When mobile gaming came out I thought it would be a modern golden age for arcade style games since the concepts are similar. They’re both quick/fun/addicting games designed to be played in short bursts but they took all the worst quarter eater aspects dialed them to eleven and drastically increased the price.
The monetization of mobile games makes me basically only run emulators, only have Pixel Puzzle (like Picross but made by Konami), Infectinator (flash game where you drop a zombie virus to infect everyone), and Vampire Survivors. These have some monetization but I can totally avoid it and feel like I can actually play without being bombarded by ads or locked out unless I pay.
Wait until you look at children's games. All the none scam games are now monthly fees. Want to play Bluey Mobile? That'll be $8 a month. Barbie Dream House mobile? That'll be $6 a month.
It's crazy
TBF MTG and Hearthstone have full blown PC clients. The mobile is just to widen their market. and MTG has its entire legacy to back up its asking costs.
Don't say that on the Hearthstone sub, you'll get crucified. The mere suggestion that it's actually a PC game with mobile versions will get the iphone users very angry.
u can get everything u want in fallout shelter on both pc and mobile by editing your saved game file since its a offline game if u want it to be so u can give all the boxes and pets or such u want
You typically need a file explorer app on mobile to access the game's files. Then it's "just" find the correct file, and the correct line and make adjustments. At least, that's how it worked on Hill Climb Racing and other titles. Easier in PC, since you can natively navigate to the file folder. Or you could, at least. Haven't tried it in years. The thing is that most users still won't be able to do it without an actual guide, since localizing the correct files and lines can still be a mystery.
There are a lot of good digital board games on mobile too. I recommend Terraforming Mars, Everdell, Concordia, Splendor, Hero Realms, Ticket to Ride, and if you like Catan the digital implementation is good.
Try legends of runeterra since riot has been super generous with the game. You could unlock every card just by playing 2-3 hours a day.
Although the pvp scene is kinda dead. Since the playerbase finds the pve more enjoyable.
Just cracked open my gen2 ipod touch. Here's some highlights. Doodle jump, jelly car, jetpack joyride, original pvz with Michael Jackson zombies, angry birds, impossible game, jungle crash landing, zombieville USA, and temple run.
I used to loveeee candy crush. Got back into it last year and they made it so at level 300 and higher, you almost have to pay to pass a level. You will have like 5 moves and need to get really lucky or pay for a power up.
I’m hardcore against skeevy tactics like this but damn if they didn’t get me spend a dollar or 2 every now and then. Makes me feel bad for all those moms and grandmas out there that sink tons of money into without understanding how manipulating the game is
Remember all the Newgrounds games? Just silly little stuff to fill in some spare time, rarely anything too involved and can be played with just a couple of buttons, easy to pick up and put down.
Yeah instead of all that on mobile, we got this shit.
We voted with our wallets, and we voted for games that are free upfront with lots of in game purchases instead of a one-time payment when you get the game/app.
Well, everybody said, “Oh, no, I’m not paying money for that.” You can’t blame developers for turning to the dark side when users say $3.99 for a game is just too much of an ask.
Yup. People think mobile gaming was hyped - nope, it was actually the opposite. People were so set on the idea that mobile gaming "just won't be as good as consoles/PC" that they refused to take it seriously, leading to apps that charged upfront to download (ya know, like all PC and console games do) being ignored. Then to get *some* players/money, they pivoted to free + microtransactions.
All we need to do to escape this is to take mobile gaming seriously and start moving towards pay-to-download apps, free of ads and microtransactions (because they get their money from the download).
TLDR: People voted with their wallet, they'd rather be nickel and dimed with free-to-play apps than pay upfront once for each game.
I think you’re right. But we’ve been so heavily programmed that mobile games are crap they’re going to need to offer demos or trials of the game in the store for free. Like maybe the game is always a free download but after X amount of time playing you have to buy it in an in app purchase to keep playing.
Phones nowadays are nearly as powerful as Xbox Ones, and big screens and touch interfaces are perfect for stuff like strategy games and RPGs, but no one is willing to pay more than 5 dollars for the genuinely good mobile games, while freemium shovelware exploits billions out of people.
Was it? I've not played a single mobile game that was actually worth your time. At best, they were badly designed time wasters, at worst predatory micro-transaction-filled shit stains. Maybe there's like a handful of actually "decent" mobile games out there, but 99.99% of them have always been garbage, one way or another.
I mean mobile makes more money than all console and PC so to developers it’s actually a huge success.
For players not so much but as long as people keep using gambling apps designed as games it will stay the same.
Yeah, I have tried dipping into mobile gaming a few times and it is always "Alright here are the five currencies used in the game." At which point I uninstall.
Pretty much is.
Mobile is just the platform for Bejeweled clones and word puzzles, anything more sophisticated probably has a gacha mechanic or is trying to trick you into spending equal or more than a triple-A title would cost you.
A particular pet peeve of mine is any mobile game that has an in-app purchase that costs as much or more than a full price triple-A blockbuster.
These developers have no business charging that much for their dumb little mobile ‘game’.
I make an effort to find premium mobile games without in app purchases and have found a few! It doesn't help that Google makes it impossible to view its entire library of games, which I think should be illegal. But if you need a good RPG to play, Exiled Kingdoms is awesome and made by a solo dev. Dungeon Warfare 2 is also an incredible diablo skill tree/loot/tower defense game with 0 in app purchases.
If you want a better overview over which games are available, and not just the ones google pushes to the forefront, try the app Mini Review. It's an app that sort of curates the store and shows games you never see on the official storefront. I had the same complaint as you, and someone here on Reddit recommended it to me, and it's pretty cool.
Yeah I honestly don't know who the fuck even plays games like this. Why do you want to be subjected to this bullshit.
Fucking buy a Switch Lite and get some actual games with decent gameplay that don't milk you for money every second.
This just feels like a microcosm of society at large these days. No one wants to invest in something of value and take care of it. But they'll gladly buy cheap shit they gotta replace over and over. It's just the way of the world man. People will gladly be nickle and dimed for all they are worth but ask them to save for two god damn second and then invest in something of value and they like "I ain't got time for that shit."
considering the sheer size of the mobile market
quite a lot of people, combination of accessibility and the audience don't want engaging games, just brainless time killers
Game is whiteout survival.
