Mainframe Industries has embarked on an ambitious journey to create an expansive sandbox MMO inspired by the legends of the medieval era. In the world of Pax Dei, myths are real, ghosts exist, and magic is unquestioned. Thousands of players will explore the land, build their homes, forge their reputation, and craft their own stories. The world will react to each decision and each creation.

Building an open-world MMO is both ambitious and expensive. To de-risk their mission without compromising their vision, the team sought a partner to help them move effectively through the early stages of development.

To meet this challenge, Mainframe turned to Navigator. This tool helped them pinpoint two key player personas that perfectly aligned with Pax Dei’s ethos. Navigator accelerated the game’s early development by delivering insights around the core loop, UX, and game design.

Recognizing the importance of “social experience” for their target audience, Mainframe concentrated on creating game mechanics that promoted collaboration, building, and collection. These elements not only engaged players in the short term but were seamlessly integrated into the overarching gameplay experience.

Through iterative playtesting and resonance studies, the team honed Pax Dei’s usability, focusing on the clarity of resource collection, purposeful utilization of different resources, and fostering social connections among players.

The strategic focus paid off significantly. In the first closed alpha testing phase, over 60% of participants were identified as belonging to Mainframe’s primary target persona, with another 20% falling into their second most valuable player segment. This strong alignment with their intended audience enabled Pax Dei to generate a substantial early community and indicated a robust product-market fit.

The clarity of vision regarding their target audience allowed the development team to significantly increase their velocity. Mainframe Industries’ careful strategizing and use of Navigator not only de-risked their ambitious project but set Pax Dei on a path to potentially redefine the MMO genre.