1.
1.0.4
Free
Oct
9th,
2014
4.6
in
2,721
ra5ngs
(US)
68.8
Mb
App
Version:
Price:
First
Release:
Ra5ng:
Size:
Contact:
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid
Best
FiendsTM
©
2013
-­‐
2014
Seriously
Digital
Entertainment
Ltd.

2.
Best
Fiends
is
the
first
game
released
by
Seriously,
a
company
staffed
by
a
mobile
gaming
dream
team.
It
had
been
out
for
5
days,
is
very
polished,
has
easy
to
grasp
mechanics,
a
solid
core
loop,
and
I
was
enjoying
playing
it.
S5ll,
I
was
confident.
Why?
And
more
importantly,
was
I
right?
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

3.
(Spoiler
alert:
Yup)
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

4.
This
document
is
split
in
to
two
sec5ons.
The
first
(with
green
headers)
gives
a
breakdown
of
the
game
and
its
key
systems,
for
those
unfamiliar
with
it.
The
second
(blue
headers)
contains
my
analysis
of
its
performance,
and
sugges5ons
for
improvements.
Game
Overview
Gameplay
Currencies
Core
Loop
Menu
Flow
Progression
Mone5za5on
Analysis
Download
Ranking
Grossing
Ranking
Mone5za5on
Social
Gameplay
User
Interface
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

5.
Best
Fiends
is
a
“line
drawing”
Match
3
game.
Players
take
a
team
of
up
to
5
uniquely
coloured
Fiends
in
to
each
level,
where
they
are
presented
with
a
puzzle
grid,
a
progression
of
enemies
(encountered
one
at
a
5me),
and
a
selec5on
of
objec5ves
which
include
matching
amounts
of
5les
(either
special,
or
certain
standard
colours),
and
defea5ng
a
number
of
enemies.
Each
5me
the
player
matches
5les,
the
associated
Fiend
launches
an
adack
on
the
current
enemy.
Matching
also
builds
up
the
special
5le
charge
for
a
Fiend.
Once
this
is
full,
a
special
5le
of
their
own
colour
spawns
in
a
random
column
on
the
top
row
of
the
board.
Some
enemies
are
able
to
spawn
blocking
5les
on
to
the
board
at
regular
move
intervals.
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

6.
Player’s
team
of
Fiends
Number
of
moves
remaining
Level
comple5on
goals
Current
enemy
Standard
5les
(Matching
Fiend
colours)
Special
5les
(Diamond
&
Mul5-­‐hit
crate)
Blocking
5les
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

7.
Diamonds
Gained
by
• Matching
Diamond
5les.
• Purchase
through
In
App
Purchase
(IAP).
• Connec5ng
to
Facebook.
Used
by
• Upgrading
Fiends
(when
the
player
doesn’t
have
enough
Meteor
Mites).
• Buying
Keys.
• Increasing
maximum
energy.
• Bypassing
progress
gates.
Keys
Gained
by
• Matching
special
5les.
• Purchased
(packs
of
3)
with
Diamonds.
Used
by
• Opening
Lucky
Dip
crates.
Meteor
Mites
(In
Yellow
and
Blue
varie?es,
blue
are
rarer
&
more
valuable
by
a
factor
of
~100)
Gained
by
• Random
drop
when
matching
5les
&
defea5ng
enemies.
• Lucky
dip
prizes.
Used
by
• Upgrading
Fiends.
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

8.
The
core
loop
sees
the
player
comple5ng
Match
3
levels,
and
upgrading
their
Fiends.
Beginning
a
level
always
costs
energy,
and
currency
earned
on
failed
adempts
is
kept,
allowing
players
to
grind.
Energy
regenerates
over
5me.
As
Fiends
are
upgraded
the
damage
dealt
per
adack
increases,
as
does
the
potency
of
their
special
5le.
Objec5ves
and
enemies
encountered
get
tougher
to
beat
as
the
player
progresses,
forming
an
increasing
soj
barrier
that
effec5vely
forces
the
player
to
regularly
upgrade.
Upgrade
Fiends
Play
Match
3
level
Lucky
Dip
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

9.
Map
Lucky
Dip
Fiend
Menu
Info
Upgrade
Fiend
Select
Loading
Gameplay
Out
Of
Moves
Failed
Passed
Splash
Return
to
Map
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