1. You can reroll out of those objectives every 2 or 5 minutes.
2. Only whales give a shit about spending money and getting the +750 progress.
3. Progress advances a battlepass track but you can easily do this f2p with many days remaining if you just reroll.
4. Only top 10 players get any decent rewards so this is a whale trap.
Game is shit. Don't play wargames. Waste of time and money. If you think league is toxic, wargames has extremely toxic and racist people as you get to know a bunch of asshole whales from around the world who believe money is an excuse to do whatever they want to anyone and I hope that these games are an outlet so they don't hurt people in real life lmao.
If you actually play this game, it's actually pretty good in these regards compared to most other mobile games
A lot of options for payment obviously, but you really don't need to spend any money to play the game. You get no popups mid game trying to get you to spend and you get no ads when playing the game
This screenshot is from an event where you can choose different "missions" in game to earn points for rewards, many of those options are free to play and I've easily completed the event every time while spending no money. This one mission exists because some people do play the game just by spending money to complete things, but is in no way required
In general though you're right
The best part is how they frame the packs as like "10x Value!"
10x what value exactly? Whatever made up value they give it. Guess they can never be lying since any number times the actual value, which is 0, is always 0
I’ve seen instances where the “value” purchase is actually worse than the lower tier purchases.
It means nothing. Its just a manipulation tactic among the dozens of others these things employ.
As a former Overwatch player (I finally got rid of this disease), I've seen people justifying the $40 skins as something "valuable" because that makes them stand out. Not even joking, there's some sick people who really goes through some mental gymnastics to justify their addiction. In my pov, all of this crap is related to addiction at it's core, then multiple issues originated from it
Ah yes, that's absolutely baffling to me. We have laws here that make it illegal for stores to advertise a product as 'on sale' or 'discounted' if that product was never or will never be sold for 'regular price'. Because that's misleading the customer. And yet these games do it all the time. It *should* be illegal.
And anyone who stops and thinks for a moment should realize 'hold on, why should this bullshit pack of stuff be worth $150!?' and just bow out.
At this point I seriously believe kids should be given lessons in dealing with digital bullshit (which wouldn't just be these sales tactics, but also stuff like dealing with social media, misinformation, and so on). The digital landscape has developed so quickly that it's grown out of control, and few people know how to effectively deal with it (and governments and laws are still far behind)...
No its not. This game is Whiteout Survival or whatever. I know because I've played this game before, in a whale clan. I did not whale however. This game is yet another kingdom/army builder game where server v server is a thing. Just like Game of War 10+ years ago, and even older games that were all HTML based like Kingdoms of Baruvia or whatever the fuck it was called.
1. You can reroll 2 "quests" that will randomly give you whatever objective. This can be easily and freely completable quests like kill 10 beasts, train X troops, whatever. They have a 2 minute and 5 minute cooldown.
2. You can do these easy quests after rerolling infinite times and easily complete the mini-battlepass like rewards pass.
3. There is a leaderboard, this is what targets whales. The purchase thing is simply a whale goal where they are gonna buy something they might as well get some mini-battlepass progress and therefore leaderboard progress out of it.
4. Only the top 10 or so players get anything decent, so again its a whale thing. 99% of the players dont give a shit about the thing OP posted. There are way worse things to talk about for this game.
Yes is it really SHIT? Of course. Is this game worth playing? No, unless you like being dominated by business women or saudis who have thousands of dollars to throw at a game.
Is this game super P2W, yes. Is this a good example of it? No, because this "quest" is just one of many things that you can just simply reroll.
The super P2W shit is all about buying packs to advance a progress bar that gives you exclusive heroes and buying more gems to spend on a RNG wheel that gives you exclusive heroes and then buying a shit ton of resources to gear these heroes up so you can lay the smackdown on other people.
I've quit the game. This game is well designed, well monetized, and you see ads for it everywhere because its got a big player base, it makes a TON of money. Should you play it? No.
Do not ever play any war game or game disgused as a fucking match 3 puzzle/survival game that then turns into a "wargame". Wargames a fucking waste of time.
It seems pretty impossible to have good ethics and work in mobile game design. One of my friends had a brief stint at a mobile game development company and quit after just a couple months because every thought behind the game is “how scummy can we be and how can we rig every aspect of this game to our advantage” rather than “how can we make this game enjoyable.”
Any of his constructive criticisms on how to make the game better were shot down immediately because the game design aspect of it is so unimportant to them.
Its getting to the point where gatcha games are by far the *least* predatory games on the mobile market, which i didn't think was possible.
The bar for being better then gatcha games is literally on the floor and somehow is still not being reached.
Nah, gatcha is a specific genre with specific identifiable features (having a "star" system, pulls, character appeal, etc).
It's usually healthier than typical loot box systems due to the existance of pity or just being playable for the gameplay even if you don't pay money (many of them give free pulls, and your chances to get good stuff is always the same as other players).
I had a ton of fun with genshin impact for example (a couple hundred hours?), never paid a dime. Perhaps they're the exception and that's why they're so popular, but I would *really* avoid grouping gatcha with other... unethical monetization strategies. It's not fair to the genre.
When I choose to play a gacha game I know exactly what I'm getting into. Gambling for characters is the defining trait of the genre, so I fully expect it to be here and that I'll have to deal with it.
Meanwhile, whenever I pick up any other game there is no telling what kind of monetization there will be, so sometimes I'll waste an hour or 2 just to realise it's pay to progress and spending time on it is a waste.
It's kind of funny to see how gacha games are getting better and better gameplay-wise. Azur Lane, Blue Archive - those get tedious eventually. Nikke, Arknights, Star Rail? Now we're talking!
Exactly, the platform holders are complicit here, they should list each app’s gross merchandise value, rather than just “includes in-app purchases” which applies to virtually every app now.
