Benchmark Sample report for deltaCrunch Contents
Overview ...... 3 Category score ...... 4 Score breakdown ...... 5 Summary of actions ...... 6 Recommended action list ...... 6 Key findings and priority areas...... 7 ENGAGEMENT ...... 7 1.1 First impressions ...... 7 1.2 Look and feel ...... 8 1.3 Tutorial ...... 8 1.4 Story and progression ...... 9 1.5 Currency structure and complexity ...... 10 GAME MECHANICS ...... 11 2.1 Risk reward ...... 11 2.2 Core loop ...... 12 2.3 Tasks ...... 12 2.4 Gambling ...... 13 2.5 Collecting ...... 14 2.6 Cooperation ...... 14 2.7 Competition ...... 15 RETENTION ...... 16 3.1 Repeat play ...... 16 3.2 Game difficulty, complexity and blockers ...... 17 3.3 Rewarding and being generous ...... 18 3.4 Monetization blockers ...... 19 3.5 Appointment setting ...... 20 MONETIZATION ...... 22 4.1 First and second payment ...... 22 4.2 Virtual goods pricing and purchase process ...... 24 4.3 Inventory range ...... 25 4.4 Use of bundles ...... 26 4.5 Expensive items and VIP management ...... 26 4.6 Skills based monetization ...... 28 4.7 Signposting ...... 28 4.8 Customizing ...... 29 4.9 Ad consumption ...... 29 SOCIAL ...... 32 4.1 Virality ...... 32 4.2 Sharing and gifting ...... 34 4.3 Trading ...... 34
2 Introduction As the games industry re-orientates to free-to-play game development, it is essential that the player experience is put at the heart of the game from day one of the design process. Here at deltaDNA, we get excited about what game data can tell us and how it can be used to change the game. That is why we believe in actionable insights, not only gained through the platform tools, but also through our dedicated game design and analytics teams. We play test, benchmark and analyze games that integrate with deltaDNA. This report contains our thoughts about how your game is performing, what it does well, and any areas that could be improved. Overview DeltaDNA’s Benchmark delivers key recommendations to improve game design against best practice guidelines and also scores performance against a Benchmark of peer games within the same genre.
Benchmark measures the effectiveness of your game against proven best practice in F2P design. As the games industry re-orientates to F2P game development, it is important that the player experience is put at the heart of the game. The Benchmark assessment is a valuable tool in ensuring your game creates an engaging experience for the user, maximizing retention and revenues.
Benchmark is based on evaluating over 100 F2P games across a wide range of genres. The assessment uses evidence-based research to understand what aspects of F2P game design are effective in delivering:
• An engaging environment for players • Good balancing of momentum and difficulty that increases retention to maximize the volume of players • Effective monetization to make the game profitable • Overall good player management
The assessment is carried out in two stages. Firstly, there is an in-depth review on various aspects of the game design with feedback on positive aspects and recommendations for improvement. The game is then scored across 30 key categories and compared against a Benchmark drawn from a range of similar games as well as ranked against the highest scoring game in your specific genre and platform.
3 Category Scores
Engagement
deltaCrunch Game Social mechanics
Benchmark
Best in Genre
Monetization Retention
The table below details the key statistics for deltaCrunch (a match-three puzzle game) and compares them to our Benchmark and best in game genre figures.
SECTION DELTACRUNCH BENCHMARK BEST IN GENRE
Engagement 64.0% 70.0% 90.0%
Game mechanics 42.9% 51.4% 75.7%
Retention 38.0% 60.0% 82.0%
Monetization 27.8% 44.4% 75.6%
Social 33.3% 40.0% 60.0%
DeltaCrunch reached an overall score of 40.7% compared to a Benchmark score of 52.8% and Best in Genre of 77.6%. The game scored below Benchmark due to poor scores in retention, monetization and social.
DeltaCrunch scores a reasonable 64% for engagement, not far from Benchmark. This is driven by the general high quality of the game and a good early gameplay experience. First impressions are good; the initial levels quickly introduce the player to the gameplay. However, poor currency structure and broken navigation controls pulls the score down.
The game mechanics section scores 42.9% with good marks in the core loop and risk reward mechanics, showing a solid gameplay structure that underpins the game. Unfortunately, retention doesn’t score as well, coming in at 38% compared to a Benchmark of 60%. DeltaCrunch features a defined end that hinders repeat play opportunities, harsh difficulty curve that will likely act as a blocker and no form of appointment setting to drive players back to the game.
Monetization also fails to reach Benchmark with a score of 27.8%, due to the lack of monetization mechanics to drive revenue. Finally, social scores 33.3% compared to a Benchmark of 40%. Although there are incentives in place to reward players who gift and invite players to the game, it is not signposted or made explicit. 4 Score breakdown
The following table sets out the criteria scores against the Benchmark and the Best in Genre score. Each criteria is a scored on a scale of 0 to 10.
• 0-3 defines a mechanic missing or poorly implemented • 4-7 defines a mechanic that is adequately implemented • 8-10 defines a well implemented mechanic
The game is compared to a Benchmark score based on a panel of similar games in the same genre and type. This shows the strengths and weaknesses of the individual game design which is then used to draw up a prioritized action list for consideration.
The scores are indications of completeness and implementation and not a review score defining the quality of the game.
