Understanding the Elements of Addictive Mobile Apps

The

phone is not addictive; it's the apps and the social media on the phone that are addictive.

So the question should be why is social media so addictive. The answer to that is most likely the same as for drugs. Since I'm not a drug user, I don't know the answer.

Delayed Reward Systems

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use of delayed reward systems is a powerful tool in the design of addictive mobile apps. Recognize this face—you probably do if you ever played Destiny, one of the most addictive games currently out. As a longtime gamer, I've had my fair share of addictions, ranging from MMORPGs such as World of Warcraft, Guild Wars, SWTOR, to FPSs like Halo and Destiny, to ARPGs such as Diablo and Titan Quest.

What all of these games have in common is the treadmill never stops. There's always something more to achieve. Destiny built even further on this by adding a lot of RNG to their game with Master Rahool. If you don't know who Rahool is: he's an NPC on Destiny that exchanges tokens and engrams for rare quality, randomly generated items.

The dopamine rush that comes from finding a purple engram is extremely addictive due to the rarity of said engrams. This is just one example of how addiction can be worked into a game. You need to always have something the player can strive for, whether it's a new skin or a shiny portrait. Some players want to be better than others.

Take a look at Flappy Bird, one of the most addictive games in mobile gaming history, is also one of the simplest. Why? Because the reward was always there: a higher score than your friends. The real question you should be asking is: how can I make a non-nefarious addictive game? That's the real challenge.

Well, if it's a game, it has to be fun. Other than a game, a sticky/addictive app has to be useful, gratifying, or simply a great time killer.

Examples of Addictive Apps

Here are some examples of sticky and addictive apps I find:

Wunderlist – For a busy and forgetful person like me. WhatsApp – Self-explanatory. Kakao Talk – To talk to my Korean friends. Facebook – I hardly Facebook these days, but I know tons of people that are addicted to it. Google Maps / Waze – I travel a lot. Calculator – Hmmm, how much money are we making? Currency Converter – I travel a lot and do business globally. Asana – My company uses it for our products/projects.

These apps all share a common goal: to provide value to users while also keeping them engaged and coming back for more. By understanding the principles behind their design, developers can create apps that are both sticky and beneficial to their users.