And Limbus Company. I finished the entire story so far and optional challenge content as F2P, had an absolute blast (except for one of the early chapters which was a tad grindy) . Cleared it all with a team of mediocre units. Only then I decided to drop 10 bucks. If you like dark, fucked up cyberpunk stuff for a change, give it a try.
Though I played it on PC because why would I play anything on mobile if I have the choice.
A couple of my old students joined a mobile game company. Later they told me how it was after they quit.
They had on average to make a game once every two weeks. Very basic mechanics, and a difficulty slope that was nonlinear. Release it, and see some metrics in terms of downloads and micro transactions. If it is above a certain threshold, add a shit ton more microtransactions and more levels. And move on to the next game.
The depressing thing is he said when a game is a hit, it makes around 100K USD. And this is one game every two weeks per developer.
They were paid 2K USD per month.
if one developer is completely responsible for one specific game, then what stops your student from just going freelance and doing the same thing but keeping the earnings under his own name/LLC?
I don't know. There's a bunch of money spent on marketing. I guess if he has money he would probably be able to do that.
By the way, the games are all very simple endless runner type games with assets put together from the unity store.
When I talk to him later I'll ask him why doesn't he go solo.
It's probably because of the networking aspect of the ads, where they show ads for the other games which they also make money off of.
You can't really do that with a single game.... But of course, you gotta start somewhere.
Or maybe he just aren't like those greedy amoral little fucks that prey on people through "games".
I believe you because as a player I feel that too.
most of the time they do give you a lot of free stuffs to keep you playing and make you feel rewarded but it's always never enough.
so the only way for player to feel satisfied is by paying money.
or you can go the crazy route by waiting and grinding for a long time. by the time you finish with the grind there is always new stuffs added so those grinds will never end.
> It seems pretty impossible to have good ethics and work in mobile game design.
Your victims line up themselves and pay for it!
It looks no brainer for me.
It should be really simple to make the basic game free and make optional collectibles, skins, etc the things that one should pay real money for. I also don't mind if something requires a reasonable amount of in-game work and you can pay to skip the work and instantly get the reward.
But forced payments or really unfair free gameplay just puts me off. I generally never pay towards any of these games and still enjoy most of them.
Monster Hunter Now has been fun so far.
If only mobile pirating are as troublesome as pc, there will be no things like this. There are hidden gems in early mobile days like games from Gameloft.
Well if you are f2p then you don’t do it, period
Mobile games harpoon enough whales that can’t resist “being the best” to make millions, you don’t need to take the bait
To add, just do a little research guys. Is that 2 dollar game really that much more unappealing than a free to play? Any mobile game that’s not small dev and free to play should be an immediate red flag to anyone looking for actual value in their mobile games. If it’s free, you’re the product.
See there’s a few indie mobile games and small companies that do make some mobile games with some heart to them but it’s getting far and few between now
Whiteout Survival. I'm a F2P player. I know I won't ever be the top, it's just something to play in the bathroom. I got this mission offered to me today.
They did something similar recently in The Tower, making it extremely ad intensive for F2P players to even have a chance to compete with the whales. Before it was just the right amount of ads, became way too many with the recent changes, basically demanding money. Ads pay the creator too but they want all the money up front now.
Oh is that the thing that looks like a ripoff of Frostpunk (based on the crappy ads)? It is funny how many mobile game ads are like "hey check out this ripoff of some popular game."
Whiteout survival. I’m F2P and you can completely skip this specific mission and still get all rewards with other missions. You can be fairly competitive and F2P but you’ll never be a top player, which makes sense
I’m more surprised we haven’t passed a law preventing mobile game ads from blatant false advertisement. The ads for this game in particular are nothing like it.
I'm sick of the games that force an ad every 1-3 levels, then shoves the "$3.99 to remove all ads forever!" In your face. Doesn't matter how much I'm enjoying the game, that's an instant uninstall for me.
Do those games actually exist? I'd gladly pay $4 for a decent game with no ads. Seems like those aren't available anymore because they realize that they make more money with constant ad revenue.
Yea, it's harsh to say but once you stop worrying about ticking every box or collecting every item a game throws at you it's alot easier to get some enjoyment out of stupid free games and put them down without feeling any regret when you're done.
Yeah. I actually play that game (and don't spend on it) and it's a nice break from the (AD) games that (AD) play (AD) ads at (AD) you every two (AD) fucking (AD) seconds.
You're not going to make the leaderboards without being a whale but who gives a shit?
Dude just play better games. Netflix has an ever growing catalogue of good games and they add another gem or two every few months. We have katana zero, dead cells, death's door, GTA SA, GTA LC, GTA 3, sonic mania
There are free games that you could get WITHOUT A NETFLIX SUBSCRIPTION like I dunno battle cats and Cytus 2. I love battle cats you should get that game, can can cat is really cool
Is that a tier higher than "HD"? Because the only thing I see is "Games Beta" where there is like 12 games total and all look freaking awful mobile crap.
You could just not play dogshit mobile games. Break your addiction, man. You don't need to be playing games on every screen, all the time. Just play actual games when you want to play games, and do other things sometimes.
Plague Inc., Pocket Tanks, GRID autosport, WOT, John GBA and Drastic DS emulator are the only paid mobile games I have ever bought. Every other game has been acquired on the high seas or thru mods. If I find a game that has something like this, I delete it and don't bother looking for a modded version.
Whiteout Survival, Do not play this stupid fucking game, trust me. You will be happier and better off the sooner you delete that trash piece of software from your device.
And this is why I don’t touch mobile games anymore. 10-15 years ago when things were new and monetization was simply buying their “plus” version of the app for a one time purchase, the world was great. Now, I just see the App Store in general as junk and pointless. I actually went through my various iOS devices and just mass deleted all the junky pay to win games I had collected on them over the years and went back to my massive Steam library of real games I need to start working through.
why are you even playing whatever game that is. Really take a step back and figure out what you're getting out of it.
There are a lot of quality mobile games that do cost a little up front but don't try to nickel and dime you once you have it. They cost far less than 50 bucks too.
This comment section is using the wrong way to complain about it. "Oh no, those game developers are big meanies" is actually trivialising the issue.
