Category: Mobile app development

The Conundrum: Single Player or Multiplayer Apps

Younes

What Multiplayer Means in Apps

The majority of the multiplayer apps we see in app stores are asynchronous multiplayer apps. This means that the gameplay doesn’t require for players to be online at the same time. Simply put, the gameplay is turn-based. Commonly cited examples of asynchronous gameplay are apps like Words With Friends and Letterpress.

This seems like a simple concept, but what are the main differences? What about the advantages and disadvantages?

 

Single Player Apps

Advantages:

  1. Single player apps are easier and cheaper to make.
  2. There’s no limit to gameplay design and mechanics.
  3. There’s no waiting for other players to take their turns or worrying about other players abandoning a game session.
  4. The storyline is much more immersive than multiplayer modes. This is especially true with RPG, MMO, and other campaign-based multiplayer apps. Players are also able to learn more about the characters, design, and dynamics of the game in single player mode.
  5. The rewards are immediate and exclusive to a single player.
  6. There’s a sense of control for players.

Disadvantages:

  1. Gameplay can appear linear and predictable.
  2. Single play mode can limit multi-directional thinking due to lack of input and support from other players. This is quite evident in game planning.
  3. Players may not see the need for internet connectivity during gameplay. Single player apps that require online sessions can be cumbersome for those that are just want to pass time while on a break or traveling.

 

Multiplayer Apps

Advantages:

  1. It is easier to gain engaged users, especially if the multiplayer app’s design is that of a social co-op gameplay. Also, co-op and competitive plays improve the gaming experience not only because of the in-game interaction but also because of the skills and reflexes needed.
  2. The frustration of failure is lesser (in co-op plays). The added experience of other players can also aid in achieving the reward of either completing a level or performing a task more efficiently. The sense of accomplishment in competitive plays is also amplified by the very thought of winning against real players.
  3. Multiplayer apps allow for casual gameplay with the basic functionality and storyline of real-time games made for consoles and PC. Most multiplayer apps don’t have immersive storylines, which just plays well with mobile players’ behavior.
  4. You can intentionally design the game to give each player a unique gaming experience. The storyline and ending can basically differ depending on a player’s decisions and play style. This is something that is difficult to properly implement in single player mode.

Disadvantages:

  1. One weakness in the multiplayer gameplay is when players need to depend on each other in real time. This gameplay works well for other online platforms like PC and console. Not much for mobile apps. Mobile games like this generally struggle to scale in terms of users and design.
  2. Some games are just best played alone. Social gaming popularized “help-a-friend” co-op type of games wherein players can easily jump over hurdles in gameplay as long as they have friends willing to bail them out. Levels are sometimes intentionally gated just for this purpose. This is frustrating for many since such a feature does not have any real correlation with the aims of the gameplay.
  3. Another problem is synchrony. Though a majority of multiplayer apps are asynchronous, these apps’ designs still call for players to interact within the gameplay. Sometimes, you need to wait for forever before a friend answers to your requests or take their turns in the game.
  4. The lack of other people to play with is also a problem. A lot of multiplayer games have AIs that mimic or take the place of real players. One example is the AI for the Facebook game Criminal Case. Players can create teams whose members can share some in-game items and give a number of hints. What these members can share depend on how active they are in the game. The problem with this setup is when only a few or even none of your friends are playing the game. Hints aside, the AIs can’t give the three reports necessary for you to progress in the next case. Only your teammates can do so, so you need to wait it out for about three days. This setup causes a lot of players to lose interest very fast. If they want to play a similar game, they’d rather go to the game that their friends are also playing.
  5. The development of multiplayer apps demands more resources compared to single player apps. This is especially true with real-time multiplayer.

Right now, most apps both have single player and multiplayer modes. But not all games need multiplayer modes, even if you build it into the game’s design. Most of the time, the addition of a multiplayer mode doesn’t affect the core game. It tends to appear that there’s really nothing to gain in playing multiplayer mode aside from the social aspect. This often makes or breaks turn-based multiplayer games. The game needs meaningful turns done in a reasonable amount of time. This is, of course, difficult to fulfill in reality.

 

Word and board games are now mostly multiplayer but there are also a lot of misses in the implementation. Sometimes, the asynchronous multiplayer mode doesn’t just make sense. Gameplay will slow down and become less compelling. Examples are games like Angry Birds, Head Soccer, and Asphalt 8: Airborne. The same is true with games with synchronous multiplayer modes.

