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The Art of Video Game Marketing – Strategies and Real-World Examples

The first pixels of Pong hit the screen in the 1970s, and the video game industry has been skyrocketing ever since. From those humble beginnings, it has exploded into a billion-dollar sector, one that’s projected to reach over $200 billion by 2023, according to a report by Mordor Intelligence. But what fuels this vast, ever-growing universe of gaming? The answer is both simple and complex – marketing.

So, whether you’re an indie developer looking to make your mark, a marketing professional seeking to understand this booming industry, or a gaming enthusiast curious about what goes on behind the scenes, this guide is for you. Grab your controller, keyboard, or touch screen and get ready – it’s game time! (sorry that was corny… I’ll see myself out).

Understanding the Video Game Market

Demographics and psychographics.

Video game marketing success hinges on understanding your audience – who they are, where they’re from, what they love, and what makes them tick. This insight starts with a comprehensive understanding of the demographics and psychographics of the gaming market.

1. Demographics

Demographics refer to statistical data relating to a population or particular groups within it. These are concrete, quantifiable facts about a group, like age, gender, income level, education, and geographic location. Here’s a breakdown of these elements in the gaming market:

Age: Gone are the days when video gaming was solely a child’s pastime. According to the Entertainment Software Association’s 2021 report, the average age of a video game player is 35-44 years old. This isn’t to say that younger and older gamers don’t exist; it merely illustrates that the age range is broad, spanning from kids to adults, making it crucial to cater to a wide age range in your marketing strategy.
Gender: The same report reveals that the gender split in the gaming industry is almost even, with 45% of gamers being female and 55% male. Thus, it’s vital to ensure your marketing isn’t overly skewed to one gender unless that’s the specific audience your game is designed for.
Geographic Location: Gaming is a global phenomenon. According to NewZoo’s 2022 Global Games Market report, the Asia Pacific region has the most gamers, but North America and Europe also have significant shares. Understanding where your potential players live can inform localization strategies and optimize ad spending across regions.
Income and Education: Income and education levels can impact the type of games consumers play and how much they’re willing to spend on gaming. Higher income levels may indicate a willingness to spend on premium games or in-game purchases, while education could hint at a preference for strategy games or complex RPGs.

2. Psychographics

Psychographics delve deeper into the minds of consumers, revealing their interests, values, attitudes, and lifestyles. Understanding gamer psychographics can help tailor marketing strategies for maximum appeal.

Gaming Preferences: Are your target gamers fans of sprawling open-world adventures, or do they prefer quick casual games on their phones during a commute? Understanding what types of games your audience prefers will inform both game development and the marketing narrative.
Values and Motivations: What drives your audience to game? Is it the thrill of competition, the desire for escapism, or the love of problem-solving? Tapping into these motivations in your marketing can create a powerful connection with potential players.
Lifestyle and Habits: Does your audience play games in long marathons over the weekend, or do they prefer short gaming sessions throughout the day? Do they follow gaming influencers or watch esports events? These insights can guide the timing and placement of your marketing efforts.
Community Engagement: Many gamers value the sense of community that gaming can provide. They engage on forums, social media platforms, and in-game chat rooms. Understanding how and where your target audience communicates can enable more effective community-building efforts, a critical part of video game marketing.

Types of Video Games and Their Impact on Marketing

Video games come in a wide range of genres and formats, each with its unique appeal and audience. Understanding these different types and how they affect marketing is crucial for any video game marketing strategy.

1. Casual Games

Casual games are designed for quick, easy-to-learn gameplay sessions. They often have simple mechanics and are designed to be played in short bursts. Examples include mobile games like “Angry Birds” and “Candy Crush Saga.”

Demographics: Casual games typically have a broad demographic appeal, including both young and older players. They often have a significant number of female players, and their mobile nature means they’re popular among people who might not consider themselves traditional gamers.
Marketing Strategies: Casual games often rely heavily on social media and word-of-mouth marketing. They also frequently use in-game advertisements and purchase incentives as part of their monetization strategy.

2. AAA Games

AAA or Triple-A games are high-budget, high-production titles developed by major studios. They often have cutting-edge graphics, in-depth storytelling, and extensive gameplay mechanics. Examples include “The Last of Us Part II,” “Red Dead Redemption 2,” and “Assassin’s Creed Valhalla.”

Demographics: The audience for AAA games is typically more hardcore gamers, often in the 18-35 age range, who are willing to invest significant time and money into their gaming experiences.
Marketing Strategies: AAA games often use traditional media strategies such as TV ads, online trailers, and influencer partnerships. Pre-order bonuses, limited editions, and post-launch downloadable content (DLCs) are also common strategies for these types of games.

3. Indie Games

Indie games are developed by small, independent studios or even individual developers. They often focus on innovative gameplay mechanics or unique artistic styles. Examples include “Hades,” “Among Us,” and “Stardew Valley.”

Demographics: Indie games appeal to a wide demographic, including both younger players and older gamers who appreciate their innovation and creativity.
Marketing Strategies: Indie games often rely on word-of-mouth and social media marketing. They also frequently leverage gaming platforms’ communities, like Steam’s community forums and review sections. Crowdfunding campaigns on platforms like Kickstarter can also serve as marketing tools.

4. Esports Titles

Esports titles are games designed for competitive play, often in a professional setting with tournaments and prize pools. They require a high level of skill and have a significant spectator component. Examples include “League of Legends,” “Counter-Strike: Global Offensive,” and “Dota 2.”

Demographics: Esports titles often attract a younger, predominantly male audience. Many players are also active spectators of the game, watching professional tournaments and streams.
Marketing Strategies: Esports games often use competitions, tournaments, and partnerships with professional teams and streamers for marketing. In-game cosmetics related to esports teams or events, like team jerseys or branded weapon skins, are also common.

5. Virtual Reality (VR) Games

VR games provide an immersive, 3D gaming experience through VR headsets. They can span various genres, from casual games to AAA titles. Examples include “Beat Saber,” “Half-Life: Alyx,” and “Superhot VR.”

Demographics: VR games often attract tech-savvy gamers willing to invest in the required hardware. The age range can vary, though the physical nature of many VR games can appeal to younger players.
Marketing Strategies: VR games often leverage the unique features of VR for marketing, showcasing the immersion and interactivity of the medium. Demos and experiential marketing, like VR installations at events, can also be effective.

Each of these game types attracts a unique set of players, and therefore requires distinct marketing strategies tailored to its audience. Understanding these differences, along with the current trends and popular titles within each category, is crucial when shaping your video game marketing efforts. It’s not only about reaching your target audience, but also understanding their gaming preferences, behaviors, and spending habits.

Ultimately, each game’s brand identity, target audience, and unique selling propositions should inform its marketing strategies.

Key Elements of Video Game Marketing

Marketing strategies and their relevance.

There are several strategies that can be employed in video game marketing, each with its own benefits and relevance. Here’s a brief explanation of the main ones:

Pre-Launch Marketing: This involves generating buzz and anticipation for the game before it is released. Tactics could include teaser trailers, early access offers, influencer partnerships, press releases, and participation in industry events.
Content Marketing: This involves creating and sharing valuable content related to the game to attract and engage potential players. Content could be anything from game guides and behind-the-scenes footage to developer interviews and player-generated content.
Social Media Marketing: Leveraging social media platforms to promote the game, engage with players, share updates, and handle customer service.
Community Marketing: Building, nurturing, and engaging an active community of players through forums, social media, in-game events, and user-generated content.
Influencer Marketing: Partnering with influencers (streamers, YouTubers, professional gamers) to promote the game to their followers.
Esports Marketing: If applicable, creating or sponsoring esports events to promote the game and engage with the competitive gaming community.

In the subsequent sections, we will dive deeper into each of these strategies, with real-life examples and case studies that illustrate their application and effectiveness in video game marketing.

Strategies for Video Game Marketing

Influencer collaborations and partnerships, 1. importance of influencers in the gaming industry.

In the world of video games, influencers hold significant power. The rise of streaming platforms like Twitch and YouTube, along with the increased popularity of esports, has created a new class of celebrities within the gaming community. These influencers, whether they’re professional gamers, streamers, or content creators, command vast audiences who trust their opinions and follow their gaming habits closely.

Influencers have become an integral part of the gaming industry for several reasons:

Reach: Influencers have wide-reaching audiences that span different geographies and demographics. A single post or live-stream can reach millions of viewers, providing a global reach that few other marketing methods can achieve.
Trust: Fans of gaming influencers often view their favorite content creators as friends or peers. As a result, their opinions and recommendations carry significant weight. If an influencer endorses a game, it’s likely their audience will consider playing it.
Engagement: The interactive nature of platforms like Twitch allows influencers to engage with their audiences in real-time. This two-way communication fosters a sense of community and keeps viewers invested in the influencer’s content.
Content creation: Influencers regularly generate content around the games they play. This content, which can range from game reviews and playthroughs to highlights and meme compilations, provides additional exposure for the games and helps sustain interest over time.

As a result of these factors, influencer collaborations and partnerships have emerged as a powerful strategy for video game marketing. By working with influencers, game developers and publishers can increase their game’s visibility, attract potential players, and enhance community engagement.

2. Case Study: Fortnite and Travis Scott’s Virtual Concert

Fortnite, developed by Epic Games, is known for pushing boundaries and continuously innovating its approach to engage players. One of their most successful marketing strategies involved a collaboration with the Grammy-nominated artist, Travis Scott. In what was dubbed as the “Astronomical” event, Fortnite hosted a virtual concert featuring Scott, attracting over 12.3 million concurrent players and making it the game’s biggest event ever.

This strategy was a win-win situation for both parties. For Travis Scott, it was a unique opportunity to reach a massive, global audience at a time when traditional live performances were impossible due to the pandemic. For Fortnite, it brought unprecedented attention to the game and demonstrated the potential of virtual spaces for unique shared experiences.

The event was not just a passive viewing experience for players. Instead, Fortnite’s virtual world transformed in sync with the music, providing an interactive and immersive experience for the players. The success of this strategy lies in its understanding of the gaming community’s values: a desire for new, shared experiences, and a blending of gaming with other elements of pop culture.

Moreover, this event offered Fortnite an opportunity to make headlines and become a topic of conversation, even among non-players, proving the power of creative influencer collaborations in gaming.

Content Marketing

Content marketing has become an increasingly popular strategy for video game marketing. This approach focuses on creating, publishing, and distributing content for a targeted audience online. The goal is to provide valuable content that helps build strong relationships with your audience, improves engagement, increases brand recognition, and ultimately drives action.

In the realm of video games, content marketing can take many forms, ranging from blogs, game guides, and behind-the-scenes looks at game development, to trailers, live-streams, podcasts, and even in-game events.

One crucial thing to remember when employing a content marketing strategy is to provide value. Gamers appreciate content that enhances their playing experience, whether it provides new insights about the game, teaches them how to improve their skills, or simply entertains them. A successful content marketing strategy will take into account the preferences of the target audience and create content that meets their needs and interests.

1. Content Marketing in Gaming

In gaming, content marketing goes beyond just promoting a product. It’s about providing value to the gamer, enhancing their gaming experience, and establishing a deep connection with them. Content marketing in gaming can take several forms, including but not limited to:

Game Trailers and Teasers: These provide a sneak peek into the game, exciting potential players about what to expect. They often include gameplay, storyline hints, and game mechanics. Trailers are a way to create hype and anticipation around a game before it’s released.
Gameplay Videos and Live Streaming: Gameplay videos and live streams allow potential players to see the game in action. Platforms like Twitch and YouTube have millions of users who spend hours watching their favorite gamers play. It’s a chance for audiences to learn strategies, tips, and tricks while experiencing the game’s atmosphere.
Blogs and Articles: These can be in-depth guides, tips, tricks, game lore, behind-the-scenes development processes, and any other written content that provides value to the player.
Podcasts and Interviews: A growing trend in the gaming industry, these offer insights into the game development process, host discussions about game theory, or even delve into storytelling within the game universe.
Social Media Interaction: Developers engaging with fans on social media platforms, answering questions, sharing insights, and teasing upcoming features or releases, fosters a sense of community and direct connection with players.

2. Case Study: Cyberpunk 2077 and Its Diverse Content Marketing Strategy

Cyberpunk 2077, developed by CD Projekt Red, serves as an interesting example of a diverse and multi-faceted content marketing strategy. Despite controversies post-launch, there’s no denying that the anticipation and buzz generated before the game’s release were monumental, largely due to their marketing approach.

Pre-Launch Trailer and Teasers: Cyberpunk 2077 released multiple trailers over the years, each providing glimpses into the game’s world, story, characters, and gameplay. Their trailers amassed millions of views on YouTube, stirring interest and conversation.
Celebrity Endorsement: The involvement of Keanu Reeves, a well-known actor, added a unique aspect to their campaign. His appearance at the E3 2019 conference announcing his role in the game became a viral moment and contributed significantly to the hype.
Behind-the-Scenes Content: CD Projekt Red regularly shared behind-the-scenes videos titled ‘Night City Wire’ episodes. They offered deep dives into various aspects of the game, from lore to gameplay mechanics, further engaging their audience.
Social Media Engagement: Their social media strategy was a key pillar of their campaign, with regular updates, interactions with fans, and announcements. Their Twitter account was particularly active, engaging in conversations and even embracing memes related to the game.
Partnerships: Cyberpunk 2077 also employed a unique strategy of partnering with various brands for limited-edition products, from energy drinks to cars, reinforcing their presence and visibility even outside of traditional gaming circles.

Though the game’s launch was met with criticism, the hype generated by their content marketing strategy led to strong initial sales, demonstrating the power of a well-executed content marketing campaign in gaming.

Community Building in Gaming

1. role of community in gaming.

Community plays a pivotal role in the video game industry. It is the backbone of any successful video game, as it fosters player engagement, retention, and promotes a sense of belonging. An engaged community contributes to the longevity of a game, as active, committed players can keep a game alive and thriving for years.

In the gaming world, community building goes far beyond simply having a player base. It’s about creating a shared space where players can interact with each other and with the game developers. Here are some key aspects of community building in gaming:

Player Engagement: It involves developers directly interacting with players, listening to their feedback, and responding to their needs. Regular updates, patches, and game improvements based on player feedback is a common method of engagement.
Shared Experiences: Multiplayer and cooperative gameplay, in-game events, and competitions provide shared experiences that foster a sense of community among players.
Player Support: Forums, help centers, and responsive customer service help players feel supported and heard, further enhancing their engagement with the game.
User Generated Content: Encouraging players to create and share their own content, such as game mods, fan art, and gameplay videos, can create a powerful sense of ownership and commitment in the community.
Social Media Interaction: Leveraging platforms like Twitter, Reddit, and Discord to create a dialog with players, share updates, and address concerns, can foster a stronger connection between game developers and players.

2. Case Study: Among Us and Its Use of Community Engagement

Among Us, developed by InnerSloth, serves as a brilliant example of how community engagement can propel a game to success. Despite its release in 2018, it wasn’t until mid-2020 that Among Us surged in popularity. The game’s simplicity, combined with its emphasis on social interaction, made it highly engaging for players, but it was the community engagement strategies that sustained and increased its popularity:

User Generated Content: Among Us benefited enormously from user-generated content. Twitch streamers and YouTubers playing the game with friends created hilarious and relatable content, which was then shared across various platforms, reaching a large audience and enticing new players.
Active on Social Media: InnerSloth maintained an active presence on social media, sharing updates, engaging with players, and even sharing fan-created content, fostering a sense of camaraderie and engagement within the community.
Responsive to Feedback: InnerSloth was responsive to player feedback, consistently updating the game and addressing issues pointed out by the community. When the game’s popularity skyrocketed, instead of rushing to release a sequel, they decided to focus on improving the current game based on player feedback, an approach appreciated by the community.
Support for Modding Community: Among Us also has a thriving modding community. InnerSloth’s support for this community and the user-generated content it produces added another layer to the game’s appeal and community strength.

In a nutshell, Among Us’s unprecedented success can be attributed to the power of community engagement in video gaming. By encouraging user-generated content, being responsive to player feedback, and leveraging social media for community interaction, InnerSloth was able to transform a simple game into a global phenomenon.

Utilizing Social Media and Streaming Platforms

1. benefits of social media and streaming platforms.

Social media and streaming platforms are invaluable tools in video game marketing. They offer multiple benefits that make them indispensable in the current gaming industry landscape:

Visibility and Reach: Platforms like Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube have billions of active users. Utilizing these platforms allows developers to reach a global audience and increase the visibility of their games.
Community Building: Social media platforms provide an excellent avenue for building and nurturing a community. Developers can interact directly with their player base, solicit feedback, and keep them engaged with regular updates and news about the game.
Influencer Marketing: Influencer marketing is a powerful strategy in the gaming industry. Social media platforms allow developers to collaborate with influencers who can play and promote their games to their followers, creating buzz and driving game sales.
Streaming Platforms: Platforms like Twitch and YouTube Gaming are particularly effective in video game marketing. Live streams of gameplay provide potential players with a first-hand experience of the game and foster a sense of community among viewers. Exclusive live-streamed events and partnerships with popular streamers can significantly boost a game’s popularity.

2. Case Study: Apex Legends and Its Launch Strategy on Twitch

The launch strategy of Apex Legends, developed by Respawn Entertainment and published by Electronic Arts, offers a textbook example of effectively leveraging a streaming platform for game marketing.

Unlike traditional marketing campaigns, Apex Legends was launched without any pre-release hype or advertising. Instead, Respawn focused on a “surprise” launch strategy leveraging Twitch, the world’s leading live streaming platform for gamers.

Influencer Partnerships: On launch day, Respawn partnered with top gaming influencers and streamers, including Shroud, Dr Disrespect, and Ninja. These streamers were among the first to play the game live on their Twitch channels, instantly exposing Apex Legends to their millions of followers.
Twitch Rivals: Respawn also collaborated with Twitch to host the Apex Legends Challenge, a two-part competitive event that took place within a week of the game’s release. This event featured 48 of the biggest streamers on Twitch and provided high-level exposure for the game.

This strategic use of Twitch and influencer partnerships led to a staggering success for Apex Legends, with the game amassing over 2.5 million players within the first 24 hours of its launch and 50 million in the first month. It demonstrates the power and potential of social media and streaming platforms in the marketing of video games.

Creative Advertising and Brand Collaborations

1. importance of creativity and collaboration in ads.

Creative advertising and brand collaborations form a crucial aspect of video game marketing. A creative ad campaign can make a significant impact, grab potential gamers’ attention, and differentiate the game from a sea of competitors. The best ad campaigns often tell a story, engage emotions, or use humor, all of which helps to create memorable content that resonates with audiences.

Meanwhile, brand collaborations open up a wealth of marketing opportunities. They offer an excellent way for video games to reach new audiences, diversify marketing content, and provide unique in-game experiences:

Expanded Reach: Collaborations allow video games to tap into the partner brand’s customer base, which might be a different demographic than the game’s traditional audience.
Unique Content: Collaboration often involves unique, themed content that can intrigue both existing players and potential new ones. This can include in-game items, events, or gameplay modes related to the partner brand.
Increased Visibility: The publicity and buzz around a collaboration can increase the game’s visibility, especially if the partner brand is outside of the gaming industry.

2. Case Study: PUBG and Its Collaboration with Mountain Dew

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG), developed and published by PUBG Corporation, illustrates the potential of creative advertising and brand collaborations. In 2020, PUBG announced a global partnership with Mountain Dew, the carbonated soft drink brand.

The collaboration was a blend of in-game integration and real-world rewards:

In-Game Integration: Limited-edition Mountain Dew fuel stations were added across the game’s maps, offering loot items. This integrated branding provided players with a unique in-game experience related to the Mountain Dew brand.
Real-World Rewards: Players in certain regions could also earn rewards in the real world. By purchasing specially-marked Mountain Dew products, they could redeem exclusive in-game rewards like weapon skins and more.

Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) Marketing

1. benefits of ar and vr in video game marketing.

Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) are game-changers in the video game industry, and their roles extend into marketing as well. These technologies offer unique and immersive ways to engage audiences and have several key benefits in video game marketing:

Immersive Experiences: Both AR and VR can create immersive experiences that traditional 2D platforms can’t match. They provide players with the feeling of ‘being in the game’, heightening their emotional connection to the game and making the marketing message more impactful.
Interactive Demos: AR and VR can be used to create interactive game demos that potential players can try before buying the game. This not only gives a taste of the gameplay but also leaves a strong impression that’s likely to stick in consumers’ minds.
Memorable Campaigns: AR and VR campaigns are unique and memorable, making them effective at grabbing attention in a crowded market.
Innovative Brand Image: The use of cutting-edge technology like AR and VR can position a game as innovative and forward-thinking, enhancing its brand image.

2. Case Study: Pokémon GO and Its Use of AR

Pokémon GO, developed and published by Niantic in collaboration with Nintendo, is a sterling example of the power of AR in video game marketing. The game took the world by storm upon its release in 2016, in large part due to its innovative use of AR technology.

Pokémon GO uses AR to overlay digital creatures (Pokémon) onto the real world, as viewed through a player’s smartphone camera. This AR integration not only created a unique and immersive gaming experience but also played a significant role in the game’s marketing:

Word-of-Mouth: The novelty of Pokémon appearing in real-world environments led to significant word-of-mouth marketing. Excited players shared screenshots and stories, organically promoting the game to their networks.
Media Coverage: The innovative use of AR technology generated substantial media coverage, boosting the game’s visibility and attracting new players.
Public Events: Pokémon GO hosted public events at real-world locations, where players could gather to catch rare Pokémon. These events created a sense of community, boosted player engagement, and provided additional opportunities for marketing and publicity.

Game-Specific Marketing Strategies

Mobile games, 1. importance of aso and mobile ads.

With mobile gaming accounting for a significant portion of the global gaming industry, effective marketing strategies for mobile games are vital. Two key aspects of mobile game marketing are App Store Optimization (ASO) and mobile ads:

App Store Optimization (ASO): Similar to SEO for websites, ASO involves optimizing a mobile game’s app store listing to increase its visibility in search results. This includes optimizing the game’s title, description, keywords, screenshots, and reviews to improve its ranking in app store search results, making it easier for potential players to discover the game.
Mobile Ads: Mobile advertising plays a crucial role in getting a game in front of potential players. This can include in-app ads, social media ads, banner ads on websites, video ads, and more. The key is to create engaging, eye-catching ads that effectively communicate the game’s appeal.

2. Case Study: Clash of Clans and Its Humorous Ad Campaigns

Supercell’s mobile game, Clash of Clans, offers a prime example of effective mobile game marketing. One of the strategies that contributed to the game’s massive success was its humorous and engaging ad campaigns.

