Drawing Big Returns – Scaling Performance in an Art Hyper-Casual Game

Key Performance Highlights

• 190% increase in profitable scale
• 70% drop in CPI across core geos
• 85+ creatives tested in 5 months

The Challenge

The game offered a unique premise: complete simple art tasks with satisfying mechanics — spray painting, coloring by number, sketch tracing, and more. It had broad appeal and solid retention, but user acquisition was flatlining due to high CPIs and stagnant creatives. The genre’s saturation was growing, and the game struggled to stand out in a sea of “paint-to-win” clones.

The team needed a UA revamp that could drop costs, differentiate creative, and push toward profitability without burning out LTV too fast.

The Strategy / Solution

RocketShip HQ focused on amplifying visual satisfaction — because in hyper-casual art, watching is half the hook.

1. Satisfying Creative Optimization

• Produced 85+ variants highlighting key game moments: paint fills, color reveals, stencil reveals, zoom-ins of “perfect strokes”
• Utilized soundless satisfaction loops and ‘before/after’ reveals within the first 3 seconds
• Launched real-player hand-cam overlays to humanize inputs and beat “AI-art fatigue” perceptions

Result: Top-performing creatives improved CTR by 90% and doubled IPM in Tier-1 markets

2. Persona-Based Targeting

• Segmented campaigns for doodle artists, adult coloring book users, and ASMR art fans
• Created native-feeling placements for TikTok, Snapchat, and Reels using “Watch me finish this…” bait
• Leaned on Facebook AEO to drive trial completion rather than just installs

Result: A 70% reduction in CPI across the top 4 geos, while scaling budget 3x

3. Session Design + Monetization Tweaks

• Advised product team to delay first interstitial by 25% longer
• Integrated ad moments at points of artistic satisfaction, not failure
• A/B tested shorter rewarded video moments for partial-completion boosts

Result: Ad engagement rose by 41%, and eCPM jumped from $12.50 to $29.80 in Tier-1

Results

Conclusion

In a hyper-casual genre overflowing with art games, it wasn’t enough to look pretty — performance had to paint a story. With tailored creatives, smart monetization timing, and ultra-specific targeting, this title drew more than just shapes — it drew real revenue. And fast.