Virtual economies design and analysis

How big is the virtual economy?
Global virtual multi-player gaming and virtual simulation platforms and interactive media revenue reached around $109 billion in 2019, up from $62 billion in 2015, and is projected to hit almost $129 billion by 2021, according to research house SuperData..
What are the advantages of a virtual economy?
The digital economy provides numerous benefits, which have contributed to its rapid expansion and positive effect on a variety of industries: Increased productivity.
Businesses can improve their productivity and efficiency by using digital technology to automate their operations and processes.
Reduced costs..
Houses (virtual goods), are bought and consumed (merged) by players.
They also dictate player progression.
Coins (virtual currency), are the common currency used for in-game transactions.
They are also available in the in-game store, in exchange for real money.
The economy in action
For example, your merge game may involve creating an empire of houses.
This is how it could work: Players start their game with small houses that generate revenue over time, usually in the form of coins.
They can use coins to buy more houses and merge them together to upgrade them.

4.4/5Goodreads How the basic concepts of economics—including markets, institutions, and money—can be used to create and analyze economies based on virtual goods.In the twenty-first-century digital world, virtual goods are sold for real money. Digital game Google BooksOriginally published: 2002Authors: Vili Lehdonvirta and Edward Castronova

This penetrating yet accessible book shows the value of economic thinking for designing virtual worlds, and the value of those virtual worlds for understanding ours. Online games and virtual worlds increasingly utilize sophisticated economies as part of their systems.

Categories

Virtual economies design and analysis

How big is the virtual economy?

What are the advantages of a virtual economy?