SECTION CATEGORY DELTACRUNCH BENCHMARK BEST IN GENRE
Engagement First impressions 8 7 9
Engagement Look and feel 8 8 10
Engagement Tutorial 6 6 8
Engagement Story and progression 7 7 9
Engagement Currency structure & complexity 3 7 9
Game mechanics Risk reward 7 8 9
Game mechanics Core loop 8 8 9
Game mechanics Tasks 6 6 8
Game mechanics Gambling 0 3 7
Game mechanics Collecting 5 5 8
Game mechanics Cooperation 0 2 4
Game mechanics Competition 4 4 8
Retention Repeat play 5 7 9
Retention Game difficulty, complexity & blockers 4 6 7
Retention Rewarding 4 7 10
Retention Monetization blockers 6 6 8
Retention Appointment setting 0 4 7
Monetization First & second payment 4 4 7
Monetization Virtual goods pricing & purchase process 5 7 10
Monetization Inventory range 3 4 7
Monetization Use of bundles 0 3 7 Monetization Expensive items and VIP management 3 4 8 Monetization Skill based monetization 5 7 9
Monetization Signposting 5 5 8
Monetization Customizing 0 2 5
Monetization Ad consuption 0 4 7
Social Virality 4 6 8
Social Sharing & gifting 6 5 7
Social Trading 0 1 3
Overall score 116 153 225
Overall percentage 40.00% 52.76% 77.59% 5 Summary of actions
This section pulls out the key areas that have been identified during the analysis. Recommended action list
The following action list is arranged into three categories based on priority and effort.
Priority A - Essential and urgent actions to improve the overall gameplay significantly
INDEX DESCRIPTION
1.1 / 1.3 Introduce the Gift Room as part of the onboarding process
1.1 / 3.3 Introduce boosters earlier in the game
1.3 Prevent tutorial messages disappearing too fast. Allow players to acknowledge advice
1.5 / 4.1 / 4.3 Implement virtual currency to make is easier for players to buy items 1.5 Offer premium currency rewards (if implemented)
2.1 Resolve “no match” bug that re-shuffles tiles when there is an available match
3.4 Prevent players from exploiting time blockers by changing device time by carrying out server side checks
3.2 / 4.6 Ensure players can get further into the game before feeling challenged 3.2 Recommend appropriate boosters on tough levels
Priority B - Useful medium resource development that will significantly improve the game
INDEX DESCRIPTION
1.4 Host reminder of level objectives on screen during gameplay
3.2 Offer support to repeat failing players - hints / tips / recommendations
3.3 Highlight booster unlocks on map to encourage progression
3.3 Make end of level reward breakdown more explicit to increase sense of achievement 3.5 Feature an incremental daily reward system to encourage players to come back to the game each day
4.1 Encourage first payment with first spend bonuses or timed welcome bonus offer
4.7 Use loading screens to provide hints / tips and promote purchasable content
5.1 Make the Facebook connect option more noticeable / signpost 5.1 Offer reward for connecting to Facebook
5.2 Incentivse gifting to promote virality
Priority C - Larger development efforts which will enhance the game
INDEX DESCRIPTION
1.4 Don’t feature an end game, increase number of levels over time to keep players coming back 2.4 / 3.5 Consider a gambling mechanic to encourage players to monetize and keep playing
2.2 Add to the loop with rare items drops and bonus levels that appear off the main progression path
2.3 / 3.1 Use a task system to add repeat play value 2.7 / 3.1 Encourage players to invite friends and compete by promoting weekly leaderboard rewards
2.7 / 3.1 Offer weekly challenges to bring players back to the game regularly
3.2 Use a split progression path to act as alternative route and increase repeat play opportunities
3.2 Use PRM to tailor game experience based on player behaviors 4.2 / 4.3 Offer a range of bundles aimed at various prices / playing styles
4.5 Offer VIP incentives
4.9 Feature ad consumption 6 Key findings and priority areas
In this section we will highlight the main learning from the analysis, identify specific issues and provide recommendations with next steps. Engagement
10
8
6
4
2
0 Currency First Look and feel Tutorial Story and structure and impressions progression complexity
deltaCrunch Benchmark Best in Genre
Engagement is based on getting and keeping players engaged in the game. This is driven through the game progression and explained through the tutorial. 1.1 First impressions
The first experience of gameplay is incredibly important; players need to get in, enjoy themselves and be rewarded. As players may not come back after the first session, the game should give as much of a taste of what it has to offer as soon as possible. If you have an exciting bonus game, cool feature or outlandish weapon that isn’t revealed till deeper into the game, do you really want to wait until 90% of your players have abandoned?
Scoring criteria:
• Does the game give a good initial impression? • Do they have fun in the first mission and achieve something early no matter their skill level? • Are players able to experience enough of the game early on to get a good understand of the gameplay?
Findings and recommendations
DeltaCrunch gives a good initial impression by providing an engaging tutorial that teaches the player the basics to succeed whilst in a live game environment.
Players are rewarded with 3 stars on the first mission that go towards a goal of 30 to visit the Gift Room. We found it impossible to score any lower than 3 stars on the first mission, so players get a sense of achievement early on in the game. 7 Unfortunately, nothing is mentioned in regards to why you are collecting the stars or what will happen when enough have been collected to visit the Gift Room. This can leave the player confused about this initial objective. We would suggest explaining this at the start of the game to fuel progression.
In regards to the introduction of boosters in the game, they are not available until level 9. As this is relatively far into the game, we would suggest rewarding a basic booster much earlier to improve first impressions. This would also ensure more players experience using boosters before they have the chance to defect and potentially avert abandonment.
1.2 Look and feel
The look and feel includes both the overall quality of the art direction and how the visual style fits with the players’ expectation. The visuals also need to make it obvious to the player what they have to do.
