What is social gaming? Basically, social games are a special type of online games where diplomacy and market relations stamp out the usual gameplay and interactive specifics of actions, platformers, casual games, etc. They are more about thinking and communication between players – you need to come up with elaborate strategies and know how to efficiently negotiate when trying to profitably purchase or sell resources.
Social Games – Number & Facts
Transparency Market Research conducted a large-scale study back in 2015, stating that by 2019, Social gaming’s global capitalization would exceed $17 billion, while in 2012, this figure was almost 4 times lower – 5,4 billion US dollars.
This is based on factors such as:
- growth of population;
- popularization of mobile games & gadgets as sweeping attributes of modern culture;
- advancement of technologies & hardware;
- shifts in social values & priorities (currently, for example, people increasingly opt for satisfying spiritual values rather than physical).
These are the major reasons why people tend to spend more time engaged in social gaming online, striving for widespread social interaction via smartphones.
Social Gaming – How to Conquer the Global Market?
As a rule, social games are non-gambling in nature, so their distribution is possible in any country.
Technologies
As for the technologies that make these games even more popular, the following two definitely stand out:
- Augmented reality. Game developers have been exploiting augmented reality for quite some time now. First, the notorious Pokemon Go appeared (which, basically, made this technology famous), and then, both its analogs and completely different solutions started to appear (take AR Defender 2 and Real Strike). Even though since 2015, the popularity of AR has somewhat subsided, we would not neglect the bright opportunities and prospects of this technology.
Game developers have been exploiting augmented reality for quite some time. First, the well-known Pokemon Go game appeared (which made this technology famous), and then both its analogs and completely different solutions started to appear (take at least AR Defender 2 and Real Strike). Even though since 2015, the popularity of AR has somewhat subsided, we would not discount the opportunities and prospects of this technology; - Virtual reality. Such cool VR solutions as Superhot VR and End Space VR are particular examples of how tactics-focused gameplay ideas can be implemented in an audience-attracting format. You can try to create something more ambitious than just another shooter.
Monetization
Next, as the subsequent necessity, a social game should be monetized. At Melior Games, we believe that the following monetization methods are most efficient
- In-game purchase. If some services cannot be bought in any direct way, they can be monetized. Moreover, you can make a purchase of certain goods a necessary task for advancing up a level in the game. When it comes to in-app purchases, use convenient pay wall;
- Special offers. When there is an in-game economy, the developer can always give the player the opportunity to influence it (with discounts, sales, various mechanisms that the player perceives as buying something cheaper). The trick here is to overprice items initially. It is also best to make such offers unique and limited;
- Advertisement. Advertising is one of the best and easiest ways for novice developers to increase the profitability of their project. There are a lot of traffic needs in the mobile games market now, so advertising brings quite a good profit. At the same time, there are a lot of ways to integrate efficient advertising: paying for skipping time for completing actions, buying additional abilities, increasing the currency for entering the game, etc.;
- Leveling-up. The gameplay is at the heart of all games. The overall balance of the usual game process is often built “in waves”: everything happens very quickly in the beginning, and then it gradually slows down. The farther the player gets and the slower the game progresses, the more the would want to pay for speeding things up.
Social Gaming – Looking for Development Experts?
Right now, social games occupy one of the leading positions in the modern gaming industry. If you want to create your own social gaming solution, which is guaranteed to be popular and bring you quick income, contact us at Melior Games – we will be extremely glad to work with you!
