Event Planning in MMO Games

Five things to consider when planning an in-game event

For some people, online games (particularly those involving a massive player base) is one of the few ways to pass time and money. For others, however, it is considered more than just a hobby, but rather a career.

As online games are gradually being recognized as an e-sport, the need to create and implement events to entertain players and keep them engaged in the game is remains a huge priority for community managers. However, planning an event could either expand your community, or damage it, depending on what activities will be done, and when they’ll be executed.

As someone who has been engaged in the online gaming industry for years, I always take these five important points into consideration on what makes an in-game event great, or nay.

1. Know your player base.

Not knowing who your players are is similar to entering a battle without knowledge of your opponent. Is your community consisting hardcore or casual players? What in-game features do they find most interesting? What prizes do they seek the most? Answering these questions and researching more on your community will give you ideas on what events will prove effective and not. You can even get more ideas through polls and asking your players via social media or in-game chat.

2. Set an objective.

This is one of the most important things to establish before setting up your event plan. Events can have different purposes: it can be to increase player retention, engagement, product revenue, or even as simple as promotion and advertisement. Specifying your event goal will make it easier to formulate steps and mechanics later on. Make sure your objectives are attainable, concise and time-bound.

3. Plan your events months, or even a year ahead.

Events are made to be planned in advance to allow more time for error and changes. Despite plans being prone to changes, it gives you more room to improve certain mechanics, and ask for feedback from others. It might be helpful to know when holidays, long breaks, and special ocassions will happen, since these are the times when players will log in most often.

4. Give what your players want, but don’t spoil them.

Personally, this is one of the toughest challenges in event planning. Knowing what your community wants and giving it to them will definitely motivate them to play and spend more, but overdoing it may also turn them too dependent on events in the long run, and you don’t want that. Spoiling your community will later on make them more demanding, and it may harm the game’s balance in a way that they won’t be utilizing the game’s features no longer, and rely on consistent events to achieve their desired items and gold instead.

5. It’s okay to take risks from time to time and go crazy.

Repetitive events will tire your players too, most especially veterans who have spent most of their time in your game. Do your players find the town too boring on non-peak hours? Plan surprise boss attacks inside towns and drop strong potions and the like to keep them charged as they defeat them! Shaking up your community with fun and crazy activities will keep them entertained and motivated, and look for more challenges even at the least unexpected moments.