Scoring criteria:
• Does the look and feel meet expectations? • Does it look polished and well crafted? • Does it feel solid?
Findings and recommendations
The graphics in deltaCrunch are of a high quality and the art style is consistent throughout. The gameplay does not stray far from most traditional match-three games available on the App store and Facebook but does feature certain levels with larger ‘puzzle maps’ that players can move around in order to complete set objectives.
1.3 Tutorial
Every game needs some way of explaining to the player how to play, from the simplest ‘avoid missing ball score’ to a complex tutorial. The aim is to get the player as quickly and simply in the game for real with an understanding of how to play the game.
Scoring criteria:
• Is the tutorial obvious and skippable? • Is it possible to pick the level of the tutorial? • Is the tutorial fun and engaging? • Does the tutorial teach the player how to play the game?
Findings and recommendations
The tutorial in deltaCrunch points out the important aspects of gameplay step by step in a fun and engaging way. When a boost is unlocked the player is provided with a hint on how to use it. However, the hints and tips that are provided during the tutorial disappear too quickly. Holding the tutorial message on screen until the player has carried out the instructed action would ensure all players have the chance to fully understand what they need to do.
The tutorial should also explain what the Gift Room is and what they can earn from it, as well as introducing the boosters so new players are fully aware of what the game has to offer. 8 1.4 Story and progression
Players need to progress through the game; a story is one mechanism to keep players progressing. If a story is used to help players progress it needs to feel that it is part of the experience. The story needs to be interesting and add value to the game.
Scoring criteria:
• Does the game have a story that makes sense? • Does the story add to the game experience? • Does the story help to guide the player through the game? • Does the game have a logical progression and keep players moving through the levels?
Findings and recommendations:
DeltaCrunch features a linear progression path with a defined end. The game attempts to keep the player progressing through all 10 regions consisting of multiple levels by typing them together with an overarching goal. The end goal is to unlock the delta symbol located in the centre of the player map. At the end of each region the player is required to recover a gem that slots into an empty socket on the delta and once all have been collected the game is complete.
It is not recommended to feature a defined end in a F2P game as your most dedicated players will simply leave once the game is over. Making the game open ended leaves room for further development and makes fans who are committed to the match-three genre aware that the game is continually being extended.
Once the player has completed all regions and all gems have been obtained to unlock the delta, a new game world could be revealed. This should be repeated to cater for dedicated/whale players.
Before entering a level, level objectives are displayed. However, players may forget what needs to be achieved during gameplay. It is vital that players know what to do at all times to keep them in the game. Similar to the example below, objectives should be visible during the game to act as a visual reminder.
Fairy Mix
9 1.5 Currency structure and complexity
As a free-to-play game, there has to be some form of in-game currency to allow players to buy items. This needs to be simple, intuitive and ideally add to the game experience.
Scoring criteria:
• Does the currency fit with the game concept? • Are there too many/too few currencies? • Does the user understand the difference between the currencies? • Is the underlying economics obvious and intuitive?
Findings and recommendations:
As a free-to-play game, there has to be some form of in-game currency to allow players to buy items. This needs to be simple, intuitive and ideally add to the game experience.
There is no virtual currency present in deltaCrunch and all transactions involve the player buying the desired item directly with real money. This does make transactions simple and easy to understand, however, it means that players must resort to multiple, repeat transactions each time they wish to buy a booster, extra lives etc...
The disadvantage of this approach is that the game is unable to reward players with currency to help motive first purchase. It also means that there is limited opportunity to offer special deals on currency or rewards on bulk buying. Using a virtual currency, bought with real money, although adding in a level of indirection, does give the game the ability to solve these problems and it is recommended that it is looked at in detail to see if the simplicity advantage is outweighed by the ability to encourage monetization through a specific premium currency.
King’s popular match-three title Farm Heroes Saga features a grind (Magic Beans) and premium (Gold) currency to allow players the freedom to explore the available boosters. This lets players experience the purchase process and in turn encourage the spending behavior.
Farm Heroes Saga
10 Premium currency rewards in deltaCrunch could be offered:
• When entering a new region of the map • By inviting a friend to the game • By the Gift Room • As part of a daily reward
Game mechanics
10
8
6
4
2
0
Risk reward Core loop Tasks Gambling Collecting Cooperation Competition
deltaCrunch Benchmark Best in Genre
Game mechanics looks at the core underlying mechanics that drives both retention and monetization 2.1 Risk reward
The risk reward mechanic is the basic structure of gameplay. This needs to be balanced so players always feel that they failed because of something they did and the game is not random. It needs to be obvious that by doing a specific thing they could have done better.
Scoring criteria:
• Do player actions have a defined reward and a related risk? • Is that reward directly proportional to the risk? • Does balancing the risk, define the gameplay flow? • Players should never blame the game. When they fail a risk based action, do they feel it is their fault?
Findings and recommendations:
The main risk in deltaCrunch is running out of moves. Players need to take caution in each and every move if they want to succeed without the need for boosters. Rewards are in stars and the number obtained depends on the players score during gameplay. The occasional boost is rewarded once it has been unlocked or rewarded by the Gift Room when enough stars have been collected.
There is one major problem within deltaCrunch where we have experienced several occasions when a match is clearly visible on screen when a “No match possible” pop-up is displayed and the puzzle is re-shuffled. This can be frustrating for the player, especially if the re-shuffle results in a loss. We would recommend making this a high priority fix. 11 2.2 Core loop
The core loop is a mechanic that rewards players for undertaking a simple and repetitive task. The aim is to build a learned behavior that players find compelling so they will continue to undertake the task, gaining rewards. If this is done poorly it turns into a ‘grind’ and players become frustrated.
