As a former gacha addict I totally agree. Nowadays when I get the urge to play on my phone I’ve been doing Open Sudoku, Fruity Game or Ricochlime. They don’t scratch that same itch quite right but I’m definitely wasting less of my time and money.
Comment on YSK about Darkpatterns.games, a website that rates mobile games on their "Dark patterns"
hate2bme@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
If you want games just to play games I recommend downloading from f Droid. Pretty much every other game has ulterior motives be it ads or microtransactions. I haven’t come across the game on f Droid yet that has either of those.
DashboTreeFrog@discuss.online 3 weeks ago
original_reader@lemm.ee 3 weeks ago
Fair. Just that the selection of quality games is rather limited.
IMO monetisation is fine, after all we all need to make a living. To goad people into spending money is the issue. Enter dark patterns.
A one-off purchase after testing the first level? Awesome! Wait a few hours - or days - for a building to finish? Watch a deceptive ad for a meager reward over and over? No, thanks.
doctortran@lemm.ee 3 weeks ago
It’s the difference between a theme park and a casino. Both are legitimate forms of entertainment for many people, and both do need income to maintain their operations.
One of them charges for entry and then you enjoy the park, only paying for additional but ultimately optional things like merchandise or food.
The other is designed so you have to spend small amounts consistently, and it is designed in incredibly manipulative fashion, literally employing tactics that trigger addictive responses.
The people designing the theme park are designing something entertaining, the people designing the casino are perfecting a skinner box.
One is more deserving of income than the other.