Towards Stardom : Qualitative analysis of free-to-play match-3 mobile game reviews
Nieminen, Lassi (2022)
2022
Master's Programme in Game Studies
Informaatioteknologian ja viestinnän tiedekunta - Faculty of Information Technology and Communication Sciences
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Hyväksymispäivämäärä
2022-05-13
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:tuni-202204213377
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:tuni-202204213377
Tiivistelmä
Free-to-play match-3 mobile games have become increasingly popular among mobile game players across the world. Popular games such as Candy Crush Saga and Gardenscapes have millions of users worldwide spending their time and money on these games. However, why do players like these games so much?
It appears that research regarding match-3 games is quite scarce. While there are studies that have investigated which elements make games in general successful, there appears to be no research that investigates which elements make free-to-play match-3 mobile games likable. Therefore, this thesis attempts to fill that gap in research and investigates which elements players like and dislike in free-to-play match-3 mobile games by analyzing publicly available game reviews of six different match-3 games in Google Play. The game reviews are analyzed by utilizing the method of thematic analysis.
The conceptual framework of this thesis builds on the concepts of game design, games-as-a-service, casual games, and player experience. The analysis is further supported by a literature review regarding match-3 games.
The analysis reveals that there are seven major themes that contain elements players like and dislike: game design, monetization, community management, technical functionality, enjoyment and frustration, aesthetics and storytelling, and social elements. The results reveal that the five elements that players like are: good design features, the opportunities of free-to-play, enjoyment, social elements, and pleasant aesthetics and storytelling. On the other hand, players appear to dislike the following six elements: bad design elements, tight monetization, poor community management, technical issues, frustration, and poorly executed aesthetics and storytelling. The discussion elaborates on the possible practical implications of the results.
It appears that research regarding match-3 games is quite scarce. While there are studies that have investigated which elements make games in general successful, there appears to be no research that investigates which elements make free-to-play match-3 mobile games likable. Therefore, this thesis attempts to fill that gap in research and investigates which elements players like and dislike in free-to-play match-3 mobile games by analyzing publicly available game reviews of six different match-3 games in Google Play. The game reviews are analyzed by utilizing the method of thematic analysis.
The conceptual framework of this thesis builds on the concepts of game design, games-as-a-service, casual games, and player experience. The analysis is further supported by a literature review regarding match-3 games.
The analysis reveals that there are seven major themes that contain elements players like and dislike: game design, monetization, community management, technical functionality, enjoyment and frustration, aesthetics and storytelling, and social elements. The results reveal that the five elements that players like are: good design features, the opportunities of free-to-play, enjoyment, social elements, and pleasant aesthetics and storytelling. On the other hand, players appear to dislike the following six elements: bad design elements, tight monetization, poor community management, technical issues, frustration, and poorly executed aesthetics and storytelling. The discussion elaborates on the possible practical implications of the results.