Digital gamesWhy children want to play Brawl Stars again and again

Brawl Stars is an entertaining mobile game from Finnish game developer Supercell. Players can compete against each other in various modes in a colorful cartoon game environment. Battles can be played alone or in teams. In keeping with the title of the game, the characters are called "Brawlers ". They differ in appearance, strength and weapons depending on the game state.

The various game modes have to be unlocked gradually at the beginning. Players have a different task in each game mode. For example, the aim of the "Solo Showdown" mode, which is unlocked at the beginning, is to be the last of 10 players to survive. Other game modes include "Knockout" and "Bounty Hunt". Regardless of the mode, a game roundonlylastsa few minutes. In the game, users can communicate with each other in clubs or team chats.

Brawl Stars is available free of charge as an app for all mobile devices in the respective app stores. The age rating of the Entertainment Software Self-Regulation Body (USK) is twelve years and above. The educational game advisor NRW also recommends Brawl Stars for ages twelve and up. According to the manufacturer Supercell's terms of use, parents must agree to the terms and conditions if children have not yet reached the "minimum age for their region". Supercell does not check the age of players.

1. Quick start and short game rounds
   Brawl Stars is available free of charge and easily accessible. The game rounds usually only last a few minutes. As a result, children quickly experience a sense of achievement and play "another round" several times a day, on the go or during short breaks.
2. Eye-catching characters and strong identification
   The so-called "Brawlers" are designed creatively and humorously. Many children develop favorite characters, collect skins or compare rare characters with friends. New characters, animations and events regularly provide variety and a topic of conversation.
3. Reward systems provide long-term motivation
   The game works with many incentives: daily rewards, ranking lists, trophies, free spins or time-limited events. Winnings unlock new content and convey a sense of progress. Such mechanisms can strongly motivate children to continue playing regularly.
4. Community and team success
   Many children play Brawl Stars together with friends or classmates. Making appointments to play together is now part of the game for many children. Joint team successes strengthen the sense of belonging. At the same time, social pressure arises: those who don't play often don't know the latest trends or new characters and can't have a say.
5. Presence on YouTube, TikTok and Twitch
   Influencers, livestreams and Let's Play videos also contribute to the popularity of the game. Children see new strategies, rare characters or funny game scenes and often want to try them out for themselves.
6. Competition and collecting fun
   Leaderboards, rare skins and unlockable content appeal to many children's urge to collect and compete.

Excessive gaming

The various incentives in the game (rewards, loot box mechanisms, ranking lists) can encourage excessive gaming behavior. So-called dark patterns are used, which unconsciously tempt players to continue playing. Children who develop a high level of ambition when playing are particularly susceptible to addictive gaming behavior. If friends play as a team, the social pressure to succeed can also increase the time spent playing.

Cost traps through in-app purchases

In order to advance the flow of the game, game advantages can be acquired through paid in-app purchases (pay-to-progress principle). This is sometimes opaque, as the platform's internal currency (jewels) is based on real money. According to Supercell's terms of use, parents are "fully responsible for any unauthorized use of the Service by children. You are responsible for any use of your credit card or other payment system (such as PayPal) by children."

Cybergrooming and cyberbullying

In Brawl Stars, players can play together online by creating or joining clubs and communicating via chat. Chatting is not the main focus of the game, but there is still a risk of contact being initiated by other players(cybergrooming) due to the chat function. Frustration, verbal abuse or cyberbullying can occur during chat communication, especially in the event of lost rounds.

Would you like to allow your child to play Brawl Stars? Then you should consider the following:

• Accompany your child attentively in everyday life in order to recognize possible signs of excessive gaming behaviour in good time. Consistently limit the time spent playing on digital devices and promote child-friendly gaming alternatives. A media usage agreement negotiated by the family can be helpful.
• Set up a user account for your child and make sure that the age is entered correctly. With a child account, certain security settings can be made that are otherwise not possible. You can find out how to create a child account at www.medien-kindersicher.de.
• In the device settings, switch off push notifications that keep reminding your child to play.
• Determine whether and to what extent in-game purchases may be made by the child, with which payment methods and with which upper limits (e.g. pocket money). If you do not want to allow in-app purchases, you can prevent them in the device settings.
• Discuss rules for online communication with your child. Make them aware of contact risks such as unwanted contact(cybergrooming) or inappropriate communication behavior in chats(cyberbullying).
• Show your child the help section and the reporting options for inappropriate content in the app.
• Find out about age-appropriate and safe games from the NRW educational games guide.