How a mobile game from Kazakhstan gained over 60 million downloads

Grand Mobile is a mobile game featuring a realistic role-playing mode. The gaming project will celebrate its second anniversary in December of this year. The game, which has repeatedly topped the charts on Google Play and App Store, was created by Ust-Kamenogorsk entrepreneur Roman Lineytsev. To date, the game has achieved over 60 million downloads and more than 5 million unique monthly users. Roman notes that the game has already been translated into English and other languages and is preparing for an active phase of expansion into international markets.

The idea to create a game did not come to Roman by chance; throughout his childhood and student years, he played Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, which was one of the most popular games in the GTA series and quickly became one of the primary platforms for multiplayer interaction thanks to the SA-MP (San Andreas Multiplayer) modification, which enabled multiplayer functionality. This modification appeared in the early 2000s. Players quickly fell in love with this version because it allowed them to interact in the GTA: SA world with other players. Using SA-MP, many players could gather on community-created servers and play various roles, including police officers, gangsters, civilians, and even pilots.

Roman Lineytsev, city — Almaty, CEO Grand Mobile, @eazzy_eazzy

After graduating from university, I spent a long time thinking about what to do next. I decided to focus on what I did best. I started with GTA V game servers. However, creating a new server from scratch and making money from it proved to be a time-consuming endeavor, so we found an existing, successfully operating project called Grand RolePlay. I borrowed money from relatives, and we purchased servers with a total daily online capacity of up to 5,000 people. This was during the peak of the pandemic. Yes, the servers generated revenue, but there was no talk of exponential growth. Therefore, in 2022, I realized that a fundamentally new product was needed — and so we began developing the mobile game Grand Mobile.

In early 2022, I assembled a team of developers, preferring those who had experience playing SA-MP. Grand Mobile was officially released on December 3, 2022. The game was crafted in the style of the iconic GTA. Players immerse themselves in a realistic open world where they can start their lives from scratch. After creating a character, they can build their own career, earning money and increasing their reputation among other players. They can also become a notorious criminal or a valiant police officer. All of this fits within the framework of a mobile game. Within a year, the game became a true bestseller, and by the end of 2023, the Grand Mobile project reached a turnover of $10 million. For the end of 2024, a turnover of $20 million is projected.

This autumn, Grand Mobile opened new servers in Europe, covering countries such as Poland and Romania. The game also began gaining popularity in the Netherlands.

Previously, all our metrics pertained only to the Russian-speaking world. Most of our players were from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, and Kazakhstan. But now we have entered the European market, and within just the first week of operation, our mobile game entered the top 5 apps on Google Play in Poland and Romania. In the Netherlands, our game reached the top 9 apps. Over 300,000 downloads of our app were recorded in Europe within 10 days. Over the coming year, we plan to expand across Europe, enter the Turkish and Indian markets, and subsequently move into South America.

We want to first fully establish all processes and streamline everything. To execute all the plans that are currently being implemented. Then, we will shift our focus to a new game. Simply put, trying to do everything at once right now would either lead to failure or result in poor quality. We are playing the long game.