How to Succeed as an Indie Developer

Younes

How to Try to Succeed as an Indie Developer

Just like in the real world, only a few control the wealth of the app stores. So what can an indie developer do? Well, there’s one: just give up. But we won’t go that negative route. There’s still hope. Even if you feel lost in the flood of millions of apps in the app stores, or even if indie developer horror stories keep on coming, there’s still a way up.

These tips can help you jumpstart your career as an indie developer. Though these tips don’t cover everything that can get you from point a to b, it can encourage you to stop and think about what it really takes to make it in the app industry.

 

1. Set clear goals from the start.

Why do you want to be an app developer? What do you want to achieve? Take some time to just sit down and think about what direction you want to take. Most of the time, indie developers just plow into “mobile space” without any clear goal or plan. Some do have goals, but most often it’s not attainable. Think of plausible ways to achieve your goals. It’s either you start from scratch, slowly work your up, or just see how it would go. There would be obstacles, so be sure that you have “Plan B” for every step of the way.

2. Find your niche and excel in it.

As nice as “following your passion” sounds, sometimes being passionate about something is not enough. You need to excel in order to compete in a marketplace setting. As they say, you can’t be everything to everyone, or you can’t be what you’re not. You may love gaming but you don’t have the technical skills or back knowledge to design and sell one. But you’ve been in the software utility niche for so long, you know it inside out. Pick a problem in that niche and solve the heck out of it.

3. Believe that there’s a place for you in the industry.

Sometimes, you just need to believe. If you dwell so much on the numbers, you somehow become subjective. “It’s difficult for me to make it because I’m not a big budget developer.” Think that you will be one of those exceptions, not to give you false hope but to encourage you into thinking big.

4. Get it started now.

Just do it – now.

5. Buy into your idea and own it.

Ideas are flexible things, the only part that could go wrong is the execution. Instead of imagining details about your idea, set on to work to see if it is feasible even before you get invested. Consider it as a project and do the necessary research and see if it can be scaled and marketed to the public. If you can’t convince yourself that your idea will work, it’s time to go back to the drawing board. You should believe first before you can even convince others to do so.

6. Learn from apps that didn’t make it.

More often, indie developers jump into the temptation of emulating top apps. It’s not bad so to say; you’re basically reusing a formula proven to work but this strategy had also been the downfall of many indie apps. Study these apps’ shortcomings and learn from them. It is great to learn from mistakes especially if it’s not your own.

7. Optimize app development time.

Success may come slow and disappointingly out of reach if you just wait for one app to bring you there. Create simple apps at first so that you can publish several apps in a year. This way, you can test your ideas and tweak it as you go. Your likelihood of success also increases as you build your app portfolio.

8. Keep the quality up.

Keep it simple, stupid but design is still everything. Find the sweet spot between simplicity and good design and you will have a practical app in the process. Quality need not sacrificed. This is especially important in a highly competitive and ever-changing market.

9. Be critical of your own work.

You can get too invested in your idea that you can no longer notice obvious flaws in your app. Put yourself in the shoes of your prospective users and objectively critique your own app.

10. Don’t sell out even when success seems out of reach.

Just don’t give up. Experts advise that instead of seeking for investors you should build apps in your spare time. You don’t need to pack your bags and leave everything behind just to be an indie developer in the first place. You can work for “the man” as they say. This way, you can still have control over what little success you will achieve.

11. You don’t need to do it all by yourself.

Build a team or join a team or other indie developers that’s on the same boat as you. This way ideas can be shared and developed more efficiently. Resources can also be pooled so that app distribution and marketing would have more impact.

Developing Apps for Kids 101

Younes

It is estimated that 56% of children aged 8-12 and 21% of younger children own a smartphone. On the other hand, 70% of households with children own a tablet. So it’s not a surprise that 70% of the children from these households have access to said tablet. 77% of these children downloaded game apps, while 57% used educational apps for kids. Over 50% of these children are adept in using smartphones and similar devices. With all these statistics, it can’t be denied that this demographic has a lot of untapped potentials.

 

It is also undeniable that developing apps for kids that grew up with the technology is challenging, especially with the 8-12 demographic. Add several more factors like the educational value of the app, and of course, the kid and parents’ reception. But is it really a monumental task? Nope. Just keep these things in mind:

 

Tips in Developing Apps for Kids

1.     Define your target audience.

Saying that you want to develop “apps for kids” is quite a generalization. There are apps for toddlers, apps for preteens and then assorted children’s apps considered as “educational”. Defining your target audience is important in terms of marketing, especially in targeting parents searching for age-appropriate apps for their children. Target a two-year age range at the maximum.