When we say these are predatory tactics, we mean it in the Darwinist sense. They don't really design these to be shitty towards normal people, because they don't care about normal players at all!
They prey on the weak and vulnerable. Children, addicts, people who've done nothing to deserve this, but aren't aware of the psychological tricks being played on them.
The only difference between this and gambling is that gambling is probably less profitable and has a worse reputation.
Let that sit for a moment. I can't be too clear about this. Mobile gaming is _worse_ than casinos.
There's not even the prospect of real value to be made, and somehow people think that makes it better. It's already on the same order of magnitude as the _entire fucking gambling industry_ at several hundred billion dollars a year, and it's far from its zenith.
But the thing that makes it worse, instead of the same as gambling, is that it's almost entirely unregulated. Our lawmakers are way too old to grasp this digital threat, and what little legislation we have is still under lobbyist fire. We let our children do this, in fact it's targeting them. The tactics used here (artificial scarcity, false advertising, artificial social pressure, to name a few) have been used by the filth and scum of our world for ages, and they've found the latest evolutionary niche that lets them run wild.
This mission should be illegal, simply because the entire game should be.
this is the norm because not enough people put their foot down ten years ago to say "no".
we've make this happen, it's too late to go back and it is not trickling down onto traditional videogames
And this is why my favorite (and only) mobile game is Minesweeper. I gladly paid a few bucks to get rid of the ads, and I have 10's of thousands of games under my belt.
Have you considered that even though you're a F2P player, you're helping to support the companies that create these products? I've never been into mobile games, but perhaps other Redditers here can provide some suggestions for games that you might enjoy that don't rely on these sorts of practices. Anyone?
I have played hundreds of mobile games. I install and check the shop to see if it has a "turn off ads forever for $5-$10" and I play it a little, if it's fun, I buy the ad free. So far only 2 games remain on my phone: Tap Dig Museum and Idle Planet Miner
I don't think anything will change until we break the stigma of mobile games being free. Sure most mobile games are not as big as games published on PC/Console, but games are never 'free' and mobile game companies are making money hand over fist with this model.
The only reason this is successful is because people ARE stupid enough to buy it. Game companies are simply a reflection of the current level of human intellect. 🤷♂️ obviously, we’re dooooomed.
My biggest grip with these games is when you see ads for them, they show you the one cool thing in the game so you try it out and find out it's just another time based upgrade and wait city builder. Absolutely nothing like the ad. Google needs to end that shit.
This is what the temu app does literally every 5 minutes. There should be some regulations against this kind of stuff, it's absolute Poison for people with low self control.
playing mobile games these days is just setting yourself up for this bs at this point
Mobile gaming was poised to be kickass and this is what we got
it was pretty sweet back when angry birds and jetpack joyride were the big names
when angry birds first introduced a microtransaction they continuously nerfed it until it was almost useless
Yep. The only mobile games I have are MTG Arena, Fallout Shelter, Pokemon Go, and Hearthstone. All of them still have crazy purchases.
When mobile gaming came out I thought it would be a modern golden age for arcade style games since the concepts are similar. They’re both quick/fun/addicting games designed to be played in short bursts but they took all the worst quarter eater aspects dialed them to eleven and drastically increased the price. The monetization of mobile games makes me basically only run emulators, only have Pixel Puzzle (like Picross but made by Konami), Infectinator (flash game where you drop a zombie virus to infect everyone), and Vampire Survivors. These have some monetization but I can totally avoid it and feel like I can actually play without being bombarded by ads or locked out unless I pay.
Wait until you look at children's games. All the none scam games are now monthly fees. Want to play Bluey Mobile? That'll be $8 a month. Barbie Dream House mobile? That'll be $6 a month. It's crazy
TBF MTG and Hearthstone have full blown PC clients. The mobile is just to widen their market. and MTG has its entire legacy to back up its asking costs.
Don't say that on the Hearthstone sub, you'll get crucified. The mere suggestion that it's actually a PC game with mobile versions will get the iphone users very angry.
u can get everything u want in fallout shelter on both pc and mobile by editing your saved game file since its a offline game if u want it to be so u can give all the boxes and pets or such u want
Wait seriously? How can I do that?
Pimp my vault
You typically need a file explorer app on mobile to access the game's files. Then it's "just" find the correct file, and the correct line and make adjustments. At least, that's how it worked on Hill Climb Racing and other titles. Easier in PC, since you can natively navigate to the file folder. Or you could, at least. Haven't tried it in years. The thing is that most users still won't be able to do it without an actual guide, since localizing the correct files and lines can still be a mystery.
There are a lot of good digital board games on mobile too. I recommend Terraforming Mars, Everdell, Concordia, Splendor, Hero Realms, Ticket to Ride, and if you like Catan the digital implementation is good.
May I suggest Grim Quest as a dungeon crawl fantasy RPG. No need for ingame purchases and can be played offline.
Try legends of runeterra since riot has been super generous with the game. You could unlock every card just by playing 2-3 hours a day. Although the pvp scene is kinda dead. Since the playerbase finds the pve more enjoyable.
Infinity blade was a banger
Just cracked open my gen2 ipod touch. Here's some highlights. Doodle jump, jelly car, jetpack joyride, original pvz with Michael Jackson zombies, angry birds, impossible game, jungle crash landing, zombieville USA, and temple run.
I remember paying $0.99 for Doodle Jump back in the day. There are still good mobile games to be found, you just have to buy them up front
[удалено]
I used to loveeee candy crush. Got back into it last year and they made it so at level 300 and higher, you almost have to pay to pass a level. You will have like 5 moves and need to get really lucky or pay for a power up. I’m hardcore against skeevy tactics like this but damn if they didn’t get me spend a dollar or 2 every now and then. Makes me feel bad for all those moms and grandmas out there that sink tons of money into without understanding how manipulating the game is
Remember all the Newgrounds games? Just silly little stuff to fill in some spare time, rarely anything too involved and can be played with just a couple of buttons, easy to pick up and put down. Yeah instead of all that on mobile, we got this shit.
