command webstore, the web store for Marvel Strike Force was launched a couple of years after the game’s release - the game was released in March 2018 and the webshop followed in February 2022. That meant Marvel Strike Force needed to let players know the web shop existed, and then consider how to continue driving traffic there for increasing conversions, spend, and repeat purchases.

• Social media: Marvel Strike Force often uses platforms like Facebook to direct to blogs and updates on their game website that highlight web store deals - like this post featuring an additional free offer on the webshop and instructing players how to redeem it, or this one announcing the launch of the Bang for Your Buck milestone offer on the webstore and giving a breakdown of the payouts at each step. Another small but notable detail: the game uses the Info part across all of their social media profiles to link to their game site (and on Instagram, specifically to the Marvel Strike Force web store), which is a simple way to get players over to the shop

• Community channels: Then there are community-based channels like Discord that the game also uses to direct players to their web shop. Like in their “game-news” channel that often links to the news section on-site (similar to their Facebook posts) and includes other announcements, too. For example, this post mentioned the free Core offer on the web store. 

• Creators: Marvel Strike Force has a community of loyal players, including those that have built a YouTube following based on the game. YouTube creators like MobileGamer365 (77K subscribers) and ValleyFlyin (49.8K subscribers) share tips, reviews, guides, and - here’s the big one - information about the web store. For example, MobileGamer365 published this video review of the Marvel Strike Force web store shortly after it launched. These organic videos from players’ favorite creators create awareness around the webshop and get them interested in visiting the storefront for themselves
• Blog: Like we’ve mentioned, a lot of the game’s social media and community posts about the webshop directs to content on the website’s News & Updates section. These articles often highlight deals on the Marvel Strike Force web store, whether it’s calling out the daily free deals in a weekly blog post, or a post devoted entirely to exclusive character offers on the storefront

• On-site links: Marvel Strike Force directs players to the shop from the game website, both on the homepage with a Bang for Your Buck progress bar and in the top menu bar with a Store section. For players that land on the game website first, these features help move them to the web store - where they’ll then browse offers and make purchases

• E-mail: Getting access to first-party player data like email means Marvel Strike Force can reach out directly to users to communicate about offers, updates, and new features on the webshop. Whether it's timing the emails to coincide with a liveops event, or highlighting a weekly offer, like the limited-time Friday Free Claim, these emails land in loyal players' inboxes and send them straight to the Marvel Strike Force web store

Take a tip from the Scopely web store

Now it’s time to apply the lessons learned from deconstructing the Marvel Strike Force and STFC web stores to your own D2C channels. Reach out to us at Stash today about building a custom web shop from the ground up that’s tailored to your players with features like those on the Scopely web store, and many more - plus we’ll help you create strategies for driving traffic to your shop.