A mobile gaming studio gave me an open-ended brief: find new ways to increase ARPDAU in their casual dice-rolling game. No constraints, just results.
Before jumping to ideas, I built a structured approach: play the game deeply to understand the core loop, audit the existing monetization features, research what's working in other genres, then ideate and spec the most promising feature end-to-end.
The process surfaced a key insight early on — the Piggy Bank mechanic was the game's strongest revenue driver because it created a sense of ownership and risk of loss. I wanted to build on that psychology.
Increase ARPDAU by 5%. No constraints — just find the opportunity.
I audited every revenue-driving feature in the game first: the Store, Dream Pass, Daily Offers, Progressive Reward Ladder, and the Piggy Bank. The Piggy Bank stood out — players spent more when they felt they'd already earned something and risked losing it.
Then I looked outside the genre. Clash of Clans taught me that loss aversion at scale drives spending. Brawl Stars showed that randomized rewards paired with a skip-the-wait path converts well. Summoners War demonstrated that multi-step collection creates sustained engagement and multiple purchase touchpoints.
From research to a fully specced feature in four steps.
Map what's already there
Audited every monetization mechanic in the game to understand what was working, what wasn't, and where the gaps were.
Look outside the genre
Studied monetization patterns from Clash of Clans, Brawl Stars, and Summoners War to find mechanics with real originality.
Three feature concepts
Proposed three distinct features — Mystic Dice, The Wizard Card, and Nitro Boost — each tapping a different monetization mechanic.
Full product spec
Chose Mystic Dice to spec fully: player journey, monetization moments, UI flows, wireframes, and MVP scope with must-haves vs. nice-to-haves.
A collection mechanic that turns progress into emotional urgency.
Players collect Mystic Dice Shards through steals, loot boxes, and the store. Collect 10 shards, fuse them into a 10-sided dice, and roll for rare rewards: coins, rolls, cards, event currency.
The catch: shards are vulnerable to theft by other players until all 10 are forged. Crystal Shards — available to buy — are the only type that can't be stolen, creating a direct spend path for players who don't want to risk losing progress.
I mapped the emotional arc through the feature and tied each moment to a monetization opportunity: introduction (starter pack), shard stolen (deal to complete), almost there at 8–9 shards (strongest conversion moment), and forge & roll (the payoff — no push needed).
Monetization works when it feels like part of the game, not a wall.