{"id":376747,"date":"2021-12-05T15:00:08","date_gmt":"2021-12-05T12:00:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/5-psychological-tricks-in-free-to-play-games-and-how-to-avoid-them\/"},"modified":"2021-12-05T15:00:08","modified_gmt":"2021-12-05T12:00:08","slug":"5-psychological-tricks-in-free-to-play-games-and-how-to-avoid-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-psychological-tricks-in-free-to-play-games-and-how-to-avoid-them\/","title":{"rendered":"#5 Psychological Tricks in Free-To-Play Games (and How to Avoid Them)"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a3c3d0555564\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a3c3d0555564\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-psychological-tricks-in-free-to-play-games-and-how-to-avoid-them\/#F2P_Games_Have_a_Different_Goal_Than_Other_Games\" >F2P Games Have a Different Goal Than Other Games<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-psychological-tricks-in-free-to-play-games-and-how-to-avoid-them\/#1_The_Endowed_Progress_Effect_Artificial_Advancement\" >1. The Endowed Progress Effect (Artificial Advancement)<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-psychological-tricks-in-free-to-play-games-and-how-to-avoid-them\/#2_Loss_Aversion_Bias\" >2. Loss Aversion Bias<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-psychological-tricks-in-free-to-play-games-and-how-to-avoid-them\/#3_Artificial_Scarcity\" >3. Artificial Scarcity<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-psychological-tricks-in-free-to-play-games-and-how-to-avoid-them\/#4_Randomized_Rewards_Like_Loot_Boxes\" >4. Randomized Rewards Like Loot Boxes<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-psychological-tricks-in-free-to-play-games-and-how-to-avoid-them\/#5_Social_Comparison_and_Friend_Leaderboards\" >5. Social Comparison and Friend Leaderboards<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/5-psychological-tricks-in-free-to-play-games-and-how-to-avoid-them\/#Being_Aware_Helps_Responsible_Play\" >Being Aware Helps Responsible Play<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p><strong>&#8220;#5 Psychological Tricks in Free-To-Play <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/game\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Game<\/a>s (and How to Avoid Them)&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<div>\n<figure style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"type:primaryImage wp-image-772078 size-full\" data-pagespeed-lazy-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/shutterstock_1947245020.jpg?width=398&amp;trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1 400w, https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/shutterstock_1947245020.jpg?width=1198&amp;trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, 400w, 1200w\" data-pagespeed-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/shutterstock_1947245020.jpg?width=1198&amp;trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1\" alt=\"A loot box.\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" data-crediturl=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-illustration\/army-box-loot-boxes-glow-inside-1947245020\" data-credittext=\"Mikhail Mishunin\/Shutterstock.com\" src=\"\/pagespeed_static\/1.JiBnMqyl6S.gif\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"type:primaryImage imagecredit\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-illustration\/army-box-loot-boxes-glow-inside-1947245020\">Mikhail Mishunin\/Shutterstock.com<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Free-To-Play (F2P) games, make billions of dollars annually, so they clearly aren\u2019t as \u201cfree\u201d as they sound. That\u2019s partly because F2P games use psychological tricks to make it more likely that players will reach for their credit cards.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"F2P_Games_Have_a_Different_Goal_Than_Other_Games\"><\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" name=\"autotoc_anchor_0\">F2P Games Have a Different Goal Than Other Games<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The first thing you should know to understand more about how F2P games work, is that they have a different design goal than games that you purchase once as a complete experience. In traditional game development, the idea is to sell the player a complete experience that they\u2019ll enjoy as much as possible. If it\u2019s a good game, it will hopefully sell many copies and the developer will turn a profit. Once you\u2019ve purchased your copy, it doesn\u2019t really matter to the developer whether you play it once, many times, or never finish it. At least, it doesn\u2019t matter in the sense that the transaction between you is complete.<\/p>\n<p>For \u201cfree-to-play\u201d games that relationship looks different. While traditional game developers have an incentive to build an experience that\u2019s intrinsically fun, that\u2019s a secondary goal in free-to-play game design.<\/p>\n<p>Since these games generate revenue by continuously taking a small amount of money from you, the incentive is to keep you playing (and paying) for as long as possible, Whether you\u2019re still having fun is secondary. We\u2019re not saying that free-to-play game developers don\u2019t care about making fun games, just that it doesn\u2019t matter\u00a0<em>why<\/em> you\u2019re still paying.