Free-To-Play · Making Money From Games You Give Away by Luton, Will -- Read -- Imperial Library of Trantor

Index

Free2Play

Acknowledgments About the Author Foreword

Discovering F2P F2P Success Why F2P Is Better Why This Book Is Important

Contents Introduction: How F2P Changed Games

The Opportunity of F2P How This Book Works

Examples of Successful Games The Chapters

1. Economics: How the Money Works

Physical vs. Digital (Why Bits Aren’t Atoms) The Internet Is an Open Market; Your Game Isn’t We Don’t Buy Things; We Buy Emotions Not All Players Spend Equally The Math

The Acronyms: A Primer The Money Formulas

Winning at F2P: Increasing Profits with KPIs

Users and Engagement Retention and Churn Spend and Conversion Cost Per Acquisition Overheads Improving KPIs Holistically

2. Gameplay: Keeping Players Coming Back

F2P: The Good Games Revolution Core Loops: The Beating Heart of Games

Structure of the Loop Upgrades in the Loop Waits in the Loop Grinding in the Loops

Sessioning: Showing Your Players the Door

Finite Loops: How Sessions Work

Return Triggers: Enticing Your Players to Come Back

Appointment Triggers Competitive Triggers Social Commitment Triggers Location Triggers Sales and Events Triggers Nudge Triggers

Player Motivations: Hearts, Clubs, Diamonds and Spades

Hearts (or Socializers) Clubs (or Killers) Diamonds (or Achievers) Spades (or Explorers) It’s an Understanding

Goal Systems: Retaining Players for Years

Rats in Boxes: The Secrets of Variable Reinforcement Increasing the Rewards Choosing a Schedule Examples of Goal Systems

Collections Missions Leaderboards Friends Unlocks

Don’t Tick Boxes

3. Monetization: Players Reward You with $$$

IAP 101 What to Sell: The Four Cs of IAPs

Content Convenience Competitive Advantage Customization Mixed Cs

Creating Demand: Supply and Pinch Points

Virtual Currencies Energy Virtual Goods Making Money from Demand

Creating Value: Comparison, Quality and Experience

Comparison Quality and Experience

Breaking the Barrier: Getting Players to Spend

User Experience First Purchase Deal Social Proof

Beyond IAPs

Advertising

Banner ADS Interstitial ADS Video ADS Offer Walls Affiliate Linking Alternative Benefits of ADS The Negatives of Advertising

Product Placement Merchandise Store Cards

Observe, Improve, Repeat

4. Analytics: Understanding and Serving Your Players

The Eternal Beta Don’t Listen to What People Say, Look at What They Do Collecting Data

The Metrics You Need

KPIs Demographic Metrics Play Tracking Resources and Items Custom Metrics

AB Testing

Data Quality

Statistics: The Analyst’s Toolbox

Averages: Mean, Mode and Median Causation and Variables Regression Analysis

The Art of Interpretation Gather Data, Test, Analyze

5. Marketing: Reaching Players

Eyes on Your Game

Buying Players Press Organic Traffic

Burst Marketing Golden Feedback Loop

Viral Marketing

Players in the Funnel No Two Players Are Alike Catching Leaks: Sharing Players and Building Communities Strategic Positioning The High-level Proposition The Best Marketing of All

Appendix A. The F2P Spreadsheet Appendix B. Additional Resources on Free-to-Play Games

More Money From Your Mobile Game for Zero Cash: Tips on Maximizing Sales and Revenue

Increase Sales Create Fresh Virtual Items Lobby Your Platform Holder AB Test Names and Icons Link to Affiliates Reduce Bounce and Churn Make Building an IAP an Event AB Test Your IAPs Build a Community Cross-Promote Your App Refine Your Pinch Point Include Advertising and Offer Walls Up Your Largest IAP Be Creative with What You Sell Try Product Placement Create an Update Utilize Free Game Promos Win with Balance

There’s Nothing Sinister About High-Value IAPs

Spending Habits The Debate

Games are Machines; You are an Engineer

Cogs in the Machine Enigma Machines The Core of the Machine People vs. Machines A Compelling Conclusion

When You Don’t Need a Consultant

When You Want to Hear What You Already Know When You Want to Be Told What to do When You Want to Ignore the Consultant Doing a Low-Level Task Covering Your ASS So, When Do I Need a Consultant?

Appendix C. Interview with Zynga Co-Founder and CEO Mark Pincus Index

A B C D E F G H I K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Z

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