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For the almost 5 years I’ve been in the gaming industry, I learned a lot of things. How to do things right and, in the course of handling the different aspects of the games and the business, I also learned what NOT to do.

During these times, experience has been my greatest teacher. I’ve had a lot of mentors too. Those who told me how to do the “corporate” stuff like juggling numbers, managing people, deliverables, to them - I all owe my sincerest gratitude. But like what I said before, failures are also something to embrace. Why? Because you learn from them. The taste of success will be sweeter if you get up when you fall down.

In managing a game, I came to the conclusion that you if you do three things well then the pieces of the puzzle will all fall into place;

1. Give your users a reason to play
2. Then figure out a way to make them stay
3. Finally, you give them a reason to pay

Let’s examine each in detail, shall we?

A Reason to Play

This all boils down to the game. The game, and everything that comes with it - graphics, balance, game play and even variety, will give your target market a reason to play. Simply put, it’s content, and the how you hype it up, that will drive game trial. Word of mouth, which still is the most powereful weapon in your marketing arsenal, will keep the buzz alive. Anticipation levels will determine your initial success. If your game follows through on the promises (which games such as Hellgate London didn’t deliver) then you’ve succeeded in taking control of a huge amount of playing time from your target - the potential members of the community. A community that you are building from day one: the day you release your initial announcement to the world that you’re coming up with this “rad, new game”.

Reason to Stay

I started out as a Community Manager. And I firmly believe that community management plays a critical role in the success (or failure) of an online game. Now that you’ve hooked them on good graphics, technical features, and all the elements of your game, the most critical part of the process is now staring you in the face. How do you keep these players happy?

There’s no straight and magical formula. All the little things add up: forum moderation, meeting with the leaders, getting feedback, in-game events, promos and raffles, the right pricing of the items, customer service, and organized play are just some of the many things you have to consider. Community Management is like Schizophrenia - many personalities in one. Sometimes you’ll have to wear the hat of a guest relations officer, a referee, or a counselor. Surely, you’ll face different challenges everyday. That’s why the job is never boring. It’s never easy too. But seeing the community satisfied and respectful of everyone will be worth all the sacrifice.

Reason to Pay

Now for the tricky part. You got them to play. You got them hooked. They’re happy and your players are here to stay. How the heck do you get them to pay? This is moot in a subscription game. But in Asia, where the F2P model has taken hold, the battle for CCU ends when the war on getting them to pay begins. One thing I learned - do not blatantly make events which shows that you are clearly “milking” your users. The key word here is VALUE. You have to give value to the game, their items and their characters. What does this all mean? If everyone and his friggin’ brother has a rare item, do you think it still deserves to be called “rare”? I don’t think so. That’s why PROACTIVE measures to detect and solve duping and cheats are essential.

Second, good item mall management is crucial in making them pay. Are your items priced right? How do they fare compared to other games? Do they get the best ‘bang for the buck’ so to speak? These are just of the questions that you need to answer before you see those spikes in your game metric chart. Figure out the solution for these and you’re well on your way to success!

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