There are many, many, many great games that fail, while many mediocre games succeed. There's some correlation with fun, art style and polish, but more often it's down to marketing, exposure and luck.
I've heard it said that a fun game is the baseline, though. The game should be doing the heavy lifting, not the marketing. Marketing a bad game doesn't automatically lead to success, for sure.
Many breakaway hits are simply lucky by hitting the zeitgeist. Among Us is an example - without the covid hangover and some bored streamers randomly deciding to play it one day, you can imagine it not being the massive success that it is.
I've heard it said that a fun game is the baseline, though. The game should be doing the heavy lifting, not the marketing. Marketing a bad game doesn't automatically lead to success, for sure.
Many breakaway hits are simply lucky by hitting the zeitgeist. Among Us is an example - without the covid hangover and some bored streamers randomly deciding to play it one day, you can imagine it not being the massive success that it is.