<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s a long list of design methods and psychological principles that help hook players and encourage them to spend money. Not all people are equally susceptible to these various methods, but F2P games only need to hook a small number of players to be profitable. Let\u2019s look at some of these psychological tricks.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"1_The_Endowed_Progress_Effect_Artificial_Advancement\"><\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" name=\"autotoc_anchor_1\">1. The Endowed Progress Effect (Artificial Advancement)<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/23547282_The_Endowed_Progress_Effect_How_Artificial_Advancement_Increases_Effort\">Endowed Progress Effect<\/a> is something you\u2019ve probably already encountered both in real life and in traditional games. When you go to a carwash and you get a loyalty card, they\u2019ll often stamp the first few points as a \u201cbonus\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>This is actually a trick that makes it more likely you\u2019ll want to complete the set. This effect is a curious situation where people want to finish sets of things that have been artificially started for them by someone else. In a traditional game such as <em>Skyrim<\/em>, you may overhear two characters speaking and a questline is automatically started or you may pick up an item and be told there are 9 more to be found. Although you didn\u2019t choose to begin the task, you still feel a compulsion to finish it. So don\u2019t be surprised when you are \u201cgifted\u201d the first part of a set of items in a F2P game.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How to Fight Endowed Progress:\u00a0<\/strong>This one is tough, but if you feel compelled to complete a set or list of things, ask yourself who you\u2019re doing it for. Did you start this work or were you told to do it? Only if keep going if YOU want to.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"2_Loss_Aversion_Bias\"><\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" name=\"autotoc_anchor_2\">2. Loss Aversion Bias<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Humans (and certain other <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/redirect.viglink.com\/?key=204a528a336ede4177fff0d84a044482&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.com%2Fworklife%2Farticle%2F20180406-what-monkeys-can-teach-us-about-money\">primates<\/a>) have a bias when it comes to losses versus gains. We experience the pain of loss more intensely than the pleasure of gain, so we tend to make decisions that play it safe with the resources we already have. Usually, this manifests as risk aversion, but it can also motivate us to act when something is going to be taken away.<\/p>\n<p>When you\u2019re given a reward that goes away unless you do something to maintain it, our tendency to avoid losses can make you log in just so you don\u2019t miss that 7-day bonus streak. It\u2019s a reliable way to keep people coming through the door when their interest starts to wane.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How to Fight Loss Aversion:\u00a0<\/strong>Be rational. Weigh up the amount of effort you need to exert to keep something versus how much that thing is actually worth. Only commit to it if you really need or want the perk that\u2019s running out.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"3_Artificial_Scarcity\"><\/span>3. Artificial Scarcity<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>We value things that are scarce or unique. Artificial scarcity is a tried and tested marketing technique, but it also works as a game design element. Any free-to-play games that offer items that have different rarities are tapping into artificial scarcity in one way or another. Unique items, rare item drops, or unique prizes and rewards all offer a strong incentive to play and, of course, developers can conjure an endless supply of artificially scarce items from thin air for their virtual world.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How to Fight Artificial Scarcity:<\/strong> The same as above! Objectively consider how much the scarce item or reward is worth to you against how much you have to work to get it and what it will cost you to get it.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"4_Randomized_Rewards_Like_Loot_Boxes\"><\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" name=\"autotoc_anchor_4\">4. Randomized Rewards Like Loot Boxes<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Like other animals, humans are subject to operant conditioning. You know, like Pavlov\u2019s dogs salivating at the ring of a bell. Most conditioning works by associating a specific behavior with a reward. So, for example, you can train an animal to perform complex tricks by repeatedly giving them a treat every time they do the action you want.<\/p>\n<p>However, something interesting happens when you randomize how often the reward follows the action.\u00a0 It stimulates regular attempts of the behavior. This is exactly what happens with the lottery or slot machines. Using randomized rewards such as loot boxes, card packs or \u201c<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/465429\/what-exactly-is-a-gacha-video-game\/\">gacha\u201d character drops in free-to-play games taps into exactly the same behavior. For a small percentage of people, this can actually lead to compulsive playing problems.