10.
The
player
progresses
through
a
series
of
numbered
levels,
presented
on
an
adrac5ve
3D
scrolling
map.
The
differences
between
the
four
loca5ons
currently
in
the
game
appear
to
be
purely
cosme5c.
New
gameplay
features
and
blocking
5les
are
introduced
as
the
player
progresses.
Players
are
able
to
replay
passed
levels
to
earn
extra
currency.
Progress
is
occasionally
blocked
completed
by
a
gate.
Players
are
able
to
pass
once
their
Fiends
are
sufficiently
leveled
up,
or
by
paying
a
fee.
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

11.
The
second
area
of
progress
is
in
unlocking
and
upgrading
Fiends.
Fiends
are
unlocked
in
the
Lucky
Dip,
and
appear
to
become
available
ajer
a
set
number
of
levels
are
completed.
The
first
5
Fiends
unlocked
are
the
same
for
all
players,
ajer
this
the
unlock
order
becomes
random.
As
the
player
upgrades
their
Fiends,
the
amount
of
damage
they
do
per
matched
5le
increases.
Every
5
levels
the
Fiend
“evolves”
in
to
a
larger
version,
and
their
special
adack
increases
in
strength.
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

12.
Lucky
Dip
System
Players
are
presented
with
a
3
by
3
grid
of
mystery
crates,
which
are
unlocked
using
Keys.
They
are
able
to
buy
more
Keys
using
Diamonds.
Rewards
include
various
sized
currency
packs,
and
new
Fiends.
More
Moves
At
the
end
of
a
failed
level,
the
player
is
able
to
purchase
an
addi5onal
number
of
moves,
as
a
Tier
1
IAP.
This
is
a
standard
hot
state
mechanic,
working
on
the
player’s
belief
that
victory
is
just
around
the
corner,
and
that
to
give
up
now
would
be
a
wasted
opportunity.
As
usual
in
games
that
include
similar
IAP,
it
is
the
best
selling
item.
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

13.
Upgrading
Fiends
If
the
player
doesn’t
have
the
required
number
of
Meteor
Mites
to
upgrade
one
of
their
Fiends,
they
are
able
to
pay
using
diamonds.
Energy
Every
play
of
a
level
costs
energy
(not
just
failed
adempts).
This
slowly
regenerates
over
5me,
or
can
be
immediately
filled
with
a
Tier
1
IAP
(the
game’s
second
best
seller
–
also
a
hot
state
item).
Players
can
also
spend
Diamonds
to
permanently
boost
their
maximum
energy.
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

14.
The
game
fared
well
during
its
launch
week
–
when
it
was
featured
by
Apple.
Since
then
it
has
dropped
by
roughly
100
places
on
the
US-­‐Games
chart,
and
has
subsequently
done
well
at
holding
around
that
posi5on.
Performance
is
similar
between
tablet
and
phone
(though
the
Overall
chart
drops
off
for
tablet).
A
recent
update
has
not
made
a
significant
boost
to
downloads.
The
boost
during
the
week
preceding
the
update
suggests
some
secondary
featuring.
From
October
9
–
November
5.
Source:
App
Annie
iPhone
iPad
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

15.
From
October
9
–
November
5.
Source:
App
Annie
iPhone
iPad
Looking
mainly
at
the
US-­‐Games
curve,
grossing
ranking
is
steady
around
the
200
mark
with
a
highest
rank
of
124.
For
a
polished
game
with
these
mechanics
(match
3
and
light
RPG
elements)
it
would
be
reasonable
to
expect
higher
placing.
Again,
similar
performance
between
tablet
and
phone,
with
slightly
lower
posi5oning
on
tablet.
(Though
again
App
Annie
has
holes
in
its
data.)
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

16.
My
top
100
grossing
predic5on
was
based
on
the
observa5on
that
there
are
rela5vely
few
ways
for
the
player
to
spend
their
Diamonds,
and
only
two
hot
state
purchases
(not
a
coincidence
they
are
the
top
two
most
popular
purchases).
I
would
recommend
adding
more
op5ons
for
the
player
to
buy
and
in
par5cular
focusing
on
further
hot
state
items.
“Boost”
powerups
available
to
buy
during
a
level
are
a
common
and
popular
hot
state
purchase
in
this
genre.
These
allow
players
to
directly
influence
the
layout
of
5les
on
the
board
and
the
current
enemy,
by
clearing
whole
rows
or
immediately
adding
special
5les.
(Yes,
this
is
enabling
“pay
to
win”,
but
this
is
largely
a
solo
game.)
Boosts
would
also
make
it
less
likely
players
will
get
stuck
on
a
puzzle
level.
Currently,
stuck
players
are
able
to
grind
to
increase
the
abili5es
of
their
Fiends
to
make
“defeat
X
enemies”
goals
easier,
but
there
are
no
paying
op5ons
to
lower
the
difficulty
of
other
goal
types.
Candy
Crush
Soda
Saga
–
King
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

