Grinding
Being required to perform repetitive and tedious tasks to advance.
Grinding is a game mechanic where players are required to perform repetitive tasks. Each task earns the player experience points, levels, items or some other in-game benefit. The player will need to repeat the task many times to accumulate enough of the rewards for them to make a difference.
Often, the more you play the game, the more tasks you have to perform to get the same benefit as before. For example, level 1 may require you to perform 5 tasks, but level 2 may require you to perform 10 tasks for the same increase in level. This "ramping up" of the repetitive tasks allows new players to get hooked on the gameplay before it becomes too repetitive and boring. By the time the grind becomes excessive, players have already become addicted to the gameplay and continue playing even though it's not enjoyable anymore.
It should be noted that Grinding is the core mechanic of many games, and some people enjoy it. For those people, this isn't a dark pattern. However, if Grinding is combined with other dark patterns, like Pay to Skip where you can spend money to skip parts of the grind, then this dark pattern can be amplified.
Another way this can be amplified is by combining it with the Wait to Play dark pattern. If you need to perform 10 tasks, but you only have enough energy to perform 5, now you have to put the game down and retain some Endowed Progress. This is a powerful urge to come back to the game later and complete your goal.
Often, the more you play the game, the more tasks you have to perform to get the same benefit as before. For example, level 1 may require you to perform 5 tasks, but level 2 may require you to perform 10 tasks for the same increase in level. This "ramping up" of the repetitive tasks allows new players to get hooked on the gameplay before it becomes too repetitive and boring. By the time the grind becomes excessive, players have already become addicted to the gameplay and continue playing even though it's not enjoyable anymore.
It should be noted that Grinding is the core mechanic of many games, and some people enjoy it. For those people, this isn't a dark pattern. However, if Grinding is combined with other dark patterns, like Pay to Skip where you can spend money to skip parts of the grind, then this dark pattern can be amplified.
Another way this can be amplified is by combining it with the Wait to Play dark pattern. If you need to perform 10 tasks, but you only have enough energy to perform 5, now you have to put the game down and retain some Endowed Progress. This is a powerful urge to come back to the game later and complete your goal.
Citations and Sources • Dark Patterns in the Design of Games
• Why are Video Games Addictive?
• Behavioral Game Design
• Why are Video Games Addictive?
• Behavioral Game Design
Examples
PewDiePie's Tuber Simulator"You have to play Puggle (skips wait time for furniture shipment) and Craniac (Exclusive items, fastest way to get subscribers, rare prisma pixelings) tens of thousands of times"
Geometry Dash"Beat 5000 levels. Like/Dislike 4000 levels. Rate the stars of 2000 levels..."
Top Eleven Be a soccer manager"training is basically an advert mill"
Asphalt 9: Legends"The extensiveness of such grinds (Example: Car Hunt events and their derivatives) is oftenly hidden through luck-based rewards featuring extremely poor odds."
Angry Birds Transformers"The game cycle is basically: Complete levels, kill pigs, unlock character, repeat."
Merge Mayor - Idle Village"you regularly have to merge items that are the same - but as is nature of these games"
Rise of Cultures"The entire game's premise is to grow your culture. This means upgrading buildings forever."
Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links"I hate stupid level up card"
World War Rising"If you want resources, you have to collect from tiles, which give little. Even in the early game, it isn't fun."
SimCity BuildIt"the player market system feels like it is specifically adjusted to not show you items you are looking for to complete tasks, leading to constant refreshing"