Reasons for the popularity of casual games with gambling elements
What is the reason for the popularity of casual games among gamers? It's not just simple controls and rules. Casual games are aimed at a wide audience - gamers are attracted by the fact that the game does not require special skills. All the nuances of the game are learned in the course of the player goes from one level to another, collects coins/points and achievements.
We can distinguish 3 features of casual games:
- Simple gameplay. To understand the gameplay will be simple even a beginner - after 15-20 minutes of the game session the player will understand what buttons to press for a particular function. In addition, most games, including Coin Master, always have a learning mode.
- Minimum rules. To play casual games, you do not need to study the rules. In practice, everything is simpler: gamers must accumulate coins, buy objects for them, advance through the levels and interact with other players.
- Different attention-holding mechanisms. For gamers to spend a lot of time on the game, just a fun game is not enough. Their attention must be held. To do this, developers use special mechanisms - wheel of fortune, time bonuses, events, tournaments, and bonus features. This not only retains players, but also attracts new ones.
This advantageously distinguishes casual games from the rest. If you separate out the thematic and bonus variety, you can talk about their leadership in the gaming market.
Comparison of Coin Master with top games
Although Coin Master is the leader in the industry of mobile casual games, it also has some famous competitors. We are talking about such games:
- Pirate Kings;
- Island King;
- Crazy Fox;
- Pet Master.
Each of these games belongs to the casual and has several significant differences. They manifest themselves at different levels: in design, genre definition, game features, bonus content. To clarify further we will compare Coin Master with the above games in all these parameters.
Gameplay
Storyline in Coin Master as such is absent. The same can be said about other games. In practice, the gameplay is reduced to passing levels, accumulation of coins and construction of villages. Additionally, the gamer will be accompanied by a pet - one of three to choose from, each with unique abilities.
If you do not go into detail, the gameplay is built on a similar pattern in other games:
- Pet Master. The main task - to build a large empire of animals. To do this, you have to attack, raid, fight with friends, and exchange cards.
- Island King. Players have to move from island to island, accumulating coins. In this case, the gamer has a noble task - to earn a substantial sum to help Luna find her missing father. The presence of a story "mission" is one of the differences of the game.
- Crazy Fox. The game is dedicated to the fantastic journey of the Little Prince and his Fox. Together with fairytale heroes the player will have to build and design worlds, win and accumulate coins, communicate with friends.
Making a conclusion, it can be noted: the game in Coin Master and in competitive games in many points similar and built on the same principle. At the same time, there are significant differences that make the game unique.
Stylistics
As soon as the gamer launches Coin Master, a colorful playing field opens in front of him. The game design is thought out to the smallest detail. This concerns not only the symbols on the in-game reel, but also the general design of the game. Changing style from level to level - this affects the elements of construction of the village, the bonus features, the controls. Such variable style makes the gameplay even more exciting.
A similar principle of adding new details in the design and operates in the game Pirate Kings. As soon as the gamers accumulate the necessary amount of points, they can improve the island and get new constructions. The same can be said about Pet Master.
The stylistics of each of the above games is not just colorful, but also as detailed as possible. In this case, the design of each game is different. If Coin Master emphasizes the thematic features of the villages (e.g., "Ancient Asia" or "Hawaii"), the other games are tied to the changes in style. For example, each level of Pirate Kings is tied to pirates, and in Pet Master to different pets.
Genre Symbiosis
None of the aforementioned competitive games can not be called a pure casual game. Nor does Coin Master fit this definition - the game combines elements of casual, arcade and slots.
This symbiosis of genres makes the game unique and attracts different users. Gamers will be able to try their hand at different tasks. First, they will need to accumulate a certain amount of coins to buy objects - there are also elements of strategy. These coins are issued not only for the rotation of the in-game machine - have to attack other players and use the bonus features.
Genre symbiosis can be seen in both Pirate Kings and Island King with Crazy Fox. However, in Coin Master transition between genres is implemented in a hidden way and is not immediately apparent. This allows you to fully enjoy the game and not to switch between different formats.
Methods of interaction with the audience
You can attract, and most importantly retain your audience in several ways. Coin Master demonstrates this by way of example. The point of the game is not only to build villages and attack other players - this would bore the gamers too quickly. The game uses such mechanics to attract and retain an audience:
- Events. Every time a gamer enters the game, a new event will be waiting for them. This can be either a village obsession, a card boom, or a kill bet. Each event is unique and provides a prize when the events are completed. Since the events are regularly updated - gamers find it interesting and profitable to keep logging in to the game.
- Card Collection. There are a total of about 500+ cards hidden in the game, sorted into groups. For a collected deck of cards, coins are given and achievements are unlocked. Cards can be exchanged with other users or donated. This is an interactive element that allows players to communicate with each other.
- Events from social networks. The creators of Coin Master on their Facebook page regularly publish not only news about the game, but also hold events. By participating in them, gamers can get profitable incentives.
Each of the methods brings its own results: the total number of Coin Master game downloads exceeds 100 million. Other games such as Pet Master and Island King have a similar policy of interaction with the audience. The only difference is in the tournaments and events.
Market leadership of Coin Master
There are several parameters to consider Coin Master's leadership on the market of casual games:
- Total score in markets. Its score in Google Play (based on 7 million users) is 4.6, and in App Store (based on 450 thousand users) is 4.7. A high score confirms the benefits of the game outlined earlier in this article.
- Number of downloads. The figures in the Google Play store indicate that more than 100 million gamers have downloaded the game.
- The feedback from the users. The players' comments are positive and it is the measure of Coin Master's popularity and the gamers' trust in its developers.
- The game was released on the market in March 2016. In May 2022, developer Moon Active released the game Pet Master, which partially duplicates the principles of Coin Master. Island King, Pirate Kings, and Crazy Fox games were also released on the market. Games belong to the casual genre with interactive and gambling elements.
Coin Master remains the market leader. This is confirmed by the number of downloads, feedback from gamers and constant improvements by developers. With each update the game sets trends for other casual games.