Also with those useless game key things, lootboxes and meatspace “mystery packages” (like those Squishmallow ones) are another version of the last panel.
If you pull a lever and it gives you junk, you might pull it a few times and then move on with life.
If you pull a lever and it gives you something amazing, you will excitedly pull that lever for a while before it loses its novelty and eventually you’ll only pull it if you need the amazing thing.
If you pull a lever and it usually gives you junk but occasionally gives you something amazing, that lever will remain fascinating for a much longer time.
That’s how gambling in games works, whether it’s purchasable loot boxes or random drops from enemies. They mostly give junk, sometimes something that looks kinda cool but is mostly also useless, occasionally something decent, rarely something awesome, and once in a blue moon something legendary that you can tell others about.
Then you make that lever free to pull occasionally or expensive to pull whenever you want. If you get that out there to enough people, you’ll find a nice little collection of people who dedicate their resources to pulling that lever as much as possible to “get” a collection of “items” that will give a temporary large burst of dopamine and then occasionally smaller bursts when you are reminded of having it when not everyone else does.
Also with those useless game key things, lootboxes and meatspace “mystery packages” (like those Squishmallow ones) are another version of the last panel.
If you pull a lever and it gives you junk, you might pull it a few times and then move on with life.
If you pull a lever and it gives you something amazing, you will excitedly pull that lever for a while before it loses its novelty and eventually you’ll only pull it if you need the amazing thing.
If you pull a lever and it usually gives you junk but occasionally gives you something amazing, that lever will remain fascinating for a much longer time.
That’s how gambling in games works, whether it’s purchasable loot boxes or random drops from enemies. They mostly give junk, sometimes something that looks kinda cool but is mostly also useless, occasionally something decent, rarely something awesome, and once in a blue moon something legendary that you can tell others about.
Then you make that lever free to pull occasionally or expensive to pull whenever you want. If you get that out there to enough people, you’ll find a nice little collection of people who dedicate their resources to pulling that lever as much as possible to “get” a collection of “items” that will give a temporary large burst of dopamine and then occasionally smaller bursts when you are reminded of having it when not everyone else does.