Kaixin Xiaoxiaole

The needs it meets

EntertainmentCore

Passing time and unwinding, carried off by stories, music and video.

Progress

Seeing yourself get better: a level cleared, a rank gained, a skill learnt.

Why it wins

1. The only rule is to line up three animals of the same colour, which people of every age pick up at once, and it plays offline too.
2. Levels keep being added, more than ten thousand so far, so long time players rarely reach the end and there is always a next one.
3. Many have played for years and their progress lives here; a new match three would mean starting again at level one.

What keeps it ahead

Live operations

Events, seasons and new levels without end.

Easy start

Anyone can use it at once, with a reward within seconds.

Switching cost

Your data, contacts or progress live here; leaving is costly.

How it makes money

In app purchases

Free to play, with money from boosters, extra moves and energy bought when stuck; this week it is second on China's free games chart and eighth on the grossing chart.

What a small team can take from it

Happy Match shows a casual game can last more than a decade by adding levels and staying simple. A small team can copy the rhythm: one core rule anyone gets at a glance, then effort spent on a steady stream of new levels rather than new systems.

This week

• China: top grossing games, number 8
• China: top free games, number 2

updated 29 October 2026