Why do players not return?

Hello! I am currently working on a game, ONE ROOM. It is a wave survival FPS shooter game similar to that of COD Zombies, where the enemies are various enforcement agents wielding guns and knives.

GAME LINK: One Room - Roblox

Recently, I have advertised it and amassed 4k+ visits and 120 favorites. Despite this, none of the players have regularly returned, as seen by the Roblox experience analytics and the global leaderboard in the lobby. I made a bunch of changes post-advertising campaign such as making a tutorial in case players are lost, making ranks and a global leaderboard to incentivize players to return, making the game easier in case players find it too hard, etc. I have also tested it with my friends, and though they genuinely enjoyed the experience, most of them do not return or play on their own free time. I am considering advertising once again to get players to try the game with these improvements, but I don’t want to spend money before ensuring that the reason players do not return is fixed.

I suspect that this could be because there is not much of a ‘culture’ or fanbase around my game, so getting the highest rank or getting the most kills is nothing but a bragging right to no one. Also, there is a lack of maps (as I am a horrible builder and map designer) and the game can be pretty hard (especially on mobile). One last thing I suspect is that the lobby UI can be confusing, and players may be confused on how to join their friends’ lobbies or even deploy on a mission.

EXTRA INFO:

  • Average playtime with me and my friends is 20-60 minutes, with 90 minutes being the most I played the game with my friends
  • I spent $40 CAD on two advertising campaigns
  • The two advertising campaigns lasted 24 hours each, which got me 400 active players at most on the first couple hours and 0 active on the final hour
  • I have tried advertising on YOUTUBE and INSTAGRAM, with little views gained

Any feedback and help would be MUCH appreciated, and I am grateful you took the time to read this!

GAME LINK: One Room - Roblox

3 Likes

its a small game and most of them probably just checked it out, usually people play those with their friends so if its solo only no one will play it, if it isnt its probably because there is just better games out there or people prefer the original, its pretty rough for wave defence games right now as only like 1 is remotely popular and they all are fighting for the top spot

1 Like

Yeah since there are other more popular wave defense games, I tried to add a unique twist to it by adding kits and a more realistic theme and atmosphere. I also recently played a lot of wave defense games which keep a player count and noticed that my money collecting mechanic was really boring. I’m thinking of removing it entirely and making money generate over time and no 20 second break between rounds.

i just find the game to be boring

Any specific changes that I can implement about any feature you found boring?