Category Archives: Uncategorized

In the gaming industry, it is so hard to resist taking inspiration from games that are huge hits or make vast sums of money. Though there are instances where systems from a top hit could fit into some games, unfortunately most of the time they will not. Shoehorning systems into a game can spell disasterContinue reading “Don’t Monetize Skill-Based Games like a Stat-Based Game”

Most Game Developers focus on Day 1, 3, 7, 14 and 30 Retention (or some combination thereof).  After Day 30, all headlights are on Monetization and LTV (Day 180 or otherwise).  The reason for this shift is that by Day 30, we assume that a Player is committed enough to the game so that weContinue reading “Why do Players Quit the Games they Enjoy?”

In August of this year, Clash of Clans will turn 8 years old.  When Mobile F2P Games began over a decade ago, the conventional wisdom was that the lifespan of the games would last for 1-2 years at most.  New games were coming out all the time, many of them clones. And then you hadContinue reading “Why do Players Stay?”

What is Energy?  The question seems easy and straightforward on it’s face.  Energy is that bar we see deplete while we perform actions in the games we enjoy.  But at its core, Energy is a limiting mechanic to both limit how much progress a Player can make over time as well as put an artificialContinue reading “The Complexities of the Energy Economy”

Timing is everything it seems.  In my last post about Metasystems in Roguelite Games, I suggested that Archero and other Roguelite Games with Heroes could do a Gameplay Mode that allowed Players to use all their Heroes.  A few readers were quick to point out soon after my post went public that Archero released aContinue reading “Breaking Down Archero’s Hero Adventure Event”

Making sure Players don’t run out of content is a huge issue that Game Developers across PC, Console, and Mobile have.  Developers of Roguelite Games seem to have largely mitigated this content issue by having procedurally generated content as their core gameplay.  But while the problem of gameplay content seems to have been solved, manyContinue reading “Metasystems Matter in Roguelite Games”

As we continue to live with Shelter in Place and look for Games with long playability at a low cost, Idle Games may not be the obvious choice.  After all, Idle Games have the reputation of playing itself while we focus on our busy lives. Players return to an Idle Game hours after being atContinue reading “Idle Games don’t have to be so Idle”

Time is a hard concept to wrap your head around in games.  At its simplest, Time is cast times, cooldowns, crop grow rates and when you get your next heart for a Match3 Puzzle game.  But Time is also super important to think about when designing the player experience, or figuring out how to exchangeContinue reading “Don’t Forget that Time is a Resource”

Many RPGs grapple with how to make their systems last in the face of massive Whale spend.  An obvious answer is to keep adding new features that have more things for players to invest in.  But in the hustle and bustle of operating a live game, new feature development is never as easy or asContinue reading “Good Systems Design: AFK Arena’s Expandable Max Levels”

Battle Royale has had a huge impact on gaming in the last few years.  From Fortnite to Apex Legends to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, the Battle Royale market has emerged as one of the leading Genres in gaming today.  But with its success comes some core long-term problems. Battle Royale faces three critical issuesContinue reading “The Future of Battle Royale (Part 1: Battle Royale needs to Evolve)”