Freemium games are probably the most controversial group of games in the App store. Some people clearly love them and they pay huge $$ to the developers. Others hate them because some games make you pay through the nose to so much as fart every 5 minutes. I like the idea of being able to (in theory) download the game for free and never pay a dime to complete it. But for most freemium games, that seems virtually impossible, unless you have incredible patience. So. What are the best freemium iOS games? And justify that with an explanation of what features make it good.
I don't think anyone has done it better than Nimblebit as of yet. I also have a gut feeling that even the people who spend a load of money on freemium games kinda hate them too, after looking back and realising it probably wasn't worth it.
Likes: It's free' Dislikes: Often poorly done, annoying, and rarely fun to play. My personal favorite is Slam Dunk King by PikPok. It has fun gameplay, a lot of unlockables, admittedly with hefty prices but still reachable with grinding (and boy is it fun to grind in this game!) unobtrusive ads (non-gameplay, so it's easy to ignore them if you have to), and multiple modes. I also love Temple Run, but I paid money to buy it (now freemium) so it's debatable whether you can call it freemium to me.
Agreed. The thing with freemium games is that the iAPs should be unobtrusive, meaning you can have a great/full experience without buying any, and should you want to purchase some, the store isn't overwhelming. Pocket Frogs and Tiny Towers do both perfectly. For someone who hates Farmville clones, I've spent quite some time with Nimblebit's titles in the past. Tiny Towers is Apple's GOTY for a reason, after all.
I liked Pocket Frogs a lot more than I have Tiny Tower... Anyway, Freemium. Anything that doesn't restrict gameplay - that's really the gist of it. If I get to play a game that's well-made, even better. I'll even make sure to throw a buck or two the developer's way.
When it comes to freemium games, if I'm enjoying the game enough, I'll shell out for bag/inventory space upgrades if they are available (those are usually only $0.99 anyways). I'll also unlock extra levels or areas or whatever...Like, if Let's Golf! 3 allowed you to pay to unlock a course for free play, I'd pay for that. I never pay for extra in game currency, extra "energy", or anything cosmetic.
Freemium games I like: Tiny Tower - never thought I'd be spending so much time with this sort of a game Cordy - not really a freemium as 1 payment unlocks the full game, but still Bullet Time Freemium games I hate: ANY Gameloft freemium Any game that needs IAPs to even play it properly.
With most freemium games the only good point I can find is the fact that they are free. Everything else about them makes me want to delete them and install them again, just so I can have the pleasure of deleting them again Bullet Time HD and Nightworld are the only freemium games I've enjoyed. Well Nightworld was only free for a the first few days, but it has IAP like a freemium game. I tried Tiny Tower, and hated it, with passion. Nothing to do with the freemium model, I just couldn't stand the look of the game (normally I don't mind arcade style graphics) and the gameplay. I don't like cities either so that's probably part of the reason I didn't like it. Pretty much all the other freemium games I ignore and wish they would die a quick death (not likely ).
Likes: When a game is free, and you can unlock the entire game as a one time IAP. Also when there are no annoying ads, and instead the IAP is an option on the home screen like an "Unlock full version now" button. Dislikes: Pay to play, consumables, and any other freemium where you must continuously pay. Here's lookin' at you, Lameloft.
Oooh, I've got another like: I like when a free game has ads and IAP, etc, but any one purchase removes ads on top of whatever you bought. I like permanent unlocks: like the Counterfeit Machine from Jetpack Joyride. I bought that, after I had pretty much every store item, because I had so much fun with the game. Dislikes: purchasable money, consumable IAPs. I don't like Infinity Blade's IAPs, for example.
The only freemium/iaps I don't like are when you have to purchase energy to play or are pretty much forced to buy certain consumables or money. Everything else I'm pretty much fine with, like one purchase to unlock the game or remove ads or totally optional money or the like.
Well, I like EA's Cause of Death. A new free text adventure episode every week, if you keep up with it, with an option to buy episodes you missed or want to replay. Surviving High School was (is?) similar, just not as good, IMHO. Other than that, I didn't enjoy any freemium games.
If i like a game i dont really mind if its paid or freemium. I have 35 games. 30 paid. If its freemium i buy at least one iap to Thank the dev.
Never downloaded a single freemium app and I never will the closest I came to that was downloading the capcom arcade when it was first released and I removed it after a single play on SF2. Should add I did buy SF2 collection when it was made into a full app. It really seems kinda deranged to me that people actually buy virtual currency, It's made me think about whether anyone has wrote a cheat device for IOS yet on cydia or elsewhere. IF no one has they should might put a stop to some of this nonsense. Basicly I hate freemium and the whole idea behind it, they aren't just selling you worthless numbers their selling your info, targeting you for ads and doing everything they can to cash in on you.
I agree, i'm not a fan of consumable IAPs, i prefer one time unlocks (whether it's characters/environments etc) this was actually one freemium game that I really disliked, the unlocks were way too expensive, and way too much grinding was required...(and disabling ads was a separate, rather expensive unlock by itself) it was a good game though, but i would rather have had a one time purchase of $1-3 to unlock the full game with all the modes. (which is what you get with most other games of that type)
Does this mean you've never experienced the greatness that is Pocket Frogs? I totally get the hatred for freemium (I share the same view myself), but Nimblebit are definitely an exception to the rule.
Freemium likes: It's free, der.... Freemium hates: Mostly no content unless you pay, and if you pay you would have been better off with a full featured full version. Final Verdict: If you keep releasing freemium games Gameloft then I am going to get annoyed, you have ruined Let's Golf 3, and Madden 12 this way, and will probably ruin Real Football 12 too