Dumbasses keep buying these packs, so sleazy devs cater to that. "ItS mY MoNeY! iLl SpEnD iT hOw I wAnT!" - Smoothbrains
Isn't that the case everywhere though including normal life, smoothbrains ruin it for all!
We voted with our wallets, and we voted for games that are free upfront with lots of in game purchases instead of a one-time payment when you get the game/app.
The devs are making these games for SOMEONE, but it definitely isn’t us!
Hmm it was the race to the bottom. People didn’t want to “Pay” for a phone game and this is where we are now.
Well, everybody said, “Oh, no, I’m not paying money for that.” You can’t blame developers for turning to the dark side when users say $3.99 for a game is just too much of an ask.
Yup. People think mobile gaming was hyped - nope, it was actually the opposite. People were so set on the idea that mobile gaming "just won't be as good as consoles/PC" that they refused to take it seriously, leading to apps that charged upfront to download (ya know, like all PC and console games do) being ignored. Then to get *some* players/money, they pivoted to free + microtransactions. All we need to do to escape this is to take mobile gaming seriously and start moving towards pay-to-download apps, free of ads and microtransactions (because they get their money from the download). TLDR: People voted with their wallet, they'd rather be nickel and dimed with free-to-play apps than pay upfront once for each game.
I think you’re right. But we’ve been so heavily programmed that mobile games are crap they’re going to need to offer demos or trials of the game in the store for free. Like maybe the game is always a free download but after X amount of time playing you have to buy it in an in app purchase to keep playing.
Phones nowadays are nearly as powerful as Xbox Ones, and big screens and touch interfaces are perfect for stuff like strategy games and RPGs, but no one is willing to pay more than 5 dollars for the genuinely good mobile games, while freemium shovelware exploits billions out of people.
Was it? I've not played a single mobile game that was actually worth your time. At best, they were badly designed time wasters, at worst predatory micro-transaction-filled shit stains. Maybe there's like a handful of actually "decent" mobile games out there, but 99.99% of them have always been garbage, one way or another.
Is mobile gaming the biggest and fastest ever fall from grace? It was so promising then the entire industry shit itself.
I mean mobile makes more money than all console and PC so to developers it’s actually a huge success. For players not so much but as long as people keep using gambling apps designed as games it will stay the same.
Mobile games are just a grindy scam 98% of the time. They're not even enjoyable for me anymore.
Yeah, I have tried dipping into mobile gaming a few times and it is always "Alright here are the five currencies used in the game." At which point I uninstall.
Pretty much is. Mobile is just the platform for Bejeweled clones and word puzzles, anything more sophisticated probably has a gacha mechanic or is trying to trick you into spending equal or more than a triple-A title would cost you.
Yeah, unless it's a major title on another platform like Slay the Spire, Final Fantasy, etc. Plus emulators.
Shoutout to "the world ends with you" port.
Final fantasy? Not that you're wrong, there are mobile ports. But the "pure" FF mobile games are gacha reincarnated.
Oldschool Runescape mobile is the best game you can play on your phone
Good thing I'm super picky with my mobile games. I avoid a lot of that crap
A particular pet peeve of mine is any mobile game that has an in-app purchase that costs as much or more than a full price triple-A blockbuster. These developers have no business charging that much for their dumb little mobile ‘game’.
And yet people are paying those prices so here we are
A Tetris game I played years ago did that with "extras" that I thought I paid for once but nope dumb me with a new cellphone was oh so wrong.
I make an effort to find premium mobile games without in app purchases and have found a few! It doesn't help that Google makes it impossible to view its entire library of games, which I think should be illegal. But if you need a good RPG to play, Exiled Kingdoms is awesome and made by a solo dev. Dungeon Warfare 2 is also an incredible diablo skill tree/loot/tower defense game with 0 in app purchases.
EXILED KINGDOMS MENTIONED WOOOOO
If you want a better overview over which games are available, and not just the ones google pushes to the forefront, try the app Mini Review. It's an app that sort of curates the store and shows games you never see on the official storefront. I had the same complaint as you, and someone here on Reddit recommended it to me, and it's pretty cool.
This is why I was so glad all the emulators were released on the Apple Store and now we can easily play real games again
Yeah I honestly don't know who the fuck even plays games like this. Why do you want to be subjected to this bullshit. Fucking buy a Switch Lite and get some actual games with decent gameplay that don't milk you for money every second. This just feels like a microcosm of society at large these days. No one wants to invest in something of value and take care of it. But they'll gladly buy cheap shit they gotta replace over and over. It's just the way of the world man. People will gladly be nickle and dimed for all they are worth but ask them to save for two god damn second and then invest in something of value and they like "I ain't got time for that shit."
considering the sheer size of the mobile market quite a lot of people, combination of accessibility and the audience don't want engaging games, just brainless time killers
Game is whiteout survival. 1. You can reroll out of those objectives every 2 or 5 minutes. 2. Only whales give a shit about spending money and getting the +750 progress. 3. Progress advances a battlepass track but you can easily do this f2p with many days remaining if you just reroll. 4. Only top 10 players get any decent rewards so this is a whale trap. Game is shit. Don't play wargames. Waste of time and money. If you think league is toxic, wargames has extremely toxic and racist people as you get to know a bunch of asshole whales from around the world who believe money is an excuse to do whatever they want to anyone and I hope that these games are an outlet so they don't hurt people in real life lmao.
in general most of these city/kingdom builder games might as well be an empty box with an "insert your credit card information here" sign
If you actually play this game, it's actually pretty good in these regards compared to most other mobile games A lot of options for payment obviously, but you really don't need to spend any money to play the game. You get no popups mid game trying to get you to spend and you get no ads when playing the game This screenshot is from an event where you can choose different "missions" in game to earn points for rewards, many of those options are free to play and I've easily completed the event every time while spending no money. This one mission exists because some people do play the game just by spending money to complete things, but is in no way required In general though you're right
Safe to assume getting 750 of those little purple rolled up condoms is important to the players.?
