RE Analysis

QUESTIONS: WHAT IS LIFESPAN OF OUR PLAYERS?
1. IDENTIFY USER AVERAGE “AWAY TIME”.
2. WHEN IS THE OPTIMAL TIME TO RETARGET USERS.

The key question is, what’s the typical lifespan of our players? If someone is inactive for only one day, they’re considered a good player. But if they’re absent for 14 days and only return sporadically, they fall into a completely different category.

This is a common issue across the industry, and we face it as well. Players install the game, open it at least once on the first day, and then we never see them again. Category zero includes players who return every single day.

Categories one through seven represent players who have missed at most one, two, or five days. Beyond that, the negative four category includes those problematic one-and-done users.

The negative three group consists of players who churn at any given point within their lifespan. Negative two comprises players who installed on day zero but don’t return until day three, four, or five.

On the left-hand side, day zero marks the install day, and we track the first 30 days for this layer. Players who install on day zero automatically fall into the negative two category until they have their first returning day.

On day one, 45,000 people don’t return. These are the one-and-done users. Out of 138,000 installs, 45,000 never return according to our data.

75,000 of these players have returned for the first time, which is excellent. 17,000 installed the previous day but didn’t return on day one. By day two, you can observe how players spread out across their lifespan.

Players who return daily are placed in category zero, and you can track how that number holds steady or fluctuates. Of the initial 138,000 players, 59,000 returned on the first day, and of these, 51,000 have played daily by day three.

If a player hasn’t lapsed for 30 days and remains within the three-day repetitive playing window, they’re doing well. We might implement strategies to encourage further engagement, like social activities, rather than just focusing on giveaways or freebies. However, if a player lapses for three days, we initiate the re-engagement logic.

SUMMARY

To address the typical lifespan and engagement patterns of our players, we categorize them based on their activity and return frequency. Players who return daily fall into category zero, representing our most engaged users. Categories one through seven capture those who miss up to five days, while negative categories track varying levels of churn. Notably, negative four includes one-and-done users who never return after the first day, and negative three covers those who churn sporadically.

On day zero, we track initial installations and return rates over the first 30 days. For instance, out of 138,000 installs, 45,000 never return after day one, but 75,000 make a significant first return. As players spread out across their lifespan, our goal is to keep them engaged. For those in category zero, strategies like social activities enhance engagement without relying solely on giveaways. For those lapsing beyond three days, re-engagement tactics are initiated to bring them back into active play. This data-driven approach ensures we maximize DAU and ARPU by tailoring strategies to specific user behaviors.