Incentives, Gaming, And How It Works

The concept of an incentive in the world of video games is one that, some years ago, only related to simple bragging rights. You got the top score at, say, Pac-Man, entered your initials, and you hoped that no one had the skills to take your spot on the scoreboard.

As anyone with a vested interest in video games knows full well, they have come quite a long way since then. And yes, that goes beyond the vast improvements in graphics, storytelling, and other aspects of games. Incentives have become an important part of the experience, especially as developers and companies fight to ensure that you keep playing their game, console, platform, etc.

Starting out with consoles, the motivation to play a specific game can be driven by a number of different factors. Most notably, however, there has been an increased push for those aforementioned bragging rights, and it’s actually done through a means that’s basically a flip of what we recognized as scoreboards. In looking at Microsoft’s Xbox One, for example, players can showcase their skills at a specific game beyond taking down opponents in an online match. Through keeping up with their achievements on Xbox Live, players have a platform to demonstrate exactly which portions of a game they have accomplished. In addition to being bragging rights, achievements provide you with a number of challenges to take on that are often above and beyond a straightforward playthrough.

And in looking at incentives in a different light, it’s impossible to ignore how some platforms draw in new users through promotions and “VIP” programs. Essentially, they are using the method of rewarding users who have become regulars, and that in turn can drive more users to reach regular status (if the rewards are enticing enough, of course). An example of this can be seen at InterCasino, an Internet-only gaming platform that specialises in casino-based offerings. They have created a series of incentives for their users that range from more straightforward promotions, such as sign-up bonuses, to the more lavish rewards, such as ticket giveaways and cash-back programs. For this particular site, it’s a way to further develop what it can be like to play at an actual casino, where regulars and VIPs are given, well, the VIP treatment of free drinks, meals, rooms, etc. And, in its own way, it’s a bigger part of how gaming companies are using in centives to grow and maintain their audiences.

But in perhaps the most interesting way, one former gaming giant has taken advantage of the incentives concept to encourage consumers to download and continue using their fitness app. Atari—yes, the same brand that helped launch video games as we know them—released their Atari Fit app at the end of 2014. And as explained by Yahoo!, the app rewards users “who make strides in their fitness programs by unlocking its classic games such as Pong, Centipede, Super Breakout and more.” This is an especially intriguing spin on incentives because it could very well help to establish a new fanbase removed from the typical gamer niche. By that I mean some fitness fanatics who may have never played a game in their lives could stumble upon this app, enjoy using it, and then become a fan of, say, Pong because Atari Fit introduced them to it. Now, it’ll probabl y be tough to find someone who has never played (or heard of) Pong, but you get the point.

With these three examples in mind, it’ll be interesting to see how else developers will incorporate incentives into future titles and platforms. After all, Nintendo is working on a new rewards system after they discontinued their Club Nintendo program earlier this year.