Shift from Gaming as "Enjoyed Experience" to Gaming as "Followed Activity"
The subcultural game market is still growing -- major titles maintain high revenue based on AppMagic and Sensor Tower market analysis. "Honkai: Star Rail" ranked in global mobile revenue top tier in 2025 with stable revenue structure; "Genshin Impact" has repeatedly bounced back in revenue with major updates even 5 years post-launch. The structural paradox: the gacha and battle pass design that drives short-term revenue simultaneously erodes two axes sustaining long-term game sustainability. New users hit invisible entry barriers and leave before the game becomes sufficiently familiar. Existing loyal users reach fatigue first while bearing the highest spending pressure. The game design paradox: the system is structurally designed so that the players who have enjoyed the game the longest and most deeply are the first to be exhausted. Monetization design creates conversion of the playful into the obligatory -- daily login requirements, time-limited events, non-accumulating premium currency spending, content designed for heavy spenders -- all create a "work" relationship with the game rather than a "play" relationship. Fatigue is not a bug in this system; it is an emergent property of the design. The question for the industry: can gacha games redesign their monetization to sustain player engagement beyond the initial high-spending phase, or is the current model fundamentally incompatible with long-term player wellbeing?
