The badges

Every way a game can charge you

Each game in the guide gets badges for how it makes money and labels for what's in it, and the companies behind it get badges for their track record. Open any badge to see what you're actually buying, how it works, when it's fine and what to watch for.

Fair

Pay clearly, know the ceiling

You know what you are paying for before you pay, and there is a limit to what the game can take.

Watch

Fine if you understand it

Reasonable on its own, but it can tip into overspending or overplaying if nobody is paying attention.

Caution

Built to push spending

Commonly designed to make you spend or play more than you would choose: pressure, friction you can pay to remove, or prices you can't easily see.

Harmful

Chance, compulsion or exploitation

Built around chance, compulsion or exploiting players: paid randomness, gambling-like loops, or money that can leave the game.

How you pay

Price-tag badges describe the business model: what the money is actually for.

Fair

Pay once

Pay once (premium)

You pay one price up front and the whole game is yours to play.

28 games in the guide →

Try then buy

Shareware and free demos

Play the first part for free; pay only if you want the rest.

2 games in the guide →

Expansion

Expansion packs

More of a game you already own, in its own box, for a known price.

3 games in the guide →

Watch

Paid DLC

Paid DLC and season passes

The game is sold in slices: pay again for maps, characters, chapters or cosmetics.

7 games in the guide →

Editions

Deluxe editions, pre-orders and re-releases

The same game sold in a pricier edition, ahead of release, or again as a re-release.

22 games in the guide →

Early access

Early access and crowdfunding

You pay now for a game that is still being made.

Explainer →

Subscription

Monthly subscription (one game)

You pay every month to keep playing one online world.

6 games in the guide →

Online sub

Subscription to play online

You pay a yearly fee just to play online with the game you already own.

5 games in the guide →

Game library

Game library subscription

One monthly fee gets you access to a catalogue of games you don't own.

10 games in the guide →

Cloud stream

Cloud streaming

The game runs on a company's computer and is streamed to your screen.

Explainer →

Licence only

Licence, not a copy (game-key cards)

You buy the right to play, not a copy you can keep.

Explainer →

Pay per play

Pay per play (arcade credits)

You put in a coin or a credit every time you want a turn.

3 games in the guide →

Cosmetics

Cosmetic-only purchases

The game is free or fully fair to play, and you pay only for looks.

15 games in the guide →

Caution

By the hour

Pay by the hour (time-billed)

The clock is running, and you are paying for every minute you're connected.

Explainer →

Free-to-play

Free-to-play with in-app purchases

The game costs nothing to start, then sells you things inside it.

26 games in the guide →

Battle pass

Battle pass / season pass

You buy a ticket for a season, then earn the rewards by playing against the clock.

18 games in the guide →

Ad-funded

Ad-supported (free with ads)

The game is free because advertisers pay for your attention.

6 games in the guide →

Creator coins

Player-built worlds and platform currency

Players make the games, and everyone pays in the platform's own currency.

4 games in the guide →

Cash trading

Real-money trading and token exchanges

Players, or the publisher, swap in-game items and currency for real money.

7 games in the guide →

Harmful

Loot boxes

Loot boxes (paid random items)

You pay for a mystery box and hope it holds what you wanted.

13 games in the guide →

Gacha

Gacha (paid random pulls)

You pay for a random pull at a character, and the best ones are rare on purpose.

4 games in the guide →

Play-to-earn

Play-to-earn, crypto and NFT games

You buy in, play, and are promised tokens you can cash out.

1 game in the guide →

Gambling

Real-money gambling

You bet real money on a chance of winning real money.

Explainer →

Techniques

Hooked badges describe the mechanics a game uses to keep players paying or playing. One game can use many.

Watch

Daily pressure

Daily rewards, streaks and pressure to return

The game rewards you for turning up every day and nags you when you don't.

12 games in the guide →

Starter pack

Starter packs and first-purchase bonuses

A cheap, too-good-to-miss first purchase that gets you to open your wallet for the first time.

9 games in the guide →

Rewarded ads

Rewarded ads ('watch to continue')

Watch an ad to keep going, get an extra life or double your reward.

2 games in the guide →

Collect all

Collect-them-all pressure

The set is never quite complete, and finishing it costs more.

15 games in the guide →

Caution

Held back

Content held back for sale

Part of the game feels missing, and you can buy it back.

4 games in the guide →

Game currency

Virtual currency (gems, coins, credits)

You swap real money for gems, coins or points first, and prices are then shown in those instead of dollars.

31 games in the guide →

Wait or pay

Energy and wait timers

The game makes you stop or wait, then sells you the way round it.

10 games in the guide →

FOMO timers

Limited-time offers and FOMO

If you don't buy or play it before the timer runs out, it's gone.

21 games in the guide →

Made scarce

Manufactured scarcity and grind

Good things are made rare or slow to earn so you'll pay to skip the grind.

8 games in the guide →

Tuned to spend

Difficulty tuned to make you pay

The game is made hard or easy on purpose to get you to spend.

Explainer →

Pay to win

Pay-to-win power

Players who spend get stronger than players who don't.

6 games in the guide →

Pity timer

Pity timers and guaranteed pulls

If you keep paying for random pulls, the game eventually promises you the prize.

4 games in the guide →

Whale design

Built around 'whales' (heavy spenders)

Most players pay nothing, so the game is built to find the few who will pay a lot.

2 games in the guide →

Social nudges

Social pressure (gifting, guilds, asking friends)

The game uses your friends, family or team to keep you playing and paying.

