The different types of players and their importance in your gamification project

Gamification, the addition of game elements and mechanics to non-game environments, is not quite the same as game design. However, there is a convergence between game design and gamification, and the different types of players games and gamified experiences are designed to cater to are an example of this.

Your ability to meet their needs, and by extension your own business goals, with your gamification projects will improve as you understand your players better.

Bartle’s players, with different profiles, goals and expectations

A 1996 article by Richard Bartle, a British writer, teacher, and games researcher, elaborates on and describes the different types of gamers in the video game world. His extensive research and analysis of user interaction led him to the conclusion that although everyone plays the same game, each user is looking for something different, and above all, has a different gaming experience.

Bartle distinguishes between 4 types of gamers according to what each of them is looking for and expecting from a game, with very distinct characteristics and elements.

The achievers

Achievers represent a player that is highly motivated, who wants to progress quickly, and master the game in its entirety. Bartle characterises them by their desire for challenge and their sense of achievement during the experience of game play. Their goal is to rise to the top of the leaderboards, while exploring various aspects of the game to earn as many rewards, points and badges as possible, and in doing so, climb to the next level quickly.

The gamification mechanisms or key features that will appeal most to players who fit the bill of achievers are points, badges, and progress bars. Tangibly showing the achievements of players, and representing their progress within your gamified experience will appeal to the achiever type users.

The explorers

Explorers, big surprise, have a thirst for exploration, learning, discovery, and novelty. For them, the important thing is not the destination, but the steps of the journey that lead them through the reward system and to the final result.

Players who fit into the explorer category want to discover new things, and above all, to be immersed in a fun universe with multiple possibilities where they can develop skills. It is important for them to take the time to discover both the settings and the story of the game in its entirety. This type of player doesn’t want to miss anything, and can be very susceptible to FoMO (fear of missing out).

The socialisers

Socializers appreciate the social aspect and opportunities for collaboration with other players above all other aspects of a game. It is worth noting that almost 80% of players belong in this category to some degree.

They not only want to interact and communicate with other players, but also to meet new people and feel part of a community or a team with which to create a real social link. They are in fact game contributors who enjoy sharing their skills and rewards with other players.

Gamification experiences that can appeal to these player types are things like Photo Contests and Media Video Contests, where they can share their own creations and look at what other people have created. If you’re able to include any kind of multiplayer functionality, this will also appeal to people who embody this player type.

The killers

Killers, sometimes referred to as fighters, or even conquerors. They want to conquer the game they are playing, and will fight to be among the best. Bartle states that this player profile covers those who are very competitive, and whose motivation is to win.

They keep track of their progress, and are always ready to climb to the top of the rankings. Their main goal is to stand out from the rest of the players by doing exceptional things that will make them look like experts. Killers – stereotypically speaking – in their most extreme form, want to win and make everyone else lose.

The gamification features and mechanisms which will mostly appeal to killers are leaderboards and rankings. They want to beat other players, and will be motivated, even if they fall short on a first play of a gamified experience, to come again, do better, and ideally get to the top of the leaderboard.

Andrzej Marczewski 5 user type system for gamification

Of course, a gamified piece of content, like a learning game or a marketing game, designed to help achieve specific business or educational objectives, won’t necessarily give the same opportunities to appeal to player types as classic video games.

The worlds you can create for games to support business outcomes simply can’t be as big as something like a Red Dead Redemption to appeal to explorers with a complete world to explore, or necessarily offer enough opportunities for violence and competition to appeal to pure killers as say, beat ‘em ups, shoot ‘em ups, and RPG war games. The games are ultimately offering a vehicle to achieve a desired goal in gamification, as opposed to games purely to appeal to player types.

Andrzej Marczewski, a thought leader in the field of gamification, suggests that really, there are only those that are willing to play, and those who are not willing to play. The important thing to note is that Marczewski’s people who are “not willing to play,” which is to say that are not motivated by points and badges, for example, can still be engaged through gamified content, and still fit into a proposed “player type” taxonomy, the gamification elements just need to be applied in the right way to appeal to their “player type.”

Players

This is exclusively habited by those people described as being willing to play. The other 4 can also include non-players, so to speak.

They enjoy game play. Points, badges, and leaderboards appeal to them as extrinsic rewards within the experience, and this motivates them, and can motivate them to perform desired actions.