Supercell created a series of ads featuring animated characters from the game in various funny and relatable situations. The ads were designed to entertain first and sell second, making viewers more likely to share them and spread the word about the game.

The campaigns, which included partnerships with high-profile celebrities like Liam Neeson and Christoph Waltz, were launched across multiple channels, including TV, online platforms, and social media. These ads did more than just showcase the game’s features; they told stories, made viewers laugh, and built a strong brand identity for Clash of Clans.

The success of Clash of Clans’ marketing approach demonstrates the power of creative and engaging mobile ads, as well as the importance of leveraging ASO and advertising channels to maximize a mobile game’s visibility.

PC/Console Games

1. role of game reviews and gaming expos.

In the PC and console gaming market, two elements play a critical role in the marketing of a game: game reviews and gaming expos.

Game Reviews: Reviews from both professional critics and players can make or break a game’s success. High review scores can tremendously boost a game’s reputation and sales, while poor reviews can harm them. Therefore, creating a high-quality game that can withstand scrutiny is paramount. Developers also need to manage their relationships with reviewers and influencers, ensuring they have access to the game in a timely manner to review it.
Gaming Expos: Expos and conventions like E3, PAX, and Gamescom offer significant opportunities for game developers to showcase their upcoming titles to a global audience. These events can generate substantial buzz and anticipation for a game. They are a chance to reveal game trailers, offer playable demos, and provide the audience with exclusive insights into the game’s development. The presence of the press and influencers at these events can amplify this impact, spreading news and impressions of the game to their followers.

2. Case Study: Call of Duty and Its Marketing Over The Years

Activision’s Call of Duty franchise is an interesting example of effective marketing strategies for PC/console games. The game has evolved significantly over the years, and so have its marketing strategies.

Initially, Call of Duty relied heavily on traditional advertising methods, like TV ads and billboard campaigns, to promote new game releases. As the franchise grew and the gaming industry evolved, Call of Duty began incorporating digital marketing strategies, such as social media campaigns and influencer partnerships, to engage a broader audience.

One particularly effective strategy has been the game’s use of live events. For example, Call of Duty has hosted several live multiplayer events where fans can watch influencers and professional gamers battle it out. These events generate significant buzz and engagement, boosting anticipation for the game’s release.

Furthermore, Call of Duty has also been strategic in its collaborations and partnerships. The franchise has worked with celebrities like Keanu Reeves and Marshmello to promote its games, leveraging their popularity to reach a wider audience.

Over the years, Call of Duty’s marketing strategies have demonstrated the importance of adapting and evolving with the market, leveraging a mix of traditional and digital marketing strategies, and the power of live events and strategic collaborations in promoting PC/console games.

eSports Marketing

1. understanding the esports market.

eSports has evolved from being a niche market into a booming industry that attracts millions of viewers worldwide. Its audience, primarily young, tech-savvy, and passionate about gaming, differs significantly from that of traditional sports.

eSports marketing is about leveraging the competitive, interactive, and immersive nature of video games. Unlike in traditional sports marketing, where fans are spectators, eSports fans are often players of the games themselves. This gives marketers unique engagement opportunities, as fans can relate personally to the skills, strategies, and excitement showcased in eSports tournaments.

eSports marketing is heavily reliant on digital platforms, with live streaming platforms like Twitch and YouTube Gaming being the primary venues for eSports events. Additionally, social media platforms play a crucial role in fostering community interactions, sharing game updates, and promoting upcoming tournaments.

Sponsorship and partnerships also play a significant role in eSports marketing, providing brands a way to reach the passionate and engaged eSports audience.

2. Case Study: League of Legends and Its Partnership with Spotify

Riot Games, the developer of the popular eSports game League of Legends, has embraced innovative marketing strategies to engage its global fanbase. A standout example is its partnership with Spotify.

In this collaboration, Riot Games and Spotify developed an exclusive hub for League of Legends content on the music streaming platform. This included a range of materials, from official game soundtracks and podcasts to curated playlists and behind-the-scenes interviews with the composers and musicians.

This partnership benefited both parties. Spotify attracted the large and engaged League of Legends fanbase, while Riot Games received a dedicated platform to share its high-quality, immersive game-related content.

The collaboration also exemplified the power of content marketing in eSports, with the exclusive League of Legends hub offering a variety of engaging content that appealed to both current fans and potential new ones.

Moreover, it highlighted the value of accessibility. Fans could consume League of Legends content wherever they were, making it easier for them to stay connected with the game they love. This, in turn, deepened their relationship with the game and reinforced their loyalty to the brand.

This case study underlines the importance of understanding the unique characteristics of the eSports audience and creating partnerships and content that appeal to them and fit their lifestyle.

Monitoring and Adapting Marketing Strategies

Importance of monitoring marketing campaigns.

Monitoring marketing campaigns is an essential step in any marketing strategy, including in video game marketing. It provides insights into what works and what doesn’t, helping you to continuously improve and refine your strategy. You can use a platform like TwitchMetrics , which the image above is a screenshot from to report back on your campaigns easily.

Keeping track of the performance of marketing campaigns allows you to measure ROI and identify which tactics yield the best results. You can understand your audience better, learn what type of content they engage with most, and determine the most effective platforms and channels for reaching them.

Monitoring also helps you spot trends and changes in player behavior and market conditions. This can inform your future strategies and help you stay ahead of your competitors.

Tools and Techniques to Track Marketing Success

There are numerous tools and techniques you can use to track the success of your video game marketing campaigns. Here are a few examples:

Analytics tools : These provide insights into player behavior, engagement rates, conversion rates, and more. TwitchMetrics , Google Analytics, for instance, can track website traffic and user behavior, while social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter have their built-in analytics.
KPIs : Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are metrics that reflect the success of a campaign in meeting its objectives. These could include downloads, active users, session duration, in-game purchases, and social media engagement, among others.
Surveys and player feedback : Direct feedback from your players can provide invaluable insights. This can be gathered through surveys, reviews, social media comments, and community forums.
A/B testing : This technique involves comparing two versions of a campaign element (like a landing page or an ad) to see which performs better.

How to Adapt Strategies Based on Feedback and Results

Once you’ve gathered data and feedback from your campaigns, it’s crucial to interpret these insights and apply them to your future strategies.

If a campaign is performing well, analyze what’s driving its success. Is it the platform you’re using? The type of content? The timing? Take these successful elements and incorporate them into your other campaigns.

Conversely, if a campaign isn’t meeting its goals, try to understand why. Is it not resonating with your audience? Are there technical issues affecting user experience? Once you’ve identified the problems, you can take steps to address them.

Remember that the gaming market is dynamic and constantly evolving. Player tastes can change, new trends can emerge, and new platforms and technologies can transform the landscape. Being flexible and adaptable is key to staying relevant and maintaining a successful video game marketing strategy.

Understanding your audience, using influencers, creating compelling content, and leveraging technology are cornerstones of effective video game marketing. We’ve explored a variety of strategies and examples to illustrate these points. Looking forward, it’s essential to stay updated with evolving trends and continue innovating. Your focus should be on connecting with gamers, providing immersive experiences that delight. Learn, adapt, and grow with the dynamic landscape of this industry.

Wyatt founded TwitchMetrics in 2016 and shares his knowledge about the business elements of the livestreaming and gaming world. With more than 10 years’ experience collaborating with gaming studios, developers, and agencies, he’s adept at increasing their game revenues through strategic partnerships with creators and PR and marketing strategies.

27 Case Study Examples Every Marketer Should See

Published: July 22, 2024

Putting together a compelling case study is one of the most powerful strategies for showcasing your product and attracting future customers. But it's not easy to create case studies that your audience can’t wait to read.

In this post, I’ll go over the definition of a case study and the best examples to inspire you.

Table of Contents

What is a case study?

Marketing case study examples, digital marketing case study examples.

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A case study is a detailed story of something your company did. It includes a beginning — often discussing a challenge, an explanation of what happened next, and a resolution that explains how the company solved or improved on something.

A case study proves how your product has helped other companies by demonstrating real-life results. Not only that, but marketing case studies with solutions typically contain quotes from the customer.

This means that they’re not just ads where you praise your own product. Rather, other companies are praising your company — and there’s no stronger marketing material than a verbal recommendation or testimonial.

A great case study also has research and stats to back up points made about a project's results.

There are several ways to use case studies in your marketing strategy.

From featuring them on your website to including them in a sales presentation, a case study is a strong, persuasive tool that shows customers why they should work with you — straight from another customer.

Writing one from scratch is hard, though, which is why we’ve created a collection of case study templates for you to get started.

There’s no better way to generate more leads than by writing case studies . However, without case study examples from which to draw inspiration, it can be difficult to write impactful studies that convince visitors to submit a form.

To help you create an attractive and high-converting case study, we've put together a list of some of our favorites. This list includes famous case studies in marketing, technology, and business.

These studies can show you how to frame your company's offers in a way that is useful to your audience. So, look, and let these examples inspire your next brilliant case study design.

These marketing case studies with solutions show the value proposition of each product. They also show how each company benefited in both the short and long term using quantitative data.

In other words, you don’t get just nice statements, like “this company helped us a lot.” You see actual change within the firm through numbers and figures.

You can put your learnings into action with HubSpot's Free Case Study Templates . Available as custom designs and text-based documents, you can upload these templates to your CMS or send them to prospects as you see fit.

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How to Write a Case Study: Bookmarkable Guide & Template

7 Pieces of Content Your Audience Really Wants to See [New Data]

How to Market an Ebook: 21 Ways to Promote Your Content Offers

How to Write a Listicle [+ Examples and Ideas]

What Is a White Paper? [FAQs]

What is an Advertorial? 8 Examples to Help You Write One

How to Create Marketing Offers That Don't Fall Flat

20 Creative Ways To Repurpose Content

16 Important Ways to Use Case Studies in Your Marketing

11 Ways to Make Your Blog Post Interactive

Showcase your company's success using these free case study templates.

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RAID: SHADOW LEGENDS

Creative services.

GENERATION ZERO

Influencer marking & china video game marketing.

WORLD OF WARSHIPS

Influencer marketing.

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PR, Content Writing & Brand Strategy

DOCTOR WHO: WORLDS APART

Marketing strategy, creative services & paid advertising.

HUNTER: CALL OF THE WILD

Localization, social media, influencer & pr.

PROJECT F4E

Creative services & paid media management.

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Mobile, Localisation, Creative Services & Paid Media

TRANSMOGRIFY

Creative services & paid advertising.

STRAYED LIGHTS

Creative services, paid media and social media.

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Social Media, Creative Services & Game Marketing

CURSE OF THE SEA RATS

Creative services, social media and creative strategy.

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Social Media, Creative Services & Creative Strategy

SUPER AUTO PETS

Influencer & press.

KNIGHTS OF THE ETHER

Creative services, social media & influencer.

OSIRIS: NEW DAWN

Marketing strategy, social media & influencer.

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Marketing Strategy, Paid Advertising & Influencer

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Esports Management

PAPA'S QUIZ

Video game marketing and influencer marketing.

HYPERLEAGUE HEROES

Marketing strategy, paid advertising, influencer & pr.

RUBBER BANDITS

Paid & organic influencer.

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Influencer, Press, Social Media & Content

DESERT REVENANT

Marketing strategy, social media, press & influencer.

HUMBLE BUNDLE

China video game marketing.

INTO THE ECHO

Marketing strategy, influencer & press.

ORBIT INDUSTRIES

Paid media, pr & influencer.

BEST MONTH EVER

Paid media management, influencer & press.

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Creative Services, PR and Social Media

THE LIGHTBRINGER

CRICKET MANAGER PRO

Pr, paid media and social media.

THE MACHINES ARENA

Influencer marketing and pr.

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Influencer Marketing and Paid Media

CLAN O'CONALL

Video game marketing.

THE AMAZING AMERICAN CIRCUS

Pr and copy support.

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MORTAL ONLINE II

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Video Game Marketing and PR

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SUPER SQUAD

CITIES: SKYLINES

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HEROES AND GENERALS

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With 1602 modern marketing campaign case studies to review, this is the #1 resource for marketers seeking to activate the innovation of modern marketing.

View select case studies from around the globe, more case studies, filter by brand, filter by region, filter by award, filter by mobile vehicle, filter by industry, filter by objective.

Marketing Games

What are marketing games?

Marketing games are games which contain an advertisement in some way, shape or form. They allow brands to engage the consumer in a meaningful way.

Consumers are increasingly having very short attention spans. How do we engage them, when there's so much content out there? Delivering small, lightweight and highly engaging experiences make the most sense, given the short time frames available to ride the consumer trend waves.

With the explosive growth of mobile devices, games are every marketer's dream. Combined with our in-house HTML5 technology, marketing games can be developed very quickly and distributed to consumers instantly, across smartphones, tablets and desktop computers.

Why do marketers use marketing games?

A marketing game is an essential tool for every online marketing campaign. Whether your goal is brand awareness, audience building, lead generation, or customer loyalty, having an interactive game will place your brand at the center of conversation.

Designed with a responsive mindset, a marketing game loads seamlessly on your smartphone browser, tablet browser, or desktop browser. The games deployed are typically short, fun and highly engaging.

The marketing games are also typically run on a microsite (landing page), which makes it easily sharable via social media, email campaigns, chatrooms, conferencing software, and literally any other web-based medium.

Capture more traffic.
Educate potential customers about the brand's products and services.
Integrate giveaways such as discounts and other small prizes to encourage on-site sales.
Generate leads from prospects.
Build brand loyalty.
Have an edge over other competitors (i.e to stand out from the crowd).

Featured Games For Marketing Game Projects

Use our carefully handcrafted top quality games for your marketing game projects. Choose from over 600 different game templates.

Looking for a specific game? Use our search box.

Case Study - Racing Game For Branded Kiosks

Using our game engine Rally Champion , we developed a custom branded racing game for our client.

Players navigate a cool rally car through a variety of forest themed race tracks. They avoid bumping into rival cars while riding on speed lanes to activate nitro boosts (a type of speed up boost).

The top 10 players are awarded a prize by the booth representative.

Marketing Games Racing Game Screenshot 1

Case study - Branded Games For A Pizza Brand

We worked with an international pizza brand to promote a Play and Win campaign.

The campaign featured our game Pepperoni Gone Wild, which was fully reskinned into a different look and feel for the client. The game was deployed on a microsite and heavily promoted via social media.

In order to qualify for the leaderboards, players purchase pizza products and upload the receipt for verification. As a result, the campaign generated more sales, customer loyalty, and a whole lot of buzz.

Read the full case study here .

Case Study - Intel Memory Challenge For A Corporate Event

As part of a corporate event for executives of Intel, we built a memory match game. The game was deployed as a warm-up event for participants, to get them excited before the actual event begins. Players attempt to match Intel branded product cards in the least amount of moves to generate the highest score.

In order to save development cost and lower time-to-market, we reskinned our existing Memory Match game engine . We changed the graphics of the game, while maintaining the core gameplay experience. Hence, we were able to pass along cost savings of up to 80% to the client, compared to if the game was built from scratch.

The game also comes integrated with our cloud leaderboard system, which allows users to register, play and rank competitively with other participants at the event. The event organizer receives access to a backend CMS from which they are able to view, manage and export the leaderboard data into Excel. They're also able to reset the leaderboard for multiple groups of participants on the same day.

Marketing Games Intel Memory Challenge Screenshot 1

Case Study - Toyota Personality Quiz For A Branded Booth

By leveraging our Personality Quiz game engine , we adapted it for Toyota as part of a dealership activation campaign. Booth visitors step up to an iPad to answer a series of questions about their lifestyle, hobbies, aspirations and spending behaviors. At the end of the game, we recommended a Toyota model that suits their profile.

Once the game experience is over, the booth representative approaches the prospect to start a conversation and schedule a test drive.

Marketing Games Toyota Personality Quiz Screenshot 1

Case Study - Automotive Trivia Game For A Branded Booth

We helped a client launch an automotive trivia history at a recent event in the US.

On-site visitors answer a series of 20 highly specific automotive history questions. Questions range from the history of older vehicle models to new and emerging brands from the electric vehicle segment. Prizes are awared to players who answer at least 10 questions correctly.

To develop the game, we used our Trivia game engine , which we adapted to fit the client's objectives. The art direction resonated with history buffs. The questions were tough questions that not everyone had the answer to.

Marketing Games Automotive History Trivia Screenshot 1

Case Study - Marketing Games For Retail Businesses

We collaborated with a large optical retail group to create an exciting game for their rewards programme.

Using our 3D game Drift Boss , we reskinned the car models, the roads, the backgrounds and the game title. We then replaced the background music with a more contemporary hip-hop track, to cater to a younger audience.

Players control a variety of branded drift cars from eyewear brands such as Acuvue, Freshkon, Hoya, Bausch and Lomb, and Alcon. Top players get to convert their leaderboard points into actual reward programme points, giving them massive value for their next purchase and building brand loyalty.

Marketing Games For Retail Businesses Screenshot 1

Case Study - Parking Puzzle Game For Toyota

We built a fun puzzle game for a Toyota dealership marketing game in North America.

Using our game Car Park Puzzle as the starting template, we changed the cars into Toyota branded cars. Players tap and drag on the touchscreen to move the cars. The objective is to clear a path for the red Toyota car, to drive out of the parking lot (hence, helping the prospect visualize the act of buying a car and driving it out of the dealership lot).

To ensure we don't miss any potential prospects, we added a leadgen form powered by our cloud leadgen system. This allows the client's sales team to followup with prospects that they weren't able to strike up conversations with during peak hours.

Space Invaders Wireless Arcade HTML5 Game

Case Study - Space Invaders for a marketing game campaign

We deployed our Space Invaders game for a marketing game project in North America. The player steps up to the stage, is given a wireless arcade controller and tries to defend Earth from an alien invasion.

Players who rank Top 10 in the leaderboards are awarded prizes by the booth representative.

Link to the video here .

Case Study - Baseball Batting Game For A Branded Activation Campaign

We helped a client launch a baseball game at a marketing game event.

The marketing game takes place on a large screen at the client's exhibition both. Players tap on 1 of 3 buttons to swing the bat at an incoming ball. They can choose to swing the bat high, in the middle or go low.

The objective is to swing the baseball bat correctly based on the trajectory of the incoming ball. The player controls the bat via a wireless arcade controller.

Case Study - Tow Truck Challenge Game For A Toyota Activation Campaign

We built a marketing game kiosk game to promote one of Toyota's latest pickup truck models, the Toyota Tundra.

Using our game Tow Truck Challenge as the starting template, we designed a fun challenge where the player has to tow heavy loads along the track, while making sure they have enough fuel reserves.

The game is designed to showcase the heavy-duty towing capability of the Toyota Tundra truck.

Case Study - Two Player Trivia Game For A Branded Event

We built an exciting 2 player live trivia game for a marketing game campaign. 2 players step up to the stage, and are given a series of 10 product related questions to answer.

Each player is given a controller with 4 buttons to tap on. The most accurate player from a round of ten questions wins the game.

The booth representative rewards both players with prizes at the end.

Case Study - Bowling Game For Branded PR Event

We developed a simple and casual bowling game for a branded PR event.

Players control an easy-to-use joystick to flick the bowling ball.

Players who successfully knock down all 10 pins win a prize.

Case Study - Boat Navigation Game For a branded event

Using our game engine Commando Boat , we developed a fun boating experience for our client's marketing game campaign

Players navigate left and right to avoid obstacles, while collecting coins.

Can you implement a leaderboard for high scores?

Yes. We have a cloud based leaderboard solution, that we can implement into every game on MarketJS. The leaderboard can be shown within the game, or provided as a separate leaderboard link that you can plug into specific sections of the event.

Rank users based on their high score achievement. There's also the ability to reset the leaderboard at pre-determined times.

The data collected will be available via our backend CMS. Clients get access to view and export the data into Excel format as well.

Alternatively, we can also provide a simple API for your engineers to pull the data.

How do I generate leads with marketing games?

There are a few solutions. The most common method is to add a registration form at the start of the experience. The data is then submitted to our cloud leadgen system for processing. Other methods include moving the form to the end of the game, or triggering it at specific events in the game.

Depending on what data you wish to collect, we can change the leadgen form fields to collect information such as name, email, phone numbers and occupation. It can also be a mini survey format.

Constant Contact

What kind of rewards can I give away?

T-shirts, keychains and other memorabilia
Cash prizes
Priority/VIP pass
Free 1-on-1 consultations
Free test drives (eg: automotive clients)

Do you offer customization services for your games?

Graphics and audio
Different theme
Different backgrounds
Arrangement of objects
Game rules or game logic
Adding your brand logos or embedding product images

Do I get analytics of the games?

Yes. We provide analytics and a dashboard to easily keep track of your leads, players and rewards.

Depending on the project, we can provide a CMS backend which allows you to login, view the data and export into different formats such as Excel.

Can the game be integrated with 3rd party systems?

Embedding games into marketing CRMs such as Hubspot, Marketo and Microsoft Sharepoint.
Embedding game links into other portals via iFrame direct linking
Embedding game links into mobile apps via the WebView element (which is an in-app browser)
Integrating special APIs provided by our clients
Passing along certain datasets to our clients via HTTP POST calls

On which platforms can I deploy the game?

The game can be deployed within any website or mobile application.

Our HTML5 technology allows the game to be ported into any target platform you need.

Offline Kiosk Games For marketing game Projects

Can marketing games work offline?

For offline environments such as events or exhibitions without internet access, we can prepare a special offline version to be run directly via a local server on-site.

In certain cases, we can prepare pre-packaged Android APKs or Windows Applications which can be pre-installed into the target device.

Coupon Codes For marketing game Projects

Can you add coupon codes, QR codes, or barcodes into the game?

We can integrate special codes into the game to reward users. These can be coupon codes, vouchers, QR codes or barcodes of any standard format.

Read our coupon and barcode gamification page to learn more.

after the user wins
as part of certain milestones achieved.
random coupon placements, eg: as part of an Easter egg type hunt.
at the start of the game experience, as an initial reward for encouragement.
emailed to the user at the end of the game experience.
texted (via SMS) to the user at the end of the game experience.
any other custom condition.

Do you provide game localization services?

For an additional fee, we're able to localize all aspects of the game, including translating the text, and changing graphics to fit the local culture.

We support any language worldwide. Some of the languages we have worked on include German, Spanish, Spanish LATAM, French, Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), Arabic, Farsi, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Norwegian, Burmese, Malay, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Thai, and more.

Please add a note in your contact form request, to indicate your target language.

