How to Build Game Loops, Part 4 of 4: Closing the Loop with Value and Currency

A game loop that doesn’t close is just a to-do list with extra steps. In this final installment of the 4-part game loop series, Yu-kai Chou reveals the piece most designers miss — how to create in-game value systems and currencies that keep players cycling through the loop voluntarily, not because they’re told to.

If you haven’t followed the series from the start: Part 1 covers the basic loop structure, Part 2 adds branching and choice, and Part 3 introduces feedback loops and escalation.

About the Creator of the Octalysis Framework

Yu-kai Chou created the Octalysis Framework after studying gamification since 2003 — years before the term entered mainstream vocabulary. As a Human-Systems Architect & Behavioral Designer, his framework has been applied by LEGO, Microsoft, Porsche, Coca-Cola, Salesforce, and MrBeast, impacting over 1.5 Billion Users.

Chou has taught the Octalysis methodology at Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Tesla, Google, BCG, and IDEO.

His work has been cited by Harvard, Stanford, MIT, Forbes, Wall Street Journal, Wired, US Department of Energy, NIST, NSF, NCBI, US Department of Education, ClinicalTrials.gov, and 3,700+ more academic publications. Explore his books here.

Closing the Game Loop: Why Value Matters

In Parts 1 through 3 of this series, we covered the structural mechanics of game loops: triggers, actions, feedback, and escalation. But structure alone doesn’t keep people engaged.

The missing ingredient is perceived value. If a player completes a loop and the reward feels meaningless, they won’t cycle through it again, no matter how elegant the loop structure is.

This is where most gamification implementations fail. They build loops around points and badges that carry no real weight in the user’s mind. The loop technically works, but nobody cares enough to repeat it.

Yu-kai calls this the difference between a closed loop and an open loop. A closed loop brings the player back to a state where they want to engage again. An open loop dumps them at a dead end with a trophy that collects dust.

In the Octalysis Framework, the key Core Drives that close loops are:

• Core Drive 4: Ownership & Possession: the player accumulates something they feel is theirs
• Core Drive 3: Empowerment of Creativity & Feedback: the player discovers new ways to use what they’ve earned
• Core Drive 6: Scarcity & Impatience: not everything is available at once, creating desire for more

When these three drives work together inside a loop, players don’t just repeat the loop. They want to repeat it.

Geomons in Octalysis Prime: A Case Study

Yu-kai demonstrates these principles through Geomons, collectible creatures inside Octalysis Prime (OP) that function as both rewards and loop-closers.

Geomons aren’t just collectibles sitting in your inventory. They serve multiple roles within the OP game loop:

• They’re earned through engagement: completing lessons, watching videos, and participating in challenges unlocks new Geomons (Core Drive 2: Development & Accomplishment)
• They have unique properties: each Geomon is different, making collection meaningful rather than repetitive (Core Drive 7: Unpredictability & Curiosity)
• They create social dynamics: members compare collections, trade insights about rare finds, and feel a sense of community (Core Drive 5: Social Influence & Relatedness)
• They’re scarce: not all Geomons are available at all times, which drives ongoing engagement (Core Drive 6)

This is a textbook example of a game loop that closes itself. The Desired Action (learning behavioral design) generates rewards (Geomons) that make the player want to take the Desired Action again. Not because they’re told to, but because the reward system interests them.

Designing In-Game Currencies That Players Care About

Yu-kai also breaks down how to create in-game currencies that carry real perceived value, using Chou Coins in Octalysis Prime as the example.

Most gamified systems hand out points freely and wonder why nobody cares. The problem isn’t the currency. It’s the economy around it. A currency is only valuable if:

1. It’s hard enough to earn that getting it feels like an accomplishment
2. It buys things that matter: access to exclusive content, rare items, or meaningful privileges
3. It can be lost: without stakes, there’s no emotional investment
4. Others can see it: social visibility transforms currency from a number into a status signal

Chou Coins in Octalysis Prime check all four boxes. Members earn them through specific actions, spend them on exclusive features, risk them in challenges, and their balance is visible to other members.

This is the principle behind every successful in-game economy. From World of Warcraft gold to Fortnite V-Bucks. The currency needs to sit inside a loop where earning it and spending it both feel meaningful.

Watch the Lesson

In this video, Yu-kai walks through how Geomons and Chou Coins work inside the Octalysis Prime game loop, and how you can apply the same currency-design principles to your own projects.

Related Reading

• How to Build Game Loops, Part 1 of 4
• How to Build Game Loops, Part 2 of 4
• How to Build Game Loops, Part 3 of 4
• The Octalysis Framework for Gamification & Behavioral Design
• Game Loops in World of Warcraft, Part 1
• Boosters: The Game Design Technique That Completes the Engagement Loop
• Books by Yu-kai Chou

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