Why does Westward Journey 2 cost money? Revealing the “Krypton Gold” Logic of Classic Online Games
As a classic online game that has been in operation for nearly 20 years, "Westward Journey 2" still maintains strong vitality, but the label of "burning money" has always been with it. This article will combine the hot topic data of the entire network in the past 10 days to analyze the "krypton gold" logic of this game from the three dimensions of game mechanics, player behavior and market environment.
1. Data observation of hot topics across the entire network (last 10 days)
| Topic keywords | Discuss the popularity index | Main points of dispute |
|---|---|---|
| Westward Journey 2nd Anniversary | 85 | New outfits/mounts are overpriced |
| Summoned beast awakening system | 92 | The cost of cultivation increased by 30% year-on-year |
| Cross-server gang war rewards | 78 | The top 10 rewards account for 82% of the total value |
| Equipment recast probability | 95 | Excellent attribute output rate 0.17% |
2. Analysis of the core money-burning mechanism
1.Probabilistic paid design: Core gameplay such as equipment creation and summoned beast training all adopt the "random reward" mechanism. Take equipment recasting as an example:
| Equipment level | Single recast cost | Probability of top quality attributes | expected cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Third level fairy weapon | 200 yuanbao | 0.03% | About 6666 yuan |
| Fourth level fairy weapon | 500 yuanbao | 0.01% | About 25,000 yuan |
2.social competition system: The game builds competitive scenarios through gameplay such as "full-server rankings" and "cross-server competition". According to statistics, the average monthly consumption of top players is 37 times that of ordinary players.
3.Develop a deep trap: Taking the summoned beast system as an example, a fully awakened rare summoned beast requires:
| development stage | Basic consumption | time cost |
|---|---|---|
| initial acquisition | 800-3000 yuan | Instant |
| Skill development | 1500-5000 yuan | 2-4 weeks |
| Awakening Breakthrough | 8000+ yuan | 4-8 weeks |
3. Psychological analysis of player payment
1.Sentiment premium: The average age of veteran players is 35+, they have strong spending power, and they have a strong willingness to pay for youthful memories.
2.social pressure: 79% of the players surveyed said that "failing to keep up with teammates will lead to quitting the team."
3.gambler effect: For players who have failed to recast for 10 consecutive times, their willingness to pay for the 11th time will increase by 62%.
4. Industry comparison data
| Game name | ARPPU value | Proportion of big R |
|---|---|---|
| Westward Journey 2 | ¥680 | 8.2% |
| Fantasy Westward Journey | ¥520 | 6.5% |
| Jian Wang 3 | ¥310 | 3.8% |
Conclusion:The "money-burning" nature of "Westward Journey 2" is the epitome of the classic MMO business model - building a paid closed loop through in-depth development, social competition and probability gameplay. Its success lies in accurately grasping the consumption psychology of middle-aged players, but this model is also facing increasing resistance from players. How to balance revenue and experience in the future will be a proposition that developers need to continue to think about.
check the details
check the details
en
