Casino chips and mobile game goods are also a kind of alternative. Even in mobile games, users use invisible virtual money (accounts or cards linked to their app store accounts) to purchase products, resulting in virtual goods. And the mobile gaming system has some intentions to make it easier for users to spend money.

​

1. Small unit of expenditure on goods

Within the mobile game system, goods can be largely divided into the primary goods of crystal [3] and the secondary goods of coinage [4]. Users acquire primary goods through in-app purchases, purchase secondary goods, and then grow characters, strengthen equipment, or purchase various items with this secondary goods. Or, it is used to purchase various Gacha contents as primary and secondary goods. [5]

The basic unit of primary goods is smaller than secondary goods (1. Rise of Kings, 2. Marvel Future Fight)

And there’s a first technique hidden in this buying process that makes it easier for users to spend their money. The basic unit of primary goods is smaller than secondary goods. For example, if you convert each good to the same cash value and 10 crystals, which is the primary good, are worth 1,000 won, you need 10,000 coins, which is the secondary good, to be worth 10 crystals (=1,000 won). As a result, users spend their primary money on various game content, but they don’t feel like they’re spending too much. In particular, when purchasing secondary goods or Gacha content, the amount of primary goods spent by products that seem to be of relatively large value is felt smaller. It’s like a customer’s exchange of chips looks like pennies in front of a dealer in a casino, and it’s easy to spend.

​

2. Gameplay rewards and weathering of purchase memories

Secondly, as the user purchases the in-app and the primary goods are being spent, the memory that the goods they are currently spending were actually purchased is becoming weathered. In addition, as the first and second goods acquired through game play missions, quests, and events are added to the inventory, the weathering effect of this memory becomes stronger. I’m starting to get confused whether I bought this product or received it as a reward.

You can get 1st and 2nd goods through various missions and events in the game. (1. Rise of Kings, 2. Marvel Future Fight)

3. Downward rigidity of consumption

Finally, the game system is designed to gradually reduce the frequency of rewards such as missions and quests from the beginning to the end of the play. On the other hand, there is more and more content to use, and the amount of goods needed is also increasing. At this point, the user is already infected with the habit of spending wealth, so the reduced income from the goods causes financial difficulties, and the user is more likely to return to the primary purchasing process [6]. Just as it is difficult to reduce increased consumption in real life, consumption in games also has downward rigidity.

The corner where the money will come out gradually disappears, and the place to spend and the money needed increase in inverse proportion (…)