Game Marketing Strategies Beyond ASO and Ads

June 6, 2025

There’s a reason “how to market a game” is one of the most searched phrases among indie developers and game studios. Building a game is hard. Getting anyone to notice it? Often harder.

And to be honest, most advice out there is recycled. Post on Reddit. Launch a Discord. Make a trailer. Try ASO. These aren’t bad suggestions. But they rarely move the needle on their own.

In 2025, game marketing needs more than visibility. It needs context, targeting, and format. That means meeting users where they already are — not just in app stores, but inside other apps, inside real content, and inside their routines.

This guide covers the basics you’re expected to do (ASO, ads), then expands into real-world strategies you probably haven’t tried yet like in-app story promotion and partner placements in other apps. If you’re trying to figure out how to advertise your game without depending on saturated channels, read on.

ASO and Paid Ads: Still Necessary, But Not Enough

Start with the fundamentals. You still need App Store Optimization (ASO). Your title, screenshots, keywords, and ratings matter — especially if you’re marketing a mobile game. Same goes for paid user acquisition. A short burst of installs can improve ranking and social proof early on.

But neither of these is a full strategy. ASO works best when your game is already getting some attention. It doesn’t generate demand — it converts it. And paid ads? They get expensive quickly. Especially in mobile gaming, where install costs are high and user churn is fast.

So yes, ASO and ads are part of game marketing, but they’re no longer where you win. They’re where you support your efforts elsewhere. And that brings us to newer, less crowded tactics — the ones that most developers still overlook.

Partner App Promotion — A Channel Most Developers Ignore

Here’s a question most indie teams don’t ask: Why are you only promoting your game outside the app ecosystem, when your audience already spends hours per day inside other apps?

Partner app promotion means showcasing your game inside another app, ideally one that shares your target audience but doesn’t directly compete. Think of it like renting attention in a highly relevant space, without paying ad network fees or fighting for inventory in Google Ads.

What Does This Look Like in Practice?

Let’s say you’ve built a turn-based strategy game. Your core audience? Likely over 25, detail-oriented, and familiar with similar digital formats. Now imagine placing a short preview or playable story for your game inside:

A productivity or habit tracker app
A puzzle or brain-training app
A time management or gamified learning tool

These apps already attract your audience. And unlike banners or video interstitials, in-app placements — especially those that look and feel native — avoid ad fatigue. Some examples of what this could look like:

A “sponsored story” carousel inside the partner app
A custom in-app banner with gameplay snippets
A playable demo as part of a mini-game or daily quest
A story-format teaser (e.g. “See how this game handles story choices”) embedded in user flows

This format isn’t theoretical — brands already use in-app stories to promote non-native content. One example is a food delivery app, which used interactive Stories to highlight restaurant promotions and deals directly inside the app. The same logic applies to mobile games: when you place short, engaging story content where users are already active, attention follows.

In-App Story Campaigns

Most marketing strategies focus on pulling users out of where they are — off social media, out of a blog post, into a store listing. But what if you flipped that?

In-app story campaigns let you reach users inside the apps they already use. Think of Instagram stories, but designed specifically for showcasing new features, promos, or yes, mobile games.

This isn’t just another ad format. Stories feel native. They don’t interrupt; they guide. That makes them a strong fit for game marketing, especially when the game has a visual or choice-based mechanic you can preview.

Why Stories Work for Game Promotion

Games are interactive by nature. Stories are too. So when you show your game through a short, tappable story — a decision path, a reward loop, a character reveal — you’re not just selling a download. You’re showing how it feels to play.

Even a 3–4 screen story can:

Introduce the core mechanic (e.g. choose your path)
Highlight art style or narrative tone
End with a soft CTA like “Play now to continue”

And because this happens inside another app, your user is already active, already engaged, and if you’ve chosen the right partner app, likely a good fit demographically.

Where to Place These Campaigns

You can use in-app story campaigns in a few ways:

As part of a cross-promotion with a partner app
Within your own app if you're launching a second title
In apps that aggregate third-party stories or partner offers
Inside loyalty or rewards apps (especially those with game-like UX)

This tactic isn’t common yet, which is why it works. It’s immersive, cost-effective, and measurably better than static banners or broad video placements. Especially for devs with limited ad budgets.

Community and Content That Converts

Let’s say it plainly: “build a community” is advice that’s easy to say and hard to apply. Especially when your actual job is building and launching the game.

But community doesn’t have to mean managing a 24/7 Discord or posting memes every day. It just means creating a small space where players feel seen, and new players feel welcome. And if done right, it becomes a marketing channel of its own.

Focus on Content That Does One Job Well

The goal isn’t reach. It’s resonance. Short-form content (gameplay reels, 15-second trailers, devlog cuts) works best when it answers one of these questions:

What’s fun about this game?
What’s different?
Why now?

It’s about being clear enough that someone watching for 6 seconds can say, “That looks like something I’d try.”

Use the Devlog Format (Even If You’re Not a Developer)

People love watching things take shape. If you’re short on time or don’t want to manage a full YouTube channel, do this:

Record your screen once a week while building or testing
Cut 30 seconds showing what’s new
Add one caption explaining what changed or why it matters

No need to be polished. Raw is often better. And over time, these posts build a quiet following especially on platforms like Reddit, Twitter/X, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts.

Small Community > Large Audience

If you’re wondering whether this matters for game marketing, here’s a simple rule: If 10 people care enough to share your game before it launches, that’s more valuable than 10,000 impressions from people who forget it 5 seconds later.

Start small:

A playtest group
A private newsletter
A subreddit or a Telegram group where you share dev progress

You don’t need a huge audience to market a game. You need a few real humans who are waiting for it to go live.

Cross-Promotion

Cross-promotion still works, especially when it’s targeted, transparent, and fits the tone of both games involved. It’s exactly what it sounds like: you promote someone else’s game, and they promote yours. You can do this:

Inside your app (e.g. a banner or in-app story)
On your social channels or newsletter
Via a simple shared landing page
Through push notifications, if you have active users

The key is audience alignment. A chill puzzle game probably shouldn’t promote a violent PvP shooter. But a fantasy RPG and a deck-builder? That makes sense. Same with two narrative games, or two titles built by solo devs with overlapping themes.

It’s especially useful when:

You’re about to launch and want a fast way to seed awareness
You’ve just launched and want to boost day 7 installs
You’re trying to build long-term partnerships (not just one-off installs)

And unlike paid ads, there’s trust baked in. If someone installs your game based on a dev recommendation they already follow, they’re more likely to stay.

Want to try it? Keep it simple:

Find 2–3 games with similar audiences but non-competing mechanics
Reach out with a short ask: “Want to swap mentions or run a cross-posted story?”
Track results via UTM links or promo codes
If it works, make it regular

Conclusion

The better approach to market a game? Combine traditional strategies with underused ones:

In-app story campaigns that feel native
Partner placements in relevant apps
Cross-promotions with other developers
Small, committed communities that actually care

None of these require huge budgets. But they do require intent and a willingness to go where your players already are. Not just the app store homepage. So if you’re figuring out how to market your game, don’t just copy what everyone else is doing. Look for overlooked channels. Speak where people listen. And we always say: it’s not about reach. It’s about connection.