Case Study on Royal Match by Dream Games
OverView
Genre
- Casual
- Puzzle (Match 3 Puzzle)
Platform
- Android
- IOS
Release Date
February 25, 2021
Total Downloads
- App Store
4 Million+ - Google Play Store
100 Million+
Total Revenue
Lifetime Revenue Over 600 Million Dollars (Source)
Monetisation Model
Freemium Model (Free-To-Play)
Summary
Royal Match is a casual match 3 puzzle game that features a unique theme and a dynamic progression system. The game includes a base-building meta loop, where players use earned stars to decorate and build areas, providing a long-term commitment. Stars are obtained by completing match 3 levels, and the game introduces new mechanics, mini-games, and bonus levels as players progress to maintain interest. The positive feedback loop focuses on rewarding players generously, with power-ups naturally invoked and frequent events with low difficulty, creating a relaxed and enjoyable gaming experience.
Game Design
Look & Feel
Among other games in the similar genre, Royal Match adopted the use of bolder, bigger and distinctive puzzle pieces than most in correspondence to their theme and narrative.
Faster Switcher
Royal Match improved the switching mechanics to be quick and with controlled animations. The power-ups and combination animation are short and fluidic just enough to satisfy the players.
Improved Board Mechanics
Royal Match has made progress with two major player frustrations with the board in most of the match 3 games.
Concurrent Matching While the puzzle pieces are cascading, the player can make matches to control/manipulate the outcome of the chain matches/reactions rather than having the player wait for the animations to complete.
Regarding shuffle, unlike other match 3 games “Royal Match” doesn’t force the players to use a power-up to shuffle but rather shuffles instantly to reward the players’ effort in case no possible matches are available on the board
Generous Power-Ups
Unlike most of the match 3 games, “Royal Match” is rather generous to its players for being able to naturally invoke power-ups in levels by matching the pieces.
Level Design
With regards to the level design, “Royal Match” defines its progression of difficulty curve in a slightly interesting way where after every 10 levels there is a relaxation period for the player either through a bonus level or a mini-game. The difficulty cycle follows like a cycle of 5 levels, i.e. the first level will start as easy and the difficulty start increasing throughout the levels with level fifth being the hardest and after that cycle, the difficulty drops considerably.
Bonus Level
For the bonus level, there are no goals. The player has to match to destroy the pieces along with the coins and collect the coins. Payout ranges between 300–450 coins per bonus level.
Mini-Game : Kings’ Nightmare
Kings’ Nightmare is a mini-game in which players need to save King Robert. This mini-game is used to represent the acquisition ad. These levels are skippable with fixed reward.
Gameplay
Game Loops
Core Loop
Strategize
The players start each level with a set board containing various types of blocks and obstacles and the player must strategize and plan their moves to achieve the level’s objectives efficiently.
Match 3 or more blocks
The player has planned their move and then makes the move. The primary mechanics involve swapping adjacent blocks to create horizontal or vertical lines of three or more matching blocks.
Destroy/Discover
After matching the blocks, the matched results in their destruction, clearing space on the board. Special blocks/Power-ups will be revealed when certain combinations are achieved. Destroying specific blocks contributes to the strategic element, as players work towards specific goals.
Goal Orientation
Each level presents players with distinct goals, such as clearing a set number of specific blocks or breaking through obstacles. Upon success the player advances to the next level, providing a sense of progression and accomplishment.
Meta-Core Loop
Unlock Area
The players start each level with a set board containing various types of blocks and obstacles and the player must strategize and plan their moves to achieve the level’s objectives efficiently.
Play Match 3 Levels
The primary gameplay involves completing match 3 levels. The player has to complete certain objectives in the level to complete the level.
Earn Stars
Upon successful completion of the match-3 levels, the players will be awarded with stars.
Build/Decorate
To complete the area, the player needs to build/decorate the area. Here the accumulated stars are then used as a currency to build and decorate the unlocked area. The player can build structures or decorate the environment, adding a creative and strategic element to the game.
Player Progression
Task System : (Guided Gameplay)
In the task system, the player is given a list of tasks needed to complete to build/decorate the area the player is playing or has unlocked. Here a unique currency is introduced as Stars, which cannot be bought but must be earned. This star can only be earned through completing the match 3 levels. This encourages players to play more levels to complete their tasks. Once all tasks in an area are finished, players unlock an Area Chest full of coins, boosters, and cards.
Collection System : (Surprise Element)
In the collection system, players collect cards from events or chests to complete sets. These aren’t just any cards, they are categorized into Silver and Gold and belong to unique sets with their themes. Moreover completing a set isn’t just for bragging rights; it provides players with specific rewards, further incentivising gameplay. These cards can be collected from a variety of events like Propeller Madness, Book of Treasure, and even the aforementioned Area Chests. It’s a long-term engagement strategy that serves both to guide newer players and offer continued goals for the veterans.
