A time sink (also timesink), time drain or time-waster is an activity that consumes a significant amount of time, especially one which is seen as a wasteful way of spending it. Although it is unknown when the term was coined, it makes an analogy with
heat sink.
In video games
In
massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs), time sinks are a method of increasing the time needed by players to do certain tasks, hopefully causing them to subscribe for longer periods of time.
[Miller, Matt]
Timesinks
''MMODesigner.com'', 31 May 2010. Players may use the term disparagingly to describe a simplistic and time-consuming aspect of
gameplay, possibly designed to keep players playing longer without significant benefit. Time sinks can also be used for other gameplay reasons, such as to help regenerate
resources or
monsters in the
game world.
Negative connotations
Many players consider time sinks to be an inherently poor design decision, only included so that game companies can increase profits. For example, one
Slashdot article describes time sinks as "gameplay traps intended to waste your time and keep you playing longer".
Slashdot: "EverQuest: What You Really Get From an Online Game"
27 December 2002. In most games, boring and lengthy parts of gameplay are merely an annoyance, but when used in subscription
The subscription business model is a business model in which a customer must pay a recurring price at regular intervals for access to a product or service. The model was pioneered by publishers of books and periodicals in the 17th century, and ...
-based MMORPG
A massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) is a video game that combines aspects of a role-playing video game and a massively multiplayer online game.
As in role-playing games (RPGs), the player assumes the role of a Player charac ...
s, where players are paying recurring fees for access to the game, they become a much more inflammatory issue. Game designers must be prudent in balancing efforts to produce both involving gameplay and the length of content that players expect.
Time sinks are often associated with hardcore games, though whether this is a positive or negative association depends on the context.
Trade-offs
Implementing time sinks in a video game is a delicate balancing act. Excessive use of time sinks may cause players to stop playing. However, if not enough time sinks are implemented, players may feel the game is too short or too easy, causing them to abandon the game much sooner out of boredom. A number of criteria can be used to evaluate use of time sinks, such as frequency, length, and variety (both of the nature of the time sink and the actions taken to overcome it). What is considered a good balance depends in part on the type of game in question. Casual games
A casual game is a video game targeted at a mass market audience, as opposed to a Hardcore gamer, hardcore game, which is targeted at Gamer#Dedication spectrum, hobbyist gamers. Casual games may exhibit any type of gameplay and genre. They genera ...
are often expected to have less in the way of time sinks, and hardcore games to have more, though this is not a hard and fast rule.
See also
* Distraction
* Busy work
* Procrastination
* Grinding (video gaming)
References
External links
The Jargon File - time sink
Wiki: "Timesink"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Time Sink
Massively multiplayer online role-playing games
Video game gameplay
Neologisms