Long Term Working Relationship

We're always on the lookout for long-term clients, because we see this as an opportunity to build a long-lasting working relationship.

In order make our clients succeed, we typically go above and beyond to ensure that the delivered solution actually solves their business objectives.

Trusted brands working with MarketJS

Frequently asked questions

How much do you charge.

We typically charge a simple licensing fee and customization, depending on several factors such as business goal, scope of the customizations, duration of campaign, number of devices/users, etc. Please include as much detail as possible, into the Contact form at the end of this page.

Do you sell the source code of the game?

We typically do not sell raw source code. We are a solutions-based company. Hence, we shall customize and deliver the finished product to you. MarketJS will typically host the games, while your event team will plug the game link into your target device.

If you need to self-host, we can arrange for that as well.

In some cases, where further or complex development is needed on your side, we can discuss a source code licensing arrangement.

Is the collected data GDPR compliant?

Interesting solution i have to pitch this to a client. can you send me a white-labelled demo version in the meantime.

Please submit a request via the contact form below. Don't forget to add your company details.

What our clients say about us

"We found MarketJS very easy to work with, and were impressed with how quickly they delivered and responded to our questions."

Rebecca MacDonald, VP of Marketing, Active Navigation

"MarketJS was very easy to work with, and they were always responsive to our questions and requests"

Jeff Robertson, Vice President of Technology & Operations, Carbon8

"MarketJS consistently delivers quality games on time and on budget. They are a great partner."

Scott Sheppard, President and CTO, MoZeus

"We had a great experience working with MarketJS. They were able to move fast on a tight timeline project and deliver exactly what we required with record time and quality. Definitely will be working with them on future projects to help bring our client’s digital needs to life."

Lauren Boutette, Account Director, Lumency

"MarketJS went above and beyond to deliver our projects tailored to our needs. Very swift and quick response and turnaround time. Highly recommended."

Yazan Al Tamimi, Account Manager, Socialize Agency

"Thanks so much for the work your team did. MarketJS was able to work with us to create a custom solution that exceeded our expectations."

Mike Davis, Sales Manager, ComQi

"We are really satisfied with MarketJS. They are quick to help with any troubleshooting and implementation."

Liliya H., Content Specialist, Telecoming

"It was a great pleasure working with MarketJS, they really helped thinking along with our needs. The delivery of the content was always quick and every custom request we had was possible to develop."

Willem van Ditzhuijzen, Business Development, CreativeClicks

"We are extremely happy with the content and service which MarketJS has provided us."

Matt McPherson, Director / Strategic Accounts , Wildtangent

"MarketJS provided excellent support and responded well to ad-hoc requests."

Seah Li-Wei, Project Manager, Spoon Creative

"MarketJS collaborated with our team really well and delivered quality work."

Kevin MacDonald, CTO, TeachTown

"MarketJS has been outstanding; they were patient and very helpful in delivering quality service that matches our custom game requirements."

Marlon Santos, Researcher and Senior Software Engineer, University of Sydney

"We've worked with MarketJS on a number of games now and always find them to be easy and efficient to work with."

Ben Gilbert, Project Manager, Ichi Worldwide

"We are very pleased working with MarketJS, it was far above our expectations in terms of deliverables."

Didier Seevraz, Digital Media Specialist, Lottotech

"MarketJS was fast, responsive and very customer focused. It was a pleasure to work with them."

Bryan Wursten, Senior Digital Editor, Boy Scouts of America

Interested? Request a free consultation

Our team shall be in touch within 12 hours.

- One of our subscribers (and client) captured over 500k USD worth of business from one game idea alone.
- Another subscriber (later turned long-term client) generated an ROI of 300% on their monthly ad spend. They spend 8 figures US dollars each month on paid user acquisition, hence new game ideas matter to them.
- Another subscriber (and also loyal customer), a publicly listed company with over 30,000 employees is using our monthly game ideas to motivate and encourage positive behavior throughout their organization.

If completing forms is not your cup of tea, feel free to email us directly at [email protected]

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Proven Mobile Game Marketing Strategies to Attract Players

by Andrea Knezovic , July 2, 2024

What is mobile game marketing, mobile game marketing strategy, what are key mobile games promotion platforms, how to market a mobile game: a step-by-step guide, final thoughts on mobile game marketing.

Searching for the ultimate guide to mobile game marketing?

Look no further.

In this extensive article, you’ll learn how to promote your mobile game and make it a success! It covers everything from organic to paid user acquisition strategies. You’ll find tons of practical tips and examples for every stage of your mobile game marketing journey.

I’ve also included some useful mobile game statistics.

Let’s dive right in!

Mobile game marketing is the process of promoting a mobile game to get more players, make it more popular, and subsequently, earn more in revenue. It’s achieved through a multifaceted mobile game marketing strategy.

You’re probably wondering, how do mobile games get popular.

There are several different ways how to promote a mobile game . Most commonly, a mobile game marketing strategy includes paid mobile game advertising, organic game marketing, and influencer marketing campaigns.

Here’s an overview of each one and how they can work together to create a comprehensive mobile game marketing strategy.

1. Paid Mobile Game Marketing Campaigns

Mobile game advertising campaigns primarily consist of running ads on various platforms to promote a mobile game and get more players . These paid user acquisition campaigns are particularly effective because they allow you to target specific groups of players in chosen markets and expand your user base.

So if you’re wondering how to market your mobile game, make sure to incorporate mobile gaming ads in your strategy.

What Are the Best Ad Formats for Mobile Game Advertising?

This strategy leverages various ad formats , such as video ads, banner ads, and playable ads – each of them serves a unique purpose.

Video ads , for instance, are great for showcasing your game’s dynamics and graphics, while playable ads offer a sneak peek into the gameplay, allowing players to experience a part of the game before downloading.

The key to success in paid mobile game marketing campaigns lies in understanding your audience – what they like, where they spend their time, and how they interact with games.

How to Optimize Mobile Game Marketing Campaigns?

Another crucial aspect of mobile game marketing is the analysis and optimization of these campaigns.

By monitoring key performance indicators (KPIs) like click-through rates (CTRs), conversion rates, and cost per install (CPI), you can fine-tune your strategies to ensure maximum return on investment (ROI).

It’s not just about attracting players; it’s about attracting the right players who will engage with your game long-term.

How to Get the Best Out of Your Mobile Game Marketing Campaigns?

To truly excel in paid mobile game marketing, it’s essential to stay updated with mobile game market trends and platform algorithm changes. This dynamic environment demands continuous learning and adaptation.

By doing so, you can make informed decisions that align with both current trends and the evolving preferences of your target players.

In the next section, we’ll dive into organic mobile game marketing – a strategy that complements paid mobile game marketing campaigns to create a comprehensive marketing strategy for your mobile game.

2. Organic Mobile Game Marketing

Along with paid user acquisition, you can also market a mobile game organically. Organic user acquisition is primarily the result of good app store optimization. However, publishers can also market their game by using content marketing strategies, social media marketing, and user-generated content.

App Store Optimization

Effective mobile game marketing heavily relies on ASO .

This process involves optimizing your game’s page on app stores to increase its visibility in search results and improve its conversion rates .

It encompasses optimizing the game’s title, description, keywords, and visuals to make it more appealing and easy to find. ASO is a fundamental part of how to market a mobile game for free. It requires no direct advertising costs but can significantly boost organic downloads.

Content Marketing for Mobile Games

Content marketing is a powerful tool for mobile game marketing. It involves creating valuable, relevant content like images, videos, and infographics that resonate with your target audience.

This strategy not only helps in building brand awareness but also in establishing your game in the mobile gaming community. By sharing insights, tips, and engaging stories related to your game, you can attract and retain a clearly defined audience.

Social Media Marketing for Mobile Games

Social media marketing is a dynamic and interactive component of organic mobile game marketing. Platforms like X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and Instagram offer immense opportunities to connect with players , share updates, and build a community around your game.

Engaging with your audience through regular posts, live streams, and interactive sessions can foster a loyal fanbase and drive organic growth.

User Generated Content

Leveraging user-generated content is an innovative mobile game marketing strategy. Encouraging players to share their in-game experiences, achievements, and creative content can amplify your game’s visibility and credibility .

This peer-to-peer method of promoting a mobile game not only enhances engagement but also adds an authentic voice to your marketing efforts.

3. Mobile Game Influencer Marketing

If you’re wondering how to promote a mobile game more authentically, you should consider mobile game influencer marketing .

This approach involves collaborating with influencers who have a substantial following on platforms like YouTube, Twitch, and Instagram to promote your game. Mobile game influencer marketing taps into the influencer’s audience, bringing authenticity and extensive reach to your marketing campaigns.

What Are the Main Benefits of Mobile Game Influencer Marketing?

Mobile game influencer marketing offers several key benefits.

It allows for targeted outreach, as influencers often have a dedicated following interested in specific gaming genres. Their endorsement can significantly boost your game’s credibility and visibility .

Moreover, influencers can create unique, engaging content that resonates with their audience, resulting in higher engagement rates and potentially more downloads for your game.

This is what makes influencer marketing an important aspect of how to market a mobile game.

How to Come Up with a Mobile Game Influencer Marketing Campaign?

Crafting a successful mobile game influencer marketing campaign starts with identifying the right influencers who align with your game’s genre and values.

It’s essential to research and choose influencers whose audience matches your target demographic . Once selected, collaborate with them to create content that’s authentic to their style while effectively showcasing your game’s unique features. Clear communication about your expectations and creative freedom is key to a successful partnership.

Tips for Mobile Game Influencer Marketing Campaigns

To maximize the impact of your mobile game influencer marketing efforts, consider the following tips:

Choose the Right Platform : Different platforms cater to different audiences. Select the platform where your target players are most active.
Engagement Over Followers : Sometimes, influencers with fewer followers have more engaged audiences. Focus on the engagement rate rather than just the follower count.
Track Performance : Use tracking links and promo codes to monitor the performance of your campaigns and measure ROI.
Build Relationships : Foster long-term relationships with influencers for ongoing promotions and collaborations.

Choosing the right mobile games promotion platforms is crucial for reaching and engaging your desired audience. These platforms vary in their approach, audience, and effectiveness, but selecting the right mix can significantly boost your game’s visibility and popularity.

Mobile Game Ad Networks

When it comes to paid mobile game marketing, you should focus on ad networks. These networks act as intermediaries that enable the placement of mobile game ads across a wide array of platforms.

This means your mobile game ads can appear not only in other mobile games but also on websites, in mobile apps across different genres, and even in video streams.

Popular ad networks like Google AdMob, Unity Ads, and Facebook provide the versatility to reach potential players in diverse digital environments.

They offer advanced targeting options and analytics , allowing you to refine your mobile game ad placements for maximum impact. With ad networks, you gain the flexibility to spread your marketing efforts across various platforms, reaching a broader audience beyond the confines of the gaming ecosystem.

Best Ad Networks for Acquiring Players

According to AppsFlyer’s most recent Performance Index, the top ad networks for acquiring high-quality players with good retention are:

TikTok for Business

Check out more ad networks for acquiring mobile gamers here.

Social Media Platforms for Marketing a Mobile Game

Social media platforms are indispensable for mobile game promotion due to their massive user base and the ability to create highly targeted advertising campaigns.

Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok offer unique opportunities to engage with players. You can use these platforms not only for paid advertising but also for organic engagement through posts, live streams, and community building.

The key to effective social media marketing lies in understanding your audience, creating compelling content, and engaging with your community regularly.

Now, let’s answer the most important question: how to promote a mobile game to make it more popular and successful.

I’ve created a step-by-step guide that will guide you throughout this process.

1. Come Up with a Mobile Game Marketing Plan

The first and perhaps most crucial step is to devise a comprehensive mobile game marketing plan. This plan serves as the blueprint for all your game marketing efforts and ensures that each step is aligned with your overall objectives and resources.

Why Planning Is Essential

The importance of planning cannot be overstated.

A well-thought-out mobile game marketing plan allows you to set clear goals, identify your target audience, budget efficiently, and measure the success of your marketing activities. It helps in avoiding ad-hoc decisions and ensures that every action taken is strategic and purposeful.

game development degree colleges and universities

How to Create an Effective Mobile Game Marketing Plan?

To create an effective mobile game marketing plan, start by brainstorming game promotion ideas.

This could include a mix of paid advertising, influencer partnerships, social media campaigns, and content marketing.

Consider the unique aspects of your game and how best to showcase them to your audience. Next, outline a timeline for your activities , allocate your budget across different channels, and decide on the tools and resources you will need.

How to Set Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Setting the right KPIs is vital for measuring the success of your mobile game marketing plan. These should include metrics such as install numbers, player retention rates, average revenue per user (ARPU), and conversion rates.

By monitoring these KPIs, you can understand the effectiveness of your mobile game marketing campaign and make data-driven adjustments as needed.

demographic segmentation example user audience

2. Determine the Target Audience for Mobile Games Marketing Campaigns

The very basis of any marketing strategy is identifying and understanding your target audience. The same goes for marketing a mobile game.

This step is crucial for tailoring your marketing efforts to reach the right players, and ensuring that your resources are used effectively.

You can’t simply target mobile gamers as a whole because that’s a very large and diverse group of people. You have to be much more specific than that. Naturally, the target audience depends on the game genre , specific game features, and markets the game is available in.

Why It’s Important to Target Specific Groups of Players?

Targeting specific groups of players allows for more personalized and effective mobile game marketing strategies.

Understanding the target audience for mobile games helps in creating ads, content, and promotions that resonate deeply with potential players. It also increases the likelihood of higher engagement rates, player retention, and ultimately, a more successful game.

How to Determine the Target Audience for Mobile Games?

Determining the target audience for your mobile game involves researching and understanding who your ideal players are.

This can be achieved by analyzing market trends, competitor games, and player demographics such as age, gender, location, interests, and gaming preferences. Surveys, player interviews, and focus groups can also provide valuable insights into player motivations and preferences.

How to Group Users into Different Cohorts?

Once you have gathered information about your potential players, the next step is to group them into different cohorts based on common characteristics .

This segmentation can be based on behavioral patterns, such as spending habits or gameplay styles, or demographic factors, like age groups or geographical locations.

Grouping users into cohorts allows for more targeted and efficient mobile game advertising strategies, as you can tailor your messaging and campaigns to meet the specific needs and preferences of each group.

Mobile Game Target Audience Example

Start by narrowing down players according to their location, age, and gender, i.e., player demographics. For example, the main target audience could be 21-34-year-old female gamers from the US. But you can choose several such groups to target.

However, knowing the age, gender, and location of your audience is just a starting point. Next, you need to figure out the type of gamers you want to attract, according to their motivations and interests.

It helps if you write down the main characteristics of your game. For example, a simple-to-play casual match-3 puzzle game with design and décor meta elements. This alone tells you a lot about what type of gamers you should target.

In this case, it’s casual gamers, puzzle gamers, and gamers with interests in design and décor.

We can go even further.

The main things that motivate players to play a match-3 puzzle game are thinking, solving, exercising cognitive skills, passing time, relaxing, etc. Thus, you can target players with these specific interests.

3. Produce Mobile Gaming Ads

Now that you understand how to identify your target audience, the next, and most important, step in a paid user acquisition strategy is creative production. It refers to creating ad creatives that will help you market your mobile game.

For mobile game apps, video ad creatives work best and have the highest conversion rates. Mobile gaming ads need to be interesting enough and present the game in a good light to grab viewer’s attention and make them download the game.

The process of creating a video ad consists of market research, writing a script, creative production, and testing.

Do Market Research

Start by doing research and analyzing competitors’ ads. You can do that on Facebook’s Ad Library or use ad intelligence platforms . Furthermore, try to identify creative trends for a particular genre.

By doing this, you’ll get a better sense of what works and what doesn’t. Remember, top publishers meticulously test every creative, so if it’s working for them, there’s a big chance something similar will work for your game as well.

Write a Script for Mobile Gaming Ads

Then you need to write a script. This consists of outlining each scene, as well as adding notes for editing.

When writing the script, consider the game genre and features, as well as the target audience. Think about what would appeal to them based on their motivations and interests.

Take into account market research – if you identified an interesting creative trend, try it out.

Tips for Creating Mobile Gaming Ads

Now that you have a script, use these tips to create the most effective mobile gaming ads.

Start with a bang : video ad creatives should grab the viewer’s attention in the first few seconds. Otherwise, they’ll just keep scrolling and you’ll lose them. Many ads start with an exciting gameplay scene that gives viewers an adrenaline rush, others pose a challenge to the viewers to pull them in. You can split-test different intros to find out what keeps viewers glued to their screens.
Make the ads short and simple: 15 to 30 seconds is the sweet spot for mobile game ads. People’s attention spans are generally low, so anything more than 30 seconds would be testing their limits.
Be smart about editing: it’s important to know where to draw a line. Yes, it can be hard to fit everything you want to show in 15 to 30 seconds, but keep editing until you’re left with the most important parts.
Set the tone : it needs to make sense with the game. For example, if you have a slow-paced puzzle game, the ad should have a relaxing and tranquil atmosphere. On the other hand, fast-paced creatives with fast-tempo music and tons of sound effects are more suitable for action games.
End with a call to action : Whether it’s a simple “Play now” or something more customized, it directs viewers to download the game and start playing.

Test Mobile Game Advertisements

Don’t think you can make a couple of ads and call it a day. Quite the contrary – your creative output needs to be high . Not only do you need to come up with many unique ideas, but also create many variations of each ad.

Keep in mind that no matter how hard you try to make the perfect creative, you’ll never know what works if you don’t test it.

Everything else is just guesswork.

When you produce many ad variations, you can A/B test them and identify the top performers.

4. Utilize Organic Mobile Game Marketing

For organic mobile game marketing, your primary focus should be app store optimization. It helps people discover your game organically – it’s like SEO for your mobile game.

What Are the Benefits of App Store Optimization for Mobile Games?

A well-optimized app store page can improve the visibility of a game on Apple and Google and thus bring many new users – for free.

If the game is good enough, it might even end up on different featured lists, which is an additional boost. Plus, ASO supports paid user acquisition because people are sent to a game’s app store page after they click on an ad.

homescapes app store screenshots example

Optimize the Main ASO Elements

The main app store elements are the game title, icon, description, keywords, screenshots, and an app promo video. All of them work together to improve the visibility of your game as well as entice users to download your game.

Your game title should be catchy and include relevant keywords without appearing spammy. The icon must be visually appealing and representative of the game’s theme.

Craft your description to be informative, engaging, and keyword-rich. Carefully select keywords that are relevant and have high search volumes.

Screenshots and the app promo video should showcase the best aspects of your game and highlight unique features and gameplay. Together, these elements not only improve the visibility of your game but also entice users to download it.

Localize Your App Store Listing

Localizing your app store listing is an often-overlooked aspect of ASO.

This involves translating and adapting your game’s title, description, keywords, and visuals to suit different languages and cultures.

Localization helps in reaching a broader, global audience and can significantly impact the download numbers in non-English speaking markets.

5. Promote Your Mobile Game in Other Games

Another way to promote your mobile game is to advertise it in other mobile games.

As you know, many games monetize by displaying mobile gaming ads – this can be an ad for your game. This approach can be especially effective if the games share a similar target audience but are not direct competitors.

How Does Promoting Your Game in Other Games Work?

Promoting your game in other games is a strategic aspect of mobile gaming marketing. This method involves placing your game’s ads within other mobile games , typically through ad networks that specialize in mobile gaming advertising.

These ads can take various forms, such as interstitials, banner ads, or even playable ads .

The key is to select games for ad placement that have a similar demographic but aren’t direct competitors to ensure your ad resonates with the audience. This strategy benefits from the engaged and relevant audience already interested in mobile gaming, increasing the likelihood of attracting players to your game.

Tips for Advertising a Mobile Game in Other Games

When advertising your game in other mobile games, consider these tips for effective mobile gaming marketing:

Target Similar Genres : Choose games in similar genres or with similar themes to ensure audience relevance.
Focus on Creative Ad Content : Develop engaging and creative ads that stand out. Playable ads or those that showcase unique aspects of your game can be particularly effective.
Monitor and Optimize Ad Performance : Use analytics to track the performance of your ads. Monitor metrics like click-through rates and conversion rates, and adjust your strategy accordingly for better results.

6. Community Engagement and Management

Community engagement and management are crucial components of a successful mobile game marketing strategy. Building and nurturing a community around your game can lead to increased player loyalty, higher engagement, and organic growth.

Why Communities Are Important for Mobile Game Marketing?

Communities are vital for mobile game marketing as they create a sense of belonging among players. A strong community can act as a powerful marketing tool, with players themselves becoming advocates for the game.

Engaged communities provide valuable feedback, help in identifying issues, and can even drive content creation. They also play a key role in player retention, as social interactions and a sense of belonging can keep players coming back to your game.

How to Create a Community Around Your Mobile Game?

Creating a community around your mobile game involves several steps:

Provide Platforms for Interaction : Set up forums, social media groups, or in-game chat rooms where players can interact, share experiences, and provide feedback.
Encourage User-Generated Content : Inspire players to create and share their own content related to your game, such as fan art, guides, or gameplay videos .
Regularly Engage with the Community : Actively participate in discussions, respond to feedback, and create regular updates about your game. This shows that you value your community’s input and are committed to improving their gaming experience.
Host Events and Contests : Organize in-game events , competitions, or challenges to keep the community engaged and excited about your game.
Recognize and Reward Active Members : Acknowledge active community members or contributors, which can motivate others to participate more actively.

7. Work with an Experienced Mobile Game Marketing Agency

Navigating the complexities of mobile game marketing can be challenging . This is where working with an experienced mobile game marketing agency can be invaluable.

These agencies bring expertise and resources that can significantly enhance the effectiveness of your marketing efforts.

What Are the Benefits of Working with a Mobile Game Marketing Agency?

Collaborating with a specialized marketing agency offers several advantages:

Expertise and Experience : Mobile game marketing agencies have a wealth of knowledge and experience in marketing a mobile game. They are well-versed in industry trends, effective strategies, and the nuances of different marketing platforms.
Resource Allocation : Agencies can provide resources and tools that may not be readily available in-house. This includes access to sophisticated analytics tools, creative talent for ad development , and connections for influencer partnerships.
Time and Cost Efficiency : Working with an agency can be more time and cost-effective than building an internal team. Agencies can quickly mobilize resources and execute strategies, reducing the time to market.
Customized Strategies : A good mobile game marketing agency will create a tailored marketing strategy that aligns with your specific game and business goals.
Measurable Results : Mobile game marketing agencies focus on delivering measurable results, using data-driven approaches to optimize campaigns and maximize ROI.