8 games in the guide →

One-tap buys

One-tap purchases and dark patterns

Buying takes a single tap, with no password and little chance to think.

Explainer →

Kids' spending

Aimed at children (parents' cards)

The audience is children, and the money comes from a parent's card.

1 game in the guide →

Forced ads

Intrusive ads between rounds

Full-screen ads pop up after every round, whether you want them or not.

Explainer →

Never-ending

Built never to end

The game has no end because it makes money while you keep playing.

20 games in the guide →

Always online

Always-online requirements and kill switches

The game needs the company's servers to work, so it can be switched off.

15 games in the guide →

Data harvest

Data harvesting (the game as a sensor)

The game quietly records what you do and sells or uses it.

4 games in the guide →

Creator labour

Players build it, the platform keeps the cut

Kids make the games, and the company keeps most of the money.

1 game in the guide →

Harmful

Slot-machine

Slot-machine mechanics (variable rewards)

The game pays out at random, with near-misses and big wins dangled in front of you, like a slot machine.

4 games in the guide →

Skin betting

Skin betting and third-party gambling sites

Game items worth real money are used as chips on outside gambling sites.

3 games in the guide →

What's in it

Square labels describe a game's content: violence, language, sex, drugs, gambling themes and more. They come from the official classification descriptors (Australia's ACB, ESRB, PEGI and USK), and each game shows the strongest level any board gives. They have no money rating and never change a game's verdict.

mildBrief, cartoonish or low in detail: ACB G or PG, PEGI 3 or 7, or an ESRB "Mild" or "Fantasy" descriptor.
moderateClearly there, but not dwelt on: ACB M, PEGI 12 or 16, or a plain ESRB descriptor such as "Violence" or "Blood".
strongRealistic, detailed, frequent or intense: ACB MA 15+ or R 18+, PEGI 18, or ESRB "Intense", "Strong" or "Blood and Gore".

Violence

Fighting, weapons, injury and death, from cartoon bonks to realistic killing.

36 games in the guide →

Blood & gore

Blood and gore

Blood, injuries and body damage on screen.

17 games in the guide →

Sex & nudity

Sex and nudity

Sexual references, innuendo, sexualised imagery, nudity and sex scenes.

11 games in the guide →

Drugs & alcohol

Drugs, alcohol and tobacco

References to, or use of, illegal drugs, alcohol and tobacco.

10 games in the guide →

Language

Coarse language

Swearing and crude language, from the odd 'damn' to frequent strong profanity.

16 games in the guide →

Sim. gambling

Simulated gambling

Casino games and gambling imagery, played without real money.

7 games in the guide →

Horror & fear

Horror and fear

Scary scenes, jump scares, horror and supernatural themes.

5 games in the guide →

Mature themes

Crime, cruelty, death, suicide and self-harm, discrimination, and crude humour.

14 games in the guide →

Who makes it

Hexagon badges describe the company behind a game: regulator and court actions, child safety, how it treats staff and players, and good practice too. They use the money-rating colours as a track-record scale, attach to the company rather than the game, and never change a game's verdict. Browse the companies

Harmful · Serious findings

Child safety

Child-safety enforcement

A regulator, court or settlement has dealt with harm to children, their privacy, or marketing aimed at them.

5 companies in the guide →

Dark patterns

Dark-pattern ruling

A regulator or court has acted over purchase design built to trip people up: unwanted charges, cancellation traps or false urgency.

1 company in the guide →

Workplace misconduct

Workplace misconduct findings

An official finding or settlement over harassment or discrimination against staff.

3 companies in the guide →

Caution · Penalties and ties

Loot-box action

Loot-box enforcement

A regulator, court or class-action settlement over paid random items: loot boxes, gacha pulls, card packs.

6 companies in the guide →

Privacy penalty

Privacy penalty or breach

A privacy regulator's fine or order, or a breach of the company's systems that exposed players' data.

2 companies in the guide →

Misleading ads

Misleading-marketing action

An advertising or consumer regulator ruled against the company's ads, trailers or store pages.

6 companies in the guide →

Gambling ties

Gambling-industry ties

Owned by, or owns, a real-money gambling business.

Explainer →

Watch · Worth knowing

Crunch

Crunch reports

Credible reports of staff working long stretches of overtime to hit deadlines.

5 companies in the guide →

Labour dispute

A formal dispute with workers: an unfair-labour-practice charge, a strike, or a claim over pay or conditions.

4 companies in the guide →

Large layoffs

Cut at least 10% of its staff, or 300 or more jobs, in one round.

11 companies in the guide →

Shut down paid games

Shut down games people paid for

Turned off servers or stores so that games people bought stopped working, lost features they paid for, or can't be downloaded again.

9 companies in the guide →

Competition law

Competition-law action

A competition regulator or court acted against the company over market power, pricing or exclusive deals.

7 companies in the guide →

Fair · Good practice

Pay-once house

Most of its games are sold at one price, with no paid currency or repeatable purchases.

4 companies in the guide →

Independent

Independent studio

Owned by its founders or staff, not by a publisher, platform owner or investment fund.

6 companies in the guide →

Publishes odds

Publishes drop odds

Shows the chance of every item before you pay for a random reward, or requires the games on its platform to.

2 companies in the guide →

No loot boxes

Sells no paid random items in any of its current games, or has publicly committed not to.

1 company in the guide →

Keeps games playable

Keeps old games playable

Keeps older games working, updated and on sale, or releases them in a form that doesn't need its servers.

2 companies in the guide →