In-game purchases
Mobile
Why players buy: The power of social pressure in gaming
March 27, 2025•6 min
In this blog series, we’re looking at what drives players to make purchases—both in-game and online. So far, we’ve explored how motivations like time-saving and efficiency-boosting can guide players toward spending more in your web shop. Today, we’re focusing on another powerful driver: social pressure.
Social pressure in gaming is about the desire to belong. Whether it's a tight-knit guild, a regional clan, or a larger community on Discord, players are motivated by what their peers are doing—and what their group expects from them.
This pressure to fit in or give back creates two key motivations:
The urge to conform manifests as a player’s need to stay on pace with their group. Whether it’s leveling up, acquiring gear, or unlocking new content, falling behind can feel like letting the team down or losing status within the group, which can be a big driver for spending.
A player might purchase XP boosts or resource packs simply to match their clanmates’ level progress. If others are using a certain in-game bonus and talking about the rewards in chat, there’s pressure to use that same bonus, either to avoid missing out or to stay competitive. Players may also invest in functionality upgrades, such as additional character slots or queue building, to ensure they’re contributing at the same level.
Cosmetics and gear play a part too. When a group adopts a unified look, purchasing the same skins or gear becomes a way to visually belong. And when clanmates are exploring content that’s locked behind paid DLC or expansions, players are incentivized to buy access—not necessarily because they’re interested in the content itself, but because they don’t want to be left out.
For example, in a clan-based MMO like World of Warcraft, players who fall behind in gear or character progression can’t contribute effectively in raids or PvP. And to stay relevant and maintain social standing, they often feel compelled to invest more in upgrades and content access.
The desire to give
On the other side of the coin, social pressure can also drive generosity, motivating players to spend to uplift the group, whether through shared benefits, gifts, or collective progress.
In strategy games like Vikings: War of Clans or Last Fortress: Underground players might pay to speed up construction or research queues on a clanmate’s base. Others may spend to send gifts like bonuses, in-game currency, or special items that reward the entire team. Even upgrades like extra inventory space or VIP time can be framed as giving value back to the group, especially if they improve overall clan performance or unlock new capabilities.
This drive also extends to shared goals. Players may craft and distribute valuable gear to others or purchase content that unlocks new areas for group exploration. In games where clans collaborate to build a shared base or reach collective milestones, these contributions aren’t just helpful—they’re expected. And that expectation fuels ongoing monetization.
Even outside of traditional clans, social pressure can still influence spending behavior. Take casual games like Candy Crush Saga: players see a map of their friends’ progress, often displayed alongside their own. When everyone is advancing and one player is stuck, the pressure to “catch up” can prompt them to buy boosters, extra lives, or continues—just to stay in the game and maintain their place in the social graph.
One of the most direct ways to activate social pressure in your Web Shop is through Clan Rewards: a system where every purchase made by an individual benefits their entire clan. When a player buys something, they’re not just improving their own experience, they’re contributing to a collective goal like filling a shared progress bar, unlocking exclusive bundles, or triggering bonuses for the entire group once certain thresholds are met.
Since players don’t want to be the only ones who haven’t contributed, they’re also motivated to help the group reach the next tier of rewards. And because this system is available in any Xsolla-powered Web Shop, it can be integrated into a wide range of genres, from MMOs to strategy games to casual titles – any game with a clan or community structure.
Adding social nudges to your storefront
Beyond formal reward systems, social pressure can be activated through subtle cues in the shopping experience. Social nudges are small bits of context that signal what other players are doing or how a purchase might benefit the group. In the context of a web shop, that can mean increased purchase frequency, higher average order value, and greater overall engagement.
Growth through referrals
Even mechanics that apply lighter social pressure, like referral systems, can benefit from this dynamic. When a player shares a referral link to your web shop, they’re inviting someone into their community. And if the referral system includes shared incentives or clan-wide benefits for successful invites, it becomes a natural extension of the player’s desire to give back to their group.
While this form of social pressure is less urgent, it still encourages players to take action and creates a direct path for new players to enter the ecosystem and start spending.
- The desire to conform. The need to keep up with the group, not fall behind in progress, gear, or content.
- The desire to give. The drive to support the clan, share rewards, or bring value to friends and teammates.
What social pressure makes players buy
Players motivated by social pressure often make purchases to either match the progress of their group or actively support it. These behaviors are tightly connected to other core motivations that we’ve explored in this blog series like time-saving, vanity, efficiency, and user experience optimization — except here, those motivations are fueled by the desire to belong and contribute. The desire to conform
The urge to conform manifests as a player’s need to stay on pace with their group. Whether it’s leveling up, acquiring gear, or unlocking new content, falling behind can feel like letting the team down or losing status within the group, which can be a big driver for spending.