The extension of the core loop is the spiral, where the tasks become progressively more complex as the game progresses; this encourages players to adapt and keeps players interested.
The rewards for those loops can be varied so that players are never exactly sure what they will get for their effort. This can increase the addictive quality of the game.
Scoring criteria:
• Does the game have a core loop that encourages them to keep playing? • Does the core loop vary the reward? • Does the compulsion loop become repetitive? • Does the compulsion loop encourage repeat play?
Findings and recommendations:
The game has a basic compulsion loop mechanic based on players hitting objectives and unlocking the next level. Players also earn stars for each level completed that contribute to unlocking additional boosts from the Gift Room.
Players should have the opportunity to collect certain items in later levels that can go towards rare boosts obtainable from the Gift Room. These items could be found in ‘mystery levels’ that appear at random times off the main progression path.
2.3 Tasks
Tasks are used to help focus the player, giving them easily defined objectives that keep them playing. These can be used to teach the player how to play the game as well as reward the player for learning. The tasks should be short, quickly achieved and ideally they should overlap so as players complete a task a new one opens up. Giving players multiple tasks at any one time means they never feel stuck for what to do next.
Scoring Criteria:
• Are tasks short and quickly achieved? • Are players given constantly overlapping tasks to keep them progressing? • Do new tasks open up just as a player is about to complete a task? • Do players feel at any point they have nothing to do? • Are players allowed multiple options to progress if they want to?
Findings and recommendations:
Players are given a set of objectives before entering a level. However, all objectives must be met in order to progress onto the next level.
Implementing optional objectives or an achievement task system would offer more replay value and can even be used to encourage virality and monetization. 12 Completing optional objectives should provide players with small rewards for encouragement.
Tasks could include: • Create 5 bombs in one level • Rank first out of your friends • Get 3 stars • Visit the Gift Room • Obtain all stars available in region one • Invite 5 friends • Tweet high score
2.4 Gambling
Gambling is a strong human instinct that can be used to encourage players to keep playing and to spend more money.
Scoring criteria:
• Rather than simply allowing players to buy items, does the game let them gamble to win? • Is there a magic box mechanic, where there is a no-lose gamble? • Is there a range of different magic boxes that the player can buy? • When the players wins a reward, are they given the ability to gamble?
Findings and recommendations:
DeltaCrunch doesn’t feature any form of gambling.
Gambling is a strong mechanic; players like to take a gamble, especially if the odds are in their favor. Gambling mechanics like a magic box have proved to be very powerful mechanisms for monetizing games.
As an example, Best Fiends features a magic box mechanic, where players can collect keys by playing the game and unlock boxes that contain a random reward. There is also an option to buy additional keys using premium currency.
Best Fiends
13 2.5 Collecting
Players like to build collections; there is a strong human instinct to make order out of disorder. The aim is to give players the ability to build a collection and compare their collection with other players.
Scoring criteria:
• Does the game allow players to complete collections? • Does the game vary the rarity of items? • Does the game allow trading of items to make collections? • Does the game provide the ability to compare between friends?
Findings and recommendations:
Collection is not a feature of deltaCrunch.
2.6 Cooperation
Games are driven through allowing players to play together to achieve the aim. Players like to cooperate with friends.
Scoring criteria:
• Does the game use these mechanics to drive repeat play through social activities? • Does the game encourage players to cooperate? • Is it possible to join with friends?
Findings and recommendations:
DeltaCrunch is not a cooperative game.
Match-three games are not commonly seen as cooperative games, however, Bejeweled Blitz (Mobile/Facebook) does feature an interesting game mode that encourages players to invite friends to the game and work together to win big prizes.
Bejeweled Blitz 14 2.7 Competition
Games are driven through competition and players beating their friends.
Scoring criteria:
• Does the game provide competitions and leaderboards? • Are players able to compete against friends? • Are players rewarded for success?
Findings and recommendations:
Competition is about retention, it is about allowing players to compare their skills and compete with similar players. The objective of competition is to make it personal, allowing players to beat their friends and then brag about it.
DeltaCrunch does feature integrated social network competition, however, players should be further encouraged to invite their friends to play and compete.
A weekly leaderboard that ranks the player against a list of friends and rewards the top ranking would help drive competition and prove as a good retention mechanic to draw players back each day or week to compete.
Leaderboard based competition with subsequent rewards can be found in popular match-three games such as Bejeweled Blitz (Mobile/Facebook) and Disco Bees (Mobile/Facebook).
Bejeweled Blitz Disco Bees
DeltaCrunch could feature a weekly challenge that lets players compete against friends with a set of specific rules to increase competition and monetization.
A competition could comprise of: • A unique level provided every week • 3 attempts to achieve highest score possible • Locked to 3 boosts of each type for use in challenge • Global/friend competition leaderboard • Rewards for top ranked players
15 Retention
10
8
6
4
2
0 Game difficulty, Repeat complexity and Rewarding Monetization Appointment play blockers setting blockers
deltaCrunch Benchmark Best in Genre
Retention is focussed on mechanics and structure in the game that keeps players returning to the game 3.1 Repeat play
Ideally a free-to-play game should be endless, it should avoid having a defined end as that limits how far a game can go. This makes narrative games hard to make as successful in free-to-play. The games that work the best are simple, arcade games with no defined end.