How to Choose the Right Mobile Game Marketing Agency?

Selecting the right agency is critical. Consider these factors:

Industry Reputation and Portfolio : Look at the agency’s track record and previous campaigns in mobile game marketing. Review their portfolio to assess their expertise and success in the field.
Understanding of Your Game and Vision : Choose a mobile game marketing agency that understands the unique aspects of your game and shares your vision for its success.
Transparency and Communication : Opt for a mobile game marketing agency that values transparency in its processes and maintains open lines of communication.
Services Offered : Ensure the agency provides the specific services you need, whether it’s ASO, influencer marketing, creative production , or analytics.
Cultural Fit : The mobile marketing agency should align with your company’s culture and values, as a strong partnership relies on mutual understanding and cooperation.

Successfully marketing a mobile game requires a well-rounded approach that combines various strategies and adapts to the ever-evolving gaming market.

Mobile game advertising, from paid campaigns to organic ASO techniques, plays a pivotal role in how you promote a mobile game. It’s about reaching the right audience, engaging them effectively, and converting their interest into downloads and active gameplay.

The strategies we’ve discussed, ranging from leveraging ad networks and social media platforms to collaborating with influencers and managing player communities, are all integral to the process of marketing a mobile game.

Personalized Approach

The importance of tailoring your approach to your specific game and audience cannot be overstated. Each game is unique , and so too should be the way it’s marketed. This means not only understanding your game’s appeal but also the preferences and behaviors of your target players. Analytics and data-driven decision-making are your allies in continuously refining your approach.

Long-Term Success

Remember, the goal is not just to attract players but to create a lasting relationship with them. This involves not only initial user acquisition but also player retention through ongoing engagement, community building, and regular updates.

In conclusion, the journey to successfully market and promote a mobile game is ongoing and ever-changing. It requires creativity, adaptability, and a keen understanding of both the gaming industry and your audience.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do i market my mobile game app, how do mobile games get popular, how hard is it to market a mobile game, should i work with a mobile game marketing agency, get the insider’s edge in mobile gaming.

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Udonis is an independent full-service mobile marketing agency that acquired more than 300,000,000 users for mobile games since 2018.

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When Should Developers Give Their Game Away for Free?

When Epic announced its new digital store, one of its biggest selling points was that – a couple of times a month – the store wouldn’t be selling you anything at all. Instead, following in the footsteps of the model pioneered by Playstation Plus and Games with Gold on Xbox, the Epic Store does something that its PC competitor, Steam, doesn’t offer. On The Epic Store, users get a free game every week.

You can see the thinking behind Epic’s initiative – it helps them quickly get customers onboard and helps establish its storefront. And for gamers there is the obvious appeal of free games – and in fact, these games are really free because unlike Playstation Plus and Games with Gold, there isn’t even an online service subscription fee to pay in order to qualify for the free games. But is this a win-win-win situation for all those involved? When a game features in these free limited time promotions, does it work for the developer as well? Giving your game away for free isn’t the obvious starting point for developers looking to turn a profit for all that time spent on designing and building the game.

A league of their own

“Now that I look back it’s very easy to say that it [Playstation Plus] absolutely was the best decision. We make more now than we did at launch every month so absolutely it was. You know I think almost objectively you can say that it was a good idea at this point” – Dave Hagewod – Psyonix Founder

Let’s not beat around the bush because it’s no secret that – yes – giving your game away for free for a limited amount of time on one of these services can absolutely work for developers. And one of the best early examples of that in action is certainly Rocket League.

Rocket League launched on the Playstation Plus free game service in July 2015, at the same time as it was released on Steam for a fee (£15). It was an overnight success. Jeremy Dunham, VP of Publishing, talking to Kinda Funny Games back in 2016, said that Sony had warned Psyonix to expect a couple of million of downloads, and roughly 50,000 – 80,000 max concurrent players on its server.

Instead, the game servers crashed repeatedly from the huge numbers playing the game, and by October 2016, 22 million PSN accounts had played Rocket league, while sales on the console had reached 8 million. These deals are very secretive and esoteric – no one ever talks openly about the numbers; but you can have a good guess at how many people downloaded Rocket League for free when it was available on Playstation Plus using those numbers. A lot…

There are two ways to look at that. Firstly, you could say Psyonix left a lot of money on the table – especially at £15 a go. Surely a decent fraction of the 22 million players would have spent the money on the game rather than get it for free? You also have to factor in that Sony would have paid the developer upfront in the deal that made the game free for a month at launch, so Psyonix did get some income for the free players. But that amount would also have been based on the pre-release estimates of downloads, which at around two million is certainly far less than the reality. In theory, Psyonix missed out on a whole heap of revenue.

Or you can look at it with more positively, the free download meant that Psyonix reached a huge player base they never would have touched otherwise. Would they have even sold 8m copies on the console without the buzz generated by the free download. Jeremy Dunham has described how the company’s budget for marketing Rocket League was tiny, and that going with Playstation Plus let Psyonix pass the reins to Sony to do the brunt of the game’s marketing.

And there are a couple of things Psyonix have done really smartly, to make the game a massive financial success going forward even if revenue was sacrificed at launch.

For one, they made that decision to release the game on Steam simultaneously. As hundreds of clips of the game got shared online and it reached the top of streaming websites, the buzz created by the huge player base on PS4 certainly translated to sales on the PC. And it didn’t stop there. The game had successful launches on the Xbox and Switch platform subsequently, and of course was only available in its paid-for format. The post-launch support for the game has been impeccable too. Alongside regular free updates, cosmetic-only DLC has shifted about once every quarter, giving Psyonix a chance to earn money from its huge player base on a regular basis. Just to throw a bit of soft anecdotal evidence in – I know I was a player who bought a couple of DLC offerings from Psyonix, not because I wanted them particularly, but it was my way of supporting the developers and saying thanks for the hours of free fun they had given me.

So every game should start free and grow from there right?

Not so fast. Rocket league is a standout story – and the biggest success story of a limited free launch strategy. But of course it’s not always like that. Velocity 2x from FutureLab games is a great example of how a free launch on Playstation Plus, even if successful, can be an issue.

Velocity 2x actually launched the year before Rocket League in September 2014. And it too was a free game on Playstation Plus and Vita at launch. Millions of people downloaded the game; to all intents and purposes, it looked like a runaway success.

But when the game got published on Switch in 2018, at a time when FutureLabs was desperately trying to fund a sequel to the game, it gave a totally honest call for support out to its fans.

1. TRUTH BOMB: if you want to see the bells and whistles sequel to #Velocity2X that we have been working on in secret for years, you need to go out and buy #Velocity2X on Switch. — FuturLab (@FuturLab) August 20, 2018

FutureLab said if fans ever wanted to see a sequel to Velocity 2x, they needed to demonstrate strong numbers on Switch because otherwise no one would agree to fund any sequels. Curve Digital had agreed to publish the Velocity 2x on Switch but needed convincing by the sales numbers before agreeing to support a sequel.

Indeed, according to FutureLab, multiple publishers had got excited about the sequel when seeing early concepts and workings; and would also get excited about the critical success and the volume of players achieved by the first game. Unfortunately, interest would wane when the reality of the sales of that game were discussed. Velocity 2x – for all its millions of players on PS4 – hardly sold a copy on the platform. The majority of people who might have paid for it, had already got it for free. Unlike Rocket League, establishing that player base didn’t help make money further down the line.

The game did have DLC that potentially could have generated revenue from its PS4 player base – but both pieces, billed at the £2 mark – were released during the same month as the game. The availability of extra levels too soon after the release of the game does not give it the chance to breathe and create an appetite for more – maybe a larger DLC drop a few months later would have been a wiser approach and a better strategy for capitalising on its download success.

Furthermore, when the game – which had positive reviews and good buzz from the PS4 release – was launched on Steam in 2015, things didn’t exactly go to plan. Whereas Rocket League made good money on subsequent platform releases, when Velocity 2x launched on Steam, it coincided with the launch of Windows 10. Unfortunately, that resulted in a number of technical issues and bugs for the game that took many months to fully resolve. It completely destroyed any potential momentum on the PC platform because the game simply didn’t work.

So Velocity 2x needed to sell well on Switch in order to convince its potential publisher, Curve Digital, (or indeed any other publisher) to fund its sequel. I guess the fact that Velocity 3 is not currently being talked about in the pipeline from FutureLabs would suggest that didn’t happen. However, I should also note that Curve and Future Lab are currently working together on a game based on the popular Peaky Blinders series, so perhaps the relationship created by their work on Velocity 2x had some spin-off positive outcomes.

Modern market

There is another obvious difference between Rocket League and Velocity 2x that helps explain the disparity in the success of their Playstation Plus free game promotion.

Rocket League is a multiplayer game while Velocity 2x is a single player game. Online multiplayer games make a lot more sense to give away than single player games. Especially if the free period is at the beginning of the game’s lifecycle.

While Velocity 2x of course would have generated some buzz and positivity that got the name of the game out there and attracted new players, it could not do it to anywhere near the level that Rocket League could achieve. Put simply, it lacked the multiplication factor.

Rocket League had such shareable online clips of cool moments. It had hundreds of streamers and YouTubers playing the game showing it to thousands of potential players. And it was easy for players to show and play with their friends online and offline, who would then go get it themselves. It was a social game that marketed itself organically once you had a huge player base.

And on top-of that, the game was already earmarked to take the game-as-a service approach. There were ideas and plans in the pipeline for generating revenue off the existing player base, and its strategy resulted in strong sales on subsequent platform releases.

There is a decent argument that Rocket League might actually be a bigger and even more successful game if it was still free, and indeed free on every platform. If that were the case, the player base could be even bigger, with more people bought in and hooked, willing to spend money in other ways. That is exactly where we are now in the market. Some of the biggest multiplayer games, Fortnite and Apex Legends, are entirely free.

Which brings us back to Epic. Epic’s Fortnite multiplayer component is free to play on every platform it is on (and there is hardly a platform it’s not on) – and we all know that Fortnite has been a massive financial success. Notably, the single player portion of Fortnite, ‘Save the World’ is not free. Multiplayer games-as-a-service is a business model that makes sense; but single player games don’t have that same shareability among players. Giving your game away for free is clearly not the way to go for single player games – at least not at first.

When does making your singleplayer game free work for indie developers?

The games Epic is giving away for free on its store are not new games – and it’s largely the same on Playstation Plus and Games with Gold. The smart money says that it is further into a single player game’s lifecycle before giving it away for free brings benefits to developers.

Doing it too early cannibalises your own profits. Sure it might increase buzz about the game and get more people to play it, but if you do it too early, you’re stopping people who were willing to pay from doing just that. Whereas if you do it a year after release, you have a chance of drawing in new players to your games – and to your DLC revenue stream – that were very unlikely to play the game in other circumstances.

What’s more, if you do it not too long before the release of your next game, then you are adding another layer of smarts to your marketing. A free game can help establish trust and build positive feelings about your studio and your forthcoming games. Then when your new game does launch – your audience will have gained a bump in its potential size. Those who enjoyed the free game are far more likely to buy the new release now they know the quality of your work.

And of course, making your game free on these services doesn’t mean you’re not getting some revenue for the giveaway. As discussed earlier, the details of these deals are kept very secret within the industry, but it is an additional source of income.

“The impact was definitely worthwhile. Not huge, but worthwhile. Going free in the later parts of the game’s life cycle can give you some nice revenue boost.” – Jakub Mikyska, CEO of Grip-games

But the goodwill and market buzz you can get from the giveaway is what you are really after when making your game free for a limited period. You’re sacrificing revenue for intangibles. But the vast majority of that ‘sacrificed’ revenue was never going to come from the players who habitually download games for free anyway.

Of course, there is a danger to all this – and that’s why developers and the platform holders need to be careful. Creating an environment where gamers believe that if they just wait long enough, everything they want to play will become free eventually is a little dangerous. And we have certainly seen that cautionary market adjustment in the last few years, with the free game offers on Playstation Plus becoming noticeably smaller.

Epic with its new storefront needs to be a little wary of that danger. Creating an expectation of virtually limitless free games needs to be avoided. And studios also need to think carefully about how often they sign up to such deals. But securing the right free game deal, at the right time, can certainly bring advantages and be very worthwhile for all concerned – even a single player game.

But if you are developing a multiplayer game – the success of these free game promotions and titles such as Fortnite and Apex seems to suggest that making your game free all the time could be the modern and smart way to go – as long as it is coupled with a revenue plan to turn the player community into a viable income stream.

Free game promotions shouldn’t mean that developers are giving away profit potential. For that initial ‘gift’ they get a larger playerbase, a wealth of goodwill and exposure, and an additional fee from the publisher. It’s what they do with that kick start that matters; and it’s also important that the industry as a whole ensures these deals remain tactical incentives and don’t become the accepted business model.

Chasm: Are there too many metroidvanias?

Chasm is a metroidvania game that uses procedural generation to make each playthrough a unique experience. The building blocks are the same, but the layout of the game is different every time.

Hence, it’s a metroidvania game that you can play over and over again because the feeling of exploration that is key to the genre is always preserved. You can imagine as a child, the game’s director, James Petruzzi, wishing he could repeatedly play through the likes of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (a clear inspiration for Chasm). The tight controls and gameplay would remain, but the layout would jumble up – the old becoming new each and every time.

You see, in 1997, Castlevania was a 2D side scroller at a time when much of the industry was moving on to 3D. Arguably, the pinnacle of the metroidvania genre had arrived just as the genre was abandoned. It was 2001 before another 2D Castlevania hit consoles. In the meantime players were subjected to lacklustre 3D iterations and, what’s more, that 2001 game was only a port of a 1993 title that had previously been marooned on the ill-fated Sharp X68000 home computer.

It’s easy to see why a fan of the genre, starved in his childhood of the kind of games that captured his imagination, would set about creating a game that would let players fill the void. While waiting for the next metroidvania, they could play Chasm as much as they like – every time exploring a new map, with enemies in new locations and hidden treasures that are actually hidden again. In theory, Chasm is the eternal metroidvania. That’s what James Petruzzi wanted to create with his independent studio, Bit Kid games. The developers set out to make the game they wanted as kids.

Petruzzi clearly wasn’t the only kid desperate for more castlevania and more metroidvanias growing up. That was evidenced by the nearly 7,000 people who backed just the idea of Chasm by the end of its Kickstarter campaign in 2012. In fact, during the campaign, it received 70,000 votes on the Steam greenlight process. Petruzzi was right – there was an audience for games like Chasm. The kicker is, there is also a raft of other developers who love the genre and are eager to make their mark as well.

You don’t have to wait that long these days till the next metroidvania genre game hits shelves and online store fronts. It’s certainly not like 1997 anymore. When the Kickstarter for Chasm kicked off in back in 2012, metroidvanias might have been a bit rarer, nevertheless the 2D art style and sidescroller gameplay was already a firm favourite of many indie developers.

All of which meant that by the time of Chasm’s launch in July 2018, it found itself navigating a release schedule full of other metroidvania inspired games. In the five years it took to get Chasm from Kickstarter campaign to commercial release – many other successful metroidvanias hit the market.

So where did that leave the game hoping to be the metroidvania you can play again and again? After all, how many metroidvanias can the gaming market support?

Why developers keep coming back to metroidvanias?

Before we even attempt to answer those questions, it would be good to understand why there are so many of these games on the market right now. What is it about the genre that is so enticing to smaller development studios and independents?

First off, I think it’s clearly a matter of available resources. Back in the 80s and 90s the genre was on the cutting edge. Today, a 2D side scroller is well-trodden ground. It’s a cheaper and easier genre to make. Don’t get me wrong: It’s still not easy to make it good – but you don’t need a team of 3D animators, you don’t have to create huge 3D environments and there’s no 3D physics engine. It’s definitely not easy, but it’s a genre that can be realistically attempted by a smaller team.

And of course, as we have already covered, it’s a genre that many of today’s emerging developers grew up loving. In metroidvanias, developers can flex their muscles and experiment with lots of different aspects of game design. They can create a game with a strong narrative and a real sense of place. They can delve into the design of exploration, platforming, and combat. They can include secrets, collectibles, puzzles and imaginative character development. While these are all elements that can be applied to indie metroidvania games, they can equally be applied to the very biggest single-player games that hit the market.

For example, everything described there, could be applied to last year’s game of the year: God of War. I’m obviously not the first person to recognise this – but God of War is essentially a metroidvania game that is built in the 3D space. Whether you’ve got the biggest budget in the world, or the smallest, there is something about the core elements of the metroidvania experience that draws in both players and developers.

Creating a 2D metroidvania is a way for smaller developers to explore all the things they love about single-player games in a manageable way. It’s no surprise there are so many developed.

The Kickstarter problem

There was a short period of time in which Kickstarter was a viable option that you would suggest to new development studios. Frankly, that time has gone. But back in 2012, for Chasm’s creators, it was a route to market that made sense. And there are some things about Kickstarter that certainly worked in Chasm’s favour for its marketing over the five years of its development.

The platform gave the studio a clear way to build an audience for its game and connect with its fans. A really important part of marketing is to start early, and Kickstarter let’s you do that. It’s a convenient way to maintain high communication with fans. You can take them on the journey with you and build yourself an audience from the get go.

That interaction can be a double-edged sword however. Particularly if your game takes five years to develop, a lot longer than planned. If delays became apparent in the development – and you hadn’t started out as a Kickstarter project – you could perhaps adapt your messaging. You would release information within a timescale suitable for you and give updates at your own pace and discretion.

The problem with Kickstarter is you have a couple of thousand of your most hardcore fans, who have already given you money, who you need to placate. Not all of them will demand or expect regular updates, but enough of them will and – to be fair – they are entitled to them when you have gone down the Kickstarter route. They’ve funded you before you’ve delivered anything concrete. What that means is that you can get sucked in to doing five years of intensive marketing – when maybe if the game was entirely privately funded, you would hold back at times, push at others. The long delays in development didn’t help Chasm. The studio would at times push hard on the marketing, thinking release is only a year away – when in reality it was two. Chasm’s strategy would no doubt change if Bit Kid had foreseen the actual timing.

In 2014, Dan Adelman, formerly of Nintendo, joined the team. He helped Chasm get on top of this problem, and in one interview spoke about this issue:

“With Chasm, once we realized it was gonna be a long time before the game actually ships, we deliberately slowed down our marketing reach, We stopped giving intermediate builds to YouTubers and Twitch streamers because you can’t keep the heat on high all the time. At some point, there’s fatigue and people start to tune it out.”

Adelman spoke to how a developer like Firaxis with Civilization can spend years working on a project in the background, with its audience never seeing the convoluted messy development path. It can then announce the game a year before, and launch an exact and deliberate campaign that ramps up to release. But because Bit Kid games needed to build an audience and secure funding, it simply couldn’t do the same – it had to take the audience along for the ride with them from the very start.

You might not want to reveal too much to your audience, but they need reassurances pretty much every month that the game is being worked on. With so many people burnt by failed or fraudulent campaigns – it’s kind of a necessary duty of care. In fact, Chasm delivered more than 70 updates on it’s Kickstarter page during development.

If it wasn’t for those pesky competitors

Chasm was released on the 31 July (16 July for backers). It coordinated with Sony and Valve to find a date not too crowded, that also left the press time to write reviews. Bit Kid also sought to coordinate somewhat with other similar games, because the situation could have been much worse.

Other similar games did come out near the time of Chasm, and it was kind of unavoidable. What didn’t help Chasm – or the other new titles – is that the Nintendo Switch had proven itself as a great home for smaller indie games during the previous 12 months. This led to a number of developers porting established titles over to the Switch. Chasm didn’t only have to compete with other new and similar games, but also the re-release of some stand-out metroidvania titles on a platform perfect for them.

The months before and after Chasm’s release were full of similar games:

If you like Metroidvanias, there was no huge chasm of empty space. And the title that was perhaps the biggest problem for Chasm, was Dead Cells by Motion Twin. Bit Kid might have got the jump on Dead Cells by releasing earlier, but must have been wary of the competition from the title at a very early stage. Dead Cells is a slick, fast and challenging game that controls and plays exactly how you would want it too when you pick up the controller. Its hook is that it adds rogue-like mechanics to the metroidvania genre. It procedurally generates the game world from death to death, not playthrough to playthrough, like Chasm. When you delve into the impact that has on actual gameplay, it’s not a case of ‘one-upping’ Chasm’s hook in my eyes. It actually makes for a completely different experience. You could even argue that dead Cells is not a metroidvania at all once you look beyond its initial perceptions. But the fact it even needs clarifying is ultimately damaging to Chasm’s key message.

So Bit Kid had a competitor in the shape of Motion Twin’s Dead Cells, doing its own take on procedural metroidvanias. Even if the two games, once you sit down, are very different – that is a marketing issue. You’re going to be drawn into comparisons you might not want to make.

And as it became clear that Dead Cells would be reaching market in a similar timeframe to Chasm, I’m sure there was an overwhelming sense of frustration at Bit Kid games. But the game had been delayed so many times previously, there was no justifiable way the company could take another hit and press pause once more… Instead it found a fairly decent window that gave both games a modicum of breathing room. Chasm got out first, which was probably a good thing, but there was yet another twist in the tale to the release of Dead Cells that propelled the game’s marketing to heights Bit Kid and Motion Twin could never have foreseen.

If you keep tabs on the gaming industry, it’s a story you could not have missed. IGN, the biggest and best known game review website, had to take down its review of Dead Cells when it emerged that its chief Nintendo editor had plagiarized his review from a small – now slightly bigger – Youtube channel, Boomstick Gaming.

IGN promptly fired the editor in question for the major ethics violation, but unfortunately for the company, a closer look at the back catalogue of reviews found that the incident was far from a one-time thing. A whole host of plagiarized content had to be removed from the site.

It was big drama and it was big news. It was terrible terrible terrible for IGN… bu, for the developers at Motion Twin – well – they hit the jackpot in a way that could never have been anticipated.

Suddenly, Dead Cells was part of the number one story on every game website, on every forum, every podcast, and every Youtube channel. Everyone was talking about IGN’s review, and subsequently, everyone was talking about Motion Twin’s game. And of course, it didn’t take long in most conversations to get to the – “oh and by the way, Dead Cells is a really good game” – part of the debate either.

The amount of unpaid natural coverage and exposure Dead Cells received was phenomenal. Whereas Chasm has less than 50,000 owners on Steam, Dead Cells has more than one million . Of course that’s not solely down to the IGN controversy – but damn. For those of us who believe in the power of marketing, and the effect and difference that we can make, it’s a humbling reminder that some things are just totally out of anyone’s control.

