Kim Kardashian's Video Game Could Generate $200 Million This Year

Reality TV star Kim Kardashian's newly released video game, Kim Kardashian: Hollywood, could generate as much as $200 million this year through in-app purchases. That's according to video game industry analyst Doug Creutz, who talks about the free mobile game as part of a Bloomberg feature today.

"There's no such thing as bad publicity, right?" Creutz said. "Obviously, Kim Kardashian's brand has driven people to download the game. But at this point, the game has taken on a life of its own."

To put the $200 million figure into context, Electronic Arts' free-to-play mobile game The Simpsons: Tapped Out took more than a year to reach $100 million in lifetime revenue.

Released on June 25, Kim Kardashian: Hollywood was a chart-topper for free-to-play games on the US iTunes app store, and has seen millions of installs on Android. The game was developed by Glu Mobile, and its success drove shores of the company up 44 percent.

"It might be our biggest game of the year," CEO Niccolo de Masi said. "We're not surprised. Kim is a one-of-a-kind talent with an incredibly precise fit to the game engine that we tailored but already had in the company."

In the game, you create your own character, and live the life of a celebrity. You can walk the red carpet, visit clubs, and buy luxury homes. The game even lets you date and dump celebrities in an effort to "become the next huge celebrity power-couple." Kardashian is married in real life to rapper Kanye West.

Kim Kardashian: Hollywood is free, with its revenue instead coming from in-app purchases for things like clothing or a "burst of energy" for making your way through Hollywood. These in-app purchase range from a few dollars for necklace to $60 for a "huge star pack."