Scoring criteria:
• Do players reach a point they cannot play? • Is there an end game? • Is the game playable and enjoyable at different skill levels? • Does the game become so difficult that players are unable to progress?
Findings and recommendations:
The level map clearly shows a defined end to the game (level 50). As discussed in section1.4 - Story and progression, it is not recommended to feature a defined end in the F2P game as your most dedicated players will simply leave once the game is over. Making the game open ended leaves room for further development and makes fans who are committed to the match-three genre aware that the game is being continually extended.
The game caters to more experienced players as deltaCrunch difficulty spiked very early on. Casual players may be put off by this and find it very difficult to progress, resulting in abandonment. We will talk more about this in the next section, Game Difficulty, complexity and blockers.
As mentioned previously in section 2.3 - Tasks and section 2.7 - Competition, achievement tasks and weekly challenges should be incorporated to the game to add repeat play value.
16 3.2 Game difficulty, complexity and blockers
The biggest cause of retention issues is due to game difficulty. It is a real challenge to get the difficulty curve right, especially for casual players. Developers are often the worst people to set the difficulty as they have played the game too much, and have too much experience and inside knowledge on how the game works. As a general rule of thumb, a game that is too easy will cause less retention issues than a game that is too difficult.
Complexity should be built up in layers and introduced to the player gradually. New game mechanics should be added to the game progressively through the levels so the players have enough skill to handle each mechanic. This requires the game to work for different levels of player competence.
When it comes to game blockers, any mechanic that stops the player progressing will cause defection, so it is therefore important that players are given a choice of multiple routes and objectives so they never feel that they have no way to progress.
Scoring criteria:
• Is the game overly harsh for new players? • Does difficulty cause a blocker to players enjoying the game? • Does the game layer in complexity and introduce new mechanics slowly? • Is there a gradual and smooth increase in difficulty?
Findings and recommendations:
More direction should be given to players to avoid abandonment due to frustration. Recommend appropriate boosters that will aid completion of a tough level using clear signposting so players know exactly what to purchase in order to have the best chance of success. For example - recommend a ‘cluster bomb’ if a player is failing on a level containing multiple obstacles.
In addition, when players fail a level, support should be given to encourage retention as players are simply presented with “You failed and lost a life!” with no condolences or advice on how to succeed next time. Providing hints, and signposting appropriate booster recommendations, would benefit players at a time of potential defection.
As the progression in deltaCrunch is very linear and difficulty can pose as a blocker to enjoyment, considering a split path with variant difficulty should be considered.
Looking at Clash of Clans (Mobile) and Battle Beach (Mobile) as examples, they both offer around 50 single player levels with split progression paths so players have multiple ways to progress if they find a level particularly difficult. Players can also revisit each level to claim extra rewards that adds to the replay value.
Battle Beach Clash of Clans 17 Featuring a split path in deltaCrunch would extend the gameplay of experienced players and provide an alternative route for players that may be struggling. For example, using a shorter path with an increased level of difficulty (and clearly communicating it) alongside a longer path with easier less rewarding battles would ensure the game accommodates multiple levels of competency without alienating a segment of players. This would keep players engaged for longer periods of time, provide extended gameplay opportunities and fuel progression.
An alternative option would be to tailor the game experience based on player competency using Player Relationship Management (PRM) as not all players are the same. For example, if a player is showing signs of slowed progression and multiple failures early on in the game, this player could be gifted or pushed extra hints & tips to prevent defection. This can also be used to challenge competent players who may find the game too easy by increasing the difficulty or introducing them to a new (more challenging) game mode.
3.3 Rewarding and being generous
Players need to be rewarded for playing the game; they need to feel good. Rewarding is a way of helping players understand what they have to do in the game.
Scoring criteria:
• Are players rewarded for playing the game? • When players achieve something is it a big deal? • Are rewards generous and an enjoyable experience? • Does the game give ‘free’ virtual currency? • Does the game increase engagement through rewarding?
Findings and recommendations:
Players are awarded when levels are completed with a high score (up to 3 Stars per level). Stars can then be used to visit the Gift Room to claim a random booster reward. Unfortunately, visiting the Gift Room is a long grind as 30 stars must be collected each time the player wishes to visit the Gift Room and the high difficulty level does not make this an easy task.
It is also worth mentioning that boosters are not introduced to the game until level 9 when the player unlocks it as part of an ongoing tutorial. This is quite far into the game and a large number of players will likely have left the game by this point.
Boosters that are unlocked through progression should be highlighted on the level map to let players know exactly when and where they will unlock new items in the game to encourage progression.
In the early phase of gameplay it is vital that the game is generous. Players have no investment in the game so it is vital to give them something that keeps them playing. The aim of the early gameplay phase is to increase engagement and therefore reduce abandonment. A steady increase in the Gift Room reward requirements (3 Stars, 9 Stars, 18 Stars etc...) and quicker introduction to boosters would make the game feel more generous.
It is also worth noting that the end of level completion performance breakdown is underwhelming. Being generous is not only about the number of rewards, the rewards need to feel like a big deal and they need to be important to players to keep them motivated.
18 Peggle 2 (Console) and Peggle Blast (Mobile) are a perfect example of end of level celebrations that makes the player feel good.
Peggle 2 Peggle Blast
3.4 Monetization blockers
With monetization blockers, the fiscal cliff is when players are given a stark choice between spending money or not progressing. Although this can be used to drive monetization it will have a major impact on retention as players decide at a single point in the game to either spend money or leave. Generally it is much better to give players multiple opportunities to spend money and not force the decision.
