I want to monetize some of my games without being too much of a gamepass mess or just in-game purchase after in-game purchase. Nobody likes it. So, I want to find a way to make money without being too greedy on players.
I have considered a donation board, but I’m looking for further ways to monetize.
Premium payouts is an option, but I want to keep players staying without enticing them with powerful boosts or advantages.
Well cosmetics are really the only option but this of course depends on the type of game you have though
For example , in Fortnite people have spent over hundreds thousands of dollars for just cosmetics that dont effect gameplay (for the most part), and players love it
I’m not a genius at Marketing or Game Design, but I think it depends on what genre of game you’re leaning towards,
I generally play a lot of Mil-Sim/Shooter games and from what I’ve observed, a very niche group of people pay for cosmetic upgrades such as beards or certain accessories to stand out from the crowd, also just to look cool I suppose.
If you look at the screenshot here, you can see that a bunch of people have bought a camo that can only be applied to 5 guns. People still purchase it because it looks appealing to them.
You can also implement a few developer products such as EXP boosters or in-game credits (i know this contradicts with what you mentioned in the post but its still worth a try)
This information could either be totally useless or somewhat helpful 
One way is to give the players cosmetics and party items(for example boombox/radio, graffiti, etc) that don’t have an actual impact on gameplay mechanics.
Okay, this might be an overkill method since we’re using machine + deep + reinforcement learning and might be complex to setup. If this is not what you want, feel free ignore it. Also, promotional content incoming!
Right now, what you want to do is to build a recommender system for your items, so that it only appears when the player most likely need that item. This should entice user without making it feel like that the player needs to buy this particular item in order to progress or win the game. Instead, it would “suggest” to the player that this item is best suited to improve the player’s situation.
With this recommender system in place, this should have its own UI, but not a popup that always block the player’s screen. You want it to be seamless as possible. So you put it in a shop or something.
Theoretically, you can use deep reinforcement learning models to build your recommender system, where it improves whenever the player buys the items. However, I expect extreme finetuning and training.
If you don’t want the finetuning and training part, you can use the old classic K-Nearest Neighbours (KNN) models, but you will fail to capture more complex decision making by the player.
DataPredict offers both of these models. In fact, it supports a wide range models for you to play around, so that it fits your development needs. With free commercial use for small game development studios, you can experiment freely without upfront costs. From simple KNN models to advanced reinforcement learning, DataPredict offers flexible tools to fit your development needs. Build smarter, player-friendly games with ease!
It’s ok to sell anything for robux aslong as it’s resonably obtainable through ingame gameplay alone.
What is the point of this other than plugging your creation? OP is interested in finding a good balance between a sustainable income without making the game Pay2Win. Your “recommender system” can be used in either scenarios, not really relevant here.
Exactly, that’s the point. The goal is to avoid the Pay2Win perception. Instead of pushing expensive items, the recommender system suggests items that address the player’s weak spots, improving their stats without forcing them to make a costly purchase. It’s about offering value at a lower price point, so the player feels like they’re getting something that genuinely helps them progress, without feeling like they have to spend a lot to be competitive. The system helps create a more balanced, player-friendly experience, which ultimately boosts engagement without compromising fairness.
If you sell stats or coins (that can be used for in-game advantage) for Robux, that’s P2W. It’s not about offering good value for a stats boost.
I get what you’re saying, but there’s a key difference here. Selling direct stats or coins for Robux is definitely Pay2Win because it directly gives players an advantage that can impact gameplay. However, with the recommender system I’m talking about, it’s about offering suggestions for items that help a player’s weak points based on in-game behaviour, not directly giving them a competitive edge for money.
The goal is to suggest value—items that improve a player’s experience without locking crucial content behind a paywall. The system is meant to be non-invasive—it’s not selling raw power, but rather guiding players toward options that might help them, at a reasonable price, without being forced into a purchase to stay competitive.
The difference lies in how you frame the transaction: One is a competitive advantage for money, and the other is a player-friendly suggestion to help progress, which can still allow for monetization without creating an unfair environment.
And honestly, if we’re going to argue about not selling anything that might give players an advantage, you might as well not create a game that sells anything at all. Monetization is a necessary part of sustaining a game, and it’s possible to balance fair value with revenue generation. The key is how you implement it—guiding players to better items that help them, rather than forcing them into a pay-to-win situation.
You can offer cosmetic changes without giving people a gameplay advantage. If a game gets popular, then your cosmetics get more value and motivates players to grind (or buy your currency) to purchase those cosmetic items. Epic Minigames is a great example of this technique where their currency cannot be used to purchase anything that helps you in gameplay. Everyone wins fair and square.
Also, I will not continue arguing if you are going to use ChatGPT to defend your point:
Whatever, if you insist that I am writing with ChatGPT, that’s not my problem. Not my first time being accused like this since the university even though I sound like one. I did manage to get a defamation lawsuit since I could prove all works are mines.
This is my product, and I should know what I’m talking about.
You aren’t making it any more helpful when you switch from fluent to broken English in your responses… I agree to take this conversation further as long as we are both honest and authentic about our opinions
Also, recommendation system also don’t need items to give advantage you know, it can also recommend cosmetics. I’m not sure why I thought only of the advantageous item one.
It’s on purpose to be honest, formal tone for promotional content. Since when we shouldn’t write things professionally?
More broken English for someone who have a beef with me.
I agree, but I still don’t think this is relevant to OP’s post. If the title was “How to design my shop most efficiently”, I believe your resource would be more than appreciated.
“How to design my shop most efficiently” In terms of what? coding? modelling?
That’s not the title is it? Also, such title means I don’t get involved since my stuff is not related to making things efficiently.
You seem to have a beef with my stuff more than anything else.
It’s asking for monetization. Therefore my stuff fits in here.
Yeah, I have a feeling you’re just arguing here for no reason.
I just checked ChatGPT if my reply was appropriate for this post before contributing it here. And it seems to agree.
So no issues with “inappropriate” post then.
It kind of is? If you promote user-dependent game passes and dev products it makes your monetization and shop more efficient.
Also,
OP’s issue:
Your suggestion
does not help OP solve the current issue, which is to find the optimal way to make money without making the game Pay2Win. If a game is P2W, it’s P2W. It’s a fundamental term that lies within game design. With or without your module, the gamepasses/dev products won’t change.
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Dude, using your strict definition, buying cosmetics would also be paid2win since you need to buy that skin to earn it, instead of giving it for free (assuming that the skin cannot be earned by gameplay)