How many times have I been carried away by the advertisement that appears while you are using an app in its free version for download a game that later disappointed me completely from the beginning. In other words, sometimes even the game mechanics don’t match what I’ve seen. Yes, the good thing is that I haven’t paid a single euro (I have to be very clear about that to open my wallet).
When I download a game, I know there are real red flags that can make me regret it and uninstall it immediately, such as it asking for too many permissions, bombarding me with notifications or being full of microtransactions that affect the gaming experience but, How to know if a game is worth it before downloading it? We give you some tips to help you get it right.
Ratings: score, number of votes and reviews
Aside from the fact that we assume that if you have doubts about a game it is because you lack information (if a trusted person has recommended it to you or you have read a specialized review, we understand that you already know what to expect), the main advice is the same as when you are looking for a hotel or restaurant: look at the rating.
App stores rate games up to 5, so we are interested in those that have The higher the score the better and the more votes the better. Thus, a title with a 5 and two ratings is less interesting than one with a 4 and half a million ratings. Although there can always be impartial ratings, when so many people rate it is to take their opinion into account.
Also, it doesn’t hurt take a look at those lower ratings to find out what they’re complaining about: maybe it was a one-off problematic update or they’ve actually found something you don’t like. And the same with download numbers: if a lot of people have downloaded it, it might be worth giving it a try.
What permissions do you have access to?
Both the App Store and Google Play Store have a section where they are described. Application permissions and access. Above, an example of the famous Honkai game in its Android version. In the App Store it is in the ‘App Privacy’ section and in the Google Play Store, in ‘Security of your data’ > ‘Data that is collected’.
If you find that the app is collecting too much informationyou don’t find a sensible use for it and it doesn’t allow you to disable these options to play, be suspicious.
How the app makes money
Just because an app is free doesn’t mean it doesn’t make money: They usually get it through advertising, with in-app payments either to access extras or to advance, with data processing or even by installing other applications.
As in the previous case, it is time to take a good look at its technical sheet because in addition to obtaining information in the privacy sections, it is worth reviewing the ‘Information’ section on iOS and ‘About the application’ on Android to find out how to monetize your project.
It doesn’t hurt to look at the screenshots
It may have good reviews, the permissions and the way the app is monetized are clear and you agree… but the game may not really appeal to you. Assuming you already know the genre of this game (since it appears in the information on its technical sheet), it is best to take a good look at the Screenshots of the game to see what its graphics and handling are like before downloading it. Maybe it’s a style that doesn’t appeal to you or doesn’t suit you.
Cover | Eva Rodriguez with AI