South Park recently hit the nail on the head in their episode ‘Freemium Isn’t Free’, a satirical look at the state of mobile games and the rise of freemium/in-app purchases that populate mobile app stores. Matt Stone and Trey Parker take aim at the developers who willingly exploit the market of casual gamers. The developers in question are enticing gamers with a free game, only to hit them with pay walls strategically implemented to persuade players in parting with real cash just to continue playing.
The shift from simply parting cash before playing a full game, to ‘free’ games with an option to pay at a later date, should be a good idea. An idea that has existed for years, going back to magazines with demo discs on the front to try a game before purchasing.
But with mobile gaming, this trend has been skewed slightly, to maximise the money taken from gamers.
In-App Purchases (IAP) should really be a good move for both the player and the developer. It is a way for anyone to simply try a game, and if its worthwhile, part cash for it. Unfortunately the market is mainly split into two camps; premium games that cost $10+ or free games; littered with intrusive paywalls.
It is a huge risk to release a mobile game with an initial cost as the average mobile gamer is of the casual variety, and with so many ‘free’ games available, the general consensus is ‘why pay?’.