2.     Understand their needs and demands.

It’s bad to spoil children or so they say. But if the main goal is to entertain, we should give it all. Though parents refure the rule of mobile devices as “digital babysitters”, it can’t be denied that  a lot of apps can capture a child’s whole attention – longer and better. In order for the app to deliver this desired effect, pay close attention to these details:

 

Interactivity.

A research conducted by the University of Wisconsin found that toddlers are more perceptive to interactive stimulus compared to something they can just stare at. So it stands to reason that animation and audio/visual feedback would immediately catch their attention.

 

Let children use their creativity by requiring their input. You can turn your app into an interactive story-telling platform or activity-centric like drawing and painting. But be careful with having interactive elements. These elements should be defined as affordances. This is to spare the kids from the frustration of tapping each element.

 

UI and UX design.

The layout of the app is not a big issue for older children since it is easier for them to learn the inner workings of an app as they go. Younger children, on the other hand, may need step-by-step instructions. Minimal use of textual  instructions is recommended but if it can’t be prevented, break down these textual instructions into parts and pair each part with a visual presentation.

 

Keep the menu simple with all the menu options just a tap away. Icons and symbols don’t need to be standard since children are more inclined to pictorial representations.

 

Another issue is the settings option. Make sure that if the child accidentally taps on a setting that there won’t be any drastic changes on the app, like the wiping of cached data. Also, touch target ranges should be wider to anticipate the kids’ clumsy hands. Gestures should also be basic and natural for them like swiping and tapping.

 

It is also important for the app to have the right “feel”. Aside from using bright and vibrant colors, the layout and character design should be age appropriate. The characters should also express the right personality and are relatable to the kids.

 

Speed.

Kids are impatient, especially when asked to wait. App loading times should not exceed 10 seconds. There should be music or animation to keep the kids entertained if a longer loading time is necessary.

 

Rewards.

Rewards can come in the form of in-app items or positive reinforcement. Progress can also be a reward in of itself. For this to happen, the app should be challenging but not so difficult that kids would lose patience with the app.

 

3.     Understand the stance of the parents.

Parents actually play a big role in the decision on what apps their children can access. According to a 2014 data, 57% of parents of children below eight years old review media content before their children can have access; on the other hand, 25% of parents allow their children to browse for media content themselves. Nevertheless, parents still have a say (especially with paid apps) if an app gets downloaded or not. Here are some of the common concerns from parents:

  1. The app’s educational value. Apps need not labeled “educational” in order to be of value for parents. It can also help develop certain skill sets (hand-eye coordination being the most common) through an innovative approach.
  2. Responsible use of in-app purchases. Some apps have become the bane of parents for their trap-like approach to in-app purchases. Be upfront on the use of in-app purchases and especially on the way you present them to your young audience. Banners and icons for in-app purchases shouldn’t distract kids from the flow of the app.
  3. Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) is a US federal law regulating the collection of information from kids below thirteen years old. It stipulates that content providers should include a privacy policy with information about content or actions that need parental consent. The law prohibits marketing to children below thirteen years old. Other countries also have similar laws.
  4. Feedback channels. Parents want to know who or where to complain to in case something goes wrong with the app. A lot of parents also want to learn of other parents’ experience/opinion about the app. Online and offline help should be available within the app or app website.

How to Get a Slice of the Holiday App Bonanza

Younes

Modern holidays are becoming more like marketing ploys to make people spend money. According to a 2014 data, people spend the most on these holidays:

  1. Winter Holidays (Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah and New Year) – $616.9 billion
  2. Valentine’s Day – $17.3 billion
  3. Easter – $15.9 billion
  4. Mother’s Day – $20.7 billion
  5. Father’s Day – $12.5 billion
  6. Halloween – $7.4 billion
  7. Patrick’s Day – $4.8 billion

 

These numbers are bound to fluctuate but not by much. This is surprising especially that this data is only for the US. It is estimated that online shopping will increase up to 45% this year. As a result, e-commerce revenue is estimated to reach $327 billion.

 

Christmas day app downloads can increase up to 91% and Apple reported New Year’s Day 2015 as having the highest sales in its short history. Surveys also show  that online spending in other countries increased in the past years.

 

So how can you have a slice of the holiday app bonanza?

 

Skin the app according to the festivities. 

Or better yet, submit a holiday app. There’s a study  that shows how the right type of holiday music and atmosphere influence the behavior of customers in malls and retail shops. This same principle is applicable to apps. A lot of people chose holiday-themed apps just to get into the “holiday vibe”. The use of holiday themes is also an effective strategy to increase your app’s exposure, engagement and click-through rate especially if the app is newly published.

 

Offer holiday-themed promos.