Big enough market?

So is there a big enough market to support a game like Chasm in the face of such intense competition. Yes. But I carefully posed that question as ‘is there’ rather than ‘was there’? You see, it’s an ongoing battle if you want to make an indie metroidvania game a success. The job is not over for Bit Kid. To reap the rewards of it endeavours and make the adventure worthwhile, Chasm needs to keep slowly and surely bringing in the cash over the next few years, ensuring more and more players slowly discover it by word of mouth and through sales on digital fronts.

The guys over at Bit Kid are certainly doing a great job of keeping the lights on post launch. And it makes sense. When something took you five years to make, you don’t just abandon it straight after its launch period. Especially when Chasm did not release to huge fanfare, swathes of positive reviews, or catch a news break like its competitors.

Chasm at this point has sold somewhere between 20,000 and 50,000 copies on Steam. And it sells for £15 pounds. Of course steam gets a cut of that. And we don’t know how many copies of the game sold on PS4, Xbox, on the humble store, or on Nintendo Switch (where Chasm released in October of 2018, following the path so many other metroidvanias had trodden).

But if we very roughly estimate another 50,000 copies were sold on those platforms. Take away platform and publisher cuts, account for games purchased during sales, and you can start to take a rough guess at how the game has done. I think it’s safe to say the revenue for the game was pushing close to, if not over, one million – but it’s certainly not getting close to the tens of millions. For a small studio, it’s likely enough to keep the lights on and adequately pay the developers for their five years of work. The company is unlikely to rapidly expand or grow off the back of Chasm, but as long as the game keeps bringing in a steady income, it should earn and learn enough from Chasm to come back with another project. I really hope so anyway.

Because even though it is a crowded market, it is a market that can support multiple games. We’re not talking about an audience exclusively of kids and teenagers, who to generalise for a second, are busy playing the latest battle royale game.

The target audience here is older. It’s an audience who have a disposable income. And they probably don’t have as much time as they would like to play games as they used too. A game at an accessible price range that doesn’t take 50 hours to play will be appealing to many such players.

Chasm is not going to age badly in the next couple of years – after all, it’s already trading on nostalgia. The market might be rammed right now, but in the future, more players will be looking to scratch that metroidvania itch. And when they’re ready, Chasm will remain a viable option.

That’s why it’s very important Bit Kid doesn’t go quiet on Chasm while it works on whatever comes next. And so far it hasn’t, still answering questions about the project on Twitter and on Kickstarter . Bit Kid is still updating and improving the game, and posting monthly updates on its website. Perhaps the best example is the translation work the team has been undertaking in the last couple of months, expanding the appeal of the game to more foreign markets. If metroidvanias are all about retracing your steps and going back to areas when you are stronger, so is the marketing of one in a crowded space. Bit Kid needs to keep going back to its potential audience, with stronger messages and with new tactics. It has to keep finding new players and keep grinding away to keep the fight alive.

The Name Game: How important are video game names?

Supersonic Acrobatic Rocket-Powered Battle-Cars, developed by Psyonix, is an obscure game on the PS3 released in 2008. It’s a game in which cars play football.

Rocket League , developed by the same team, is a game released three years ago, first on PS4 and PC, then on Xbox One, followed by macOS and the Nintendo Switch. It’s still getting updated, has esports competitions every year, and has reportedly sold more than 10 million copies. It’s a game in which cars play football.

Can you see what I’m driving at?

The name of a video game is the first thing about it most people are ever going to see. It’s the first advertisement for a game and it’s what they will use to find your game on storefronts: there’s no doubt it has importance.

Now obviously, a lot more went into the success of Rocket League than just changing its name. The team at Psyonix were more experienced and made a better and more polished product. And the ecosystem in which games lived was vastly different too, with the emergence of esports and Twitch.

supersonic-acrobatic-battle-cars-vs-rocket-league

The question is, would Supersonic Acro – ah screw typing that again – SARPBC been a bigger success if it had the name Rocket League? And would Rocket League have struggled for exposure with a name like SARPBC ?

Rocket league is just one example – a rather good one – of how influential the name of your game can be. Apart from not picking a name that’s incredibly hard to remember, to say, or to type into a storefront, what do developers need to keep in mind?

The naming process

The name of a game is going to be its single most referenced piece of marketing. Developers obviously don’t want it to be a turn off. They want it to be fun, interesting, catchy or simply cool. But they also want people to either get what kind of game it is right off the bat, or at least be intrigued enough to ask more questions about it.

When I spoke to developers about their own naming process, that seemed to be the major source of any heated exchanges in the ‘what do we call this thing’ debates. Developers are seeking to pick something that describes what their game is, but that’s still got an edge.

Titles like Farming Simulator and Train Simulator are literal names that have their place – but they are not going to work for everyone – most developers are aiming for the title of their game to evoke more. Adventure Simulator simply wouldn’t be as cool a name as Zelda: Breath of the Wild .

From a purely practical standpoint, it’s a lot harder for developers to talk to the outside world about their game if it doesn’t have a title. So in that sense, naming generally has to come pretty early in the process. It can be a headache inducing task, but the naming process can be a helpful exercise. It can help developers really understand what their own game is.

I spoke to Oli De-Vine of Ghost Town Games, creators of the local multiplayer cooking game, Overcooked , to learn about the process the studio took in naming the game. He told me why the game is called Overcooked (and not Local Multiplayer Cooking Game) :

“We came up with hundreds of names. We needed something short and that described at least the basic premise of the game. So to begin with you have to boil the game down to its most basic ideas, and accept you probably aren’t going to fully describe it, but just give a flavour.”

Boil the game down… a flavour… I see what you did there Oli…

Oli went on to say:

“[It’s a] cooking game in which things frequently go wrong. Originally we were trying to find a name that also got across that the game was local coop. Variations on “ Recipes 4 Disaster” were one of our options, the other was “Too Many Cooks” .”

The title Overcooked does effectively evoke the right image. If you’ve ever played the game, you know things do tend to go very wrong very quickly, and that’s the fun. But the chaos largely comes from the difficulty of communicating effectively with your fellow chefs. From that perspective, I would argue Too Many Cooks is the better name. So why not that? Well there’s simply a lot more to consider. In a vacuum, Too Many Cooks might be a better title, but not when you think about the practicalities of selling the game. Oli went on to explain:

“The main reason we didn’t go with those ( Recipe 4 Disaster and Too Many Cooks ) was googleability. One of the most important things in a name, really, when being brutally pragmatic, is that while you need people to remember it, that does no good unless they are able to write the name + “game” into google and find us as as close as possible to the top result.”

Too Many Cooks was actually the development name of the game Oli told me, but as I’m sure many you are aware, Adult Swim released the hugely popular viral video, Too Many Cooks back in 2014, two years before Overcooked. It’s not only other games your competing with for attention and discoverability, but the world at large. Too Many Cooks would have been far harder to compete for from an online SEO perspective. When people googled “Too Many Cooks”, there would have been a lot more competition.

Recipe 4 Disaster had similar discoverability issues, and personally, I would advise staying away from numbers in titles anyway. Unless it’s the ‘2’, ‘3’ or ‘4’ in a franchise’s sequel, it’s best avoided. Recipe 4 Disaster could see people search for ‘Recipe for Disaster’ or ‘Recipe four Disaster’. Numbers are a clunky way to go in this writer’s view.

Finally, Oli said:

“In the end we settled on calling the game Overcooked and put lots of chefs running around in the logo art itself in order to get the local coop aspect of the game across.”

Not everywhere will the name of your game get to be displayed in its logo format, but it certainly adds to its impact when it happens. Nevertheless, the title needs to be able to stand alone.

Likewise, developer John Common , from one-man team CSR Studios , told me about the process for naming his game and subsequent upcoming game, Dead Pixels and Dead Pixels II . Like Ghost Town Games, a title that summed up the basics of the game was important. At one point John was leaning towards a very literal title for his zombie side-scrolling shooter fest.

“Originally it was called 8-bit Zombie Sim. This got some negative feedback on a forum from people that didn’t like the game claiming to be 8-bit when it wasn’t. It had also moved to being more arcadey than sim.”

Interestingly, forums helped John rule out names, but also helped find the perfect one for him. On a different forum, when John tried out the name Dead Pixels it was a hit. He said:

“People seemed to really like it so I went with Dead Pixels … A dead pixel being a common fault with an LCD monitor and the game having pixel art undead.”

For the sequel, John has gone with Dead Pixels II , but again it is a demonstration of sometimes having to sacrifice artistry for practicality. See John was keen to go with the title Dead Pixels Part II . The ‘part II’ would have fit into the aesthetic of the game (80’s horror flicks) beautifully. But John had concerns it would give the impression you had to play the first Dead Pixels game to appreciate this new game, which wasn’t the case.

Function over art

This function versus art debate seems to be the central struggle developers battle when picking a name. Just how literal do you go? A literal name might best describe quickly what your game does, but it could also easily be flat and frankly boring.

Publishers might push for names they feel best sell the game, while developers, who have worked on something for years and years might be keen to ensure their game gets a name worthy of their hard work. They want some uniqueness. It’s a delicate balance. There are some literal names out there that I think are very good, both for indies and major titles. Call of Duty is simple, you know it’s a military game straight away, and it literally invites you back to play every time you say it. God of War is another good example. It can also work for smaller indie games to take this approach. MineCraft might now be the biggest game of the last ten years, but as an indie its name clearly resonated. The title is literally the two most common actions you do in the game smashed together.

Most indies are not quite so on the nose with their titles. Take my favourite game of the year, Pyre , for example. Really, it doesn’t tell you anything about the game, it only makes sense once you start playing. You would have no idea it’s a narrative-driven, fantasy-sport, freedom-fighting game (okay I can see why they struggled for a literal approach).

What sells that game is not really the title, it’s the name of the studio. The guys at SuperGiant have earned their fan base, and maybe their right to name a game whatever the hell they want. They don’t have to worry too much about discoverability – people are actively looking for what’s next from them.

Figment is another good example of an indie not taking a too literal approach. I was able to talk to Emilie Mavel of Bedtime Digital who told me why the team settled on that name for what is a fairly story-driven, action adventure game, that happens to be set within the mind.

“The game was originally called Dream Factory – the setting had a slightly different angle back then. We had a lot of names in play at one point. I think the reason why Figment ended up winning was that it was simple and yet playful. It didn’t reference directly, but more indirectly and in a more playful way, the game’s concept – since the only place you actually use the word is in the phrase ‘figment of your imagination’.”

The name Figment gives you an idea about the setting and the feel of the game – but doesn’t take the approach of describing the actions you will be undertaking. It’s not too literal title, but fun and quirky, fitting the game’s aesthetics. When you google ‘Figment game’, it’s the first thing that pops up too. And search ‘Figment’ alone, it does just about appear on the first page. So no issue there really.

Figment’s title gives you an idea about the setting of the game, but now let’s talk about a game that is literally just named after its setting: The Sexy Brutale .

Until you play the game, the name is a real mystery. The Sexy Brutale is the name of the casino in which this fun little time-bending murder mystery game takes place. It’s a game with very unique gameplay, and as you can see, a very unique name.

I personally have no problem with games taking on adult themes or aiming for an adult audience – I welcome it in fact. But I would love to have been a fly on the wall in the discussions between developer Cavalier Games Studios and publisher Tequila Works.

Surely such a name could turn off plenty of would be buyers, rejecting the game right out of hand. Perhaps some younger players who would have enjoyed it were prevented from playing by their parents based on the name alone.

I mean, it’s certainly a title that gives absolutely no hint of what the gameplay is like – yet – here I am discussing it having played it – and what made me try the game out in the first place? I saw the name in Steam and went ‘What the hell is that?’

You don’t have to look hard to find discussion and debate on the name on the social media accounts and forums related to the game. It undoubtedly become a discussion point that raised awareness of the game. From that perspective, job done really.

I wouldn’t advise it for every game, but once you play it, the name does fit the dark humour and themes. We’ll just call it a strategy for the bold.

Competition everywhere

Of course, with a name like The Sexy Brutale , you probably don’t have to worry too much about your name already being taken. But that’s another simple and practical thing developers have to consider. Is the name taken? Does it sound similar to anything else coming out? Is it trademarked already? Is it going to give my game unwanted associations when people google it? You don’t want your game to sound like a car or kitchen appliance. And perhaps most important of all these days: can you can get the social media accounts and URLs for it easily?

Theses are all things you will want to consider, and I would be surprised if the developers at Puny Astronaut didn’t do that for their game Skye . The developers at Puny Astronaut however have been faced with a major naming headache for their game that they had no way of anticipating.

You see Skye is a relaxed, exploration game aimed at kids. It’s a game inspired by the likes of Journey and Flower by That Game Company , mixed with more traditional game elements, like quests and characters. The issue Skye has is that one of the very companies that inspired the thinking at Puny Astronaut, went and announced its own project called, yep, Sky .

When the much bigger, more established, That Game Company, announced its similar sounding game in the same year Puny Astronaut was trying to get exposure for the its first big project, the marketing alarm bells were ringing. Especially as Skye had already gone through one name change in May of 2017- it was originally going to be called Glaze .

I spoke to to the developers at an event last year just as the news of the competing game had hit, and the debate about maybe changing the name of their game was in full flow. They were worried their game would suffer to get attention, and miss out on traffic to the competitor. But changing the name obviously comes with major costs. It’s a headache, especially when you’ve just spent god knows how much time designing and creating the marketing material. On top of that, you’ve spent time building the brand in the minds of journalist and gamers. It’s not easy to throw all that work away.

At the time the company seemed resigned to a name change and they actually put the ideas for new names to a Twitter poll.

Ok these are some of our favourite names so far! Let us know if you'd like to suggest your own! #thatotherSkyegame 🐉🎮 — Puny Astronaut (@PunyAstronaut) September 21, 2017

I wondered if the similar sounding names would actually be a disadvantage. Arguably it could help people find their game who might never have done so before. When people are looking for That Game Company’s game, they might stumble upon Puny Astronaut’s. That’s a bit of a gamble to take though and not really the way you want to achieve success. You don’t want to be those knock off DVD’s at the bottom of the basket – and Skye is a game with lots of potential to be great in its own right.

It won’t be until next year that Puny Astronaut releases its game, so there is still time for a name change if the studio decides that is best. Additionally, the game has had new investment from 4j Studios since, and the new publisher is likely to want to have its own say on the matter too.

At the moment, the game is still called Skye . I think as more news has come to light on That Game Company’s Sky , the concerns have begun to fade a bit. Sky is also only announced on iOS at the moment whereas Skye will be aiming for the console market – so the two don’t seem as if they will actually be in direct competition.

Will a bad name kill your game?

So how much does any of this really matter? Will a bad name stop your game from being a success. I would argue in the case of Supersonic Acrobatic Rocket-Powered Battle-Cars, yes, it is possible to get it so wrong that it stunts the potential of your game. In Danny O’Dwyers fantastic No Clip documentary on Rocket League , one developer, Corey Davis, described the decision as collective insanity. The name was so long, that some storefronts had to have custom code put in place for the game, just to fit the whole title in.

Whereas Rocket League , a major overnight success, has a good name. It’s a name that sounds like it’s going to be an exciting game, and the league part conveys the sports aspect of the game nicely. Combined with the logo, you’ve got a name worthy of the quality of the game. However, let’s take two of the biggest surprise hits in the last year: Fortnite and PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds .

I particularly dislike the intentional misspelling, but maybe that just makes it easier to find with the game’s target younger audience. Overall, I think it’s a just about passable name. The reason it didn’t kill the game, is it’s developed by Epic games, no small fish in the industry. It would have had to been a spectacularly bad name to stop the game from getting the requisite attention to succeed. And while not a great name in my opinion, it’s okay. Turning to PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds … well it conveys slightly better what kind of game you are getting into with the battlegrounds reference. But it’s such a mouthful and is not catchy in the slightest. I still stumble over the words when I say it out loud. That it’s becoming affectionately known as PUBG – which is much easier and catchier to say – is both a plus and minus in marketing terms.

Unlike Fortnite, PlayerUnknown’s Battleground was originally developed by a small South Korean developer, Bluehole, led by Brendan Greene. It’s a fascinating story how the game grew in popularity that I don’t have time to tell here. But successful use of early access, a small but strong reputation for Greene’s work, excellent use of platforms such as twitch, and amazing word of mouth allowed PUBG to come from nowhere and take the industry by storm. Add in the publishing power houses that have got involved since, and the game has not struggled for exposure. So they are both pretty bad names, but as we all know, neither have been held back by them too much. Rest assured developers, there is a lot more than the choice of name that goes into making your game a success. It seems like a bad name can be overcome if your game is good enough, gets some social media traction or catches the zeitgeist in a big way.

So what? It doesn’t matter?

No, the name of your game still matters massively because a bad name can throw up barriers you don’t need. Unfortunately though, I would argue it mostly matters for smaller and first time developers. Take something like Horizon Zero Dawn , not a good name in my book. But it’s a playstation exclusive from Guerilla, it was never going to suffer for attention. If you’ve got a lot of other things already going for you, I don’t think the name of the game is too important, with the caveat that it has to be at least passable. It can’t be so complex, long, clumsy, vulgar or confusing that it kills your game before it ever gets off the ground. All the bigger developers have to do is pick something passable.

The upside is that a really good name can help both the big and especially the small developers. A good name can help give a launch a bit of an extra boost with journos, Google, gamers and on storefronts. But the effect is limited. As one of my favourite comedians and author of many a good rant, David Mitchell , says when talking about naming the hit channel 4 sitcom, Peep Show:

“Titles are difficult but I think, basically, they don’t matter. Once a show is up and running, the title loses any significance… Usually, after a while, the title just refers to the show and carries with it the feelings or associations of that. You stop wondering if it’s a good title in the same way that you never stop to think whether ‘carrot’ is a good name for a carrot. No one would ever say: ‘Carrot, ooh I’m not sure – doesn’t seem very carroty somehow. Doesn’t say carrot to me. Wouldn’t “splandeb” conjure up something orange and pointed more effectively?’”

So in that way, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds might be a terrible name the first time you hear it – but now when someone says, “fancy a game of PUBG?”, My mind thinks of exciting and tense battles as I struggle to be the last man standing, and not what the fuck does PlayerUnknown’s mean?

Still, naming your creative works is no easy task. Get it terribly wrong and your project might not get off the ground in the first place, it might not live long enough to get to the point where what it is called no longer matters.

I had the dilemma myself just naming this piece. Do I go with a title that I think will catch people’s attention, make them laugh, or intrigue them?

I could reference the great wordsmiths of history: “What’s in a name?” – William Shakespeare – too obvious “What’s the name of the game?” – Abba – oooo that’s good (and got me singing) Or I could go with a title that has nothing but google and search-ability in mind: “How to pick your video game name” – Exciting stuff I’m sure you will agree!

And of course, if I want this to be shared on social media:

“You’ll never believe what these crazy cats called their game”

The point is: there’s lots to consider when naming something creative you’ve worked on. You don’t want to get it wrong, whether you’ve been working on it for just a day, a week or especially if it has been years in development.

I can only imagine the stress naming a game must bring on developers. And what’s the reward if you get it right at the end? Huge critical success and massive sales?

Once you’re up and running – it doesn’t really matter anymore. No game has ever reached the top of the charts because its name was cool… the name might give it a head start, but that is where the edge ends.

The name game is cruel. There are no winners, only losers. In the name game, it only matters when you get it wrong. The right name just gives you the platform to build a successful project. Really, the name game is level 1, it’s the easy bit.

It’s the stuff that comes after, you know, designing a good game. That’s still the bit that really matters. For example, if you got to the end of this piece, I hope it was because of the content, not my title.

What Remains of Edith Finch? How to Sell a Walking Simulator That isn’t One

*SPOILERS ahead for What remains of Edith Finch? and Gone Home *

What remains of Edith Finch? is a game that puts you in the shoes of Edith Finch and much of her family. You walk the many characters through key moments of their lives, and ultimately, their deaths. It sure as hell sounds like a game that belongs in the ‘Walking Simulator’ genre of games.

Walking simulators are perhaps best described as games that are usually shorter in length, and focus on environmental storytelling as you explore a game world.

But the developers and publishers of Edith Finch never went out of their way to market it on that premise. And in fact, it is a game with over 10 different gameplay sections, all with their own unique control schemes. Sure you spend a decent portion of the game ‘walking’ through the Finch family home, but the rest of the time you are thrust into smaller stories doing something entirely different.

Nevertheless, from the moment the game was announced, ‘walking simulator’ was the context in which the game was written and talked about. When your game is labelled something that you don’t necessarily think it is, what do you do? And how do go about marketing and selling it?

Pigeonholed

Thankfully, I think we’ve reached a point in which the label walking simulator has lost its negative connotations for the majority of people who enjoy games. I certainly don’t wish to use it pejoratively in this case study – I have enjoyed quite a few games that fit the genre.

Those who use it as an insult, I imagine, are people who would slap an ice cream out your hand because you ordered a flavour they don’t like. You don’t have to like the genre, but to get upset abouts its existence is beyond silly. The games you love are going nowhere.

So, I doubt the developers at Giant Sparrow or the publisher, Annapurna Interactive , were ever offended their game was framed as a ‘walking simulator’, but it does present a unique challenge. When your game is pigeonholed into a genre to which it maybe doesn’t necessarily belong, what do you do? It could be a good thing. The categorisations give you a clear audience to target: “Hey if you liked Gone Home or Firewatch , come play our game.”

But at the same time, what about those people who don’t like those games? Your game is a bit different to what they might have in mind – so how do you get them to give it a shot?

What is Edith Finch?

First off, if Edith Finch isn’t necessarily a ‘walking simulator’ – what is it?

What Remains of Edith Finch? Is a game where, to begin with, you play as Edith FInch returning to her abandoned family home. As you/she explores the bedrooms of each family member, the gameplay switches up and you play out the last moments of that family member’s life in varied different ways. In one scenario you might be a little girl who is pretending to be different animals, or a father taking camping trip pictures, or a teenage boy working in a factory while completely lost in his own imagination.

Really, Edith Finch is just a game without traditional game-like elements. There’s no combat, no competition, no way to fail, and no stats to boost or analyse. In that way it is very similar to other games placed in the walking simulator genre.

But here’s what Ian Dallas, the Creative lead from Giant Sparrow, had to say on one of the many occasions when he was asked if the game is a walking simulator?

“In our case though, I guess it does feel a bit strange to describe What Remains of Edith Finch as a “walking simulator” because you do so, so much more in this game than walking. Which isn’t necessarily true for a lot of games in this genre, that are happy to focus entirely on just exploring an environment.”

