Free-to-Play: Making Money From Games You Give Away

“ Will’s knowledge of F2P comes from years of building games, as well as writing about and consulting with developers on the model. All the topics covered in this book—economics, gameplay, monetization, analytics and marketing—are important to consider when you’re building an F2P game, and Will covers each with an easy-to-digest style.” —Ian Marsh, co-founder, NimbleBit Free-to-Play: Making Money From Games You Give Away is an accessible and complete guide to the business model that has revolutionized the videogames industry, creating huge hits, multi-billion-dollar startups and a new deal for players: Play for free, spend on what you like. Written by respected game designer and consultant Will Luton, Free-to-Play gives you the in-the-trenches insight you need to build, run and make money from games you give away. In it you’ll find: Psychology behind player decisions and the motivations to play Simple and accessible explanations of the math and economic theories behind F2P, including working examples Processes for capturing and using player data to improve your game Marketing tips on positioning your game and attracting players Plus: A downloadable F2P spreadsheet, articles from the author, a foreword by NimbleBit co-founder Ian Marsh and an interview with Zynga CEO, Mark Pincus.

Table of Contents:
Introduction How F2P Changed Games XV Chapter 1: Economics How the Money Works 1 Physical vs. Digital (Why Bits Aren’t Atoms) 2 The Internet Is an Open Market; Your Game Isn’t 6 We Don’t Buy Things; We Buy Emotions 7 Not All Players Spend Equally 9 The Math 11 The Acronyms: A Primer 14 The Money Formulas 15 Winning at F2P: Increasing Profits with KPIs 17 Users and Engagement 20 Retention and Churn 20 Spend and Conversion 21 Cost Per Acquisition 24 Overheads 24 Improving KPIs Holistically 24 Chapter 2: Gameplay Keeping Players Coming Back 27 F2P: The Good Games Revolution 28 Core Loops: The Beating Heart of Games 32 Structure of the Loop 32 Upgrades in the Loop 33 Waits in the Loop 34 Grinding in the Loops 38 Sessioning: Showing Your Players the Door 39 Finite Loops: How Sessions Work 40 Return Triggers: Enticing Your Players to Come Back 44 Appointment Triggers 45 Competitive Triggers 46 Social Commitment Triggers 47 Location Triggers 48 Sales and Events Triggers 48 Nudge Triggers 49 Player Motivations: Hearts, Clubs, Diamonds and Spades 52 Hearts (or Socializers) 52 Clubs (or Killers) 53 Diamonds (or Achievers) 53 Spades (or Explorers) 53 It’s an Understanding 53 Goal Systems: Retaining Players for Years 56 Rats in Boxes: The Secrets of Variable Reinforcement 57 Increasing the Rewards 59 Choosing a Schedule 62 Examples of Goal Systems 63 Don’t Tick Boxes 68 Chapter 3: Monetization Play ers Reward You with $$$ 71 IAP 101 72 What to Sell: The Four Cs of IAPs 76 Content 76 Convenience 77 Competitive Advantage 80 Customization 81 Mixed Cs 84 Creating Demand: Supply and Pinch Points 84 Virtual Currencies 86 Energy 87 Virtual Goods 88 Making Money from Demand 88 Creating Value: Comparison, Quality and Experience 89 Comparison 90 Quality and Experience 92 Breaking the Barrier: Getting Players to Spend 93 User Experience 96 First Purchase Deal 96 Social Proof 97 Beyond IAPs 97 Advertising 97 Product Placement 104 Merchandise 104 Store Cards 105 Observe, Improve, Repeat 105 Chapter 4: Analytics Understanding and Serving 107 Your Play ers The Eternal Beta 108 Don’t Listen to What People Say, Look at What They Do 109 Collecting Data 111 The Metrics You Need 114 AB Testing 121 Data Quality 123 Statistics: The Analyst’s Toolbox 124 Averages: Mean, Mode and Median 125 Causation and Variables 128 Regression Analysis 128 The Art of Interpretation 130 Gather Data, Test, Analyze 130 Chapter 5: Marketing Reaching Players 133 Eyes on Your Game 135 Buying Players 135 Press 136 Organic Traffic 137 Viral Marketing 141 Players in the Funnel 143 No Two Players Are Alike 148 Catching Leaks: Sharing Players and Building Communities 149 Strategic Positioning 151 The High-level Proposition 153 The Best Marketing of All 156 Appendix A The F2P Spreadsheet    159 Appendix B Additional Resources on 163 Free-to-Play Games Appendix C Interview with Zynga Co-founder 179 and CEO Mark Pincus Index 188

About the Author :
Will Luton is a designer and consultant in free-to-play games, having worked with companies such as SEGA and Channel 4. He has been making games for over ten years, most recently as creative director at the award-winning studio Mobile Pie. He regularly contributes articles to  Gamasutra magazine,  Develop magazine and  GamesIndustry International, has a BA (Hons) in Computer Games Design and in 2011 was awarded a 30 Under 30 by  Develop magazine.