@gilhova
Having worked on games like this, here are the three main reasons for those real-world timers:
1: To turn the game into a habit. This is as insidious as it sounds. The first sessions are generous, then it starts to dry out. They want to make sure you come back later.
2: To give you something you can buy. A lot of free to play design is about creating obstacles for the player, which you can always pay to remove.
3: To make it seem like the game is bigger than it is. Some of the things I made for FoE would take you about three years to get to. As a player, I never made it there. #gamedesign#gamedevelopment#freemium#freetoplay