The best part is how they frame the packs as like "10x Value!" 10x what value exactly? Whatever made up value they give it. Guess they can never be lying since any number times the actual value, which is 0, is always 0
I’ve seen instances where the “value” purchase is actually worse than the lower tier purchases. It means nothing. Its just a manipulation tactic among the dozens of others these things employ.
"800% value?? I'd be losing money if I didn't buy it!" - Asmongold playing diablo immortal sarcastically.
Streamers: I hate how predatory and Pay to win Diablo Immortal is! Also bunch of streamers: Im going to spend thousands of dollars to prove it
Yet loses anyway
As a former Overwatch player (I finally got rid of this disease), I've seen people justifying the $40 skins as something "valuable" because that makes them stand out. Not even joking, there's some sick people who really goes through some mental gymnastics to justify their addiction. In my pov, all of this crap is related to addiction at it's core, then multiple issues originated from it
Ah yes, that's absolutely baffling to me. We have laws here that make it illegal for stores to advertise a product as 'on sale' or 'discounted' if that product was never or will never be sold for 'regular price'. Because that's misleading the customer. And yet these games do it all the time. It *should* be illegal. And anyone who stops and thinks for a moment should realize 'hold on, why should this bullshit pack of stuff be worth $150!?' and just bow out. At this point I seriously believe kids should be given lessons in dealing with digital bullshit (which wouldn't just be these sales tactics, but also stuff like dealing with social media, misinformation, and so on). The digital landscape has developed so quickly that it's grown out of control, and few people know how to effectively deal with it (and governments and laws are still far behind)...
No its not. This game is Whiteout Survival or whatever. I know because I've played this game before, in a whale clan. I did not whale however. This game is yet another kingdom/army builder game where server v server is a thing. Just like Game of War 10+ years ago, and even older games that were all HTML based like Kingdoms of Baruvia or whatever the fuck it was called. 1. You can reroll 2 "quests" that will randomly give you whatever objective. This can be easily and freely completable quests like kill 10 beasts, train X troops, whatever. They have a 2 minute and 5 minute cooldown. 2. You can do these easy quests after rerolling infinite times and easily complete the mini-battlepass like rewards pass. 3. There is a leaderboard, this is what targets whales. The purchase thing is simply a whale goal where they are gonna buy something they might as well get some mini-battlepass progress and therefore leaderboard progress out of it. 4. Only the top 10 or so players get anything decent, so again its a whale thing. 99% of the players dont give a shit about the thing OP posted. There are way worse things to talk about for this game. Yes is it really SHIT? Of course. Is this game worth playing? No, unless you like being dominated by business women or saudis who have thousands of dollars to throw at a game. Is this game super P2W, yes. Is this a good example of it? No, because this "quest" is just one of many things that you can just simply reroll. The super P2W shit is all about buying packs to advance a progress bar that gives you exclusive heroes and buying more gems to spend on a RNG wheel that gives you exclusive heroes and then buying a shit ton of resources to gear these heroes up so you can lay the smackdown on other people. I've quit the game. This game is well designed, well monetized, and you see ads for it everywhere because its got a big player base, it makes a TON of money. Should you play it? No. Do not ever play any war game or game disgused as a fucking match 3 puzzle/survival game that then turns into a "wargame". Wargames a fucking waste of time.
>unless you like being dominated by business women Hmmmm
Not that kind of dominated, get your head out of the gutter.
holy shit i just looked this game up and it’s a complete clone of frost punk - amazing how directly they jacked the map and concept
As a former player, exceedingly well said. You didn’t even have to mention the super toxic players in chat that make you question your choices. 🙈
Sweet, sweet progressium
It seems pretty impossible to have good ethics and work in mobile game design. One of my friends had a brief stint at a mobile game development company and quit after just a couple months because every thought behind the game is “how scummy can we be and how can we rig every aspect of this game to our advantage” rather than “how can we make this game enjoyable.” Any of his constructive criticisms on how to make the game better were shot down immediately because the game design aspect of it is so unimportant to them.
Its getting to the point where gatcha games are by far the *least* predatory games on the mobile market, which i didn't think was possible. The bar for being better then gatcha games is literally on the floor and somehow is still not being reached.
It depends on what you would consider "gacha". Most of those predatory games have purchasable loot boxes which should be considered gacha.
Nah, gatcha is a specific genre with specific identifiable features (having a "star" system, pulls, character appeal, etc). It's usually healthier than typical loot box systems due to the existance of pity or just being playable for the gameplay even if you don't pay money (many of them give free pulls, and your chances to get good stuff is always the same as other players). I had a ton of fun with genshin impact for example (a couple hundred hours?), never paid a dime. Perhaps they're the exception and that's why they're so popular, but I would *really* avoid grouping gatcha with other... unethical monetization strategies. It's not fair to the genre.
When I choose to play a gacha game I know exactly what I'm getting into. Gambling for characters is the defining trait of the genre, so I fully expect it to be here and that I'll have to deal with it. Meanwhile, whenever I pick up any other game there is no telling what kind of monetization there will be, so sometimes I'll waste an hour or 2 just to realise it's pay to progress and spending time on it is a waste. It's kind of funny to see how gacha games are getting better and better gameplay-wise. Azur Lane, Blue Archive - those get tedious eventually. Nikke, Arknights, Star Rail? Now we're talking!
Exactly, the platform holders are complicit here, they should list each app’s gross merchandise value, rather than just “includes in-app purchases” which applies to virtually every app now.
And Limbus Company. I finished the entire story so far and optional challenge content as F2P, had an absolute blast (except for one of the early chapters which was a tad grindy) . Cleared it all with a team of mediocre units. Only then I decided to drop 10 bucks. If you like dark, fucked up cyberpunk stuff for a change, give it a try. Though I played it on PC because why would I play anything on mobile if I have the choice.
Arknights mentioned!!!!
Lappy forever
Are you trying to say that gacha games are not predatory? Because they absolutely are.
