🚨New Features in Meta AGAIN!🚨

It seems that Meta has been introducing many new changes to its platform lately. Last week, I showed you the ad fatigue warning and this week I saw two new updates. The first one is a new creative format called "FLEXIBLE" which allows you to mix videos and banners within the same asset item so the algorithm can decide the format for each user. You can add up to 10 creatives mixing different sizes and formats. I feel that this is the next step after the Advantage Creatives toggle (I think that was the name) that they previously had at the ad group level. This allowed you to upload creatives in the same way but you just had one creative item with ALL the assets within it. In this case, you can have multiple items with multiple assets within each […]

David Vargas June 21

Journal

Game Systems: Avoiding Post-Launch Design Pitfalls

When designing game systems, it is very important to ask yourself a question — how long will the feature exist after release? Why is it useful:With time systems may tend to work worse, and there may be upcoming problems with scaling and iterating it. This “sanity check” will make life much easier for you or for the people who would deal with the emerging problems in the end. 🛠 ———————🔖A little example from personal experience:I once designed a dynamic difficulty system for PVE content and event campaigns. It was needed so that both new players and players with high-level content could play with challenge and fun, without the feeling of unfair difficulty. To develop such a system, I relied a lot on checking on specific points of progression and content (all these - with weights) to understand how "high-end" a […]

Sergei Zenkin June 21

Journal

So, I fired up my GamePass.

Aye, I'm well into atmospheric games. Love the whole horror genre, but especially the isolation horror. When "Still Wakes the Deep" came oot, I had to gie it a go. Plus, with The Games Fund backin' some horror game devs, it felt right up my alley. So, I fired up ma GamePass.Here’s whit I think efter 5:30 to beat the game. Heads up, there might be some spoilers.The game is a stunner in 4K HDR, fully unleashed on the 4090. The settin' on a falling apart oil rig in the North Sea is class. Even though ye’re stuck in wee boxish compartments and technical rooms full of pipes, it never gets old. Every bit is well-crafted, givin' ye the best claustrophobic feel on the market. And a thalassophoby when you go get a breather on a deck. But the baddies are […]

Ilia Eremeev June 21

Journal

Great Game Designers: It’s All About Routines!

What makes a good Game Designer? A big part of it is build around a simple thing: Routines. 💪 Overall I have worked with tens of Game Designers throughout my career so far and can nowadays identify best ones quite easily. How? Seeing their routines through, which will reveal how they think, approach design and overall tackle challenges from a larger picture on top of other important factors. 💯👍Why routines? They make one always go through different questions and details, which formalizes to proper game design that really have been thought and walked through by looking into all necessary details. When used properly, even someone who would have not been a Game Designer previously, but have been in games in another role, can produce an ok outcome just by following routines through that e.g., higher positioned Game Designers follow through […]

Antti Kananen June 21

Journal

The Key to Building Great Games

The most important part in games production, on a quest to build a successful game, is getting iterative development right - yet, most don't get it right nor don't even know how to approach it right. Where someone approaches games production or project management through regular agile, lean, etc. methodologies, the biggest trap one falls is just following up processes & frameworks - and believing things will work out. I mean, it's fine, but as an outcome you end up shipping less greatness & mediocre games.How one can achieve more? The biggest truth is in the 'iterative' approach. And, specifically, in terms of iterative development, it's not really about processes nor frameworks -- it's all about: Mindset; mindset of team, leads, etc. as well as stakeholders involved in. This is the key to crack it right in the first place.Where […]

Antti Kananen June 21

Journal

Game Publishers vs Investors: Key Differences

I have made deals with both investors and publishers. Here are the key differences between them based on my experience: Funding 💰- Publisher: Provides milestone-based funding specifically for the game.- Investor: Provides lump-sum or structured equity investments for the company.Terms & Ownership 📜- Publisher: Takes 30-70% of game revenue, may own the game IP, and covers their costs before distributing profits.- Investor: Takes 20-40% equity in your company, with the IP remaining yours.Focus 🎯- Publisher: Seeks marketable concepts, high success potential, clear USPs, and alignment with their portfolio.- Investor: Looks for great founders, a cohesive team, and a strong, innovative vision.Deal Speed ⏳- Publisher: Faster (1-3 months) with a detailed publishing agreement.- Investor: Slower (3-6 months) due to due diligence, legal issues, and incorporation.Additional Value 🌟- Publisher: Handles marketing, distribution, game feedback, QA, and localization.- Investor: May provide marketing loans […]

Anton Slashcev June 21

Journal

10 Signs Of a Decent Game:

10 signs of a decent game: • Gameplay• Story• Sound• Replay• Setting• Controls• Graphics• Challenge• Originality• PromotionA decent game is a mix of these elements.It's about creating an enjoyable experience.It's where design meets player satisfaction.It's not about being perfect, but aboutconstantly improving.That's the true mark of a great game.And it's a standard we can all aim for.

