E46: Economics of Sweepstakes, Word Game Progression, and UXR Failure
Is fair matchmaking actually bad design? And how exactly did gaming companies fumble the bag when it came to the army of PhD psychologists they employ?
Chris Smith (PhD economist at Star Atlas) and Eric Guan (data scientist at Second Dinner) join me for Episode 46 of the Game Economist Cast.
We talk about:
- Sweepstakes, social casino, velocity, and why most players never cash out
- Why Wordle feels flat to some designers, and why elegance is not the same as progression
- Surveys as UX (not truth machines), and how to extract signal without lying to yourself
- Compensating differentials, handicaps, and why 50% win rates kill progression
- Bots, deception, and whether games are magic shows or fraud
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