Live, Play, Pay: Understanding Long-term Player Experience in the GaaS Era

This study investigates the long-term evolution of player experience within the Games-as-a-Service (GaaS) model, focusing on how monetization strategies influence player engagement over time. By employing a qualitative, retrospective approach, the research explores the complex interplay between game design, financial investment, and shifting personal life trajectories. The analysis highlights that player satisfaction is often ambivalent, characterized by a cycle where players accept increasingly aggressive monetization—such as battle passes and loot boxes—as a normalized status quo despite initial frustrations.

Key findings indicate that the decision to spend money is deeply tied to the intensity of play; players justify financial outlays when they are highly active but reduce spending as their engagement wanes or as their personal life priorities shift. The research identifies a "subscription-like" pressure in competitive gaming, where players feel compelled to purchase new content to remain viable in professional or high-level play. Furthermore, the study reveals that developers’ decisions to balance or "nerf" purchased items can lead to significant player dissatisfaction, as these actions devalue the resources players have invested.

The methodology utilizes a combination of questionnaires, UX curves, and semi-structured interviews to capture the temporal nature of gaming experiences. The results underscore that player perception is not static; it is heavily influenced by social dynamics, community discourse, and the transition from adolescence to adulthood. Ultimately, the findings suggest that the GaaS model often relies on a cycle of player dissatisfaction and adaptation, where the perceived value of digital goods fluctuates based on individual life stages and the evolving competitive landscape of the game.