As a general rule of thumb it is more effective to use the carrot or rewards rather than the stick of forcing players to spend money to encourage monetization.
Scoring criteria:
• Are there points where a player has to make a decision between spending money or not progressing? • Is spending money optional? • Is the difference between spending and not spending gentle?
Findings and recommendations:
Much like games of a similar genre, deltaCrunch uses time blockers and boosters as the main monetization mechanic with players able to speed up progress in the game by spending real money.
However, there is a way around the time blockers by changing the device time on mobile devices. Changing the time bypasses any waiting time in the game and allowed us to regenerate lives instantly. We would highly recommend carrying out server side checks to ensure this does not damage monetization.
Time blockers are not the best mechanic to use as this drives players not willing to spend away from your game and at risk of never returning. If using this harsh mechanic, it is important to have solid appointment settings or ad consumption opportunities in place to keep players coming back.
19 3.5 Appointment setting
An appointment setting is where players are given a reason to return to the game at a set point. This is used to encourage a behavior that brings players back into the game and makes them remember to play.
A simple example of this is the daily bonus where players are rewarded for returning to the game each day. There can be more complex examples and ideally as players repeat the behavior the reward should escalate.
Scoring criteria:
• Does the game provide reinforcement rewards for behaviors that are deemed good? • Is there a daily bonus mechanic? • Does the bonus escalate for each subsequent day returned? • Are there events based on recognizable events through the year? • Are the events well publicised and integrated into the game?
Findings and recommendations:
Although deltaCrunch time blockers are a natural appointment setting, the game needs more reasons to encourage players back each day.
As mentioned previously, a gambling mechanic or weekly challenge could be used to pull players back to the game on a regular basis. We would also recommend looking into setting up an incremental reward system for consecutive daily return. Rewards could range from virtual currency (if implemented), extra moves, additional lives or even a unique booster for players returning for 7 consecutive days.
Below are examples of well implemented appointment settings:
Farm Heroes Saga (Mobile / Facebook) features a Daily Bonus where players collect a reward for coming back to the game each day. Rewards increment in value each consecutive day with certain days containing special rewards to encourage retention.
Farm Heroes Saga
20 Crazy Taxi: City Rush (Mobile) features a daily reward that increments in value for each consecutive day returned to the game. Crazy Taxi has combined the daily reward mechanic with an engaging mini-game that requires the player to play in order to claim their reward for that day. This method encourages engagement as well as acting as a strong retention mechanic.
Crazy Taxi: City Rush
D&D: Arena of War (Mobile) features a clear daily reward structure where players can see what will be rewarded on each day with a special reward for returning on day 7.
D&D Arena of War
21 Monetization
10
8
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0
First and Virtual goods Expensive Skill based Ad second pricing and Inventory range Use of bundles items and VIP Signposting Customizing consumption payment purchase management monetization
deltaCrunch Benchmark Best in Genre
Monetization is focused on mechanics that convert players from non-spenders to spenders. 4.1 First and second payment
For a player, the decision to spend for the first time is a momentous one. This is moving the game they are playing from a free to a paid for game. It is therefore important that you think hard about what will motivate a player to spend that all important first $. This payment should be a ‘no brainer’ so obvious and easy that everyone would buy it.
The game also needs to lead players through the initial payments, giving players an obvious second payment that complements the first payment and keeps them progressing quickly.
Scoring criteria:
• Is there an obvious ‘no brainer’ first payment? • Are there items sign posted to drive 1st payment? • Do players get sufficient value from the initial purchase to reinforce behavior • Is there a well-defined structure to move players from 1st to 2nd payment? • Are there items specifically aimed to embed the behavior?
Findings and recommendations:
It is possible for a player to spend money on a booster which does not help the player progress onto the next level. Therefore, options should be put in place to ensure the first purchase does not feel like a bad decision. The most effective way of doing this would be to host a virtual currency so players are not transacting with real money for such actions. Otherwise, gifting first spend losing players or doubling quantity of first booster purchase could be an alternative safety net.
It is important to offer specific items or sets of items that are focused on encouraging first time payment. These need to be explicit and priced specifically to encourage players to buy and spend real money. First spend bonuses are also powerful; making this explicit to the player and available for a limited time will make these offers even more lucrative.
22 Although not of a similar genre, but still a worthy example - Fast & Furious 6 (Mobile) and CSR Classics (Mobile) both push one time / limited time offers to maximise first payment opportunities.
Fast & Furious 6
CSR Classics
Candy Crush Saga has recently introduced a first payment incentive that also gives players a clear benefit of carrying out repeat purchases. Any time the player makes a real money purchase, players receive up to 2 hours of unlimited lives.
Candy Crush Saga
As mentioned previously, using a virtual currency will provide a mechanism for 1st payment and help increase monetization. It will allow you to easily reward players and encourage the spending behavior.
Virtual currencies are used in a number of successful match-three games with reward structures in place to encourage retention:
Best Fiends (Mobile) drip feeds players with small currency rewards in the occasional level to allow players to experience the game as a spender.
Best Fiends
23 Candy Crush Saga (Mobile / Facebook) uses virtual currency to reward returning lapsed players.
Candy Crush Saga
DeltaCrunch could implement a virtual currency called ‘Crunch Bucks’ and reward new players with free currency as part of a Welcome Bonus. Players could then be led through the process of purchasing a booster or other in-game item with ‘Crunch Bucks’ to help embed the spending behavior as part of the onboarding process.
