Predicting the current trends is tough. We never thought that free to play titles would become as big as they did or that micro-transactions would be such a significant driving force in revenue. With this console generation seeing a refresh in terms of hardware, particularly with the PS4 Pro and upcoming Xbox One X, what does this mean for the industry?
GamingBolt spoke to deltaDNA CEO and co-founder Mark Robinson who’s company is in charge of deep-data analytics and real time player marketing. When asked about his thoughts on Project Scorpio aka the Xbox One X and PS4 Pro and how they fit into the current space, Robinson said that, “From a F2P perspective, upgraded higher powered consoles can only be a good thing because we know that the better the hardware the better the conversion rate and monetization. This is a trend we’ve particularly noticed in mobile phones, as they have evolved.”
But what about the differences in free to play audiences on PC, where the genre has been firmly established, versus consoles? How does it affect developers the way developers approach their games? Robinson said that, “We don’t see any real difference between how developers should tailor their approach on PC compared with console.
“What’s key is making sure the onboarding is right. You’ve also got to see how players engage with the game and make targeted interactions based on each individual player experience, and you need to make sure your monetization mechanics aren’t cannibalizing each other. You also need to ensure you’ve got a good core monetization loop, which is the same whether it’s a PC, mobile or console F2P game.”
With the Xbox One X releasing on November 7th, the PlayStation 5 rumoured to be releasing in the next few years and more triple-A titles engaging in micro-transaction practices in exchange for free content (and that’s not taking free to play titles into account, it’s an interesting time to be a gamer. We’ll have to wait and see how it all pans out though.