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How to Fight Loot Boxes:\u00a0<\/strong>These days in many places F2P developers must legally disclose the drop rates for items, so you can work out how many spins of the wheel you need to make on average to get what you want. Only pursue those loot rewards if you think it\u2019s worth the number that results from that calculation. It\u2019s also useful to set a hard budget limit for yourself when it comes to loot box spending. The time to stop is when you\u2019ve hit that budget limit.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"5_Social_Comparison_and_Friend_Leaderboards\"><\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" name=\"autotoc_anchor_5\">5. Social Comparison and Friend Leaderboards<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The last mechanic we\u2019ll highlight here is social comparison. This is basically what happens in real life all the time, which is that you look at other people around you to get an idea of how well you\u2019re doing. If you look around and most other people aren\u2019t doing a well as you, it makes you feel good about where you are. If you look at people around you and they all seem to be doing better than you, it can make you feel bad about yourself.<\/p>\n<p>Social comparison is a complicated topic, but in the context of free-to-play mechanics, there are multiple applications of this. One way to trigger behavior related to social comparison is to offer visible perks to being a paying customer. Such as skins or items that you can only get by spending real money.<\/p>\n<p>Social comparisons aren\u2019t as effective when the gaps are too large. This is why it\u2019s also a good idea to use leaderboards that compare a player to those who are just ahead and just behind them or other players whom they know personally. This promotes competition between players and that\u2019s good for the bottom line of the game developer.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How to Fight Social Comparisons:<\/strong> This one might be the toughest of all, but you need to ask yourself who you\u2019re trying to impress. The thing about \u201ckeeping up with the Joneses\u201d is that often Mr. or Mrs. Jones doesn\u2019t actually pay any attention to you either way. Put your feelings of social inadequacy into context and decide if it really matters.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Being_Aware_Helps_Responsible_Play\"><\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" name=\"autotoc_anchor_6\">Being Aware Helps Responsible Play<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>There\u2019s nothing wrong with playing free-to-play games or with spending money on them\u2014as long as you\u2019re actually having fun. F2P games are \u201cfree-to-play\u201d in the first place because that\u2019s an easy way to get thousands and thousands of people to come in through the door. While the vast majority of people don\u2019t get hooked in by psychological design tricks in a way that\u2019s detrimental, the law of large numbers means that some small percentage of incoming players do become deeply hooked. If you want to avoid that, there are a few things you can do to reduce the chances of that happening:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Set a monthly spend limit for yourself that\u2019s within your budget.<\/li>\n<li>Set a playtime limit by using alarms and timers.<\/li>\n<li>Don\u2019t add your friends or look at leaderboards.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Of course, if you\u2019re playing a F2P game so much that it\u2019s negatively affecting other aspects of your life, you may want to take that as a warning sign to ease off as well!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script>\n setTimeout(function(){\n  !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\n  {if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\n  n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};\n  if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';\n  n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\n  t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];\n  s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s) } (window, document,'script',\n  'https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\n   fbq('init', '335401813750447');\n   fbq('track', 'PageView');\n  },3000);\n<\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Technology category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/765113\/5-psychological-tricks-in-free-to-play-games-and-how-to-avoid-them\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#5 Psychological Tricks in Free-To-Play Games (and How to Avoid Them)&#8221; Mikhail Mishunin\/Shutterstock.com Free-To-Play (F2P) games, make billions of dollars annually, so they clearly aren\u2019t as \u201cfree\u201d as they sound. That\u2019s partly because F2P games use psychological tricks to make it more likely that players will reach for their credit cards. F2P Games Have a&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":376748,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/shutterstock_1947245020.jpg?height=200p&trim=2,2,2,2","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-376747","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/376747","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=376747"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/376747\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/376748"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=376747"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=376747"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=376747"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}