A player might purchase XP boosts or resource packs simply to match their clanmates’ level progress. If others are using a certain in-game bonus and talking about the rewards in chat, there’s pressure to use that same bonus, either to avoid missing out or to stay competitive. Players may also invest in functionality upgrades, such as additional character slots or queue building, to ensure they’re contributing at the same level.
Cosmetics and gear play a part too. When a group adopts a unified look, purchasing the same skins or gear becomes a way to visually belong. And when clanmates are exploring content that’s locked behind paid DLC or expansions, players are incentivized to buy access—not necessarily because they’re interested in the content itself, but because they don’t want to be left out.
For example, in a clan-based MMO like World of Warcraft, players who fall behind in gear or character progression can’t contribute effectively in raids or PvP. And to stay relevant and maintain social standing, they often feel compelled to invest more in upgrades and content access.
The desire to give
On the other side of the coin, social pressure can also drive generosity, motivating players to spend to uplift the group, whether through shared benefits, gifts, or collective progress.
In strategy games like Vikings: War of Clans or Last Fortress: Underground players might pay to speed up construction or research queues on a clanmate’s base. Others may spend to send gifts like bonuses, in-game currency, or special items that reward the entire team. Even upgrades like extra inventory space or VIP time can be framed as giving value back to the group, especially if they improve overall clan performance or unlock new capabilities.
This drive also extends to shared goals. Players may craft and distribute valuable gear to others or purchase content that unlocks new areas for group exploration. In games where clans collaborate to build a shared base or reach collective milestones, these contributions aren’t just helpful—they’re expected. And that expectation fuels ongoing monetization.
Even outside of traditional clans, social pressure can still influence spending behavior. Take casual games like Candy Crush Saga: players see a map of their friends’ progress, often displayed alongside their own. When everyone is advancing and one player is stuck, the pressure to “catch up” can prompt them to buy boosters, extra lives, or continues—just to stay in the game and maintain their place in the social graph.
How social pressure can impact Xsolla Web Shop monetization
Social pressure doesn’t stop at gameplay, it extends into the purchasing experience, especially when that experience is designed to reflect the player's connections to others. When players feel their actions are part of a collective effort or seen by their peers, they’re more likely to spend to contribute to their community. Xsolla Web Shop has the tools and structure to support community-driven mechanics that tap directly into players' social motivations. By integrating features that highlight group progress, shared rewards, and peer influence, developers can turn those motivations into measurable increases in player engagement and sales. Encouraging group contribution
One of the most direct ways to activate social pressure in your Web Shop is through Clan Rewards: a system where every purchase made by an individual benefits their entire clan. When a player buys something, they’re not just improving their own experience, they’re contributing to a collective goal like filling a shared progress bar, unlocking exclusive bundles, or triggering bonuses for the entire group once certain thresholds are met.
Since players don’t want to be the only ones who haven’t contributed, they’re also motivated to help the group reach the next tier of rewards. And because this system is available in any Xsolla-powered Web Shop, it can be integrated into a wide range of genres, from MMOs to strategy games to casual titles – any game with a clan or community structure.
Adding social nudges to your storefront
Beyond formal reward systems, social pressure can be activated through subtle cues in the shopping experience. Social nudges are small bits of context that signal what other players are doing or how a purchase might benefit the group. In the context of a web shop, that can mean increased purchase frequency, higher average order value, and greater overall engagement.
Growth through referrals
Even mechanics that apply lighter social pressure, like referral systems, can benefit from this dynamic. When a player shares a referral link to your web shop, they’re inviting someone into their community. And if the referral system includes shared incentives or clan-wide benefits for successful invites, it becomes a natural extension of the player’s desire to give back to their group.
While this form of social pressure is less urgent, it still encourages players to take action and creates a direct path for new players to enter the ecosystem and start spending.
Xsolla can help you turn social motivation into revenue
Players want to feel like they’re part of something bigger—whether it’s a clan, a guild, or a wider community. This is where community-driven features like Clan Rewards, social nudges, and referral systems can make a real difference. By tapping into the motivation to belong and contribute, you create a web shop experience that feels meaningful and connected. Xsolla Web Shop provides ready-made tools to seamlessly implement any motivational mechanic on the web. With tools that enable shared rewards, contextual messaging, and flexible referral systems, it turns social pressure into a powerful monetization engine. By aligning your web shop experience with how players already think and behave, you can encourage deeper engagement and drive repeat purchases for your games.Featured articles
Explore our
latest articles
Contact us
Talk to an expert
Ready to maximize revenue opportunities? Reach out to our experts and learn how to start earning more and spending less.