Boosting Gaming App Sales With Microtransactions
Posted on: 2 September 2017
Are you interested in making a game for mobile devices? Do you already have a game and want new ways to monetize your work? There are many different kinds of games, different game player mindsets, and even multiple cultures associated with how games are played, and knowing these different preferences can help you make additional income with the right changes. Here are a few ways to boost your game's real money earnings with the help of microtransactions:
What Are Microtransactions?
The traditional video game or software purchase is a one-time deal. You buy the product, you get a single product. A step up from that sales model is the subscription model, which is usually attached to some kind of online service and institutes a periodic (monthly, quarterly, yearly) fee.
Microtransactions are both a hybrid of the above sales models and a new extreme of the single purchase model. The player has already bought the game but has the option to buy additional items or services within the game.
Most games with microtransaction models are free-to-play. The game entices players to install the game and play, then allows either shortcuts that can make the game easier or cosmetic options that have no impact on competitive or progressive play.
What Kinds Of Microtransactions Are Right For Your Game?
The main concern with implementing microtransactions is how it implements game progression and player attitude towards a game.
To be worth microtransaction as a continuing income model, your game needs to have a decent replay value. This means that your game has continued levels of power or status, such as levels in online roleplaying games eventually leading to stronger equipment or attributes.
Look at games like World of Warcraft for an example of basic progression. Players progress to a set maximum level--level 110 as of the Legion expansion--by fighting enemies and completing quests. They also pick up equipment that can be worn by the player to increase their power. Consumable items such as flasks, potions, enchantment for equipment, and tokens for bonus equipment are available through markets and crafting.
You must be careful not to disturb the balance of such progression. Microtransactions in such games may allow a player to get to maximum level faster, but not instantly by increasing the amount of experience they get from monsters, but they shouldn't give free equipment to defeat the hardest challenges at max level.
Consumables are often what makes an in-game economy thrive. Complex gaming apps allow players to buy, sell, and/or trade consumables (and sometimes equipment), but these items must be earned by playing the game. You can sell basic potions, food, or crafting materials for real money, but be sure that it doesn't make the maximum level gameplay trivial.
Contact a team of mobile app developers like App Makers LA to discuss microtransactions for your next game, or to figure out how to implement a shop with your current app.
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