But it's not the IAP that's the cause. It's the skewed matchmaking and the mysterious loosing streaks that occur very frequently. You'd be playing and winning some and loosing some and then all of a sudden you hit a losing streak of 6-12 losses or more.
One thing for sure is my friends and I are not spending a penny on this game because of that regular frustration. We've spent a little on the other two games to get past a point of tedium but that gave us something concrete.
In Clash Royal spending money just gives you a chance to get the cards you need. No thank you. If the game mechanic wasn't so addictive we'd have stopped playing it long ago.
Also, good luck if you want to switch decks, or decide one of your cards is worthless; or if they nerf your favorite card.
* There are usually 3 currencies. Usually a "f2p" currency, a "p2p" currency and a "social" currency.
* There are at least 3 distinct ways to progress a unit, for example "level", "stars/quality", "gear/items" and each way requires a different activity or minigame to progress.
* Playing the game requires "energy" or something similar which recharges slowly over time but can be refilled by paying p2p currency
* There are "ratings" on your performance which usually are measured as 1, 2, or 3 stars.
* The number three comes up a LOT in the game design. Like 3 stages per level, 3 abilities per character, 3 milestones per achievement, etc.
* Bring the player to the store as often as possible to pick up little freebies and force them to look at the paid offerings
It's like every big mobile game studio is designing off the same playbook.
They, in fact, are. Every one of those trends serve a specific purpose or were highly studied to provided the "best" outcome.
I.E - Energy forbids you to explore the whole game in a couple of days (unless you pay) and plays with your min-maxing head to return to the game several times a day (you energy usually takes 4 to 6 hours to fully replenish)
I did, but I try to do games that I like to play, trying to minimize obstacles for the players.
This doesn't mean that the book should be burned; it has some great articles on how to improve usability or minimize friction.
Queue up chests to unlock
Earn "keys" when you win and your chest slots are full: Silver chests take 10 keys, etc. Still enables whales to spend their money, but makes it feel like you can earn *something* by playing.