Towards Understanding Player Behavior in Blockchain Games: A Case Study of Aavegotchi

TL;DR

This study analyzes player behavior in the blockchain game Aavegotchi over a year, revealing that player engagement heavily depends on financial incentives and market conditions, emphasizing the importance of gameplay design for longevity.

Contribution

The paper provides an in-depth analysis of blockchain game player behavior using real data and clustering, highlighting the role of financial incentives and market dependency.

Findings

High engagement from a small core of players

Financial incentives attract and retain players

Market downturns lead to player attrition

Abstract

Blockchain games introduce unique gameplay and incentive mechanisms by allowing players to be rewarded with in-game assets or tokens through financial activities. However, most blockchain games are not comparable to traditional games in terms of lifespan and player engagement. In this paper, we try to see the big picture in a small way to explore and determine the impact of gameplay and financial factors on player behavior in blockchain games. Taking Aavegotchi as an example, we collect one year of operation data to build player profiles. We perform an in-depth analysis of player behavior from the macroscopic data and apply an unsupervised clustering method to distinguish the attraction of the gameplay and incentives. Our results reveal that the whole game is held up by a small number of players with high-frequent interaction or vast amounts of funds invested. Financial incentives are indispensable for blockchain games for they provide attraction and optional ways for players to engage with the game. However, financial services are tightly linked to the free market. The game will face an irreversible loss of players when the market experiences depression. For blockchain games, well-designed gameplay should be the fundamental basis for the long-lasting retention of players.