The toolbox approach to F2P game design Nicholas Lovell #f2ptoolbox
Early stage
Late stage
Game design
Frameworks and toolboxes
A disclaimer
Nobody knows anything
1. The funnel
A
Acquire
R
Retain
M
Monetise Keep monetising
ARM yourself • Hoping for the best is not good enough, you need to ARM yourself – ACQUISITION: How do I get people through the door cost-effectively? – RETENTION: How do I keep people coming back for more? – MONETISATION: How do I build money-making strategies into gameplay
• Acquisition and monetisation are important • Retention is the most important, by far.
2. The pyramid • The Core Loop is the beating heart of your game • The Retention Game is what keeps players playing • The Superfan Game is where the Superfans live
3. The Curve
PRICE
Revenue opportunity
Marketing opportunity
Demand
What AAA asks
“How can I get customers who don’t want to spend $60 to spend $6?”
What F2P asks
“How can I get customers who do want to spend $60 to love spending $600,
or $6,000?�
There are many different toolboxes • 4. The Hero’s Journey (read The Writer’s Journey by Christopher Vogler) • 5. The psychology of marketing (read Influence, the Principles of Persuasion, by Robert Cialdini) • Any number of game design books (e.g. A Theory of Fun, Raph Koster, or A Book of Lenses, Jesse Schell.)
Here are some of my tools
Conclusion • Use frameworks and tools that you find useful • Have some for design AND some for business • Find them from anywhere: – Psychology – Writing – Marketing – Economics
• Or just borrow mine
Thank you @nicholaslovell @gamesbrief www.gamesbrief.com www.f2ptoolbox.com #f2ptoolbox