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