Adjustments Made Based on Feedback
- Users Drop More Quickly When Reputation Reaches 0
- What We Did: Adjusted the game mechanics to penalize players more significantly when their reputation hits zero, creating higher stakes and faster consequences.
- Reason: Playtesters found it unclear how reputation impacts gameplay; the gradual decline was too slow to feel meaningful.
- Clarifying the Relationship Between Ad Personalization and Algorithm Levels
- What We Did: Added clearer visual and narrative cues to explain how ad personalization is tied to algorithm upgrades.
- Reason: Players were confused about how their choices affected personalization and how it interacted with the algorithm’s effectiveness.
- Improved Financial Statistics Interface
- What We Did: Redesigned the financial statistics display for easier readability and understanding, including clearer labels and a dynamic graph.
- Reason: Feedback highlighted that the financial system felt too abstract, making it hard to track progress or plan strategies.
- Revised Personalization Impact on Users
- What We Did: Tweaked the personalization mechanic so that users aren’t turned off until ads or interactions become excessively invasive.
- Reason: Early personalization levels were alienating players too soon, limiting their ability to explore strategies.
- Algorithm Level Unlock Adjustments
- What We Did: Made earlier algorithm levels cheaper to unlock once higher levels are achieved, encouraging experimentation and upgrades.
- Reason: Players felt stuck at higher levels because earlier features became redundant or too costly.
- External Events System
- What We Did: Made earlier algorithm levels cheaper to unlock once higher levels are achieved, encouraging experimentation and upgrades.
- Reason: Players felt stuck at higher levels because earlier features became redundant or too costly.
What Didn’t Go Well
- Confusion Around Endgame: Players were unclear on how the game concludes and whether they were “winning” or “losing.”
- Proposed Fix: Add clearer narrative milestones and a definitive resolution to the player’s journey.
- Personalization Impact Still Ambiguous: Despite tweaks, players struggled to understand when personalization became “too much.”
- Proposed Fix: Add a notification system that warns players when their choices approach risky personalization levels.
- Repetitive Gameplay in Early Levels: Some found the early levels too slow, leading to disengagement.
- Proposed Fix: Introduce more diverse challenges and events in early levels to maintain interest.
Questions for Future Playtesting
- Are external events now balanced in terms of frequency and impact?
- Do players find the narrative and mechanics better integrated after these refinements?
- Does the event system add replayability and dynamic decision-making?
