Three F2P Games, Three Wildly Different Journeys

Free-to-play games are sneaky little creatures. They lure you in with “hey, it’s free!” and before you know it, you’ve either sold your soul for skins, cursed RNG boards, or spent your 3rd coffee break trying to merge 18 screws into a watering can. Let’s talk about three very different beasts of the F2P jungle that I have been hooked on for quite some time: Valorant, Candy Crush, and Merge Mansion and break them down by Monetisation, Retention, Mechanics, and Gameplay.

Game 1 – Valorant (Riot Games)

Valorant is Riot’s stylish lovechild of Counter-Strike and Overwatch. It’s a sweaty, tactical 5v5 shooter where headshots are king and every character (Agent) comes with their own spicy abilities. It’s competitive, it’s addictive, and it’ll make you question your reflexes every other round. It also makes you promise to yourself every few days that you will quit this game, but you are back at it the next minute.

Monetisation

• The Good Stuff: Riot keeps it clean. Monetisation is strictly cosmetic. No pay-to-win nonsense, just fancy guns that sparkle, sing, or light up when you clutch. The battle pass is reasonably priced, and skins genuinely feel like luxury items.

• The Messy Bits: Those luxury items come at luxury prices. Entire bundles often cost more than an AAA game. Free players? Sorry, you’re stuck with default guns forever. And yes, Riot loves a good FOMO trap with “limited edition” drops.

Retention

• The Good Stuff: Ranked grind is the never-ending hamster wheel that competitive players can’t resist. Riot adds new agents, maps, and battle passes like clockwork, keeping things fresh.

• The Messy Bits: If you’re new? Welcome to toxic lobbies, 40-minute matches, and the realisation that you might just be human-aimbot practice. It can be exhausting without a squad.

  
  

Mechanics

• The Good Stuff: Guns are crisp, movement is sharp, and abilities make every round strategic. It’s a perfect “easy to watch, hard to master” game.

• The Messy Bits: Balancing is a never-ending seesaw. Sometimes one agent is the Taylor Swift of the lobby, while the rest are backup dancers. New players drown in lineups, callouts, and weird pro tactics.

  
  

Gameplay

• The Good Stuff: Those clutch 1v5 moments? Goosebumps. The adrenaline? Chef’s kiss. Every match feels high-stakes.

• The Messy Bits: But after three sweaty games, your brain feels fried. Solo queue is basically masochism disguised as gaming.

Game 2 – Candy Crush Saga (King)

Ah, Candy Crush. The game your aunt, your coworker, and probably your dentist still play. A match-3 puzzle giant that’s been around since 2012, it’s the OG time-killer that sneaks into your coffee breaks and long bus rides. It’s also the game where our moms are the true MVPs.

Monetization

• The Sweet Stuff: Microtransactions are pocket change at first. A booster here, an extra life there. You can get far without paying, especially in the early game.

• The Sticky Stuff: By the time you’re in the late 500s (or 2000s if you’re truly unhinged), levels feel borderline impossible without power-ups. The game thrives on frustration loops: run out of lives, wait, or… spend.

Retention

• The Sweet Stuff: Infinite levels. Events. Daily spins. King will never run out of content for you. The “lives” system cleverly makes you leave and come back later.

• The Sticky Stuff: The repetition is real. After a while, swapping candies feels like déjà vu. Some levels are recycled in disguise.

Mechanics

• The Sweet Stuff: Match-3 is as simple and universal as it gets. Special candies and blockers keep it interesting. The “just one more move” feeling is powerful.

• The Sticky Stuff: RNG boards. Sometimes you just lose because the candies decided to align against you. Strategy feels like luck on bad days.

  
  

Gameplay

• The Sweet Stuff: The pop when you crush a combo is pure dopamine. The visuals are shiny, the sounds are satisfying, and it’s built for those quick bursts of joy.

• The Sticky Stuff: Difficulty spikes out of nowhere. Limited moves make it feel less like a puzzle and more like a sales pitch for boosters.

  
  

Game 3 – Merge Mansion (Metacore)

Now this one’s spicy. Merge Mansion is a merge-puzzle mystery where you combine items to fix up a mansion… while Grandma hides dark secrets. Seriously, it’s marketed like a show straight out of Netflix: mysterious trailers, hidden pasts, and a grandma you know is hiding bodies in the backyard.

Monetization

• The Clever Bits: Energy limits your playtime, pacing you naturally. Optional bundles and event deals don’t feel pushy at first. There are IAPs for all spending styles, from small boosts to bigger packages.

• The Painful Bits: Mid to late game? Progression crawls. Items take days to appear, and energy runs out fast. If patience isn’t your thing, the game is ready to swipe your card.

  
  

Retention

• The Clever Bits: The story hook is brilliant. Everyone just has to know what Grandma’s hiding. Seasonal events, mansion renovation, and push notifications keep players checking back.

• The Painful Bits: The grind is real. Energy walls and slow item generation push many players away. Curiosity can only carry you so far when the game says, “Come back in 6 hours.”

  
  

Mechanics

• The Clever Bits: Merging items is surprisingly satisfying, and the long chains of merges create big progression goals. Decorating the mansion adds a fun meta-game.

• The Painful Bits: The merge board becomes a cluttered garage of half-finished items. The timers make it less about clever play and more about waiting (or paying).

Gameplay

• The Clever Bits: Quick merges scratch that “just one more” itch. The mystery vibe makes the puzzle progress feel meaningful.

• The Painful Bits: Sometimes you’re stuck staring at your board with nothing to do. Skill barely matters. It’s patience vs. wallet.

Wrap-Up

• Valorant is for the hardcore competitive crowd. Stylish, sweaty, and expensive. You won’t pay to win, but you will pay to flex.

• Candy Crush is the casual classic. Sweet, addictive, and endlessly repetitive. It’s both your comfort snack and your guilty grind.

• Merge Mansion is the quirky newcomer. Part puzzle, part soap opera, and part waiting game. The mystery keeps you hooked… until the energy system slaps you in the face.

F2P games may all live under the same label, but as you can see, each takes a very different road to balance fun, frustration, and cash flow.

Got questions? Write to me: deepanjali2k@gmail.com