Gameplay wise then, it’s half walking simulator, half something entirely different; a collection of little experiences – all with different but intuitive control schemes.

More of the story is revealed to you as you walk through the Finch house in the form of narration and diary entries that magically appear in the environment. That approach and feel does make it feel similar to others in the genre, but some would say that it’s the focus on story more than anything else that links the game to the walking simulator genre.

That’s what games like Gone Home or Firewatch are all about – uncovering what has happened through environmental storytelling and narration.

Interestingly enough though, accordingly to Ian Dallas, the story is what came last when creating the game. It’s not a game that was made with the uncovering of Edith’s story at its heart. It’s a game about small vignettes that all link to an overarching theme and concept: The universe is strange and beyond our comprehension, but (real life spoiler) all roads eventually lead to death.

Ian Dallas in a Reddit AMA said:

“We don’t start out trying to tell a story. We’re trying to evoke feelings that we ourselves don’t entirely understand, like “what I remember about being on a swingset as a child”, and the story doesn’t come until the game itself is pretty far along.”

“I have a hard time getting into games that are primarily narrative driven. For me as a player, that’s not what draws me into those worlds. I’m less interested in story per se, than I am in the more visceral side of experience.”

So overall, ‘walking simulator’ is probably a good shorthand for describing the game. It gets people on the same page, but then if you delve down a bit deeper, it’s not the best descriptor. There’s so much about the gameplay experience that’s different to others in the genre – and whether that’s good or bad is entirely your own personal opinion.

Not being able to pin down exactly what Edith Finch is, I imagine actually pleases the creators at Giant Sparrow in a way. It might make their games harder to sell, but it’s somewhat its company goal :

“Giant Sparrow is focused on creating surreal experiences people have never had before. Our dream is to make the world a stranger, more interesting place.”

Switching Publisher

And if that’s Giant Sparrow’s stated aim – then they’ve landed with the perfect publisher for their goals. Annapurna bought the rights for the game from Sony a couple years into development. Annapurna’s mission statement is:

“To promote personal, emotional, and innovative games that explore the artistry and diversity of the medium.”

Of course, Giant Sparrow’s one and only previous game, The Unfinished Swan , was published and funded by Sony as a Playstation exclusive. When Edith Finch was first revealed, it too was set to be another Playstation only title.

But things have changed a lot since the release of Unfinished Swan in 2012. Back then I think it was fair to say Sony was chasing its competitors a bit, and as such, it wasn’t afraid to take a chance on smaller titles and embrace indies.

Bring on the huge success of the PS4, and while it would be harsh to say Sony has turned its back on indie developers, that segment is certainly not as important to the company as it used to be – its priorities now lie in the bigger titles and deals like Destiny 2. It no longer needs to take as many risks on smaller titles.

In the end, the sell to Annapurna Interactive was best for everyone involved. Annapurna has found success as a small independent producer of movies, such as Her and Zero Dark Thirty . In recent years it has expanded into the gaming world and actually taken a lot of talent from Sony Santa Monica studios to run that division of the company.

Industry veterans like Deb Mars and Nathan Gray made their way over to Annapurna. In fact, most of the producers Giant Sparrow had been working with at Sony had largely moved over to Annapurna – so it only made sense for the game to go with them.

“In a way, staying at Sony actually would have been stranger, since we would have had to get used to a whole new set of producers.”

Leaving Sony also opened up some doors for Edith Finch . While initially announced as a Playstation exclusive at a PSX event in 2014, the switch allowed Edith Finch to simultaneously launch on Steam as well. A few months later, the game was also launched on the Xbox one.

So how did Annapurna sell the game?

So what did Annapurna do in order to to sell its ‘walking simulator’ that isn’t a ‘walking simulator’. They could have gone the full Tyrion Lannister approach. Forgive me if you’re not a Game of Thrones fan, but the charismatic little dwarf from the Ice and Fire series tells Jon Snow the bastard:

“Never forget what you are, for surely the world will not. Make it your strength. Then it can never be your weakness. Armour yourself in it, and it will never be used to hurt you.”

One route for the game’s marketing could have been to have fully embraced its walking simulator status – but I don’t think it ever went out of its way to do that. Let me give you a key example.

Both when the game was in the hands of Sony and then later Annapurna , trailers were released for the game that very clearly tell anyone who’s paying attention that all the characters are going to die at the end of their stories. It’s something that’s immediately obvious as you start playing the game and look at your journal anyway. But I don’t think it’s something a traditional walking simulator, focused on narrative, would do in its trailers. I can’t imagine the Gone Home trailer ending with – ‘oh by the way – my sis is a lesbian’’

Even the name of the game – What remains of Edith Finch? – it doesn’t sound exactly like she’s going to make it to the end now does it? And in interviews during the game’s release, the death of each character was never kept secret, but explicitly talked about. I don’t think a traditional walking simulator focussed on uncovering a story would go with that title or that approach in the trailer and interviews.

It’s fair to say Annapurna and Giant Sparrow didn’t embrace the genre. For further example, Ian Dallas in one interview confirmed he never even played Gone Home , not wanting to be influenced by another game that on face value has a similar concept, a girl returning to a family home.

That might make you think they deliberately went out of their way to distance the game from the genre – but that’s not really the case either.

A sensible, agnostic and neutral approach is the route Annapurna and Giant Sparrow took. They never shied away from the topic but never looked to bring it upon themselves either. They were very clearly prepared, ready and happy to answer questions regarding the walking simulator label – and aimed to try and attract both walking simulator fans and those who might not find those games the most interesting. In the Xbox one AMA release, Ian Dallas put it like this:

“Our game LOOKS like a traditional “walking simulator” but that’s just the framing story. “You could think of it as a “walking simulator for people who don’t like walking simulators. Our intent was to tell each of these stories through the gameplay mechanics, so rather than just being told a story as a player you’re actually living out all these different experiences and in each story you’re interacting with the world from a new perspective and in a new way.”

Telling the right story at the right time

In fact – the way Annapurna sold this game was pretty traditional actually. They did nothing unique or special on the social media that’s for sure. The Annapurna and Giant Sparrow Twitter accounts are both fairly quiet. The Facebook page for the game couldn’t be quieter, it’s not been posted on since 2014. And Giant Sparrow’s site was updated every now again throughout the 4 years of development but nothing major and certainly with no regularity.

In terms of using streamers and let’s play there’s little evidence Annapurna went out of its way to encourage such content. To be fair, the game is only a short experience, and there are legitimate concerns that for shorter experience games, such content doesn’t neccessairly encourage people to buy they game but rather discourage, becasue they have already seen what the game has to offer.

What Annapurna did well, was get Ian Dallas, the creative force behind the game, a lot of publicity and exposure around the release of the game. The guy did interviews all over the web, with traditionally big gaming sites and the smaller ones . They also managed to get some exposure on sites outside the traditional gaming world and in publications with a wider cultural spectrum – such as Rolling Stone magazine . The reddit AMAs at the initial launch and then again during the XBox one launch where the best example of non-traditional marketing – but even then – they were achieving the same goal of getting the interesting and talented Ian Dallas in front of as many eyes as possible when the game hit stores.

Until the late build up to release, we really heard little from Giant Sparrow and In many ways I think it was smart move. It’s a little bit of a less is more approach. How much of a story have Annapurna really got to tell about its own game?

It’s not like it’s the next Elder Scrolls or Halo . It’s a short game, with not that many different systems, and aspects to unveil. Something like Elder scrolls could have one big marketing push about its storyline, another about its combat system, a third about its morale system, and so on and so on. They can build the excitement slowly and get players excited.

But for Edith Finch , it was better to hold off and unleash at the right time, rather than talk about everything that was interesting about the game too early. Giant Sparrow commanded enough respect and attention because of the success of The Unfinished Swan to take the risk of holding back somewhat. When they did come to the press, they found they were willing to listen, which is certainly not true of many other indie studios.

But if Ian Dallas and Annapurna had been giving interviews every 6 months, what would they really have left to say when crunch time came? There are not that many stories to tell about the development of the game and the game itself. You don’t want to give away every twist and surprise – the most fun I had with the game personally was anticipating what the next scenario I was thrown into would be. And with Ian Dallas spearheading the creative direction pretty single handedly of the game, you don’t want to tell his story too early either – because it’s a fascinating one. I recommend checking out some of the many interviews he did and AMAs.

All I would say is that it would have been good if, in these interviews, Ian Dallas had a strong online presence to send people back to – whether it be a twitter account or active developer website.

Bits and bobs

Why oh why does this game not have a platinum trophy on the PS4? I won’t bang the same drum over and over I’ve banged before … but a platinum trophy is an easy way to attract more players to your game – especially if it’s achievable like it most certainly would be in this game. Two things about the lack of a trophy really perplex me:

The lack of a platinum trophy feeds into the bullshit argument that walking simulators or smaller games aren’t real games. They are, they can be great, and they should have platinums just like every other release.
If the team at Annapurna , full of ex-Sony employees can’t get a platinum for its smaller games but ★★★★★ 1000 Top Rated can – a game explicitly sold purely on the premise of being a quick and easy platinum – What the hell is going on at Sony? The situation is so mismanaged.

Again, here’s Ian Dallas in one of his AMAs on the subject:

“I just asked our QA lead and our Annapurna producer and they said we don’t have a Platinum trophy because “we were not allowed to.” As a small scale game, Sony’s policy is that we should deny our fans the satisfaction of a Platinum trophy. Those are just my words, btw, I think Sony’s official documentation phrases it slightly differently.”

A nod too far

In Edith Finch , you uncover the fate of many of the the Finch family members – and one character you don’t explicitly play as, actually has the most interesting ending. The disappearance of Milton, Edith’s brother, is perhaps the fate most hinted at throughout the game using a more traditional walking simulator style – newspapers with headlines about his disappearance are among the first things you stumble upon in the game.

Near the game’s end, when you find Milton’s room, you are not granted a gameplay experience that tells his story like the other characters, but you are just left an abandoned room to explore. It seems Milton liked to paint. The paintings will be very familiar to those who played The Unfinished Swan . Eventually you find a flipbook that suggests that Milton entered one of his paintings, hinting that he is ‘The King’ character from Giant Sparrow’s first title. And Ian Dallas straight up confirmed the link between the games as canon in his AMA .

It’s a really cool easter egg and nod to players of the first game. I enjoyed it – but I’ve played The Unfinished Swan . I’m fascinated how this part of the game must have played out for people who hadn’t played The Unfinished Swan . Describing the experience as alienating might be a stretch too far, but I can only imagine it was a bit confusing to say the least.

For players on Steam and Xbox one, they are unlikely to have played The Unfinished Swan , so I can’t help feeling such a big easter egg was a confusing conclusion for a character who had enjoyed a high profile build up within the game. It seems a strange approach to me – even though I actually quite enjoyed it myself.

The walking simulator path to success

What Remains of Edith Finch? currently sits on a metacritic score of 89 . On Steam, 70,000 people own the game – and on Playstation, it has a completion rate of 84 per cent, which is unusually high. People certainly like the game. Unfortunately, it’s hard to know how truly successful games are unless the people who make them come right out and tell you- it’s an esoteric and tight-lipped industry.

Nevertheless – to my mind, What Remains of Edith Finch is a game that found success with a fairly traditional marketing strategy. It really is a game like no other, but it managed to strike a good balance – attracting both those that have played and enjoyed walking simulators before and plenty of those that have not.

MAD MAX: Escaping the Big Nothing

Mad Max was released in 2015 after years of rights battles, false starts and tortured development. It captured everything about Mad Max that made it so popular in the first place: it was gritty, ruthless and gruesomely fascinating. It was filled to the brim with bombastic car action and amazing desert visuals. It explored both the madness of a post-apocalyptic world, and the madness within Max.

At this point I could have been talking about either George Miller’s film, ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’, or Avalanche Studio’s game, ‘Mad Max’, released some four months later. But now the road diverges.

The game, commercially, posted no such high numbers. It won no awards of particular note, and it got somewhat lost in the noise of a year full of more popular open world games.

So why was Mad Max, the game, a project that could not hit the same commercial and critical heights as the movie? What, if anything, went wrong in its marketing? And what could be done about it?

Development hell

The Mad Max Game was not in development limbo as long as the 4th movie in the series, but it had no easy road to launch either. The story of how the game came to be developed and published by Avalanche studios is a long one, and has been told better elsewhere . But to give you the top level version:

Cory Barlog, a director of the hugely successful God Of War games, struck up a friendship with George Miller, the creator of the Mad Max franchise, back in 2008. Together they worked on a couple of ideas for a Mad Max game that never quite made it off the ground.

Later, Barlog started working as a consultant for the Swedish Avalanche Studios and introduced the idea of Mad Max game. Despite the end of Barlog’s work with the company and his departure to Crystal Dynamics in 2012, the idea and project stuck with Avalanche.

Lesson learned

That’s the simple version of the story, the game at other times was close to being developed and published elsewhere, but I think – in the circumstances – Warner Brothers and Avalanche Studios were a good marriage for the game.

With the Mad Max movie on its way too, it made sense for the company behind its distribution to take on the publishing role for the game too. And Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment had a good pedigree of working with already established IP that had a movie running alongside the production of a game.

Thankfully we live in a time where poor quality and rushed-to-market movie tie-in games are not the regular occurrence they once were. Warner Brothers and RockSteady’s, Batman Arkham Asylum, is one of the games I would give the most credit for that.

At the height of the extremely successful Christopher Nolan Batman franchise, Warner invested in a game that could stand on its own merits and capitalise on the brand and popularity of Batman, without being tied to the production schedule of the movies. It had made that mistake with Batman Begins, a poorly received game tied to the first movie. Instead, there were no limitations imposed on the production schedule, design, or story of Batman Arkham Asylum. The game got a bunch of sequels which tells you all you need to know about how successful the approach was.

The same principle was applied to the Mad Max franchise. There would be connections between the game and the new movie, but in no way were the creative decisions and production schedule of Avalanche dictated by the other. This was the studio’s own take on Max and his world. In one interview with Venturebeat, Peter Wyse, the Vice President of Production and Development at Warner Bros put it as clear as you could want:

“It’s a lesson we’ve taken to heart at Warner Bros. We don’t build games that are based on movies.”

Making a game not tied to the film gave it the best chance to live or die on its own merits, but wouldn’t sacrifice the branding bonus and zeitgeist the movie could add.

Enough pretenders

The Mad Max movies of the 70’s and 80’s were full of mood and atmosphere. They really dropped you into a strange and compelling world. For that reason, an open world game was always going to be the genre of choice for a game based on the franchise – here was a chance to drop you into George Miller’s crazy world.

And of course, over the years, the post-apocalyptic environment has been a favourite setting of open world games. Many have been directly influenced by the Mad Max films of the 70’s and 80’s: it’s there for all to see in games like ‘Fallout’, ‘Rage’ and ‘Borderlands’. It therefore feels only right that the Mad Max franchise got its own attempt at the genre. With so many imitating and paying homage, it deserved a shot.

As such, not only did Warner Brothers seem a sensible publisher of choice for the project, but, the same could be said for Avalanche Studios.

In Avalanche Studios you have a development team with tons of experience and know-how in creating open world games. The over-the-top, frantic, and open world of the ‘Just Cause’ franchise is Avalanche’s bread and butter.

Big nothings

In Mad Max, you’re given a huge desolate world to play within. When you try to go beyond the barriers set by the developers, you’re greeted with a big flashing message:

‘WARNING: YOU ARE ENTERING THE BIG NOTHING’

If you keep heading that way, your health depletes and it’s ‘GAME OVER’.

Every open world game has its own version of this mechanic, a way of keeping you within its walls. But some open world games feel like you’ve entered the ‘Big Nothing’ right off the bat. We’ve all played a game where it feels like the developers have obsessed about creating a huge world, but forget to fill it with anything interesting or engaging gameplay wise. You end up wondering why the game needed to be open world in the first place, with the gameplay in no way improved by the design choice.

Is Mad Max one of those games? Well, yes and no.

Emergent car combat

Mad Max has gameplay and core ideas that make sense for an open world. For a start, one of the main focuses of the game is your car, the Magnus Opus. You spend a great deal of time in it, and when you’re not, a lot of the time you’re collecting the resources that allow you to improve it and customise it to your exact liking. This focus on the car, the thing you use to get around the open world is a great design choice.

In so many open world games, the moment a fast travel option become available, you can easily find yourself skipping the journey between point A and point B, basically creating your own series of levels. Mad Max does have fast travel, but – much more than other games – you don’t use it.

Instead you want to go on that journey yourself, because you’ve just spent an hour collecting resources and upgrading your car. You don’t want to just look at a loading screen to get to your next objective, you want to put your new upgrades and look to the test.

That feedback loop is good design, and helps justifies the need for the game to be open world in the first place.

Secondly, the world of Mad Max is meant to be a desolate place. In many games the impression of a busy and lively world is created. But around every corner is a door you can’t open, a building that can’t be explored or another mindless NPC. Picking a desolate environment helps avoid that disconnect. There’s less in the world than in other games, but everything you do find in the desolate landscape: outposts, sniper towers, large camps, wastelanders and enemy vehicles, can all be played with. Nothing is just for show.

And it’s that last one, the enemy vehicles, that is the most fun. Mad Max’s car combat delivers great emergent action. You get great cinematic car battles. You rub wheels at high speed, dodge and escape from certain death, and blow your enemies into smithereens. They’re not set pieces or scripted events, but exciting bits of action that come about naturally and often.The car combat delivers exciting emergent gameplay that makes the open world design choice rewarding.

A litany of available upgrades to Max, the car and the camps you discover – plus plenty of side missions – keep the player busy with lots to do in the world. And some solid hand-to-hand combat and exploring on foot mix-up the gameplay. But there is no denying the car is the star of this game and the open world.

From a marketing point of view, Mad Max also needed to be an open world game – that’s what the franchise lends itself to and the developers did a good job delivering gameplay that justifies the decision. My criticism would actually just be: bloody hell, they delivered a lot of it.

Ever since GTA 3, open world games have somewhat ruled the AAA space. A battle of escalation has ensued with developers competing to make ever bigger and bigger game worlds. In the year Mad Max came out, Metal Gear Solid 5, Witcher 3 and Fallout 4 all hit shelves as well. Mad Max was probably the smallest of the four, but completing it 100 per cent would still take 50+ hours easily.

Mad Max’s open world is good, but it’s not that good. And it’s arguably not as good or as engaging as those competitors. Eventually the tasks become repetitive and the lustre wears off. There is only so many mines one can disarm and camps one can clear before they become chores. Although that’s not a problem unique to Max I must add. But all those other open world games which released in the same year were more successful commercially and critically. They were bigger fish and IP to compete with. Mad Max is a huge franchise, but it’s not like the core gamer audience is of an age that grew up with the movies.

I played Mad Max for 37 hours, and I have to admit, those last 10 hours were just so I could say I completed the main story missions before writing this. I’m not alone in struggling to find the motivation to see the game to the end.

On the PS4 version of the game, only 0.9 per cent of players have achieved the platinum trophy that would indicate they did everything the game had to offer. There are five acts to the game but only 51 per cent of players completed up to act two. That figure almost halved again for the final act of the game, with just 27 per cent seeing the main story to the end, on PS4 at least.

Such a low completion rate is not uncommon in the video game industry. In fact, the trophy rate for completing Fallout 4’s main quest is 29.9 per cent; Witcher 3’s is 30 per cent; and Metal Gear Solid 5’s is as low as 19.9 per cent. Even story-based games don’t have much higher completion rates. In Uncharted 4, only 41 per cent of players have actually seen the story to the end. But for more than half of users to not even complete half the game seems a particularly high dropout rate.

It seems crazy that so much development time is being sunk into sections of games that a majority of players will never even see. What would happen though, if one of these big open world games dared to make a game half the size? Would there be an audience for a ‘budget’ open world game? Half the size, half the things to do and half the price – but with fewer players burning out before they get to the end. A game in which players actually see everything worthwhile seeing.

So why do developers make games so big?

Developers must know that games are completed by such a small proportion, so why are so many seemingly obsessed with size? Do they make them so big because it’s simply not that hard to anymore? Once you’ve made a base template for a camp or a mission, is it easy in the code to replicate that as many times as you want and just re-skin it? Then you can put a more impressive number or slogan on the back of the box: ‘Our biggest and best – living and breathing – open world yet!’

Well for Mad Max, it doesn’t seem to be the case that making an open world is just easy. In one interview game director Frank Rooke said :

“A lot of effort – and expense, I should add – went into creating unique locations. It’s so easy to fall into the trap of creating templates and just popping them around. We couldn’t do that – everything had to feel like it was unique and fresh, made with purpose in that location, with its own story to tell. To me, that’s what makes it fun to go out and explore.”

Here’s what I think it is: developers are ambitious, creative and want to makes games they want to play. When you play a game that’s so engaging, so deep, and incredibly fun to be in, you devour every last bit of content, and spend 200+ hours in it. There’s no better experience than that in gaming. The people who have the platinum trophy in open world games will be fans of those studios for life. Developers want to make that experience.

However, are there enough of these kind of gamers? Way less than half of the audience got close to seeing even just all the main quests in Mad Max. In a year when so many other competitors tried to capture the same audience, would a smaller game and a shorter production time have been a wiser choice?

I actually bought the game a year after its release (hence the timing of this post-mortem) for £20. After 25 hours, I was very happy with my purchase. I’d cleared about roughly half the game world and had a good time doing it, but I certainly felt no compulsion to see it through to the end. I got burned out trying to obsessively remove every objective and task off the world map.

That compulsion consumed me and I discarded the main story. A main story that I have to say was decent and compelling when I did go back and complete it for the purpose of this case study. The size of the open world actually stops people seeing some of the best the game has to offer. Instead they are clearing yet another camp.

Why not deliver the small something?

I’m not saying Avalanche studios made a glaring error here. But with hindsight, it would have been fascinating to see someone do something entirely different to its competitors in that hectic year of open world games. The developer could say:

“We’re delivering you the same open world gaming experience – but ours is half the size, and half the price. You’ll have time to finish it and you’ll save money”

I’m incredibly intrigued by how that would do in the market. How would a publisher go about selling that idea to its audience? Would the market completely reject it out of hand? Once you label your own game as ‘budget’ – are you limiting your success before you even start. Maybe if you don’t value it, why should the gamer?

It of course would not please everyone, but as the gaming public starts to skew older and older, with less dropping the hobby as they reach adulthood, there is potentially an audience who want the open world experience, but just don’t have the same amount of time they did when they younger. A smaller and manageable open world could be a key differentiator in the market and lead to a winner.

