Blog
Stories from the field
Notes from the team — what we learn building AI monetization for Unity and Unreal studios.
Jul 31, 2026 · 4 min read
Reward inflation across a live game's whole lifetime
Every new event has to feel worth doing, so it pays slightly more than the last one. Two years of that produces an economy nobody decided to build.
Jul 30, 2026 · 4 min read
Who owns the economy in a studio without a specialist
Most teams have nobody whose job is the in-game economy. It still gets changed weekly, by several people, with no one holding the whole picture.
Jul 30, 2026 · 5 min read
Economy telemetry worth instrumenting before you need it
Most economy questions are unanswerable after the fact because the data was never recorded. A short list of events, added early, covers nearly all of them.
Jul 30, 2026 · 4 min read
Cohort tenure versus calendar time in live-ops reporting
Comparing this month to last month measures your acquisition mix as much as your game. Comparing week-three players to week-three players measures the game.
Jul 29, 2026 · 5 min read
Static segments versus reacting to the individual player
Fixed player segments are being replaced by systems that respond to behaviour directly. Segments still earn their keep, but not for the job they were doing.
Jul 29, 2026 · 4 min read
Offer decline rates are a design signal worth reading
A declined offer is usually filed as a miss. It is also the clearest statement a player makes about what they do not want, and it is free to collect.
Jul 29, 2026 · 5 min read
Deep economies compound while shallow ones plateau
Revenue is concentrating in titles with layered economies and long player lifecycles. Depth is what gives continued operation something to operate on.
Jul 28, 2026 · 5 min read
The post-event economy hangover and how long it lasts
A generous event ends and revenue dips for a fortnight. That dip is not players losing interest — it is the currency you handed out still being spent.
Jul 28, 2026 · 4 min read
The live-service correction and what smaller studios learn
Major publishers have cut their live-service slates back to one or two titles. The lesson for a small studio is not to retreat, but it is not nothing either.
Jul 27, 2026 · 5 min read
Progression walls and where the paying decision happens
Players rarely decide to spend while looking at a store. They decide at the moment the game stops them, and the store visit is the consequence.
Jul 27, 2026 · 4 min read
Live ops is where the revenue actually concentrates
The overwhelming majority of in-app purchase revenue now comes from games running active operations. That reframes live ops from a nice-to-have to the product.
Jul 27, 2026 · 4 min read
Event overlap: when two events compete for one wallet
Running two events at once looks like twice the opportunity. If both ask the player to spend the same currency, they are splitting one budget, not doubling it.