---
title: How Plarium uncovered player needs with competitor testing
description: Discover how Plarium used PlaytestCloud’s moderated playtests to uncover player motivations, spending behaviors, and key genre insights that shaped development.
image: https://start.playtestcloud.com/hubfs/Frame%20483099.png
---

![Plarium Logo in black](https://start.playtestcloud.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Plarium%20Logo-2-1.png?width=150&height=112&name=Plarium%20Logo-2-1.png)

# How Plarium uncovered player needs with competitor testing

![open_graph_allgames_re](https://start.playtestcloud.com/hs-fs/hubfs/open_graph_allgames_re.webp?width=1200&height=630&name=open_graph_allgames_re.webp)

Industry

Gaming

Challenge

Plarium set out to understand how experienced players interact with a specific game genre — from motivations and engagement patterns to spending behaviors.

Results

The team uncovered what drives excitement, where expectations fall short, and how to better align their game with player needs.

Playtest

Moderated playtest, Competitor Playtest

[ plarium.com ](https://plarium.com/)

15

Experienced Players

60min

Moderated Session

## Our goal was to understand the player experience—daily habits, motivations, spending behavior, and which game areas are more or less engaging or clear. Conducting in-depth interviews with active players was a great way to gain deeper insights into their experiences.

May Recanati

Qualitative Researcher @Plarium

![Plarium logo in black](https://start.playtestcloud.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Frame%20483100.png?width=587&height=413&name=Frame%20483100.png)

## About Plarium

Plarium is a global developer and publisher of mobile and PC strategy games, best known for titles like *RAID: Shadow Legends*, *Vikings: War of Clans*, and *Lost Island: Blast Adventure*. With millions of players worldwide, Plarium focuses on delivering highly engaging experiences across a variety of genres.

### Understanding genre engagement at a deeper level

Plarium wanted to go beyond surface-level analytics and dive into **why players engage with certain genres the way they do**. Their objectives were clear:

- Understand daily player motivations
- Observe engagement patterns with the genre
- Identify strengths and weaknesses of the genre
- Compare player spending behaviors

### Moderated playtesting with experienced players

Plarium partnered with PlaytestCloud to recruit and interview **highly experienced players** of a popular game in the genre.

- **Custom Screener Recruitment** → ensured only the right, genre-savvy players participated.
- **60-minute [Moderated Sessions](https://www.playtestcloud.com/moderated-research)** → players shared their experiences and habits while a researcher guided the discussion.
- **Player Handpicking** → client received detailed player profiles and hand-selected participants for the final group.

A total of **15 players** took part, offering both gameplay observation and rich narrative insights.

### Clearer insights, smarter development

The research revealed the **core motivations** that keep players engaged — and highlighted the areas where expectations weren’t being fully met.

Key takeaways:

- Pinpointed **what excites experienced players most** about the genre.
- Identified **weak spots** in clarity and engagement.
- Mapped out **spending behavior patterns** tied to player motivations.
- Provided a clear direction for future development to ensure alignment with player needs and expectations.

As Plarium summarized:

> “These findings have directly informed the development of our game, ensuring it aligns with player needs and expectations within this genre.”

## Curious about playtesting with PlaytestCloud?

[![Let's Talk!](https://hubspot-no-cache-eu1-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/cta/default/145345425/interactive-273886873802.png) ](https://start.playtestcloud.com/hs/cta/wi/redirect?encryptedPayload=AVxigLJjbLE7FYHxnzaa%2F07R%2BVotsdvw%2FbrHFRvLb8%2BpIP0UrX4KAI%2BsoFxPVXkJg85Rrw102gu1FUMu%2FJdYzQbojIELSEGbaqKEF606e3da6F7znGhGKgrQT7C7p9F9YfS1wEGg47Id10JoTDddoMVRCPdyzpv41znoQMOTG503tkO6zQLKCpZ8PyZN1mqrvzIQwg%3D%3D&webInteractiveContentId=273886873802&portalId=145345425&hsLang=en)

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