Brainrot Merge is a merge-2 game by Bravestars Publishing, released in 2023. And since May 2025, it has exploded with 900K+ daily downloads, even peaking over 1M, according to AppMagic.
Let’s see how integrating a social trend has increased this game’s popularity and how its other design decisions help attract more players.
Viral Themes
The game combines the ‘Italian brainrot’ meme trend with the last year’s hit gameplay mechanic from the Suika Game (Watermelon Game). But instead of fruits, it uses absurd mashups like animal-human, animal-weapon like hybrids, adding a layer of humor and curiosity. And the cherry on top? The addition of voice lines like “Cappuccino Assassino” play on merge, creating a shareable and memorable player experience.
Accessible Gameplay
The game features a session-friendly design, allowing players to return to their saved progress at any time, making it suitable for both quick and extended play sessions. Boosters enhance the gameplay ease while opening up additional monetization opportunities. Also, having a collection of themes and backgrounds, manage to increase the game’s appeal across demographics. Additionally, objectives, challenges, leaderboards, daily rewards and lucky spins help to boost long term player engagement and encourage frequent sessions.
Ad Monetization
Apart from the “Remove Ads” option, the game is entirely monetized through IAAs. It utilizes Banner ads, App Open Ads, Interstitial ad breaks during gameplay, and additionally rewarded ads, which are used to unlock boosters, additional coins, spins and revival options.
How long will this brainrot trend continue to capture players’ attention? And which other game genres do you think could benefit most from jumping on this viral wave? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Original Post: Kavindu Priyanath-LinkedIn