4.2 Virtual goods pricing and purchase process
Getting the price of items right is key; prices are often decided arbitrarily and not changed once they are set. Changing the price of an item can substantially increase monetization, as items are often mispriced against their perceived worth.
With the purchase process, it needs to be as simple, intuitive and as painless as possible. Ideally, it should feel like it is part of the game world.
Scoring criteria:
• Is the purchase process simple and intuitive? • How easy is it to find the right item to buy? • Is there filter options within the store to sort items by price/type? • Are the items priced correctly? • Does the game have any obvious over or under priced items?
Findings and recommendations:
DeltaCrunch has a well-structured and simple payment process by using the Apple / Google platform to pay for items.
Boosters and Extra Lives are the only items available for real money purchase.
The current pricing structure is in line with most games of this genre with no obvious over/under priced items.
24 4.3 Inventory range
There needs to be a wide range of items to buy, it needs to be easy for players to navigate, and it needs to be obvious to players at various levels of competence which items they should buy to help them progress.
Scoring criteria:
• Is there sufficient range of items to buy? • Does the range include low cost items to entice early payers? • Is there some big ticket items aimed at the VIP players? • Is the inventory easy to navigate for both new and experienced players?
Findings and recommendations:
The potential is there to generate large spending through repeat purchases. However, players are required to transact each time they desire a booster or extra life due to a lack of virtual currency, which may put some players off as they are more aware of their spending.
Featuring a virtual currency will allow players to buy currency in bulk without having to repeatedly spend real world currency.
Jelly Splash hosts a number of payment options up to £69.99 to accommodate all player budgets/ playing style.
Jelly Splash
It is important to offer a range of expensive items aimed at all player types to encourage big spending. As mentioned in section 4.4 Use of Bundles, Bundles are a good way to encourage higher spending while offering a saving for buying items in bulk.
In addition, limited time sales are a good way to provide unique items that players can purchase at a higher price. Players can then own an item that is unique to only a small part of the community that purchase it.
25 4.4 Use of bundles
Bundles are good ways of giving players a set of items that help them solve a specific problem. They allow players to get good value and can be easily focused on specific player types. Bundles that are aimed at new players can make an ideal ‘no brainer’ purchase.
Scoring criteria:
• Are there bundles of items that are aimed at certain player types? • Do the bundles make sense? • Are they good value and deliver a sufficient enticement? • Do they help to focus gameplay?
Findings and recommendations:
No bundles are on offer in deltaCrunch at this time.
Bundles are ideal for offering players strong discounts as well as helping players to make a quick choice and buy a set of items that will deliver real value.
Offering various bundle options that offer substantial savings can help drive monetization and get new players onto the payment ladder. It can also encourage whale player spending by offering aspirational bundle items.
Candy Crush Saga Booster bundles:
4.5 Expensive items and VIP management
As important as the first payment is, the majority of the money will be made from players that love the game, it is therefore vital that these players have the option to spend a lot of money. Having very expensive and rare items in the game can form talking points even if no one ever buys them.
Scoring criteria:
• Do players have the option to spend a lot of money? • Does the game have expensive and rare items that encourage high spending? • Are there rewards aimed at VlPs? • Is there a structure that allows players to become VlPs, spend money and differentiate themselves in the game? 26 Findings and recommendations:
VIPs are the most important players in the game as they will generate 80% of the revenue. The game needs to cater for these players; they need to be rewarded for being VIPs with exclusive items and special gifts. They also need to be allowed to spend as much money as they want and show that they are VIPs by differentiating themselves in the game.
Boom! Tanks (Mobile) is a good example of a well implemented VIP structure. The game offers a clear way to become a VIP with permanent benefits.
Boom! Tanks
Players can easily distinguish if they are part of a VIP club
Uno & Friends (Mobile / Facebook) features a similar offer where VIP players can receive a list of valuable benefits and once the player becomes a member they are instantly recognizable to friends and opponents.
Uno & Friends
DeltaCrunch could offer a VIP incentive by providing dedicated players an increased life capacity, daily booster reward and ad removal for a small fee. The player should also stand out on Ieaderboards as a VIP player. The objective in this is to make players that spend money feel special and make non-spenders aspire to become VIP players.
27 4.6 Skill based monetization
Games that do not use time as a mechanism for monetization often allow players to spend money in order to improve the ability to win. This is known as ‘pay to win’ and can include increased accuracy or more powerful items that are only available if players spend money.
This mechanic can encourage abandonment as players that do not want to spend money leave as they feel the game is unfair.
Scoring criteria:
• Does the game use the ‘pay to win’ mechanic? • Is the mechanic implemented fairly so non-payers feel they have a chance to play? • Does the implementation force players into spending money or leave the game? • Does the game feel unfair?
Findings and recommendations:
With the high difficulty level, novice/casual players may feel like spending money is the only way to progress. Running out of moves too early is the main issue, on one play through near the end of the first region we had to transact in real money several times in order to progress. Some boosters do very little in order to aid progression meaning the first spending experience can be a negative experience.
Most players will likely abandon the game if they feel the game is too tough or if difficulty is an obvious mechanism to generate revenue. Players should be able to progress much further into the game before feeling challenged. This will increase player enjoyment and help early retention rates.
4.7 Signposting
Rather than putting direct offers in front of players or forcing them to spend money, the game can use signposts that nudge the player towards spending money. If the player believes they have made the decision themselves and are not forced they are much more likely to spend money.
This can also be used to give hints and tips that support retention.