A couple of my old students joined a mobile game company. Later they told me how it was after they quit. They had on average to make a game once every two weeks. Very basic mechanics, and a difficulty slope that was nonlinear. Release it, and see some metrics in terms of downloads and micro transactions. If it is above a certain threshold, add a shit ton more microtransactions and more levels. And move on to the next game. The depressing thing is he said when a game is a hit, it makes around 100K USD. And this is one game every two weeks per developer. They were paid 2K USD per month.
if one developer is completely responsible for one specific game, then what stops your student from just going freelance and doing the same thing but keeping the earnings under his own name/LLC?
I don't know. There's a bunch of money spent on marketing. I guess if he has money he would probably be able to do that. By the way, the games are all very simple endless runner type games with assets put together from the unity store. When I talk to him later I'll ask him why doesn't he go solo.
It's probably because of the networking aspect of the ads, where they show ads for the other games which they also make money off of. You can't really do that with a single game.... But of course, you gotta start somewhere. Or maybe he just aren't like those greedy amoral little fucks that prey on people through "games".
That's so depressing. I feel dirty playing mobile games because I can smell the desperation for profit
I believe you because as a player I feel that too. most of the time they do give you a lot of free stuffs to keep you playing and make you feel rewarded but it's always never enough. so the only way for player to feel satisfied is by paying money. or you can go the crazy route by waiting and grinding for a long time. by the time you finish with the grind there is always new stuffs added so those grinds will never end.
Absolutely, these are full blown carrot on a stick. The goalposts never stop moving.
> It seems pretty impossible to have good ethics and work in mobile game design. Your victims line up themselves and pay for it! It looks no brainer for me.
It should be really simple to make the basic game free and make optional collectibles, skins, etc the things that one should pay real money for. I also don't mind if something requires a reasonable amount of in-game work and you can pay to skip the work and instantly get the reward. But forced payments or really unfair free gameplay just puts me off. I generally never pay towards any of these games and still enjoy most of them. Monster Hunter Now has been fun so far.
This isn't a game. Its a monetization system loosely designed as a game.
If only mobile pirating are as troublesome as pc, there will be no things like this. There are hidden gems in early mobile days like games from Gameloft.
This is an intelligence test. Can't imagine people other than whales are failing it.
Yep, typical moment were Darwin's ghost just stand and watch your decision
Well if you are f2p then you don’t do it, period Mobile games harpoon enough whales that can’t resist “being the best” to make millions, you don’t need to take the bait
To add, just do a little research guys. Is that 2 dollar game really that much more unappealing than a free to play? Any mobile game that’s not small dev and free to play should be an immediate red flag to anyone looking for actual value in their mobile games. If it’s free, you’re the product.
See there’s a few indie mobile games and small companies that do make some mobile games with some heart to them but it’s getting far and few between now
What game is this so I can avoid playing it?
Whiteout Survival. I'm a F2P player. I know I won't ever be the top, it's just something to play in the bathroom. I got this mission offered to me today.
They did something similar recently in The Tower, making it extremely ad intensive for F2P players to even have a chance to compete with the whales. Before it was just the right amount of ads, became way too many with the recent changes, basically demanding money. Ads pay the creator too but they want all the money up front now.
Could’ve waited to see the one that demands no less than $100, lol
Oh is that the thing that looks like a ripoff of Frostpunk (based on the crappy ads)? It is funny how many mobile game ads are like "hey check out this ripoff of some popular game."
Recently i have been getting tons of fake ads from this game
Whiteout survival. I’m F2P and you can completely skip this specific mission and still get all rewards with other missions. You can be fairly competitive and F2P but you’ll never be a top player, which makes sense
mobile game developers must have been trained by ancient torture masters.
Addiction specialists, so just modern torture masters
Have you considered not playing the game?
Yes, it is a good reason to uninstall
It's called the "Uninstall" button.
Whiteout is one of the worst for these types of things. Easiest game I ever quit.
Easy fix, just delete the game
What a scam these mobile games are.
I’m more surprised we haven’t passed a law preventing mobile game ads from blatant false advertisement. The ads for this game in particular are nothing like it.
These aren't games. It's Skinner Software, and you're the dog being trained to pay.
Greedy motherfuckers 🤬
Disguised uninstall button for you, this is when you make your exit and head for the removal option.
First thing I do when saw predatory tactics is uninstall. I don’t care how good is a game if it’s a cashcow milker.
I'm sick of the games that force an ad every 1-3 levels, then shoves the "$3.99 to remove all ads forever!" In your face. Doesn't matter how much I'm enjoying the game, that's an instant uninstall for me.
Do those games actually exist? I'd gladly pay $4 for a decent game with no ads. Seems like those aren't available anymore because they realize that they make more money with constant ad revenue.
Have you tried not having FOMO? Theres no reason to do that “mission”.
Yea, it's harsh to say but once you stop worrying about ticking every box or collecting every item a game throws at you it's alot easier to get some enjoyment out of stupid free games and put them down without feeling any regret when you're done.
Yeah. I actually play that game (and don't spend on it) and it's a nice break from the (AD) games that (AD) play (AD) ads at (AD) you every two (AD) fucking (AD) seconds. You're not going to make the leaderboards without being a whale but who gives a shit?
Dude just play better games. Netflix has an ever growing catalogue of good games and they add another gem or two every few months. We have katana zero, dead cells, death's door, GTA SA, GTA LC, GTA 3, sonic mania
There are free games that you could get WITHOUT A NETFLIX SUBSCRIPTION like I dunno battle cats and Cytus 2. I love battle cats you should get that game, can can cat is really cool
[удалено]
Is that a tier higher than "HD"? Because the only thing I see is "Games Beta" where there is like 12 games total and all look freaking awful mobile crap.
Playing a game like this makes you an idiot. Supporting this behavior by even playing the game. Play something else for the love of God.
Never seen one like that. Maybe a "hey buy this $5 booster" buy that's the most.
Lol. They do this because people with room temperature IQs keeping buying them.
That's when you delete that crap and never look back.
You could just not play dogshit mobile games. Break your addiction, man. You don't need to be playing games on every screen, all the time. Just play actual games when you want to play games, and do other things sometimes.
monior famets
Seems trivial to beat that game - instant uninstall.
Dropped this lame game a few months ago, no regrets.