You only have to look at the two biggest games of this year to see that the open world genre is going nowhere: ‘Horizon Zero Dawn’ and ‘The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WIld’. There’s a place for those kind of games, and Mad Max could have been one of them. But in such a competitive year, Mad Max struggled to gain attention.

It would be harsh to say Avalanche studio delivered a ‘Big Nothing’ of a game, but I would have loved to see how a definite ‘small something’ would have turned out.

What could have been?

Now hindsight is 20/20, but there are a couple of other reasons a smaller game could have worked in Mad Max’s favour from a marketing point of view. As it was, the marketing campaign for the game was lacklustre. If the studio had made a smaller game, first and foremost, the game could have had a shorter and cheaper production time, and subsequently released sooner, before the huge amount of open world competition.

In the end, the game was delayed, and the versions for previous generation consoles were actually cancelled too. It was just PS4, Xbox one and PC now. A smaller game might have allowed for those versions to survive, but maybe more importantly, also allowed the game to release closer to Mad Max: Fury Road.

When it came to researching this, I expected to find a lot more evidence of cross marketing between the two. But it very much felt like both were left to their own devices, despite the Warner Brothers link.

The film was received very well, and I would argue the five month release gap prevented the game from capitalising effectively on the zeitgeist and brand. Despite this criticism, overall I still praise Avalanche and Warner Brothers for not making a crappy tie-in game. It’s best to release a game when it’s ready, not when external factors, like the production of a movie, demand. But if they had made a smaller game, they could maybe have had the best of both worlds.

There would have been another huge benefit of releasing the game earlier. I’ve mentioned the fact 2015 was a hugely competitive year for open world games at ad nauseum. But what I’ve failed to mention yet, which only compounds the point, is that Avalanche released another open world game of it’s own just three months after Mad Max.

I like to delve in and analyse the social media accounts of the games that are the focus of these case studies. But, t he twitter for Mad Max was honestly quite unnoteworthy, apart from one thing. In mid December of 2015, the twitter account essentially died. When Just Cause 3 came out, activity simply stopped.

While the account was not particularly doing anything brilliant on the marketing front while it was active, it’s early demise is not a good sign. Presumably, Avalanche’s marketing efforts and resources switched over to Just Cause. Again, showing maybe why it was unwise to release two of its game so close to each other.

What really happened?

I’ve talked enough about what could have happened if Mad Max had taken a different approach and released at a different time. But what did it do with the situation it did have in terms of marketing?

Well honestly, nothing out of the ordinary, and nothing that stands out as particularly effective. The game had moderate mainstream coverage, such as a game informer cover; it was reviewed by all the major outlets; and a handful of people’s Twitch streams were promoted by the social media team.

It had a sponsorship deal and competition with Rockstar energy drink. I personally don’t really understand the constant energy drink sponsorship games get. I would love to investigate that a little more deeply at some point. I mean, how effective can these really be – I’ve yet to discover any convincing evidence.

The competition reward was pretty cool, you got to drive a big scary Mad Max car inspired from the game. You entered using codes found on the energy drink’s caps. The Rockstar energy drink facebook page has more than 2 million likes. But the views on the Youtube channel of the grand final of the competition only has 1,800 views. That’s frankly pants, and suggest the deal was not worth it in terms of exposure. I don’t know the number of people who watched it when it was first live-streamed to be fair, but it didn’t seem to set the social media game world alight.

Lastly, on the marketing front, there is a hidden away video on Avalanche Studios website – not the website for the game itself. The TV show, West Coast Cars, a sort of evolution of Pimp My Ride, built the Magnus Opus car from the game. The car they built is pretty awesome. But the video is not of the highest production value, and clearly didn’t reach a huge audience. That video has 48,000 views. It’s a cool idea for a bit of marketing, but not brilliantly executed in all honestly. Maybe that’s why it’s hidden away in the first place.

Missed opportunity

I’m a big believer on this site that the industry should be doing more for disabled gamers. A simple change in attitude and approach to development is all that is needed to ensure disabled gamers can enjoy a game from start to finish. If you plan for it at the beginning of development, it shouldn’t be a problem.

Mad Max is a game I really wish had included more disability control scheme options for the game. A customisable control scheme is always a good place to start but Mad Max lacked those options. And there a few moments in the game which require repeated button mashing, which is a known challenge that some disabled games struggle with. Uncharted 4 for example, has an option to replace button mashing sequences with a button hold instead. I hope these kind of options start to become standard for all games in the next few years.

The reasons it’s a disappointment in Mad Max’s case in particular however, is the content of the game itself deals with disability so well. Something the entire Mad Max franchise has done well in fact. There are so many characters in the game, including Max, who have a disability (Max’s leg is in a brace and he has a myriad of limping animations in the game).

Not one of the characters in the game is defined by their disability – it’s never who they are. Tauriq Moosa, writing for Polygon, put it better than I ever could – I recommend his article highly. For a game that dealt with disability so progressively and sensitively, it’s frustrating that considerations for disabled players seems to have been overlooked.

Escaping the big nothing

Mad Max is a game I really quite enjoyed. A year after release, in a quiet period for games, I was really happy with the £20 I spent on it. At full retail price, at a time when so many other open world games hit the market, I’m not so sure I would have been as happy with my purchase. Maybe I would have been better off spending it elsewhere. I think that’s the conclusion many gamers came to in that crowded 2015.

I think Avalanche studio made a lot of objectively good logical decisions. They built a game independent of the film and its timeline, they choose a genre that worked for the franchise, and they made a game that they would like to play themselves. I think they did what is standard accepted practice in the industry – apart from releasing Just Cause 3 a few months later – that decision still baffles somewhat.

However, with the benefit of hindsight, I’m really intrigued what the market’s response to something different would have been. Rather than another game that feels like a big nothing, what would happen if someone delivered a smaller open world experience at a more affordable price? Two years later, I still don’t have the answer to that question, and I don’t know of any studio brave enough – or maybe stupid enough – to have tried to find out.

In the meantime, here’s to more big nothings.

Overcooked: Local Multiplayer in an Online World

Overcooked and Overwatch are two multiplayer-focused games, both released within months of each other last year. Beyond the obvious similarity in names, the two games are both fast-paced, frantic, and a hell of a lot of fun to play with your friends. Both have been big successes critically and both were nominated for ‘Best Multiplayer Game’ at the 2016 Game Awards.

Of course, they are very different games too, in terms of genre, scope, budget, audience and design. But one major difference is of particular note, particularly considering their award nomination in the same category. One, Overwatch , is an exclusively always-online multiplayer experience, and the other, Overcooked , is a local couch co-op game only.

In the final reckoning, it was Overwatch that took home the award for ‘Best Multiplayer Game’ at the end of last year, not to mention ‘Game of the Year’ itself’, and while we are at it: ‘Best Studio’ for the developers Blizzard too.

But when Oli De-Vine and Phil Duncan, the two-man team behind Overcooked , set out in early 2015 to create their game, it’s very unlikely the duo ever saw themselves competing with Blizzard, or a title like Overwatch, for best multiplayer game of the year.

In an era of online-only games, and online platforms like Twitch, and Youtube, not many would have thought a game without any online multiplayer component whatsoever, would have any chance of competing for such an accolade. So how did Overcooked do it? When the majority of the industry was bombing its way down the motorway towards online experiences, how did this two-man development team manage to weave its way in completely the opposite direction, and find a pathway to success?

Because… y'know… we both have 'over' in our titles… #tenuous pic.twitter.com/bZNbcP1PyC — Overcooked 🍽 (@Overcookedgame) June 8, 2016

What is Overcooked?

For those unfamiliar with Overcooked the game itself, allow me to briefly butcher a summary of the game:

Overcooked is a co-op cooking game that challenges players to prepare and serve as many orders as they can in a limited amount of time. Players are forced to work together, collecting, chopping, and cooking ingredients, in a variety of ever-more complex kitchens.

Those tasks can be a bit of a chore in the real world, but when you’re channelling your inner Gordon Ramsey and screeching at your friends and family to pass you the “god-damn lettuce!” like there is 3rd michelin star on the line, it really is a tasty treat of a game.

The game is the brain-child of two former Frontier Games employees, Duncan and De-Vine. The Cambridge based duo share a passion for local co-operative games, borne out of childhood play sessions with older brothers, and bombastic lunch breaks at Frontier Games with colleagues. Together, at the back end of 2014 and start of 2015, they founded Ghost Town Games .

Getting priorities straight

That love of co-op multiplayer experiences is there for all to see in Overcooked . It unashamedly puts the local co-op experience at its heart. It’s not that Duncan or De-Vine are against online multiplayer. If they had the resources, budget and time, I’m 100 per cent sure they would have included it – in fact, we know they would have, they’ve said so many times:

Hey there, short answer: we're only a two person team, and online is a looot of work 🙂 — Overcooked 🍽 (@Overcookedgame) October 20, 2016

With a bigger budget and more resource, Ghost Town Games would have included online functionality, but when push came to shove, it chose to prioritise local co-op. Duncan, in one forum post, for example said :

“We’re hoping there are lots of people out there like us who want to play co-op game with their friends, [It] seems to be a little thin on the ground at the moment!”

The online multiplayer question was, and remains, the request that the developers have received most of all on their social media channels, store pages and forums. They know leaving it out is the equivalent of leaving money on the table.

Nevertheless, at the time of writing, no online functionality has been announced. Its continued absence inherently points to it not being a priority. But it doesn’t seem to have hindered the game – it has been an undoubted success without any online component. The interesting question is whether that success is despite the missing ‘link’ or because of it. Did prioritising the creation of a game that is incredibly fun to play locally with family and friends, gaming novices and veterans, and even strangers at a party, carve out a niche for Overcooked that bought it sales, praise and awards?

How did local co-op effect Overcooked’s design?

There are a couple of ways the local multiplayer gameplay is designed in Overcooked that is very clever.

First of all, the game is incredibly simple to play. Three button inputs are all you need to use: move, pick up/put down, and chop. On the PS4 for example, that’s just one analog stick, X and Square. If you’ve ever tried to introduce gaming to a loved one or friend, you know the importance of that simplicity. Not everyone has grown up with a controller in hand all their life; complicated or janky controls can be a major put off.

An easy control scheme makes the game accessible to all levels of play and all age groups. It ensures you minimise the chance of a gaming novice being put-off by a frustrating wrestle with the controller, rather than being enticed by the intriguing challenge and fun of the game. Better yet, because the controls are so simple, the game allows you to split the controller in half and share it with a second player, with one hand each on the same pad. Even if you have one controller, the game can be played by two, and naturally, only two controllers are then needed for a group or family of four.

Secondly, the subject matter of the game is perfect for creating an accessible game focused on co-op. Everyone knows what happens in a kitchen: meals are prepared and served. The subject matter of cooking let’s you bypass any awkward explanation of what’s going on, or what the goal of the game is. Everyone’s on the same page quickly, we’re cooking, so little explanation is needed.

Those two things, simplicity in controls and simplicity in task, are incredibly important for the marketing of a co-op game if it’s going to succeed without an online element. It opens the door to a far greater target audience. Gamers don’t need to live in a house with other gamers – they can convince their boyfriends, girlfriends, and friends to give it a go. Or young budding gamers can get to grips with it easily with sibling and parents.

Online it’s easy to find other players, well versed in games, ready to take down the latest Destiny boss. In the real world, in your house, that’s not quite the case – but the simplicity of the game allows players a real chance to get those non-traditional gamers to give it a go, and a lot of the time, subsequently enjoy it.

There’s one last aspect to the design that is key to making Overcooked work as a local-only multiplayer game. Those first two aspects help you get players into the kitchen, but what keep them there is a design mantra Duncan and DeVine always referred to in the development of their game: Avoid ‘first to fun’ .

‘First to fun’ is a co-op experience many of us would have experienced, particularly when playing games with a more skilled and experienced player. The better player will get to the cool stuff first. They get more kills, more points, better power-ups and simply more out of the experience. It’s not always a bad thing, for the right kind of co-op game, an added edge of competition for a high-score between the players is perfect. But sometimes that competitive edge works against the co-operative spirit of the game.

For a game like Overcooked , a ‘first to fun’ experience would be poison. Instead, Overcooked’s design rewards and encourages true co-operation. It’s a game that’s easy to play, but hard to master, like so many claim to be. But the only way to master this game, is by working together like, well…. like an organised and productive restaurant kitchen. The simplicity of the game lets newcomers quickly feel part of that team, instead of feeling lost or a liability.

Solo effort

There’s two parts to marketing. First, there’s the creation and position of your product in the market against competitors. Ghost Town Games was succeeding at this arguably harder part. It just needed to execute on the second challenge of marketing: Getting your game out there, in front of the right people, at the right time, in a sea of competition.

For a two-man team – doing this job at the same time as developing the game itself, is beyond challenging. In one post on developer forum TigSource, Duncan was brutally honest. He said :

“Definitely the hardest part about indie dev so far has been balancing making the game and remembering to actually tell people about it!”

Ghost Town Games soldiered on marketing the game itself for a long time. And I think it did a solid and commendable job on its own. It had a developer blog on its website, it posted regularly on developer forum site TigSource, and its twitter account was firing out good content at a steady pace. The tone was spot on: informative, humorous, and it had plenty of engagement and interaction.

To celebrate 2000 followers (!!!) here's a picture of a leek with an important message: pic.twitter.com/4z6dc6bmtC — Overcooked 🍽 (@Overcookedgame) April 29, 2016

Ghost Town Games got itself out there at some of the smaller events in the UK from an early stage too – like the Norwich Game Festival. Some games you see at a convention and they don’t really hit – they’re not designed to be played in a five-minute window in a noisy hall.

Overcooked on the other hand, is a game that lends itself to being shown off at convention or festival. With the controls being so simple, the developers had great success getting strangers to play together and immediately have a fun time.

Ghost Town Games succeeded at getting some good targeted publicity for the game on its own as well. There was an interview with the website Co-optimus for example, which – as I’m sure you can tell by the name of site – was a perfect audience to reach. And also some minor coverage was achieved on some of the bigger and broader sites, such as Rock Paper Shotgun and EuroGamer. The-two-man team at Ghost Town Games were stewing along nicely – but were they doing enough to make a really big splash on opening night?

Taking the plunge

For two developers who have just got out of the world of big publishers and become independent, signing back into that world could not have been an easy decision. The offer had to be right. Back in September of 2015, Duncan said on the subject of partnering with a publisher:

“We’ve been keeping our options open by speaking to as many people as we can about the game. Some rejections, some offers, some really interesting opportunities which I hope we can talk about one day. We’re still pursuing a few avenues for this but we would only really consider going down this route if we think we’re aligned on the future of the project.”

It wasn’t till more than six months later that Ghost Town Games announced its partnership with the UK-based Team 17 . It clearly took its time and did not rush hastily into any decision. But boy was it worth it. If there’s one thing that Team 17 knows, it’s couch co-op. I’m sure I’m not the only one who spent many happy days on the sofa blasting friends off the screen with banana bombs and holy hand grenades, in one version or another of Worms.

Team 17 is a development studio which has found success in developing its own games and publishing similar-sized ones like Overcooked . And the boost that experience and know-how gave to the marketing of Overcooked was undoubtedly essential for the exposure and success of the title. Duncan said this at the announcement of the partnership:

“We signed up with Team 17 to help us market the game, not to mention help us with the final stretch of QA as we attempt our fairly ambitious task of releasing simultaneously on 3 platforms. It was a big decision for us but so far it’s been really invaluable (especially as a two-person team).”

Just from an exposure point of view, Overcooked was now in front of so many more people. Overcooked’s twitter account at the time of writing has just over 8000 followers. Team 17 has nearly four times as many followers: 30.7k.

Suddenly, Overcooked had the budget to go to E3. And like that, its presence at conventions went from looking like this:

To looking like this:

First off , Team 17 was able to build on the more targeted marketing that had been going on previously – a Youtube interview with FamilyGamerTV is a good example of that. But Team 17 could also deliver opportunities for exposure that were previously unattainable. A trip to E3 in the States, and an IGN beta for prime members would be examples of the doors and opportunities opened up by the partnership.

The two-man development team had managed to Greenlight Overcooked on Steam, but now a team of community managers could take over that page and keep it updated and customers informed. Likewise with Twitter. And lastly, Overcooked had a new home on the internet on a dedicated page on Team 17’s website. Before, the only website page for the game was on Ghost Town Games website . The fact that developer website is still using an old version of the logo, with a certain body part exposed of one of the chefs, not seen on later version of marketing material, should tell you how valuable that page was considered for the game’s marketing.

So, Team 17 gave a real visible boost to the game’s presence and visibility pre-launch. And it allowed Ghost Town Games to focus and commit full time on finishing the game itself. But arguably, the real work for Team 17 would start from the launch of the game itself. That happened, on August 3 last year, with day one worldwide availability for download on Steam, Xbox One and PS4. It’s a commendable achievement for an indie developer’s debut game to hit all the major market places at once.

Just to further ironically illustrate the commitment to local co-op play, Overcooked was a game released only on digital online services. You had to be connected online to get the game in the first place – yet it still had no online functionality. An obvious thing that needs a mention is Overcooked’s launch Price. Overcooked’s design and structure takes it cues from the mobile market in some ways – like its level selector and 3 star level system – but thankfully the comparisons stop there. It’s not a free-to-play game that’s full of microtransactions. Overcooked On launch retailed for £12.99. For 30 levels, each lasting between 2 and 5 minutes, and with a ton of replayability, I think that’s a fair and enticing price for the average gaming consumer.

Free marketing

Overcooked is a fantastic example of how marketing is not something you simply do when you’re first making and developing a game. Nor does a good marketing campaign stop a month after release. Team 17 have done a great job of keeping the machine rolling months after launch and it’s paid massive dividends.

Its post-launch marketing success really begins with the start of the game itself. This is the second screen that gamers are met with when they boot up Overcooked :

“Please feel free to use any video footage or screen captures of the game in whatever way you like.”

Overcooked is a game that might have shunned any online multiplayer component to its game. But that doesn’t mean the developers or marketing team didn’t understand how important online content would be for the success of the game post launch.

They made a game that would be perfect for the growing number of ‘let’s play’ youtube channels. If your game is a big hit with such online communities, you have a great chance of increasing your sales. And Overcooked got some of the biggest Youtube channels out there to play its game and make videos. RoosterTeeth with its ‘LetsPlay’ and ‘Achievement Hunter’ channels have produced a number of videos for example, but the list goes on and on. ‘The Yogcast’ and ‘iHasCupquake’ have done let’s plays, ‘Kinda Funny’ too, and even the biggest of the lot, ‘PewDiePie’. The Youtube sensation’s Overcooked video has over 6 million views.

Every time a big channel makes a video, the Overcooked marketing team doesn’t miss a chance to capitalize and get involved. It has even taken time to create chef versions of the respective participants on a number of occasions. Here’s the Achievement Hunter guys using such assets to promote Overcooked themed videos for example:

It’s a game that lends itself to entertaining Let’sPlay content. It’s actually fun to watch a group of friends play through the game, and it’s easy for the audience/potential customers to see themselves replicating the experience with family and friends. Overcooked , from launch day one, has been ready to capitalize on this free marketing, fully aware the couch-based co-op game would make for great online content.

Sustained success

The post launch marketing of Overcooked was, and remains, an undoubted success. Overcooked achieved something rare, it got a review from Gamespot months after release. It is a testament to the quality of the game itself and the marketing effort, that such a site would realize the error and go back. One of the things that sparked that late review was also Overcooked’s nomination for numerous gaming awards, from the Tiga awards, all the way up to the new and improved Game Awards mentioned at the top.

Overcooked just hasn’t slowed down its efforts since launch. It did so well in fact, that Team 17 felt confident enough to take a punt on a disc-based version of the game after the successful digital release. It seems only right that a game that has succeeded based on its online-free approach, should give customers a way to access the title offline as well. The game has also had two DLC packs released, a version for the Nintendo Switch announced, and just to tie things nicely in a knot, has been nominated again for an award, this time at the Baftas.

Brand development – too many cooks

It’s quite clear I think that Overcooked has been a giant success story, from beginning to end. But like everything, I also think there is room for improvement. First off, in terms of brand development – I think Ghost Town Games have missed a bit of a trick. There is a Ghost Town Games website , but no Overcooked dedicated website. And at the same time, there is an active Overcooked Twitter account, but no active Ghost Town Games account. It’s twitter account simply directs to the Overcooked account. The result is that it lacks consistency in its online presence.

The brand of Overcooked has been supported well overall, largely thanks to Team 17, but at times that has been at the cost of development to the Ghost Town Games brand. As mentioned before, the website is infrequently updated and lacks promotion.

This critique could be way off the mark of course. Maybe Ghost Town Games has no intention of developing its developer brand, and is looking to continue to work with Team 17 and let that established brand be the voice for its games. But I believe Ghost Town Games had a great game with a great USP, and thus, a great opportunity to market itself as the king of co-op games that actually are co-operative and which ‘avoid first to fun’.

An indie developer like Super Giant Games is a great example I think. Its had two successful releases, Bastion and Transistor, and Pyre is on the way. Its games are all beautifully crafted and share an amazing art style. Not one of those games has its own twitter account. Instead it all comes from Super Giant Games account . I think that’s a really forward thinking approach to the development of an indie developer’s brand. It allows the brand to switch from game to game, avoiding stagnating sequels, but maintain the same audience. Ghost Town Games is not in a strong position to utilise the success of Overcooked for its next project should it choose not to move out from under the Team 17 umbrella.

Underdone accessibility

Another small quibble, or what I see more as wasted opportunity, was not doubling down on accessibility. Overcooked provides a control scheme accessible to one handed players: It’s an option in the controller setting and presumably made possible because of the decision to let players share one controller for two players. But why not make the whole control scheme fully customisable. Especially for a game with so few button inputs – it doesn’t seem like it would be too hard to provide players with button remapping option. Maybe economically, the benefits wouldn’t have outweighed the cost in time and money, with potentially only a relatively small number of players challenged by the controls because of a disability issue. But the move towards accessibility options for disabled players is one that gained some good traction in 2016 and I hope we’ll see it grow massively in 2017.

All the trimmings?

My last and final grievance with the game from a marketing perspective is the lack of a platinum trophy on the PS4 version. This is a bit of a bug bear of mine. For the wider audience of more casual players, the platinum trophy means nothing, but there is a hardcore trophy hunting audience that are far more likely to take a punt on a game if it has a platinum trophy.

