this post was submitted on 24 Jun 2024
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[โ€“] [email protected] 75 points 1 week ago (21 children)

Many game companies specifically target vulnerable people, who end up spending their entire pay check every month, and are called Whales.

[โ€“] [email protected] 8 points 1 week ago

They have ARPU targets (Average Revenue Per User) and UAC targets (User Acquisition Costs). Whales contribute significantly to the game's bottom line. Non-paying customers are vital, because player population is a game quality, and Whales need a population to notice how awesome they are.

But game companies don't tend to separate Whales from other players (at least not the ones I've worked for), they tend to care about ARPU, which is more stable, and a much easier target to shoot for. And they want to keep UAC down, which lowers the required ARPU for a successful game.

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