Progression Redesign
Atlantis Relaunch
Using live data and player feedback to find where players dropped out of a major expansion, then reworking its entry, early progression and reward visibility for the relaunch.
Role
Game Designer · Progression Redesign
Status
Shipped
Tools
Unity Analytics, Confluence, Jira
Case study
From weak adoption to a clearer way in.
Atlantis was an underperforming expansion. Players said its gameplay felt unlike the rest of Seafight, its entry was gated and its progression was slow. I worked on the redesign from problem definition through launch and review, using live data and player feedback to decide what had to change.
Context
Atlantis was a major permanent area within Seafight, but its initial release was not attracting or retaining enough players.
Problem
Adoption was weak and player feedback was negative, pointing to gameplay that differed from the rest of Seafight, gated entry and slow progression. The entry experience, progression curve, rewards and motivation were not giving enough players a reason to continue.
Evidence and insight
I combined Unity Analytics with player feedback to locate barriers in onboarding, early progression, reward visibility and return motivation.
What I designed
I worked on the redesign from problem definition through to implementation support, launch and review, focusing on the early experience rather than the endgame.
Constraints and trade-offs
The relaunch had to improve the opening without invalidating existing progress, inventories, economy expectations or the area's endgame value.
Design Breakdown
Atlantis Relaunch: Before and After
What the original release got wrong, as players described it, and what each part of the redesign set out to change.
A retrospective summary of design decisions, not measured results for each dimension.
Entry
Entry was gated, and the area played differently from the rest of Seafight, so the first step felt vague and costly.
Open to every player, with the long "Road to Atlantis" questline removed.
First meaningful goal
Progression was slow, leaving too much distance between entering and the first moment that felt rewarding.
Every map open from the start instead of unlocking in a fixed order, so players choose where to play.
Reward visibility
Players could not easily judge whether the time and effort would be worth it.
Rewards and progression value shown earlier, so players can judge the feature on visible returns.
Return motivation
Little reason to come back after the first exploratory session.
Progress and upcoming payoffs visible enough to give players a reason to return.
Design decisions
- Opened Atlantis to every player instead of gating entry, removing one of the three barriers players named.
- Removed the long "Road to Atlantis" questline, so players reached the expansion's own content sooner.
- Opened every map from the start instead of unlocking them in a fixed order, so players could choose where to play.
- Kept changes compatible with existing progression, inventories and economy expectations.
Outcome
Daily active players inside the expansion rose by 50% after the relaunch, which opened the expansion to every player, removed the "Road to Atlantis" questline and opened every map from the start.
Limitations
Absolute player numbers are confidential, so I can share the relative change but not the baseline behind it. A post-launch rise also cannot isolate the redesign's effect on its own, so I describe what I designed and what happened next, not a proven causal link.