5 Things Mobile Gamers Want

Earlier this year, I wrote about how mobile companies are innovating with new methods of communication to their players. Mobile app developers are able to connect with their users easier than ever before! So we wanted to know: How do the players themselves feel about that? We polled 2000 users of Family Guy: The Quest for Stuff get their opinion on how mobile companies provide help & support.

1. Players rely on each other more than developers

graphs.001 that keeps players informed.

The results also show that players don’t like emailing you for answers. Out of the 2000 users polled, only 70 claimed that they would use email for help. Providing an address and waiting is too much friction in the mobile world.

2. Gamers are willing to reach out more than once

Good news: the majority of players will look for another method of help after the first try fails. Think about this in context of the first graph. When a player can’t find something with Google, 92% will try again with your FAQ (the second most popular choice). If that fails, whoever is left will check the game itself. If by some miracle everyone has not given up by the fourth try, they will email.Gamers are persistent, but their patience is not infinite. Besides: 3% of 2000 users is still 60 bad reviews. Ensuring that your customers are happy the first time around is the only way to prevent bad press.

3. Mobile gamers prefer in-game help and support

49% of players polled prefer in-game help and support. This affirms the growing idea in mobile that a native experience is simply easier. The 30% who claim they have no preference would be delighted either way. 20% believe that in-app support is not better than legacy options. Statistically, you would please more users with in-app support than with email.That’s because email would work for about half your users if you generously include those that have no preference. Meanwhile, in-app support would delight 4 out of 5 players.

4. Most players find games just by searching the store or telling a friend

Most players found Family Guy: The Quest for Stuff just by browsing the app store. The second most popular discovery method was Word of Mouth. This shows that focusing on high ratings & reviews is key to acquisition, because it increases your App Store Optimization. Delighting customers also obviously contributes to Word of Mouth.

Ads, while less useful than ASO or Word of Mouth, are still somewhat powerful if not more expensive. Advertising is worth it only after your app has seen some success. Take Clash of Clans for example–their game had been #1 in the app store long before they began an advertising campaign. Creating a player community also brings in new players, and is certainly worth pursuing if it does not cost much to execute.

5. Gamers are more easily drawn to existing IPs and concepts

Almost all Family Guy players chose the game because they enjoy the show. You may think this result shows that intellectual property is king! That’s true, but don’t call Kim Kardashian quite yet. Developers don’t need a million dollar endorsement to acquire a playerbase. The best way to attract players to your game is to affiliate it with anything they already enjoy. Whether it be zombies, sports, celebrities, or hunting, the most successful games have a theme with a known market.

After all, Candy Crush‘s sweets could be replaced with vegetables and still be the same game in essence. But who doesn’t like candy?

Afterword

Special thanks to Bunny and Alissa of Familyguyaddicts.com for helping us organize this poll. For more information on how to get high ratings and reviews, check out our ebook or add us on twitter.