Sergei Vasiuk June 20

Journal

Desire Beats Pain In Game Monetization

Many game designers think the key to successful monetization is creating pain points for players. But this often leads to mediocre conversion rates and significant churns.Why?Because Pain points give players two options to relieve the pain:1. Pay2. Close the gameAnd many will choose to close.A more effective strategy is to create Desire:Make players really want something that requires a purchase.Desire also causes a form of Pain—the Pain of not having what they want.But there's a crucial difference:- Pain points offer two choices to relieve the pain: pay or leave- Desire offers only one: obtain the Desired itemThis way, players feel like they're making their own decisions and getting extra value for their money.In the "carrot and stick" system, the carrot always wins.Desire > Pain

Anton Slashcev June 20

Journal

Scopely Earns a Place Among the Giants

But they didn't just stumble onto the TIME100 list. How to secure your spot? Three key takeaways: 1. Innovate: Scopely's "MONOPOLY GO!" launch was a game-changer, becoming the biggest mobile game launch in the United States.2. Build Community: Gaming isn't just about play and connection. Scopely's "commitment to cultivating highly social experiences" fosters engagement across generations and geographies.3. Create Impact: TIME evaluates companies based on impact. Scopely's growth to the #1 mobile games company in the U.S. demonstrates the significance of their influence.Success comes from the ability to translate vision into reality.Scopely's recognition proves that the gaming industry is not just about entertainment.It's a platform for innovation, community building, and global impact.And remember, it's not about the destination. It's about who you become, the communities you build, and the lives you touch.So, game devs and fans, are you ready to […]

Ali Farha June 19

Journal

12 Key Money Metrics in Mobile Game Development

🛠️ Product 1. LTV (Lifetime Value): The total revenue a player is expected to generate over their entire time playing the game.2. ARPU (Average Revenue Per User): The average revenue generated by a single user over a specific period (daily/weekly/monthly).3. Conversion Rate: The percentage of users who make at least one purchase.4. Average Check: The average amount spent per transaction. 🚀 Marketing 5. ROAS (Return on Ad Spend): Evaluates the profitability of user acquisition.6. CPI (Cost Per Install): The average cost incurred to acquire a new user who installs the game.7. Target Spend: The planned budget for user acquisition (daily/weekly/monthly).Increasing the volume of target spending usually reduces ROAS.8. CPM (Cost Per Mille): The cost per thousand ad impressions. 💼 Business 9. ROI (Return on Investment): Measures overall profitability by comparing the net profit to the total investment cost.10. Burn Rate: […]

Anton Slashcev June 18

Journal

Real Data rules, my friend! 😎

I recently read a post from a UA folk (sorry I don't remember who did that but if you do, tag him here!) who estimated the daily downloads you would need to generate to rank in higher positions within your category.If you follow me, you know that I am not a big fan of theories. I am a big fan of real experiments😀😀 And luckily... I got a project where I could exactly test that hypothesis!Let me present to you what happens in your category ranking when you spend almost 60,000 dollars and generate more than 54,000 installs on tCPI campaigns for one specific country in Google Ads 🤪 RESULT: The game passed from the top 150 to the top 2 in its category in just 2 days 😂 As you can see, the game quickly jumped after starting the […]

David Vargas June 17

Journal

The Value of QA Metrics in Predicting Game Success

This should help remove your doubts and highlight the critical role of these metrics. Think about these points:• Some developers ignore the importance of QA metrics.• Ignoring QA metrics means missing essential insights.• The need for more understanding and experience.But there's a bright side:• It's never too late to start applying QA metrics.• The gaming community values data-driven methods. Consider these facts: - QA metrics reveal unseen patterns and trends.- Your use of metrics distinguishes you uniquely.- Metrics impact significantly, even with minor changes.- Quality metrics offer consistent product performance.Metrics to consider:1. Time to Fix Bugs2. User Feedback and Ratings3. Performance and Loading Times4. Number of Bugs Found and Fixed5. Percentage of Successful/Unsuccessful TestsStart using QA metrics today and watch your game's potential.

Ali Farha June 17

Journal

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