Monetisation
“Royal Match” uses a singular in-game currency model that also serves as the hard currency and forms the backbone of the game’s monetization strategy. Players can purchase coins and then use them to buy a variety of in-game items. This single-currency approach simplifies the game’s economy and makes it easier for players to understand what they’re buying and why.
Monetisation Strategy
In the task system, the player is given a list of tasks needed to complete to build/decorate the area the player is playing or has unlocked. Here a unique currency is introduced as Stars, which cannot be bought but must be earned. This star can only be earned through completing the match 3 levels. This encourages players to play more levels to complete their tasks. Once all tasks in an area are finished, players unlock an Area Chest full of coins, boosters, and cards.
Monetisation Features
Continue/Retry
Usually, when a player runs out of moves or lives, they’re offered the option to continue by spending coins.
Consumable Boost
The game provides a variety of boosters that the player can use to get an advantage in the level and these boosters are presented as consumables that can be bought.
Limited-Time In-App Purchases (Deals)
“Royal Match” occasionally presents the players with limited-time offers to purchase coins or other in-game items.
Royal Pass
The “Royal Pass” is a battle pass feature that unlocks at level 37 and offers 30 steps of rewards over a month.
Retention & Re-Engagement
“Royal Match” offers a dynamic array of live events, a competitive ladder, and a continually updated game world.
Moreover, unlike other games “Royal Match” has events that are based on their core gameplay i.e. Match 3 Levels which also incentivise the players to play more and earn better rewards. The various live events have a different variety of progression which caters to different types of players. These events include both solo and team competitions, and they offer a great way to keep players engaged.
Re-Engagement
With Live events, players get additional reasons and motivations to play levels, like Additional rewards (x times), better progression rate, event completion, team activities etc. Given below are some of the events that are use of the re-engagement of the players
Team Battle
A limited-time tournament where 20 teams fight for supremacy
Sky Race
A competitive limited-time event where it is a race to see who clears 15 levels faster.
Magic Cauldron
A solo progressive event where the player has beat levels to collect elixirs and place them in the cauldron in the correct order to earn rewards.
Social Features & Community
“Royal Match” is completely focused on a unique monetisation model where none of the type of ad revenue is considered. It can become a weakness too as in the Indian Mobile Game Market where most players do not consider making purchases through in-app purchases in Causal, Hyper-Casual and Hybrid-Casual games.
Team Feature
After unlocking level 21, the team feature is unlocked which offers an additional layer of interaction and rewards. By joining a team, players gain access to free lives and various team-exclusive rewards.
Leaderboard
Friends Leaderboard
By incentivizing social media connections, this leaderboard encourages players to invite their friends to the game.
Player Leaderboard
These are global and local leaderboards that foster a sense of competition among the broader player base.
Team Leaderboard
“Royal Match” offers a variety of team events and these leaderboards pit teams against each other on both global and local scales.
Critical Thinking
Strength
Accessible Casual Gameplay
“Royal Match” offers an easy-to-grasp match 3 core gameplay that appeals to a broad audience. While the basics are simple, the added layers of base construction and decoration provide just the right amount of complexity to keep players engaged over the long term.
Weakness
Monetisation
“Royal Match” is completely focused on a unique monetisation model where none of the type of ad revenue is considered. It can become a weakness too as in the Indian Mobile Game Market where most players do not consider making purchases through in-app purchases in Causal, Hyper-Casual and Hybrid-Casual games.
Opportunities
Retention
Concerning retention and re-engagement of the player, they could also have a daily login reward setup which will further incentivise the player to return to the game daily which could in turn help in the DAU (Daily Active Users) of the game.
Monetisation — Ad Revenue
While “Royal Match” is completely focused on a unique monetisation model where none of the type of ad revenue is considered. It can also be considered as an opportunity with consideration to the Indian Mobile Game Market where most players do not consider making purchases through in-app purchases in Causal, Hyper-Casual and Hybrid-Casual games. So in the case, of making a similar game or like most startups making clone games, it is advisable to keep a restricted and limited amount of rewarded ads which will provide a small amount of rewards to the players.
Threats
User Experience
Concerning user experience, it has been noticed that if a player receives a call or for some reason leaves the app for small duration or a quick swap between applications while the player is in the middle of a level will reset. It might be a selective bug/error but it leads to a bad user experience for the players.
Conclusion
Dream Games Limited created a notable casual match 3 games with accessible gameplay, a unique monetization model, and commitment to live operations. However, the exclusive focus on in-app purchases may limit its success in certain markets.To capitalize on opportunities, retention could be enhanced through daily rewards and careful integration of rewarded ads. Addressing user experience issues is paramount to mitigate threats and ensure a seamless and enjoyable gaming experience. Overall, a balanced approach to monetization and continual improvement in user experience will contribute to the sustained success of “Royal Match” and inform future game design decisions.