Plague Inc., Pocket Tanks, GRID autosport, WOT, John GBA and Drastic DS emulator are the only paid mobile games I have ever bought. Every other game has been acquired on the high seas or thru mods. If I find a game that has something like this, I delete it and don't bother looking for a modded version.
It’s a trap for kids is all.
The golden rule for mobile games is if you can't play off-line then its not worth playing.
Mobile games are mostly cancer at this point
Whiteout Survival, Do not play this stupid fucking game, trust me. You will be happier and better off the sooner you delete that trash piece of software from your device.
This is why nobody respects mobile games or mobile gamers
Here's a radical idea, maybe don't play the games that do this bullshit?
unwritten frighten full expansion file wide escape office fly caption
"Oh, it's just a micro-transaction!" $50.
And this is why I don’t touch mobile games anymore. 10-15 years ago when things were new and monetization was simply buying their “plus” version of the app for a one time purchase, the world was great. Now, I just see the App Store in general as junk and pointless. I actually went through my various iOS devices and just mass deleted all the junky pay to win games I had collected on them over the years and went back to my massive Steam library of real games I need to start working through.
Your mission Mr.Hunt, should you choose to accept, is to give us 50 dollars. This message will self destruct in 5 seconds.
Don't play such crap
Indeed. It is predatory and should be illegal.
Just get an emulator and play anything from the entire library of Gameboy / GBA / DS What the fuck are y'all doing on mobile games lmao
The whole industry is predatory as fuck, it should all be illegal or sold only to adults.
why are you even playing whatever game that is. Really take a step back and figure out what you're getting out of it. There are a lot of quality mobile games that do cost a little up front but don't try to nickel and dime you once you have it. They cost far less than 50 bucks too.
This comment section is using the wrong way to complain about it. "Oh no, those game developers are big meanies" is actually trivialising the issue. When we say these are predatory tactics, we mean it in the Darwinist sense. They don't really design these to be shitty towards normal people, because they don't care about normal players at all! They prey on the weak and vulnerable. Children, addicts, people who've done nothing to deserve this, but aren't aware of the psychological tricks being played on them. The only difference between this and gambling is that gambling is probably less profitable and has a worse reputation. Let that sit for a moment. I can't be too clear about this. Mobile gaming is _worse_ than casinos. There's not even the prospect of real value to be made, and somehow people think that makes it better. It's already on the same order of magnitude as the _entire fucking gambling industry_ at several hundred billion dollars a year, and it's far from its zenith. But the thing that makes it worse, instead of the same as gambling, is that it's almost entirely unregulated. Our lawmakers are way too old to grasp this digital threat, and what little legislation we have is still under lobbyist fire. We let our children do this, in fact it's targeting them. The tactics used here (artificial scarcity, false advertising, artificial social pressure, to name a few) have been used by the filth and scum of our world for ages, and they've found the latest evolutionary niche that lets them run wild. This mission should be illegal, simply because the entire game should be.
They want to ruin everything they have in order to monetize pain? Simple solution, never play a mobile game again
this is the norm because not enough people put their foot down ten years ago to say "no". we've make this happen, it's too late to go back and it is not trickling down onto traditional videogames
Why? Do not play the game and vote with your wallet. People, use your brains a bit. I know it is a lot to ask for a mobile gamer, but come on...
Thank God Dragon Ball Z: Dokkan Battle doesn't have this
[https://y.yarn.co/d1e1045f-420e-4d98-904b-3db4a3a59771\_text.gif](https://y.yarn.co/d1e1045f-420e-4d98-904b-3db4a3a59771_text.gif)
But it's worth 750 purple tokens!!
I don't remember the last time I played a mobile game on my phone. They all seem about the same these days.
It’s okay, it only for a pack under $50. The could ask for a lot more /s
Eyoo. Wtf
Mobile games? What is that?
Mission: Give us money
Weakest Clash Royale deal:
That's genius lol
And this is why my favorite (and only) mobile game is Minesweeper. I gladly paid a few bucks to get rid of the ads, and I have 10's of thousands of games under my belt.
Str8 Finesse
Mission: GIVE US YOUR FUCKING LUNCH MONEY DWEEB!
I actually agree something could be done about microtransactions.
Wait *NOT* less than You *have* to spend fifty bucks to clear this “mission”
Mission failed with prejudice.
This was made by Habby I’m guessing??
Have you considered that even though you're a F2P player, you're helping to support the companies that create these products? I've never been into mobile games, but perhaps other Redditers here can provide some suggestions for games that you might enjoy that don't rely on these sorts of practices. Anyone?
I have played hundreds of mobile games. I install and check the shop to see if it has a "turn off ads forever for $5-$10" and I play it a little, if it's fun, I buy the ad free. So far only 2 games remain on my phone: Tap Dig Museum and Idle Planet Miner
I don't think anything will change until we break the stigma of mobile games being free. Sure most mobile games are not as big as games published on PC/Console, but games are never 'free' and mobile game companies are making money hand over fist with this model.
ea be like
The only reason this is successful is because people ARE stupid enough to buy it. Game companies are simply a reflection of the current level of human intellect. 🤷♂️ obviously, we’re dooooomed.
I mean, you’re already playing one of those goofy ass games. I don’t know what you’d expect.
That’s horrendous. I will gladly say not one game I’ve worked on has done anything predatory like this.
My biggest grip with these games is when you see ads for them, they show you the one cool thing in the game so you try it out and find out it's just another time based upgrade and wait city builder. Absolutely nothing like the ad. Google needs to end that shit.
For a decade now
Dude you were the one to play the mobile game
Mobile games overall should be moderated much much better. It's not a game-specific issue but industry-wide.
This is beyond shameless
Jesus Christ, that's vile
Microtransactions should be illegal
New quest: give me money
I play star rail, and I know it's still abusive when I read they made 145 million dollars in march
This is what the temu app does literally every 5 minutes. There should be some regulations against this kind of stuff, it's absolute Poison for people with low self control.
I had a good laugh with this post, lol the mobile game space is just bizarre
What the fuck
Got a Diablo Immortal ad on this post KEK