The problem
The "Hard Work" badge is currently awarded every 100 work actions, but it is purely cosmetic and has no actual effect on a player's performance. This turns a meaningful achievement — one that reflects real effort and consistency — into something with no practical value.
The Suggestion
Add a small production bonus for each badge a player earns, but using a diminishing returns model instead of a flat percentage, so the gap between veteran and new players doesn't widen.
Proposed Mechanic
1st badge: +1% production power
2nd badge: +0.5% (half of the previous value)
3rd badge: +0.25%
And so on — each new badge adds half the value of the one before it
Why This Specific Approach?
1. It genuinely helps new players
The first badge or two gives a new player a noticeable boost (1%, then 0.5%), which encourages them to stay engaged and keep working from the start.
2. It doesn't widen the gap with veteran players
Since each additional badge only adds half the previous value, a veteran with dozens of badges won't end up with a massive production bonus that puts them out of reach for newer players. The total bonus converges toward a cap (around 2% overall) instead of growing indefinitely.
3. It preserves the badge's meaning as an achievement
The badge still reflects how many times a player has worked, but now it also adds real practical value instead of being just a cosmetic number on a profile.
Expected Impact
Stronger incentive for new players to do work actions consistently from day one.
Better fairness in the production gap between new and veteran players, compared to any linear or flat-percentage bonus system.
Gives real purpose to an achievement system that already exists in the game, without needing to design something new from scratch.
Conclusion
Adding a diminishing-returns bonus to the Hard Work badge turns it from a purely cosmetic symbol into a real incentive tool, while preserving balance between new and veteran players. This is a relatively simple change to implement and solves a long-standing issue without disrupting the game's overall economic balance.