Anchoring Tricks

Placing a cheap item next to an expensive item to make it look more affordable.

Anchoring is a very common tactic that retailers use to sway people towards making more expensive purchases.

1) Anchoring - By placing a cheap item next to an expensive item, the cheap items looks more affordable. For example, if you can get a bronze item for $1 and a silver item for $5, many people may purchase the cheapest item. However, if you add a gold item for $50, the middle option (silver) now looks like a good deal and more people may purchase it.

2) False Hierarchy - A game may use layout, size or color to give a more expensive item preference over a cheaper item when in fact the items should be compared side by side.

3) Decoy Effect - Using a decoy item, that is usually more expensive or inferior, to push people towards a specific option. For example, items A and B are available for $1 and $2, but a decoy item C is $3. Item C is inferior to B. This makes B look like a really good deal since you are getting something worth $3 for only $2. Item A becomes less desirable.

4) Discounts for buying bundles or bigger packages of items incentivize people to spend more to get a better deal.

5) Social Proof is when a store promotes an item in way to suggest that more people favor it. This could be as simple as having a "Most Popular" badge on top of the item, or it could say something to the effect of "15 people have purchased this in the last hour". If the game integrates with social media, it could also use your friends to push you towards a more expensive purchase. For example, "John purchased a Gold upgrade today". This normalize spending on the game and makes it feel more acceptable.


Examples

Life Makeover Life Makeover
"The shop places multiple versions of the same product together to present a better deal for big purchases."

Last Fortress Last Fortress
"Yes and then immediately shows a more expensive one after with more items. 19.99, 49.99, 99.99"

Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery
"Often the game will try to make something look like a good deal when it's really the same as another thing or even worse."

PAC-MAN PAC-MAN
"you can buy things like bundles for exclusive cosmetics and currency for ongoing events"

Dream Hopper Dream Hopper
"You can buy 45 crystals for 1.30$ or 150 crystals for 3.99$ or even 1200 crystals for 25.99$"

Coin Master Coin Master
"Game offers a lot of bundles and deals"

War and Order War and Order
"Laddered packages"

Fishdom Fishdom
"the gem and coin bundles are offered with several options - often they make one really expensive which makes they others appear more reasonable"

Stick War: Legacy Stick War: Legacy
"The infinity fan pack comes with a bunch of one-time items and gems, plus infinite access to tournament plays and past weekly missions."

BASEBALL 9 BASEBALL 9
"The game offers player bundle, but the bundles are in their own section, but the bundles are still there, and seemingly overpriced."