This document provides guidance on designing successful mobile games. It recommends starting with constraints to focus creativity. Researching app stores reveals recurring patterns in top-grossing and top-paid games. Business models like up-front payment with optional unlocks or free-to-play with microtransactions are discussed. Common successful genres like puzzle, arcade, and tower defense games are also described. The document concludes by outlining key elements for engagement like simple controls, levels of mastery, social features, and viral sharing opportunities.

1. Designing mobile games
for success

2. Using Constraints
Designing on a blank sheet is hard
Perfection is boring
Limitations help focus your creativity
Start from success constraints

3. Researching the App
stores
Reveals patterns over
time
Critical to success
Recurring patterns are
like pop music chords,
use em!
Top paid vs Grossing

4. Top Grossing
Business model
F2P Micro-transactions
Genres
City building/timers
Casino
Collectibles
Hidden Object
This is for bigger companies

5. Top PaidBusiness model
Up front pay with optional
Unlocks/DLC
Not micro-transactions
Genres
Retro/Action/Arcade
Endless run/jump/fly
Puzzle
Tower Defense
Minecraft

6. Business models
Don't be a starving artist

7. Up front with DLC
Works as retail or
shareware model
Needs a low price, good
marketing, and reviews
Needs a good core
Sales come in waves
Needs social long term

8. Micro-transactions
Cheap, consumable
Repeatable
Relate to gates like lives,
energy refills
Or random elements like
booster packs, slot
machines

9. Premium currency
Works alongside a free
currency
Can be used to purchase
the free currency
Speeds up gaining free
things or gives
advantages over free
players
Creates a player divide
Best for vanity or
collectors

10. Genres
They work for a reason

11. Action/Arcade
Instant fun
Easy to understand
Quick diversion
Good feedback

12. Puzzle
Starts simple and builds
complexity
Quick to play a puzzle
Levels provide variety
Physics and Match-3
dominate
Learning is fun

13. Tower Defense
Engaging complexity
Not as quick to play
Balance of strategy and
accessibility
Appeals to more mid-core

14. Endless
High accessibility
Simple controls
Infinite replayability
One more time play
Variable excitement

15. Elements of success
Breaking down the hits

16. Choosing a theme
Some are evergreen
themes for kids:
Dinosaurs/Animals,
Monsters, Robots,
Knights/Dragons,
Cars/Trains
Some are popular now:
Zombies, Raptors, Cats,
Lumberjacks, Bears
Use a theme people like,
it makes marketing so
much easier. They need
to be interested BEFORE
playing.

17. Controls
Keep it simple
Use single taps or simple
swipes, don't mix
Virtual and tilt controls suck
Make tap targets big and
spaced

18. Duration
Where do people play?
Toilet
Lines
Car rides
Can you accomplish
something in 1 minute?
Can you keep going
when hooked?

19. Engaging systems
Psychology matters
Intrinsic motivation
Autonomy
Mastery
Purpose

20. Autonomy
Play how you want, when
you want
Quick easy to start, hard
to stop
Fast restart
Almost wins and one
more times

21. Mastery
Purely skill based is hard
to balance and maintain
flow
Random elements keep
it difficult to fully master
Let them plan and luck
foil their plans
Our brains reward
mispredictions

22. Purpose
Persistent elements give
purpose
Levels, XP,
achievements, high
scores, currency,
vanity items, unlocks,
power ups
Make every play matter

23. Content designDesign for your content to be
systemic or procedural, not
consumable
Systemic means the
gameplay is defined by the
rules and systems like Tetris
and Collectable strategy
Procedural means the levels
are generated algorithmically
on the fly, remixing content
pieces
Algorithms and random
elements keep costs low and

24. Social designKeep multiplayer
asynchronous or passive with
leaderboards
Real time multiplayer is
expensive, complex, and
sucks on mobile
Use built-in social functions
of game centers, social
graphs, and texting
Allow playing and friending
random players
Gifting/trading makes
economies harder to manage

25. Endgame play
Endgame is when players
are done with the main
content
Things to do: PvP/Coop,
Clans, Events, Player
content
Social stays fresh, you don't
make people!
Player created content and
expression are awesome

26. Virality
Marketing is expensive,
design your game to
encourage sharing
Players share humor/topical
references, exciting
moments, created content,
and achievements
Make it easy to share and
talk about these
What would make a popular
Let's Play video?

27. Platforms
Keep in mind smaller
growing mobile and console
platforms where competition
is smaller
Ouya, Windows 8, Tizen,
Web portals
Html5 and Unity!

28. Questions?
Write them down and ask away!
There's much more detail than time, hope you
learned how to look!
Available for design consulting if you liked this!
devin@devinbecker.com
Thanks!