Scoring criteria:
• Does the game use signposting to nudge players towards spending money? • ls signposting used as a part of a hint system? • Does the game use characters to help sign post behavior that is good?
Findings and recommendations:
Signposting as part of the onboarding process is basic with an unappealing grey pop-up text box and small arrow. Once the initial tutorial ends, signposting is no longer used.
Uno & Friends (Mobile / Facebook) makes good use of a likeable character to explain the rules of the game as well as signpost areas that players may have overlooked to encourage engagement and even monetization at later stages of the game. The option to disable hints is also present to accommodate more advanced players.
28 Uno & Friends
Engaging with new players in a similar fashion will ensure all players have the best possible chance of success.
Loading screens do not provide hints/tips or signposting to promote spending money. Adding in sign posting during loading times by showing the benefits of boosts, extra moves and hints/tips would make better use of these screens.
4.8 Customizing
Players like the ability to customize their environment. Ideally this should be used as a core monetization mechanic by building rarity into items and giving players the ability to show their uniqueness.
Scoring criteria:
• Does the game provide the ability for the player to customize? • ls both the player’s avatar and environment customizable? • ls customization a fully integrated part of the game experience? • ls customization used to drive monetization through giving players the ability to show their uniqueness?
Findings and recommendations:
DeltaCrunch does not feature any form of customization.
4.9 Ad consumption
Are players able to earn grind and premium currency through watching adverts or taking up offers using an offer wall?
Scoring criteria:
• Can the player watch adverts or take up offers to gain currency? • Is it easy to use and intuitive? • Does it interfere with the gameplay? • Does it deliver good value? • Is there a wide choice of options?
29 Findings and recommendations:
DeltaCrunch does not feature any form of ad consumption at this time.
Ad consumption is a good way of following players to earn premium currency without having to spend real money. Done well and integrated into to the game it can deliver substantial value with some games earning over 60% of their revenue through this type of monetization. Typical eCPM for a video ad is up to $5.
Match-three game Bee Brilliant (Mobile) uses Ad consumption to offer a free booster when starting each level.
Bee Brilliant
Bee Brilliant also offers players the chance to generate an extra life by watching a video advertisement. Video ads are time limited to prevent it from becoming an exploit.
Bee Brilliant
Another good example of ad consumption can be found in Peggle Blitz (Mobile).
30 Peggle Blitz offers video advertisements to give players another chance of success if a level has been lost.
Peggle Blitz
On completion of the advertisement, the player can take a spin of a wheel to earn up to 3 balls to continue playing on their failed level. However, the action is limited to prevent exploitation.
Peggle Blitz
Using ad consumption in deltaCrunch would give players an easy on ramp to trying out premium content and when structured into the one payment it can help players become spenders. However, it does need to be done carefully, targeted at the right players and done in a sensible and structured way.
31 Social
10
8
6
4
2
0
Virality Sharing and gifting Trading
deltaCrunch Benchmark Best in Genre
Social aspects look at mechanics to keep players communicating and structures that allow players to invite their friends.
5.1 Virality
One of the key ways of increasing acquisition is through the existing player base. If each player invites one friend you can double your player base for little or no cost. Virality should therefore be encouraged, not only will it increase the user base but by bringing in friends it will form strong social structures and encourage competition and cooperation.
It has also been found that players that are brought in through a viral mechanism are themselves 10 times more likely to invite friends, increasing the virality or the game and reducing acquisition costs.
Virality works best when it is part of the game play and not added in, it needs to be designed in from the start and not forced.
Scoring criteria:
• Does the game encourage players to invite friends? • Does the game use rewarding mechanisms for each player invited? • Is virality a core part of the gameplay rather than feeling like it has been tacked on?
Findings and recommendations:
DeltaCrunch does have the option to connect to Facebook but it is not easy to find or encouraged. The Facebook connect option is hidden within the settings menu and no rewards are provided to encourage the action.
Players will always want to play with their friends. Social aspects that encourage players to come together and bring in friends as a part of competing and cooperating are key to both building acquisition and also retention. Players are much more likely to stay in the game if they have friends around them and social constructs to keep them playing. 32 Below are some good examples of encouraging virality in your game:
Peggle Blast hosts a Facebook button on the main Ul that makes it clear how to connect your game. Added incentives such as the “+1 extra lives forever” gives the player good reason to connect.
Peggle Blast
Bejeweled Blitz features a rewarding mechanic that rewards the player based on the number of Facebook Friends invited who play the game for the first time.
Bejeweled Blitz
33 5.2 Sharing and gifting
Players should be encouraged to share as this encourages retention as players build social groups. This can be both through sharing items and shared experiences, something MMO’s do extremely well.
Scoring criteria:
• Does the game allow gifting? • Are players encouraged to share and gift? • Is the gifting mechanic easy to use?
Findings and recommendations:
DeltaCrunch gives players the option to request extra lives for free from friends on Facebook if they are not willing to monetize or wait for more to regenerate.
Gifting should be incentivized for the player returning the gift of extra lives to motivate social interaction. For example, if a player has received a request for help from a friend with no lives and they accept the request, a booster should be awarded to encourage the action.
Not everyone likes to be social but if there is a special reward in return it can increase the chances of players interacting with one another.
5.3 Trading
Finally, trading encourages players to interact with other players and form social groups. This can often extend players from their friends, introducing them to other players, forming bridges between social groups.
Scoring criteria:
• Does the game encourage trading with players? • ls trading a core part of the game? • Is there a well structure and simple way of trading?
Findings and recommendations:
DeltaCrunch does not feature any form of trading.
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