This post is part of the [Nexon PEAK Post Challenge].

If a game delivers satisfying rewards for the time you put into it, it becomes much easier to keep playing consistently. No matter how fun a game is, if earning currency is excessively difficult, or if it hands out rewards generously without being enjoyable to play, it eventually becomes hard to stick with. Of course, some games are enjoyable for entirely different reasons, but that is a separate kind of appeal. Since every player has a different amount of time they can realistically invest, I found myself thinking about why worthwhile rewards matter even for lighter login habits.

From rewards locked to specific time slots to rewards you can purchase whenever you need them

Mabinogi Mobile has systems called Barriers and Black Holes. Barriers appear once every hour, while Black Holes spawn in hunting areas three at a time each hour. The problem is that even if I decide to stay logged in for one hour and collect all of the Barrier and Black Hole rewards available to me that week, that does not automatically mean I can actually do it. I still have to log in at the right times and clear them on schedule. Early on, Barriers appeared once every three hours, and there were also fixed daily limits on how many Barrier and Black Hole rewards could be claimed. However, after trying various approaches, Mabinogi Mobile has now shifted the system to weekly rewards and added a structure where, if you miss them, you can buy boxes through the Evan Adventurer Shop and still receive the rewards. In practice, that means even on busy days, simply logging in and taking care of the essentials makes it easier to keep up.

At least some currency needs to be available

Naturally, buying those rewards requires another currency. Still, considering that one of the game’s main combat activities is the Abyss Dungeon, obtaining that currency is not especially difficult. In most cases, doing Abyss, raids, or some other content once a week is enough for this currency to start piling up in your inventory anyway. And if you have a bit more time to spare, it becomes even easier to stock up.

For sustainable play

In any game, you cannot really surpass someone who simply spends more time logged in. Even so, I think one of the most important design goals is building a balanced structure where heavy users can enjoy the game in a way that suits them, while light users can still find a version of that enjoyment for themselves. Any game serves a very broad range of players, after all. In that sense, I am glad this game has a reward system that supplies progression materials so that lighter users can still participate in the main content it offers. I also expect this kind of thinking and iteration to continue, and to keep showing up in the game going forward. Wouldn’t attendance rewards be the most appealing of all?