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I made a wheel like this in a popular free to play game. Each section was equal in size but not in weight. We wanted to give the feeling that they could win bi

I made a wheel like this in a popular free to play game. Each section was equal in size but not in weight. We wanted to give the feeling that they could win big but not give so much currency that people would not spend on the currency. It worked so we kept the wheel weighted. Anon because making free to play games is admittedly kinda evil. I'd love to see the grand parents' suggested made active. Hunting whales isn't about making fun games. It's about exploiting addictive behavior with a tiny set of people. It's not fun to make and it's not fun to play.

myroon5 9y ago
Why not make them unequal in size to make this more transparent?
- gamesdealer 9y ago
  We wanted people to feel like they had a higher likelihood of winning than they actually did. It's the same reason slot machines always "almost" hit the jackpot. It's more addictive that way.
  - nielsbot 9y ago
    Relevant HN topic from Nov 6: "How slot machines are designed to be addictive" https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15632058 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15632058
dvdhnt 9y ago
> Anon because making free to play games is admittedly kinda evil. Don't be cowardly. If you're ashamed, then don't participate. Otherwise, own it.
- dsjoerg 9y ago
  Shame is a step on the road to leaving it. Question is, can GP think of a way to make $$ without being evil?
  - vertex-four 9y ago
    I could make more money than I do right now by doing things I believe to be unethical. Should I? If I shouldn't, why should someone doing what they believe to be unethical things not take a paycut in order to stop doing those unethical things? And why should we not criticise those who do unethical things for money?
- YuriNiyazov 9y ago
  Very unhappy to see you downvoted. It says a lot.
  - epistasis 9y ago
    I would much rather have anonymous knowledge leaked out via participation on HN than somebody being quiet because they don't like what they are doing.
criddell 9y ago
> It worked so we kept the wheel weighted. Did you do experiments with the weighting to find this?

myroon5 9y ago

Why not make them unequal in size to make this more transparent?

gamesdealer 9y ago
We wanted people to feel like they had a higher likelihood of winning than they actually did. It's the same reason slot machines always "almost" hit the jackpot. It's more addictive that way.
- nielsbot 9y ago
  Relevant HN topic from Nov 6: "How slot machines are designed to be addictive" https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15632058 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15632058

dvdhnt 9y ago

> Anon because making free to play games is admittedly kinda evil. Don't be cowardly. If you're ashamed, then don't participate. Otherwise, own it.

dsjoerg 9y ago
Shame is a step on the road to leaving it. Question is, can GP think of a way to make $$ without being evil?
- vertex-four 9y ago
  I could make more money than I do right now by doing things I believe to be unethical. Should I? If I shouldn't, why should someone doing what they believe to be unethical things not take a paycut in order to stop doing those unethical things? And why should we not criticise those who do unethical things for money?
YuriNiyazov 9y ago
Very unhappy to see you downvoted. It says a lot.
- epistasis 9y ago
  I would much rather have anonymous knowledge leaked out via participation on HN than somebody being quiet because they don't like what they are doing.

criddell 9y ago

> It worked so we kept the wheel weighted. Did you do experiments with the weighting to find this?