The problem with mini-games

[elreed]

Make a point system there, the winner takes triple point than the loser, make it so you can exchange it for some good items, maybe crafter items so the main things like dungeons, primals, quest, etc reward the battle jobs. That way they can keep good stuff for every class

[lololink]

if it gives crafters items then it would indirectly rewards fighters since craft is used to get fighting gears .
No just give rewards related to the mini game .

[Dannythm]

You can stop exploitation by penalizing losses, randomizing who you play against, limiting the amount of times you can play against the same person, or introducing diminishing returns for winning against the same person multiple times. See: Heroes of Newerth MMR/TMMR or WOW's arena rank.

I agree with the diminishing on wins against the same person, but penalizing the losses would make the game suck for all those trying to get into it, and ould be a terrible idea.

[Rau]

1) How do you keep the game interesting so that people don't abandon it after a the novelty wears off?

Tournaments and ladders, with prizes being gil, gear, more cards, etc.
Frequent updates, and perhaps integration with other content.

2) Create a reward system for a card/mini game that a) cannot be exploited by players, and b) doesn't run afoul of national gambling laws*?
Constant revision. I believe its Magic: The Gathering which basically "evolves" every expansion, but still gives relevance to old cards, without physically changing their stats, or simply outright banning cards. On the other hand, the Yu-Gi-Oh TCG lacks any form of this, and old cards are simply casted aside as useless. On the other hand, the latter's method provides a constant demand for new cards.

Do countries really have gambling laws that cover online games? I know Korea has laws in place to prevent RMT or something like that, but as far as gambling over a game?

[Punainen]

The solution: Make the rewards NOT awesome, and make the minigame fun enough to warrant playing without a reward.

If the minigame NEEDS a reward, then the minigame isn't FUN ENOUGH.

If it NEEDS a reward, don't bother implementing it.

[Zantetsuken]

The solution: Make the rewards NOT awesome, and make the minigame fun enough to warrant playing without a reward.

If the minigame NEEDS a reward, then the minigame isn't FUN ENOUGH.

If it NEEDS a reward, don't bother implementing it.

While I'm inclined to agree, the devs apparently believe that a game without relevant rewards will quickly be abandoned - and thus will be a waste of resources.

Much like FFXI's Choco Racing was.