I released Mouse Trivia in March of 2011 with the typical high expectations of an indie app developer, especially one that had really no experience in the industry. This was my first iOS game and the first app where I tried the whole free with ads thing. Apple made it really easy with iAd and I just dropped the ad unit on my .nib file, added a few lines of code and boom, that was it. Needless to say the App hasn't made me rich, but it's truly shattered my expectations.
The first iteration of the app was pretty simple, with a not-so-good user interface. It boasted over 200 questions that I had written myself through hours of research on wikipedia. Reviews were along the lines of, "Good start. Not enough questions."
The next few versions increased the database to over 1,200 questions, redid the UI, and added a new game mode. Over time I released specialized versions of the app focused on Pixar, Villains, Tangled, etc. Now I get reviews that range from, "I love this app, its perfect for passing the time in line for Splash Mountain" — have they never heard of Fastpass? ;-) — to "God there are too many questions that I don't know the answers to. It never ends."
With 8 apps available on the store the Mouse Trivia series has reached an average of 883 downloads a day, totaling nearly 450,000 downloads. Wow. If that pace stays steady it'll reach half a million in just under two months.
There is no way for me to know how much time has been spent in the app, but I think its safe to say that many many hours of enjoyment have come from these apps, and thats truly humbling to think about.
Thank you to everyone that has downloaded Mouse Trivia.