Free-to-play-model | Where did all your users go?
Free-to-play-model | Where did all my users go?
Generally, the main reasons for players to churn out of a free-to-play game are often due to the lack of clear/interesting objectives, poorly designed UI or a badly balanced progression curve.
So with that in mind, you could say that retention is the foundation of the free-to-play model. The problem with most marketers is they over-complicate things and assume poor retention is a result of wrong targeting, users ineptitude of perceiving the depth of the content, or maybe the 'graphics' weren't polished enough.
What I plan to do over these next few moments is
CUT THROUGH ALL THE BS.
And tell how it is, and what you can do.
1) Make a GREAT first impression
If you don’t communicate IMMEDIATELY to your users that your App is of the highest quality and worthy of investment from the very first game session, they’ll delete it.
The easiest way, and what also happens to be the best way to do this is through graphics. You ABSOLUTELY want to have killer icons, splash pages, and advanced screenshots (screenshots with banners across the image describing in a short-sentence what the user is seeing). When a user is browsing through the App Store a midst the now 1 Million+ (approved) Apps you're basically entering the battlefield and fighting for the users attention with your design.
So make sure you got that down pat. I could write a whole article on Graphic Design alone, (maybe I will later) but this is not the time.
..Just don't make it obvious that your app was thrown together in a rush, on the weekends, fueled by an endless supply of red-bull (which may very well be the case for all these instances).
While graphics are certainly important, and they are really what MAKE or BREAK your success in the App Store, there are in fact other variables..which include:
- Realistic physics
- A new gameplay format
- Elements of the real world integrated into gameplay (convincingly of course).
2) Make it worth their while
The best way to shoot yourself in the foot when communicating deep gameplay is by not having anything but renewable's or one-off upgrades. Users WANT TO return to good games, but they want to feel that their time is being rewarded with new, ever-richer experiences.
For instance..
This game I was playing over the Thanksgiving Holiday
Fun game, great graphics, freemium model, but only 1 level.
Seriously?
1 level?
That's just annoying (and I'm not the only one that thinks so).
It appears that the game was designed in a way where you play on a time-trial the whole time and then pick-up where you last left off when your time expired. There is no option to "beat" or "win" the level you're currently racing on, so you just have to keep racing, and going as far as you can to hopefully not run-out-of time.
If your game doesn't give the impression of a long lifetime of rich game-play a user won’t take a gamble on it. Just as I didn't want to spend money to buy any coins for "upgrades" when it was clear I wasn't even able to beat the damn level.
"Free-to-play gamers are looking for a relationship, not a one-night stand."
3) Define your target audience
It goes wihtout saying that you'll have much better results if you hone in on WHO EXACTLY your user audience is and SPEND THE TIME to REALLY understand WHO your MARKET IS! (I cannot stress this enough, seriously - if you don' take that one sentene of advice I just gave you, just burn your money right now - seriously.)
Gamers obviously have distinct tastes just like any other consumer outside of the App Store. There's a big difference between:
- Racing
- First person Shooters
- Puzzle games
- and the like..
By trying to appeal to the masses (as in, to every-category listed above, vs just one) you're just going to dilute the value proposition you should be trying to achieve with your target user base.
"If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything"
As the quote goes, the same will happen for your App - as it will tumble down the App Store Rapids faster than you can say, "OMGWTF"
The best games always focus on a single core gameplay mechanic and build a rich experience around that. It's important to make it easy for the users to identify what this core experience is without being distracted.
Players need to understand what exactly they’re getting good at through progressing in your game: Are they becoming a better racer? Are they improving their timing in BeJeweled? Are they becoming a better shooter? If this progression isn’t clear, players will inevitably not be able to engage with your game as much.
That's all for now.
-Kevin