mobile-apps, business-plan, android-developmentI have a game with 3 lvls:
- 1: press 1 button
- 2: press 2 buttons
- 3: press (you guess) 3 buttons lvl 1 is free, the full version which contains all lvls and ad free is 1$
From google analytics I know half of the users installed the game deinstalled it directly (don’t know why, maybe because of the cost?). Today, I got 2 feedbacks, which said, they dislike it since you can only play 1 lvl. (I got much more positive feedback, but I want to take care of the negatives too).
Now, if I will set lvl 1 & 2 for free, I think the users will know whats coming in lvl 3 (He will think”aah 1 button in lvl 1, 2 buttons in lvl 2, and 3 in lvl3”), and they won’t buy it, because it’s no more a secret as it is now.
But on the other side, maybe more players will keep the game because they can do more with it..?
What should I do?
I don’t know if this is a question of “how much”, but rather “why would someone want to pay you?”.
I remember a while back there was a game that had a free trial that was 1 level, which was a lot of fun. I really loved the game, but rather than pay for the game to get more levels I just replayed the 1st level over & over & over again until I got bored with the game and then found another free trial to play. It wouldn’t have mattered if there was 1/2 of a level or 3 levels. I wasn’t going to pay for the game with so many other free options to spend my time on.
Nowadays the only games that I purchase are the extremely cheap games (Doodle Jump for $1), games that are super hyped (GTA V for $60), or free-trial games that I get hooked on usually with a cliff-hanger ending to the trial (i.e. “The Wolf Among Us” which is an awesome game for $25).
Another type of game that I “pay” for are games with Ads. I don’t personally give the developer money, but I’ll sit through a 10 second ad to get to the next level (i.e. “RETRY”) or to make another turn (i.e. “Words with friends”). The developer usually gets a penny or two for every viewing, which can be quite profitable.
Additionally, the “freemium” game is very popular amongst game makers though the morality of that sort of business plan is debatable. I don’t contribute to games like this, but I do play them if they’re fun w/o purchasing anything.
There’s no single formula, but there are patterns that can be effective.
I think what I’d try is to make the game ad-free, give unlimited use at level one, limited use with a daily time allowance at level two (until the user pays the upgrade), and reward shares with time at level three. Here’s my thinking.
If it’s paying users you’re targeting, then unless you have some per-app cost, new level one users are a no regret event for you. So don’t pollute the ux, just give them a taste of levelling up.
Users who will never pay may be marketing vectors to others who might. So use the same mechanic, just boosted to the top level, to promote sharing. Assuming you’re tracking user performance, help the share to become a challenge wherever that’s possible (for instance, “I’ve survived thirty seconds at level 3. Beat that!” or “I’m a hero at level one and a zero at level 3. Help!”). I might buy an app that my friend paid for, and if the way I got introduced to the app implies I may be a paying user, that can oil the wheels of commerce.
If that works, you have several directions to push on, and if it doesn’t, try another approach.
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