Game Design Strategy: Balancing Ad Revenue and Player Engagement

This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session #. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let’s not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously. Panelists: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jakub Remia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠r,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Felix Braberg, Matej Lancaric⁠Special Guest: Samer Al Dafai Youtube: https://youtu.be/B5J3V_F5-HA Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-29stniv6f-oLJzhx2U_mRB_ppXnJ9hvQ

Agenda 00:00 Epic Introduction and Special Guest

04:14 The Idea Behind We Are Warriors

06:07 Game Design and Progression

18:08 Ad Monetization Strategy

21:32 Retention and Revenue

23:44 Ad Placements and Strategy

29:25 Game development and learning

30:13 Estimations and revenue breakdown

33:39 Impact of IAPs on ad revenue

34:44 Scaling and revenue comparison

36:23 User acquisition and session counts

38:08 Downloads and revenue distribution

39:32 Ad networks and mediation

42:06 Payback period and UA predictions

44:33 TikTok Creative Challenge

50:07 Creative team and external partners

55:22 Creative philosophy and consultants

57:26 Organic Downloads and Growth

59:06 Difficulty and User Feedback

01:00:14 Creatives and Art Style

01:01:21 User Ratings and Reviews

01:02:01 Progression and Economy

01:04:08 User Segmentation and Ad Placements

01:06:09 Segmentation and Ad Load

01:08:26 UA Strategy and Creatives --------------------------------------- Matej Lancaric User Acquisition & Creatives Consultant ⁠https://lancaric.me Felix Braberg Ad monetization consultant ⁠https://www.felixbraberg.com Jakub Remiar Game design consultant ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakubremiar --------------------------------------- Takeaways Organic downloads can lead to significant growth, especially when leveraging platforms like TikTok.

User feedback on difficulty should be considered and A/B tests can help optimize the game's difficulty.

Creatives and art style play a crucial role in attracting and engaging users.

User ratings and reviews provide valuable insights and should be monitored and addressed.

Segmentation of users based on their progression and behavior can help optimize ad placements and ad load.

User segmentation can also be used to tailor the game experience and economy.

Regular iteration and updates are important for maintaining user engagement and monetization.

User acquisition strategies should focus on creating new playables and experimenting with different angles.

The overall rating for the game is positive, with praise for the team's performance and revenue generation. --------------------------------------- Please share the podcast with your industry friends, dogs & cats. Especially cats! They love it! Hit the Subscribe button on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple! Please share feedback and comments - matej@lancaric.me --------------------------------------- If you are interested in getting UA tips every week on Monday, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠lancaric.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & sign up for the Brutally Honest newsletter by Matej Lancaric Latest article - https://open.substack.com/pub/lancaric/p/stay-ahead-in-ua-for-2024-my-top?r=7qqaf&utm_campaign=podcast&utm_medium=web&showWelcome=true Do you have UA questions nobody can answer? Ask ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Matej AI⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - the First UA AI in the gaming industry! https://lancaric.me/matej-ai