17.
Consider
adding
a
way
for
players
to
purchase
“premium”
Fiends
(either
directly,
or
through
some
form
of
“high
cost”
Lucky
Dip),
that
do
more
damage
and
whose
specials
charge
faster.
Give
the
player
a
way
of
mul5plying
the
number
of
Meteor
Mites
they
earn
in
a
level.
If
this
is
permanent
then
unlock
through
IAP
or
a
large
number
of
Diamonds
(similar
value
to
the
energy
increase),
or
it
could
be
op5onal
on
a
round-­‐by-­‐round
basis
and
paid
for
by
watching
video
adverts.
If
the
player
isn’t
using
a
mul5plier,
the
amount
of
Mites
they
would
have
earned
if
they
were
should
be
pointed
out
to
them.
Angry
Birds
Transformers
–
Rovio
Alien
Creeps
TD
–
Outplay
Entertainment
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

18.
Though
I
haven’t
seen
any
special
offers
called
out
in
game,
the
list
of
IAP
suggests
that
some
variable
pricing
is
available
for
the
two
larger
packs
(though
this
is
possibly
an
A/B
test
on
the
price
5ers).
There
are
only
4
packages
of
currency
to
buy,
which
is
atypical
–
many
other
high
performing
casual
puzzle
5tles
that
use
virtual
currency
have
a
6
or
more
price
points
(Cookie
Jam
has
6,
Farm
Heroes
Saga
has
7,
and
Candy
Crush
Saga
has
8
for
example).
This
allows
them
to
include
much
larger
purchases
(such
as
Tier
60
-­‐
$99.99)
without
disrup5ng
the
spacing
of
their
low
and
mid-­‐range.
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

19.
The
game
is
lacking
a
social
aspect
–
just
leaderboards
and
friend
progress
(though
these
are
well
integrated).
Adding
features
focusing
on
co-­‐opera5ve
ac5ons
would
aid
user
acquisi5on
&
reten5on.
“Friend’s
Fiend”
system.
Similar
to
Puzzles
&
Dragons,
players
could
choose
a
friend
to
take
in
to
a
level.
The
extra
Fiend
increases
the
player’s
ability
to
deal
damage,
and
the
friend
earns
a
bonus
for
being
used.
P&D
also
stops
friends
from
being
reused
by
any
player
un5l
they
have
re-­‐engaged
with
the
game.
This
ensures
friends
who
want
a
lot
of
bonuses
must
re-­‐engage
each
5me
they
are
used.
The
game
could
give
players
a
number
of
power-­‐ups
each
day
that
must
be
gijed
out,
one
each
to
their
friends.
Players
earn
a
bonus
for
sending
all
of
their
gijs.
Community
goals,
such
as
rewarding
the
community
for
defea5ng
a
combined
number
of
X
enemies
over
the
space
of
a
week.
Everyone
who
contributed
to
achieving
the
goal
gets
a
reward.
Angry
Birds
Transformers
–
Rovio
Candy
Crush
Saga
–
King
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

20.
The
game’s
difficulty
relies
heavily
on
puzzle
levels,
but
rigidly
created
boards
with
a
limited
number
of
moves
can
be
frustra5ng
to
play.
Cramped
boards
also
result
in
the
player
having
no
moves
available,
forcing
a
large
number
of
“reshuffles”.
This
is
an
unsa5sfying
outcome
to
be
avoided,
if
possible.
Change
the
5le
spawning
to
give
favourable
outcomes
in
situa5ons
where
the
player
would
have
no
moves
available.
Every
enemy
in
the
game
is
a
slug.
There
are
varia5ons
in
appearance,
but
there
is
only
so
much
visual
variety
you
can
get
out
of
a
black
splotch
with
a
face.
It
would
be
good
to
tweak
the
story
to
allow
a
greater
range
of
enemy
types
as
the
player
progresses,
as
discovery
of
new
content
helps
the
game
remain
fresh.
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

21.
Some
enemies
are
able
to
spawn
blocker
5les,
some5mes
doing
this
ajer
every
player
turn.
Frequently
they
will
also
target
special
5les.
This
has
the
effect
of
“doubling
down”
on
the
frustra5on
players
feel
any
5me
they
are
forced
to
make
“burner”
moves
(poor
matches
that
do
not
make
significant
progress
towards
their
goals,
but
are
the
only
move
available).
My
gut
feeling
is
that
the
frequency
of
blockers
generated
is
high
enough
to
be
frustra5ng
rather
than
fun
or
sa5sfying
to
play
against.
I
would
suggest
A/B
tes5ng
the
rate
these
spawn,
and
see
how
this
affects
the
life5me
value
(LTV)
of
players.
When
the
player
has
only
one
move
available,
ensure
the
blocker
doesn’t
spawn
in
a
way
that
removes
the
player’s
move.
This
will
also
help
with
the
reshuffling
situa5on.
A
puzzle
layout
and
high
blocker
spawn
rate
on
this
level
results
in
a
lot
of
unsa5sfying
reshuffles.
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

