Mobile gaming has changed dramatically over the past decade. The biggest games of 2015 are not necessarily the biggest games of 2025, player expectations have evolved and new genres and business models have reshaped the market.

But look closely at the biggest mobile games across the years and one thing stands out: familiarity still has serious staying power.

Take our look at the top mobile games of 2015, 2020 and 2025. In 2015, Subway Surfers sat at number one, alongside Clash of Clans, Candy Crush Saga, Minion Rush and Temple Run 2. Fast forward ten years and the market looks very different, with Block Blast!, Roblox and Pizza Ready! among the leading titles.

Yet Subway Surfers is still there, ranking fourth in 2025.

That raises an interesting question: what makes some games stick around while others disappear?

Nostalgia gets players through the door

We are not short of mobile games on the market, it is more crowded than ever. Players have thousands of games competing for their attention, making it harder for new games to stand out. 

Nostalgia gives established games an advantage.

A game that has familiar characters, visual style or gameplay can target an emotional response from its user. Players don't need to learn what the game is or why they should care, they already have a relationship with it.

That's particularly powerful for games that have been part of someone's life for years.

The decade-long staying power of Subway Surfers

Subway Surfers is perhaps the clearest example in the data. When we compared games from 2015, 2020 and 2025, it was the number one title in our 2015 ranking, remained in the top three in 2020 and was still number four in 2025.

Although, its longevity isn’t just simply down to nostalgia. The game has continually evolved through updates, new content, characters, locations and events while keeping its core gameplay instantly recognisable.

The lesson? Nostalgia might bring players back, but evolution gives them a reason to stay.

Familiar doesn't have to mean old

The same pattern can be seen with other established franchises.

My Talking Tom appears in the 2015 ranking, while My Talking Tom 2 features in both the 2020 and 2025 rankings. The character remains familiar, but the experience evolves.

This is where nostalgia becomes particularly interesting for mobile publishers. The goal isn't necessarily to recreate a game exactly as players remember it. Instead, it's about taking something familiar and finding ways to make it relevant to today's audience.

The IP provides the recognition. Evolution provides the reason to play.

Nostalgia isn't just for the players who remember

There's another twist to the nostalgia trend: you don't necessarily have to remember the original to enjoy it.

Younger players are discovering older characters and franchises through TikTok, YouTube, streaming and social media. What feels nostalgic to one generation can simply feel fresh to another.

That gives established mobile games an unusual advantage. They can simultaneously appeal to players who remember them from years ago and a younger audience encountering them for the first time.

Memory has limits

Of course, nostalgia isn't a guaranteed formula for success.

Players have long memories and so do their expectations. If a game relies entirely on a familiar name without delivering a good experience, nostalgia can quickly turn into disappointment.

The strongest long-running titles understand this.

They preserve the elements players love while continuing to experiment, update and evolve.

That's arguably the biggest takeaway from looking at mobile gaming across 2015, 2020 and 2025. The market has changed. The biggest games have changed. But the titles that understand their audience and continually reinvent themselves can survive that change.

Looking backwards to move forwards

Mobile gaming is often obsessed with what's next: the next big genre, the next viral hit, the next breakthrough in creative or technology.

But sometimes, the biggest opportunity is hiding in the past.

Nostalgia gives mobile games something incredibly valuable: recognition. But longevity comes from what happens next.

The winners won't simply bring old games back. They'll take what players already love and find new ways to make them want to play it all over again.