Decorations are good, but adding seasonal  features and in-app goodies can make your audience feel the holiday spirit more. It could either be collectible items or sales that mimic real-world promos. After all, 70% of online shoppers are in holiday shopping mood all because of the promos.

 

Adjust your ad campaigns.

Make sure that your targeted demographics and ad campaigns coincide.  This is very important since app stores are very competitive during these peak seasons as the quality of users increase.

 

Try your hand on app retargeting.

Some advertising networks offer an app retargeting service where you can send ads to users that installed your app but haven’t used it for a while. This way, you can re-engage them to the app, increasing both engagement and retention rates. This advertising strategy can become a boon during the holidays. Users are more forgiving of advertisements and more ready to spend on in-app purchases.

 

Take advantage of in-app messages and push notifications.

These messages can increase user interest in your app. Users are more likely to open your app if they are given a prompt using timely, relevant and persuasive , messages.

 

Prepare for high CPI costs.

CPI costs usually increase during the holiday season due to high demand. It is important to have a balance between user acquisition costs and estimated installs.

 

Submit the app early.

Almost every developer wants to take advantage of the high-spending trend of the holiday season so it is best to submit a holiday app early for review. The length of the approval process can double starting the third or fourth week of November.

 

Make sure that all’s set with your app.

Last year, the ‘App Store Freeze’ was implemented on December 22-29. The freeze would mean that manual changes on the app version updates, descriptions and prices won’t be allowed. This is also important since for the duration of the ‘App Store Freeze’, app ranking would remain mostly static so it is important to rank higher and give a good impression to possible users.

 

Aim for the holiday charts.

The ‘App Store Freeze’ is beneficial especially for apps that rank high in their categories. But another way to gain high exposure is through holiday app charts that feature the best holiday-themed apps. Visitors of the App Store is immediately drawn to this listing.

 

Plan ahead for eventualities post App Store Freeze.

A few days after New Year, things would go back to normal.  After the holiday fever subsides, your holiday app may experience high churn rate. Another update may be necessary to shed off the holiday app skin and return to regular marketing strategies.

 

Upgrade Apps through Reskinning

Younes

Reskinning can actually give an app a new lease on life – that’s just actually the beginning. An app that reached the end of its lifespan is not totally lost. Cited benefits of app reskinning are more on the business side of things especially to a developer’s app portfolio but let’s stop for a while and consider the benefits of app reskinning on a single app – on a single source code that had seen better days.

 

Reskinning can upgrade apps through the following:

UI and UX Design

Design trends come and go. An app designed according to last year’s trend can look dated fast. App reskinning can keep your app look fresh and current or even timeless. Design trends don’t only emerge because of popularity but also because of its practicality. Technological advancements greatly affect platform-specific design practices and guidelines. Apple design elements changed a lot with the release of iOS 7. The Android Lollipop update had the similar effect. Apps made before these major updates may have design elements that don’t conform to the new clear and minimalist approach in UI and UX design.

 

OS and Device Compatibility

Both Android and iOS have regular OS updates. Existing apps need to evolve to adapt to new features and keep up with the OS’s technological demands. Apps also need to be adaptive to the device hardware. New devices tend to have bigger screens, requiring new code for custom interactions. If you are reskinning a game app, it’s like upgrading the game itself.

 

App Monetization Networks

Not all monetization models are created equal. App monetization models don’t even perform the same way between two similar apps. The use of an app’s past performance as a benchmark would be excellent when employing a new monetization strategy. The beauty of reskinning is that you can explore new markets with minimal risks. You can graduate from banner ads to interstitials like offer and reward walls. Upgrades on in-app purchases can include items that improve the user experience. A great example would be options to remove ads.

 

Rapid Development and Deployment

The app industry is quite competitive. The supply of apps far outweighs the demand. It is vital to either be the first or the best app. That’s why developers now aim to shorten the development lifecycle of apps. With shortened development cycles you gain an edge against competitors. Additionally, it is also a means to lessen the cost and stretch profits. Instead of launching a new app, it would be more practical to reskin an app especially if both apps have similar functionality. This way, you can focus more on marketing the app.

 

App Store Policies and Guidelines

Apps can be unfortunately caught in the crossfire of a new app store policy. It’s either you make the necessary changes in compliance with the new policy or voluntarily remove your app from the store listing. In some cases, developers are shocked to find out that their apps were removed without their knowledge. Sometimes an app loses its essence with constant content changes. But it’s also such a waste to just discard the app. Through app reskinning, modification of the app’s content is possible without the disadvantage of losing its main functionality and identity.