22.
Once
the
player
has
passed
a
level,
their
only
reason
to
replay
it
is
to
farm
currency.
As
some
are
easier
than
others,
less
easily
farmable
levels
will
get
fewer
repeat
plays.
I
suggest
adding
a
“mastery
system”
to
encourage
repeat
on
every
level,
making
full
use
of
all
of
the
game’s
content.
This
is
ojen
seen
as
a
3
star
scoring
system;
As
Best
Fiends
is
not
score
based,
players
could
earn
stars
for
comple5ng
more
advanced
op5onal
goals
in
the
level
(beyond
the
regular
pass
condi5ons).
Jelly
Splash
–
Wooga
The
“lucky
dip”
system
could
be
tweaked
to
mone5ze
more
heavily
by
showing
the
player
what
prizes
are
exist
in
the
crates
they
didn’t
open.
This
would
mo5vate
them
to
con5nue
buying
keys
un5l
they
collect
all
of
the
high
value
rewards
available.
One
way
to
do
this
would
be
to
change
the
flow
so
that
on
entering,
the
player
is
shown
the
rewards
in
every
crate.
Ajer
a
short
pause,
lock
the
crates
and
shuffle
them.
Depending
on
the
developer’s
feelings
on
skill
vs.
chance,
shuffling
could
be
done
in
a
way
that
allows
the
player
to
follow
a
crate
to
its
end
posi5on.
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

23.
The
main
3D
rolling
map
is
novel
and
immediately
hooks
player
interest
and
gives
a
feeling
that
this
game
is
not
just
another
match
3
clone.
There
are
a
couple
of
down
sides:
Firstly
it
gives
me
a
slight
feeling
of
ver5go;
Secondly
it
stops
players
getng
a
good
feeling
of
how
much
progress
they
have
made,
and
also
how
many
levels
are
ahead
of
them.
The
game
has
lovely
presenta5on
of
rewards.
For
example,
winning
big
on
the
Lucky
Dip
explicitly
tells
the
player
that
this
was
a
large
prize
to
highlight
the
“feel
good”
moment.
The
currency
IAP
screens
are
great
as
well,
with
lots
of
game
characters
and
more
significantly
all
op5ons
visible
without
scrolling.
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

24.
On
the
Fiend
menu
there
are
2
budons
per
Fiend.
The
larger
one
is
to
upgrade
the
Fiend,
the
smaller
is
for
a
character
informa5on
screen.
Could
the
informa5on
on
both
of
these
screens
be
combined,
to
only
require
one
budon?
The
“Tap
to
con5nue”
requirement
on
the
level
loading
screen
is
odd
–
Asking
for
an
input
to
move
in
to
gameplay
feels
redundant.
(Could
be
done
to
allow
players
more
5me
to
read
loading
5ps,
or
has
it
been
caused
by
technical
issues?)
They
are
also
being
held
on
what
is
probably
the
game’s
most
visually
drab
screen.
It
could
be
improved
by
including
some
key
art
and
/
or
repea5ng
the
levels
goals.
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

25.
One
great
feature
is
the
ability
for
players
to
earn
an
amount
of
Diamonds
by
viewing
informa5on
about
Malaria.
This
is
5ed
in
to
the
friendly
mosquito
character.
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

26.
I
hope
you
enjoyed
reading
this
document,
and
found
some
of
the
ideas
I’ve
discussed
useful
for
your
own
5tles.
Find
my
design
&
mone5za5on
audit
on
Rovio’s
racing
game
Angry
Birds
Go!
By
clicking
my
name
under
the
presenta5on.
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid

27.
Would
you
like
your
game
to
benefit
from
an
audit
by
an
experienced
designer?
Whether
it's
already
on
the
marketplace,
in
or
approaching
soj
launch,
or
even
just
an
ini5al
concept,
every
5tle
can
be
improved
with
a
fresh
pair
of
eyes.
I
can
work
to
whatever
level
your
game
is
ready
for,
from
high
level
product
scoping,
to
deep
diving
the
numbers
on
a
specific
feature.
Contact:
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
tony@ant-­‐workshop.com
@freakyzoid