Mercenary Games

A term for games—video games, tabletop games, any form of play—that are designed not for fun, art, or expression but purely for profit, exploiting players through microtransactions, loot boxes, pay-to-win mechanics, and addictive design. Mercenary Games treat players not as participants but as revenue streams, not as audiences but as targets. They're designed by psychologists to maximize engagement and spending, not enjoyment. Mercenary Games are the dark side of the gaming industry, the reason your kid's favorite game costs $100 to actually play, the reason "free-to-play" is the most expensive model. They're games as extraction, play as exploitation.

Example: "He downloaded a game that looked fun—cool graphics, interesting mechanics. Three hours later, he'd spent $50 on loot boxes just to stay competitive. Mercenary Games had done their work: turning play into payment, fun into extraction. He uninstalled, but the money was gone. The game wasn't designed for him to enjoy; it was designed for him to spend."

by Abzugal February 21, 2026

Mercenary Gaming

The practice or industry of designing and producing mercenary games—games whose primary purpose is profit extraction, not player enjoyment. Mercenary Gaming is the dominant business model of the contemporary games industry, where games are designed by data scientists and psychologists to maximize engagement and spending. It's the reason your phone buzzes with notifications to return to your "free" game, the reason loot boxes feel so compelling, the reason "whales" (big spenders) are more important than players. Mercenary Gaming has transformed play from a leisure activity into a consumption activity, from fun into extraction.

Example: "He'd been a gamer his whole life, but something had changed. Mercenary Gaming had taken over: every game wanted his money, his time, his data. Play felt like work, fun felt like manipulation. He missed the days when games were made to be enjoyed, not to extract."

by Abzugal February 21, 2026