Key Points of Game Economic System Design

The game economy system plays an important role in game design, not only limiting certain aspects of the gaming experience but also supporting character development, rewarding players, facilitating social interaction, and introducing difficult choices. However, designing an efficient economy system is a daunting task. This article will introduce the basic knowledge of the economy system from the perspective of game design and explore some potentially useful tools, techniques, and design points to help designers create better economy systems.

What is an Economic System

The economic system in the game is similar to the supply and demand market in real life, revolving around currency and resources. Some games have very complex economic systems, even employing economists to publish economic reports. The benefits of an economic system include distributing power, supporting specialization, and promoting player interaction and role-playing. However, not every game requires the same depth and complexity of the economic system. Currency and resources are core components of various economic systems.

Currencies and Resources

In simple terms, currency is a conventionally accepted medium of exchange used to purchase goods or services. The key is "exchange." However, in games, so-called currency is not always real currency but rather resources used to obtain extra lives or protection. The essence of currency is not related to its rarity or value but rather to its function as a medium of exchange. Currency often has multiple uses but can also have limited uses. Resources play a key role in the currency system, while currency serves as a bridge connecting different parts of the player experience. At the same time, resources can exist entirely apart from currency or can serve the role of currency. Resources have inherent value, which is often assigned by converting them into currency. Although currency and resources are usually viewed as the same concept in game design, distinguishing between them can help better understand the relationship between them, thereby creating a more robust system.

Source and Consumption

Essentially, these two terms are very straightforward: income is the way to acquire currency, such as selling items, opening chests, or defeating enemies, while expenditure is the way to spend currency, such as purchasing items, dying, or repairing and upgrading equipment.

Economic designers need to focus on two important aspects of these resource sources and consumption: how many sources and consumption points each currency will have, and the balance between these sources and consumption, which we refer to as "generosity".

source and consumption quantity

In the game, there are no strict regulations on the number of sources and consumption points. Multiple sources can flow into a single consumption point, or there can be only one source, such as loot obtained by defeating a boss in a Roguelike game, used to unlock the late-game system by providing consumption points with corresponding currencies. The required sources and consumption points for each currency depend on the game system and the expected player experience. Multiple ways to acquire currency can facilitate players' freedom of choice and personal expression, provided that the sources are balanced. If the game encourages participation in a specific system or rewards certain actions, designing a dedicated currency will immediately stimulate player motivation or create key bottlenecks in the main process.

Having multiple consumption points gives players meaningful choices and priorities ( such as, "What to buy?" or "What to buy first?" ), while having only one consumption point focuses player actions and gameplay on an unavoidable target.

( Generosity

Generosity is crucial to player engagement in an economic system, depending on the balance between sources and consumption points. Excessive generosity can lead to a loss of interest among players, while insufficient generosity may cause players to abandon the game. Balance is key.

Overly generous actions can yield short-term benefits, but in the long run, they can lead to disaster, weaken the game system, and affect player motivation. Both extremes can drive players away from the game. Therefore, finding the appropriate level of generosity is crucial to maintaining player interest and engagement.

Trying two extremes at different stages of player experience is a viable suggestion. At the beginning of the game, being overly generous with sources exceeding consumption ) can give players a strong sense of control and progress, enticing them to continue playing. This taps into people's psychological need to hoard, bringing instant feelings of victory. As the game progresses, players' desires and needs will become more specific and clear. In this shift, reducing sources and increasing consumption will better satisfy these desires, improving player retention and their need to master the game.

To balance sources and consumption, designers can use a global metric: currency earnings per minute. This metric tells us how much currency players can earn within a certain time frame, allowing for adjustments to consumption points. Applying this metric across the entire game can provide clear design direction, while applying it to each system can create opportunities. Slightly granting more currency in a particular system compared to the global average is an effective way to incentivize players to engage with that system.

Economic Pillar

Before designing the economic system, it is very important to determine the application areas of currency, rather than just listing different game systems. Instead, we should consider how to enhance aspects or pillars in the game through the economic system and whether there are connections between them. For example, the exploration pillar can be achieved by rewarding players for discovering scarce resources in the region. The cooperation/social pillar can be strengthened by the circulation and appreciation of currency among players for purchasing community goods, fostering cooperation and interaction. The endgame phase can provide a new ending experience by unlocking unique stores and upgrades with micro-currencies obtained after defeating the game's ultimate challenges. In the design, we can prioritize these ideas based on the importance and connection of the pillars.