Socialisers

One of Bartle’s original player types. They are motivated by interaction with others and are interested in the parts of a gamified experience that allow them to do this.

Free spirits

These people look for self expression and autonomy, and opportunities to be creative, and don’t necessarily like being constrained in a gamified construct. Gamification projects that promote user autonomy or ask for user generated content can appeal to this player type.

Achievers

Achievers seek mastery of a subject, or mastery of the elements within the game. They’re seeking perfection, and while they’re intrinsically motivated in this aim, they’re quite happy to show off. This last point is the only element of nuance in Andrzej’s achiever type to Bartle’s achiever type.

Philanthropists

Philanthropist type players are philanthropists, but within the context of the gamified experience. They can exhibit a selfless dedication for a cause, they enjoy helping others, and they are looking to be part of something more, and through game play, find a sense of purpose.

Games targeting audience engagement for charities and governments would appeal to this type of player. Similarly, games designed around preparing people to prepare for disasters, or scenarios-based Quizzes that train people to play their part in public crises will appeal to these sorts of players.

What is the average age of game players?

If there is one myth that has persisted in recent years, it’s that gaming and gamification campaigns only attract young men aged 18-25. However, numerous studies have shown that all demographics and types of people can be reached in one way or another by gamification, as all human brains are receptive to game mechanics and a playful setting.

It is notable that the majority of video game users and hardcore gamers in the world are adults, and only 21% of them are under 18 years old. Among adults, people aged 18 to 34 constitute the majority, however, senior gamers also represent a significant population: 15% of gamers worldwide are over 55. These figures are not concrete, and generational shifts will inevitably lead towards a much higher percentage of the world identifying as gamers. Consider that under 18s only account for 16% of the world’s population, and this includes babies and infants, so actually making up 21% of the world’s gaming population, with the direction of technology, you can expect the total number of gamers as a percentage of the population to continue to grow as time goes on. It’s also worth noting that people over 55 would have been in their prime years for getting into video games before home consoles were as accessible as they are now, and long before high speed internet revolutionised what was possible for home gaming systems..

Unsurprisingly, we also notice that consumers with previous experience in online gaming have higher purchase intentions for gamified products and activities. In the same vein, younger consumers are more likely to purchase a product through gamification, as they find it more useful and perceive it to be more fun and engaging than an older group.

To implement effective gamification, it helps to know your players and your target

Understanding how your users prefer to play is important when using a gamification strategy in your business and projects. As mentioned above, everyone is receptive to game mechanics, but not just randomly applied to any game. When you are setting up a gamification experience, it is good to know the game preferences of your targets if you want to achieve your goal and objectives, whether they are for marketing, HR, or educational purposes.

You can define how you will meet their needs by understanding which types of gamers dominate through a thorough study of their typology. Research is crucial to avoid stereotyping. The challenge for a company wishing to use gamification is to design a game that scrupulously meets the expectations and the profile of their target audience, but without being too restrictive.

Most people have traits that cross over more than one of the player types. However, the majority of them have a dominant characteristic that dictates their general preference for gamification. When you know what motivates them, you can build specific game mechanics into your gamified activities, projects, and devices to better appeal to their natures as players.

Taxonomising player types: where does it end?

You might be asking, after Bartle’s player types and Marczewski’s player types, where does it end? The answer is, it really doesn’t ever end. The field of gamification is constantly evolving, and thought leaders in the gamification space will continue to categorise player types in a bid to better apply game mechanics to desired outcomes.

From the perspective of a business leader looking to apply game mechanics to achieve specific business goals, we’re going to stop the discussion of player types here. While these are helpful ideas to consider, ultimately, your audience is your audience, and there will be nuance within that audience that doesn’t fit neatly within the 4 or 5 initial player types, or numerous subtypes theorised by other gamification gurus. There will be a unique set of gamification mechanics to apply for the best results, and ultimately, the best way to learn what will work for your goals regarding your audience is to take a long-term approach to gamification.

When you use a games creation platform like Drimify, you can customise tried and tested game engines, and receive data through your Drimify dashboard to analyse where your game is performing well and where your game could use improvement. Gamified content is a tool for audience engagement, and through experimenting with games, both in your marketing campaigns and internal communications, you will learn more about your audience with every project.

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