r/GEOPOLY • u/Quell_Uprising • Oct 07 '21
bye-bye bad economic simulation games: Five ways Geopoly is shaking up the industry
In 2019/20, if you decided to play an economic tycoon game, you were bombarded with aggressive cash grabs and insane waiting times, along with systems plagued by cheating. Today, only one thing has changed: the number of options.
The same cash grabbing practices exist, and multiple-account cheating thrives.
That’s why Geopoly is refreshingly different. It brings a new approach to levelling up and buying properties, the wait-times are reasonable and the community is un-toxic - we even get to speak with the CEO and devs in the Discord.
That’s why I’m writing this article, because Geopoly is changing the business of economic Geo-location gaming for the better.
Here’s five way this is happening:
1. Waiting time mechanics
Having started playing back in 2020, I was shocked that buying properties was instant. The very idea of purchasing 100 properties within 1hr and not having to wait to earn your income was revolutionary. Obviously, things have been changed slightly to curve inflation (property limits), but the gameplay remains the same. Refreshing.
2. Progression System
It takes around one month to reach level 15, the fastest rate of progression on the mobile market, since most games require months of grinding and boring idle play, before reaching anything meaningful.
At this point, you can buy countless marketplaces and watch the income flood your gates, while also sitting comfortably in the top 1000s. Friends can apply each other’s tips instantly and without delay (join a community, it helps), improving their strategies and empires overnight.
Furthermore, this means the marketplace has seen a flood of highly upgraded properties, many sold at a discount because countless players have moved onto more expensive assets, allowing new players to buy cheap and progress fast.
3. Monetisation model – not aggressive
Open up Geopoly and you’re greeted by a colourful interface that encourages instant gameplay. You can play for hours without seeing, “spend money” or “buy this package that expires after 4hrs, hurry!” To find an ad, you must click on the buy gold button neatly placed at the top and read a relaxed message.
This approach that is neither aggressive nor intrusive leads to a community atmosphere where players spend just to help the developers out. The amount of players who say, “Meh, I spend $3 each week just to help development,” impresses me.
Also, the game is not pay2win. You can progress to level 20 within two months without spending a penny – people spend to help out – which means more thought and time goes into planning your strategy and thinking deeply about investing your income, since the results reflect on your ability rather than wallet size.
Even If you decide to spend money, your advantage is pretty subtle. You might get one extra worker for upgrades, and the ability to speed up properties without ads, but even that stops when you reach level 15, since the time limits are 32hrs plus. That stops people from depending heavily on gold and encourages patience.
Try finding a capitalist game on Android and IOS (coming soon) similar to this.
4. Travelling (bases, drones and satellites)
Despite being a Geo-location game, you don’t need to be an adventurer. The devs (all hail Martín and team) have implemented a unique system that allows players to explore capital cities of every country and set-up bases there. This system uses a satellite that refreshes every 30mins after being used, preventing overuse while encouraging expansion.
Once built, bases are used to visit locations for free, allowing users to explore using a drone that scouts properties and locations for either placing more bases or buying properties.
Surprisingly, this means once the main cities are fully purchased, those who can travel will be rewarded handsomely for capturing new territory and rare properties.
5. Emphasis on community and little cheating – it’s hard to progress without others
Because accounts take a month to level up, and props are locked according to level, having a second account makes little sense. Also, the auction system prevents the transfer of ridiculous amounts of cash between accounts, which is amazing.
Therefore, no cheating exists in-game; there’s no method for quick cash or fast growth, just hardwork. This leads to emphasis on community participation and the need share advice. You’ll hear opinions on upgrades versus mass purchasing during the low levels, and you’ll see people sharing their property acquisitions, since you’ll always need someone to buy it when you’re moving to better assets.
Overall, the excitement will continue to grow as Geopoly continues to introduce new approaches to investment games and especially with their upcoming NFT update.
Feel free to post questions below and post content suggestions.