Why (and how) successful games foster good player first impressions

In February 2022, Yahoo Finance reported findings from market analysis group “Research and Markets”, showing that the cloud-based online gaming market was set to expand rapidly to a princely $14bn by 2027. That amounts to a staggering compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 64.1%. Online gaming, it seems, has not only arrived; it’s out front and leading.

The stampede to online entertainment isn’t confined to the gaming industry, of course; even Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre in London is placing its live productions on video sharing platforms like YouTube these days. But the digital gaming industry is making more robust and faster headway in the online realm.

Just as there are abundant action-and-fantasy gaming review sites to help enthusiasts find what they’re searching for, British residents have access to regularly updated a number of web resources that give expert reviews of the best online games coming onstream from one week to the next.

But despite its rapid growth, online game developers have some significant problems to surmount. In a market awash with new titles, they need to attract and retain players already spoilt for choice. A recent study of the mobile gaming industry by market analytics platform GameAnalytics, for example, found that a thumping 94% of users fall away within just 28 days of downloading an app. By Day 28, most mobile games have a dismal retention rate of just 6.5%

In other words, attracting new players is crucial, but retaining them is equally essential if a game stands any chance of success. That is why the savviest developers emphasise the arts of creating a good first impression as the initial step toward reaching and then keeping loyal players.

What do these arts entail? For online games involving money, welcome bonuses are proven attractors of valued custom. But the games on offer must be intrinsically compelling and enjoyable if the customers are to become returnees.

The same is true of other genres in the gaming industry: any game’s “come back for more” factor is known to be enhanced by the satisfaction value encoded into its “core loop.” That is what entices new players to stick around beyond the initial few seconds. It’s what gets them to realise that a compelling challenge arises from a game being easy to play but tougher to master. A game with a clear “win” goal – and more challenging and tougher stages of achieving it replete with new challenges as competence grows – is a great retainer, not least because players feel they’ve accomplished something every time they win and get to move up a stage.

Online games can also retain players by offering an exciting variety of options, from classic card games to board games and more. But outstanding, top-tier customer service and elegant user experience design (no one likes having their eyes assaulted by cluttered or garish visual spectacles) also go a long way toward attracting and keeping satisfied players. As indeed does the ease of navigation.

Simple ideas, maybe, but if developers get it wrong, they’ll sink like the ill-fated Titanic.

The editorial unit