Amount of Currency

When designing a game economy system, determining the required amount of currency is a complex issue with no exact answer. One extreme is having only one currency associated with all systems, which may lead players to lose the feeling of limitations in the game. The other extreme is having multiple currencies, with each micro-system having its own currency, but this may weaken player agency and the coherence of the game.

A good design should find the appropriate point in balance. For example, "Hades" divides currency into three main pillars, each with its own source and consumption. This design aligns with the core mechanics of Rogue-Like games, providing a foundation for an efficient game loop, encouraging players to try again, and delivering the best gaming experience.

Therefore, designers need to comprehensively consider factors such as game type, player motivation, and system interaction to find a suitable economic system balance point for the game.

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Inflation, Deflation, and Destructive Economy

When discussing economic systems, there is often a concerning term that arises: inflation. It is generally believed to be the worst thing in an economy and efforts are made to avoid it. However, the reality is much more complex, especially for game designers.

Inflation and deflation are two sides of the same coin, closely related to supply and demand, and directly affecting the purchasing power of currency. In the real-world economy, there is a high sensitivity to these values, and central banks take proactive measures to control them. However, simply translating real-world models and solutions into games is not suitable, as virtual economies are often overly simplified and cannot sustain themselves in the long term.

Taking "Diablo II" as an example, the game revolves around a type of currency: gold coins. Unlike the real economy, players can continually create gold coins, obtained from defeating monsters or opening treasure chests. In multiplayer games, players accumulate a large amount of gold, leading to gold losing its value and being unable to purchase high-level items, with no alternative currency in the game to solve this issue. Thus, players began to engage in barter, forming a commodity currency based on the "Stone of Jordan," which became the rarest and most valuable ring. This led to the formation of a player-driven secondary economic system.

The economy in the game is influenced by game mechanics. With the prices of shop items remaining unchanged, they become almost free, and the currency devalues to zero, rendering parts of the game progress and core loop irrelevant. "Grand Theft Auto" is an interesting case of inflation, with inflation spreading through the single-player experience. As players invest a large amount of time, the total amount of currency grows uncontrollably, leading to hyperinflation. Developers take measures to control currency liquidity by introducing new systems and items that require more currency to purchase, which not only prevents players from destroying the game economy but also provides new rewards for loyal players while destroying currency. However, this also exacerbates the wealth gap, excludes new players from joining, and leads to item prices skyrocketing to absurd levels.

Taking "World of Warcraft" as an example, the economic handling in the game is significantly different from other games. Gold continues to accumulate, while item prices do not rise correspondingly, leading to deflation. Items seized by farmers and bot players flood the auction house, as they are eager to exchange their loot for more currency, resulting in a decrease in item prices.

World of Warcraft employs an interesting method of rebalancing the economy with each new expansion release. The introduction of expensive new items incentivizes wealthy players and rebalances the entire economy, increasing the ways to earn gold to ensure new players can participate. However, this approach also has obvious downsides: the devaluation of gold leads to players losing a significant amount of wealth, and player engagement may decline from one expansion to the next.

In summary, it is impossible to create a robust and sustainable virtual economy based on the examples mentioned above. The game economy has too many flaws: virtual currency is generated infinitely, players do not need to spend and can hoard. The generosity of game design leads to system imbalance and fails to meet the needs of every player. In short, from the very beginning, the game economy is destined to fail.

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Protective Measures and Currency Protection

Here are several methods to alleviate gaming economy issues:

• Remove multi-user sharing components or tax them: one of the direct and effective methods. Maintaining player-centered currency flow can better control growth and usage.
• Increase and specialize currencies: Introduce different types of currencies to reduce their influence, in order to better control and protect the economic system.
• Destructive Transactions: By establishing a system to destroy excessive currency, offsetting the currency continuously generated by players.
• Maintenance System: Requires players to pay fees for owned items, such as apartment tax, weapon repair costs, guild tax, etc. This method is efficient and can be adjusted according to the player's wealth level to control currency circulation, but it may also be perceived as a constraint by players.
• Wallet restrictions: Limit the amount of currency players can carry and store, forcing them to spend in order to earn more. By combining currency consumption mechanisms, a secure economic foundation can be established.