Just look at games like ‘ My Name is Mayo ’. It’s a piece of garbage 99p game – it’s not a game, and instead, it’s just half an hour of shaking a virtual mayonnaise jar. Thousands downloaded that game simply because it was easy to platinum in less than half an hour.

There’s clearly an audience out there who like to hunt platinums obsessively. But also an audience which is much more likely to see a game through to the end, if there is an attainable platinum waiting. Trophies and achievements, done with care, can really add an extra layer of fun to a game, and also add the motivation to play to the end. Getting players to play your game for longer is surely not a bad thing for the long-term profits of your business. However, the rules about which games get a platinum and which don’t, often seem very confusing at Sony. Seemingly smaller title are generally not given one, but then larger titles sometimes miss out. It seems like it’s a complex, rather esoteric system that Sony has chosen for deciding which game gets a platinum and which doesn’t. But actually, it also seems it can be very simple: If the developer pushes hard for one – it gets one. If ‘ My Name is Mayo ’ can get one, Overcooked should have one. Why every developer doesn’t fight for one is beyond me. It strikes me as an easy win.

Pinch of co-op, dash of charm and a sprinkle of chaos

Okay, time to get out of here before I definitely Overstay (get it?) my welcome. Overcooked is a great game, and a great example of how to target and market your game successfully at a niche audience.

At a time when so many games are going in the opposite direction, towards an exclusively online experience, Overcooked forged out its own place in the market, serving those who still love to play at home on the couch with their buddies, loved ones, or heck, even their frenemies. From inception to the present day, its marketing has been on the money. And of course, it doesn’t hurt either that the game itself is a charming, chaotic, culinary co-op-concoction .

I hope to see more on the menu from Ghost Town Games soon.

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Schell Games Influencer Marketing Case Study

Used YouTube creators to triple brand awareness and create lasting engagement

Success Story

Schell Games is in the business of creating meaningful interactive experiences for clients and consumers. The brand is responsible for such household favorites as I Expect You to Die, Daniel Tiger, HoloLAB Champions, and more. The company launched in 2002. Today, it is the “largest full-service education and entertainment game development company in the United States.” Schell Games’ mission is to enrich players’ lives, regardless of age or background, and they use gaming and VR to accomplish that goal.

Watch live Q&A

Download the full case study, gamer creators on twitch and youtube.

Before they even knew what influencer marketing was, Schell Games’ marketing team gifted game keys to famous gamers with the hopes that those creators would share the experience with fans. Not only did this strategy work, it took off faster than they expected. A critical part of Schell Games’ influencer program DNA was to pay attention to details. Follower comments, creator-follower relationships, gamer voice, and campaign performance metrics all revealed critical insights about the brand’s target audience and campaign success.

Standardize the creator vetting process and build long-term relationships with top-performers

In light of their early success, the team knew they needed to get more serious about their creator approach. To standardize their influencer program , they would need to track creators, content, and campaign data accurately and efficiently.

And in one year, we were sending a bunch of keys out to different content creators. But then all of a sudden, it was picked up by some major big content creators on Youtube. We took a look back and wondered, how did that happen? And we had no real idea. – Dwayne Waite Jr., Marketing Manager at Schell Games

the solution

Gain access to more creator & performance data.

When Schell Games switched from manual tools to GRIN, they instantly had access to a full suite of creator recruiting tools. Schell Games’ creator recruitment reached a new level, since they could refine their creator outreach and uncover influential customers with engaged audiences online. The marketing team’s dream of launching and scaling an in-house influencer marketing program was finally a reality. Team members no longer had to spend hours on wild social goose chases or bouncing among multiple tracking tools. GRIN brought all the pieces of their influencer program into one user-friendly platform .

influencer marketing case study schell games

the results

More high quality creator relationships across all the right gamer channels.

Today, Schell Games’ influencer program can be more selective than ever before with their creator discovery, recruiting, and activations. Not only does this allow the brand to optimize campaign ROI , but it also allows Schell Games to promote their values and message consistently across all channels and creators.

“With GRIN, we can become a lot more intentional – here are the content creators we want to reach out to. We narrow them down… We regularly reach out to content creators we’ve worked with before… So I’m very happy with our program and what we’ve been able to do with GRIN to nurture those relationships.” – Dwayne Waite Jr., Marketing Manager at Schell Games

Schell Games Influencer Marketing Case Study 2

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Infinity Heroes Case Study

Infinity Heroes

the mission.

Infinity Heroes is a simultaneous real-time strategy game that aims to breathe new life into the traditional digital card game experience through the alteration of existing decks via in-game actions.

Lightmare Studios was looking for a game-focused marketing agency who could rapidly prepare a campaign to boost awareness of the Infinity Heroes KickStarter and help achieve the funding goals required .

The Process

The Game Marketing Genie team developed the perfect pitch video for the game to attract a variety of players who have shown an interest in online card games and similar real-time strategy apps and designed a suite of creative concepts to be used in a comprehensive digital advertising campaign.

The marketing campaign included adsets across Facebook, Google, Youtube, and email to help boost awareness and drive traffic to the KickStarter and Indiegogo pages as quickly as possible.

On-site optimisation was implemented to more clearly communicate the unique value propositions of the Infinity Heroes game whilst also helping drive a higher number of conversions before the KickStater campaign came to an end.

The Results

The Infinity Heroes campaign was rapidly designed and implemented days before the product launch, overcoming earlier concerns due to miscommunication in the early days of previous campaigns, helping improve the brand's reputation, producing 111% of the target funding goal, and driving a 245% ROI.

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Blog Article

5 mobile game marketing strategies that work

September 15, 2021

The global mobile game market is skyrocketing, so choosing the right marketing strategy is more important than ever.

Since the popularity of mobile gaming surged during the pandemic, mobile game marketers have been faced with an increasingly crowded marketplace and cutthroat competition. After climbing to over half of total gaming revenue worldwide in 2020, mobile games are expected to pass the $100 billion mark by 2023 . In that industry climate, mobile studios are under pressure to develop the most effective mobile game marketing strategies possible, and there is no one-size-fits-all solution. It’s important to select the right mobile game marketing strategies that work for your business and are aligned with the specific nature of your game.

In this article, we’ll explore five of the most promising mobile game marketing strategies that mobile studios can employ to win big.

Ready to explore the data behind the trends? Check out our report on post-IDFA mobile game advertising costs .

Jump to a section:

Optimize organic channels

Master channel distribution

Use contextual targeting, experiment with ad formats, measure and iterate, optimize organic channels.

One of the most fundamental mobile game marketing strategies is to lay the groundwork for growth. Although most strategies are designed to attract and acquire new users, it won’t matter how many potential users discover your mobile game if they don’t convert into players. As the decision points for potential purchasers, your app store listings and even your website deserve extra attention. Furthermore, those digital touchpoints are the foundation of word-of-mouth growth, so marketers should optimize those free channels first.

Here are two primary ways to optimize your mobile game for conversions :

App Store Optimization: Creating an engaging app store listing helps ensure that new users are encouraged to download your mobile game once they discover it. Key features like the game’s title, icon, description, keywords, screenshots, and promotional video will all help convert interest into installs and boost the return on your ad spend investment.
Search Engine Optimization: Optimizing on owned channels like your website and blog is one of the most important organic user acquisition strategies. Mobile gamers that don’t discover new apps through the app store are more likely to find your website, for example, so make sure to feature download links and use SEO best practices to highlight your most compelling content.

Perfecting the allocation of your budget across multiple channels is another important mobile game marketing strategy. The most significant chunk of most marketing budgets is spent on digital advertising ( 13.5%, according to a Statista report ), but distributing that budget effectively across the various channels available to marketers today is a delicate balancing act. Here are a few channel distribution questions to consider when developing your mobile game marketing strategy:

Social media selection: Facebook offers a huge user base, Instagram boasts a highly engaged community, Twitter prioritizes rich media posts, and Snapchat and TikTok play home to a younger audience. Understanding your target user will help determine the best channels to focus your advertising spend for a given mobile game.
Evergreen vs. One-off: Evergreen strategies focus on a long-term, always-on approach, so they often make up the lion’s share of marketing budgets. With that foundation in place, consider the potential of one-off ad strategies that focus on precise placements instead of ongoing engagements. One-off ads can support user acquisition in specific communities and open the door to more active partnerships down the line.
Predictable vs. Experimental: Marketing budget allocations should include both predictable and experimental channels. With a bedrock 70% of your marketing budget dedicated to traditional, reliable methods, that leaves another 30% open for experimental spending .

The increased potential for success that experimentation and test campaigns offer also introduces greater risk. That’s why it’s a good idea to work with a partner like Moloco’s team of mobile experts. We’ll guide you through our vast programmatic ecosystem, proprietary RTB technology, and more. Get in touch to get started!

As tech platforms move to protect users’ privacy, many of the tools marketers have relied on in the past are no longer viable. In a world without IDFA, mobile game marketing strategies will need to leverage contextual targeting practices to compensate for the disappearance of user-specific identifiers. Contextual targeting actually pre-dates the user-level strategies that have become dominant in recent years. As a strategy, contextual targeting is focused on relevant ad placements without detailed user-level knowledge of the person who will eventually view the ad.

The name gives away the key tenet of the strategy: deliberately selecting the context in which your ad will appear. In the pre-internet days when broadcast advertising reigned, a company selling a backyard grill might choose to advertise either during cooking shows or during sporting events. For mobile game marketers, contextual targeting might be as simple as matching advertisements for a puzzle game within other puzzle games or placing a makeover-themed game ad on a beauty brand’s website. According to a Global Industry Analysts study, the global contextual advertising market is expected to surpass the $335 billion mark by 2026 .

When it comes to marketing mobile games, certain ad formats are more effective than others. At the same time, innovative new ads are cropping up to better serve consumers’ constantly evolving mobile gaming habits. While traditional ad formats offer the security of tried and true options, some of the best-performing formats for mobile games in particular fall into the innovation category:

Video ads: Video makes sense for mobile game ads because it gives potential users an intimate sense of what gameplay will be like, beyond what static images can portray.
Playable ads: Professional marketers ranked playable ads as the most effective ad format . After experiencing an interactive taste of a mobile game, potential users are more likely to become active players.
Rewarded video ads: Consumers prefer ads they choose to watch over those that are forced upon them. Rewarded video combines the best of mobile game ads with that opt-in agreement, leading to less friction and more conversions, so be sure to allocate spend towards networks that support it.

Dig deeper into mobile game marketing and promotion strategies with The Complete Guide to Mobile Game Marketing .

Tracking your progress is an essential mobile game marketing strategy, since understanding your results will allow you to iterate and improve your approach in the long run. Make sure to set metrics that are aligned with your specific goals, and track those key performance indicators at regular intervals throughout the process. Some popular mobile game marketing KPIs include:

Return on advertising spend (ROAS): Arguably the most important metric for modern mobile game marketers to understand, ROAS cuts through the noise to illustrate just how effective your marketing efforts are at generating revenue. Unlike cost-per-install , which doesn’t necessarily take user quality into consideration, ROAS is typically a better indicator of mobile marketing success.
Conversion rate: How many installs actually lead to in-app purchases? Knowing how many paying players you can expect to generate out of your campaigns is invaluable when determining optimal spend allocation.
Retention rate: How many times do users return to play your mobile game after the initial download? This KPI is critical because it reflects customer satisfaction and the game’s overall attractiveness.
Customer acquisition cost: How much do you have to invest to acquire a new user? If you’re running multiple campaigns simultaneously, understanding CAC and identifying the highest converting strategies will enable you to direct resources more effectively.
Average revenue per user: How much revenue does every user bring in per month? Compare this metric to your CAC to determine whether or not your mobile game marketing strategy is profitable.
Lifetime user value: How much total revenue does a user bring to your mobile game over the time they spend using the app? This metric allows you to compare the total monetary value of your mobile game and the estimated value of each user.

Want to know how your advertising efforts measure up? Check out our advertising benchmark report for casual games .

At Moloco, we help mobile studios and app developers acquire new users and increase their revenue through fully optimized campaigns powered by our proprietary machine learning algorithms. With Moloco as your partner, quality user targeting, ROAS-based campaign optimization, and sustainable growth are all within your reach. To learn more about how Moloco can help you succeed with your mobile game marketing strategy, contact us today.

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Home » Blog » Tips & Tricks » How You Can Leverage Games in Marketing Strategy To Increase Sales

How You Can Leverage Games in Marketing Strategy To Increase Sales

Updated July 16, 2024

How many of you would stop and play with this? We know we would. Now imagine if there was also a McDonalds discount for completing the puzzle?

You’d probably go for it. After all, who doesn’t want to have fun, save some money, take a cool photo AND get your favorite food? This is how games in marketing work.

Gamification is known as the unicorn in modern marketing . Games can promote interaction and encourage user engagement unlike any other marketing strategy out there today.

As the game industry grows, so does in-game marketing and advertising. There are obvious benefits to using games in your marketing strategy.

Today, we will talk about what those benefits are and exactly how you can strengthen your marketing campaign through mobile gaming.

5 Benefits of using games in marketing

There are endless advantages that prove using games in marketing campaigns to be more effective and more entertaining than a traditional marketing campaign. Today, we will go over the top 5 benefits of gamification in marketing.

1. Increases brand awareness

One way for a business to easily gain customer attention is by creating branded games . This way, you get to teach people about your company while they are playing a game. You can customize the design, content, and even the type of the game itself so that they all point to your specific business.

Branded games use in-game advertising to subconsciously increase brand awareness among users. They are quick and easy to make and have high marketing opportunities for players.

2. Compatible with multiple platforms

Most people use multiple electronic devices throughout their day. Which platform or device they use is based on the specific task at hand, the time of day or their location. The good news is, using games in marketing campaigns can be done on any device or platform at any given moment!

Plus, you can easily target a very broad audience. Your games can be played across the globe and you can even customize them for specific locations, to spark even more interest in people. For example, if a person from France sees a cultural symbol they easily recognize, it will be much easier to attract them to play your game.

3. Collects useful data

You usually create and run online games through gamification software, like Adact . These in-game marketing platforms use cloud services to help create a marketing campaign that can be monitored and analyzed by the creator.

Real-time analytics helps you generate leads and make informed business decisions. Stats such as the number of plays, games started, games completed and landing page visitors give you a good indication of how their campaign is doing and what they need to improve.

You can also use games to collect customers’ data to get an in-depth look into their current customer base. The specific information gathered from the users is completely up to the brand and can be as detailed as you desire.

4. Heightens engagement & interaction

Traditional marketing techniques include a direct approach where a user is bombarded with advertisements or product announcements, no matter their interest. However, games in marketing use a different approach. Instead of chasing people, your goal is to get them to come to you.

If you think this is impossible, try to think of at least one person who logs in to Facebook to ‘feed their pet’ in the game, otherwise, they’ll lose all the points. So, why couldn’t this be the case with your branded game as well?

Gaming is a great technique for client retention because customers generally spend more time on a platform when they are busy playing games. The game’s interactive content, subtle product placement and valuable incentives to win make for a gamer’s paradise. The right game can excite users and keep them wanting more.

5. Encourages customers to return

Another benefit of using games in marketing is that they have a high replay value. The fact that these games are fun and engaging encourages customers to return.

The best way to achieve this is through rewards. You can offer discounts, promo codes, online gifts or even material gifts. Awarding players can promote retention and strengthen their desire to interact with a brand.

Customer loyalty generates a strong community of clientele and is highly encouraged through successful game marketing.

How can games in marketing help you boost sales?

Games in marketing boost company sales using one unique and highly attractive element—entertainment.

It’s documented that 60% of consumers are more likely to buy from a brand if they enjoy playing its marketing game campaign. This stat shows that when using an in-game marketing strategy, the right game can make a sale in a matter of minutes.

Making product offers immediately following gameplay is also something that can be implemented to increase sales from existing customers. Rewarding players with points or discount codes motivates them to use their winnings on an immediate purchase.

When loyal customers visit your site they are attracted to new and exciting features, like mini-games. Their curiosity entices them to partake in these games and eventually they end up with your product in their cart along with their newly-won discount offer ready to use.

It’s quite simple really. Keeping customers happy and engaged encourages them to spend time on your site. The longer they stay on site, the more they are likely to purchase. That’s what we call a win-win situation!

Examples of games in marketing

In-game marketing is an effective way to increase product sales regardless if a company is using an advent calendar , competitive game, augmented reality, questionnaire, puzzle or video game.

Here are a few concrete examples of some sales-boosting marketing games that are provided when you sign up with Adact .

Gamification Marketing game Memroy increase sales

How Euronics’ Candy Crush engaged customers for over 15 minutes

Studies have shown that games can be up to 80% more effective at getting people to engage with your brand than traditional advertising methods. Euronics got inspired by Candy Crush and decided to use it to engage its customer for over 15minutes!

Kaubamaja Case Study

Kaubamjama decided to jump on the video game marketing bandwagon and promote their autumn flash sale by developing a Drop Game through Adact. This game, called Shopping Race, was posted for only one day to advertise the products they had on sale.

Kaubamaja gamification Drop Game Osturalli FMCG campaign

10,000 players in one day
99% game completion
150-second average playtime

This simple yet effective game got people talking and generated excitement for the company. Subsequently, Kaubamjama saw a significant rise in both sales and foot traffic on their website due to user interest in their new Shopping Race game.

How to engage 10000 FMCG customers in 1 day? – Kaubamaja Case Study

Retail companies are always looking for ways they can stand out from their competition. This case study tells the story of how a large department store in Estonia used gamification to promote one of their flash sales, resulting in engagement and interaction levels that exceeded all expectations.

EKSL Personality Test

Estonian Insurance Association (EKSL) wanted to find a way to build awareness about life insurance. They decided to team up with Adact.me to make a Personality Test that would cause people to think about their personal experiences and how having life insurance could benefit them and their loved ones.

EKSL gamification marketing campaign: Personality test

1,000 users in one week
97% completion rate

When compared to traditional marketing campaigns—social media posts or banner ads—the Personality Test is much more engaging and interesting. The game reached thousands of people and made them take a second look at how important having life insurance is for the ones that they leave behind.

How gamification increased awareness about life insurance

Insurers are often thought of as the boring, old-fashioned industry that no one wants to work in or deal with. But what if there was a way to change people’s perception of insurance and make it more engaging? Estonian Insurance Association company did just that by using gamification marketing. Learn how they did it and see if you can apply the same techniques to your own marketing efforts.

Atomic Wallet Jeopardy

Atomic Wallet recently partnered up with Adact.me to create a Jeopardy-style marketing campaign that offered crypto rewards as prizes. The company’s goal was to reward their users based on their knowledge about Polygon—a form of cryptocurrency available through Atomic Wallet.

The Power of Gamification: How Atomic Wallet’s Jeopardy-Style Campaign Attracted 246k Unique Players

A Jeopardy-style campaign that combined knowledge quizzes with rewards in the form of crypto prizes. The campaign was a great success, with 246k unique players and a 95% game completion rate.

Tele2 Wheel of Fortune

The Estonian Telecom Company Tele2 chose to construct a Wheel of Fortune game through Adact.me to help acquire leads and get their products out there. They used this luck-based game to reward users with prizes such as discount codes and offers and to try to keep them engaged longer.

10,069 leads
18,683 game plays
Constantly high gameplay rate for 2 weeks

The Tele2 marketing manager told us that the campaign remained an attractive piece of their marketing strategy for the 14 days that it ran. The game managed to capture the interest of both new and long-time customers through entertainment and the chance of winning. Overall, the marketing campaign was a total success!

How Tele2 used Wheel of Fortune to collect 5x leads

When it comes to lead capture, there are many techniques to choose from. Some work better than others, but it can be tough to know

In-game advertising is the ultimate way to boost sales, offer quality products in B2B marketing and heighten engagement among future or current clients.

Creative marketing campaigns are made using software programs like Adact. I can change the game for a company by encouraging brand loyalty, customer retention and acquiring new leads.

If you are looking to switch up your marketing to something fun and practical, in-game marketing campaigns are just the thing you need!

What is a game in marketing?

Marketing games are games used to engage and excite users. These short and memorable games are used to promote a business or product in a fun way to earn and retain customers.

How are games used as marketing tools?

Games are used as a marketing tool that can interactively relay a marketing campaign message. They tell interactive stories to clientele. Gamification in marketing can lead to higher user engagement, increased revenue and sales.

How are games used for branding and marketing?

Gamification can strengthen brand awareness and create positive brand associations. Branded games are a cost-effective way to appeal to consumers. They can be used on any device to reach a wide audience with subtle advertising.

What is gamification?
Gamification success stories
Game types and examples

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What to expect from the 30 minute demo call:

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Case Studies , Examples and Guides

Candy Crush Success Case Study | Marketing + Psychology = Success.

Other Games will come and go, but Candy Crush goes on forever. Launched in 2012, Candy Crush reported a total of 409 million active users at the end of June 2016. It’s a free mobile game where 70% of the users on the last level haven’t even paid anything, but it still earns a daily revenue of $405,708 .

The success of Candy Crush can be credited to the usage of exceptionally well-defined marketing and psychological strategies by the developers to make the game addictive .

Let’s look at how the game was able to dominate all the charts in this candy crush case study.

Strategies which led to the success of Candy Crush Saga

Marketing Strategies

Just like other freemium apps, Candy crush can be downloaded and played free of cost. People are never forced to pay a penny to play the game. It has been designed in a way that free users too can finish the game but with certain restrictions like limited lives and moves . There are only in-app purchases for extra lives and moves. This free model worked really well for Kings as the users got time to try and to get addicted. This addiction led to more, recurring, and long-lasting income.

The Game is really simple to play. Users just have to switch adjacent candies to form rows or columns of three of the same colour, which gets disappeared from the board. Fulfilling certain tasks will promote them to the next level.

This simple game isn’t that easy though. The difficulty level increases as you move ahead and due to the limited lives provided, users generate a want to play more.

Pay to Play More

Candy Crush is primarily monetized through the in-app purchases. Users get a set amount of lives (5 lives) and move to complete a level, exhausting which they have to buy extra lives/moves through the in-app purchases . They can also opt for in-app purchases to start new episodes.

These purchases can be substituted by sending requests to Facebook friends and hence users are not forced to pay at any stage.

Since the friends have to accept the request for the user to move ahead, it takes a lot of time. Hence, users prefer in-app purchases to feed their addiction.

The in-app purchase cost is kept very less and an average user have paid around $25 dollar. It’s the number of users that did miracles for the company.

It all started with requests on Facebook.

One of the best strategies devised by Candy Crush Saga was the requests on Facebook . A user is asked to either pay or to send requests to their Facebook Friends to get extra lives/moves or to move on to a next episode. Facebook, with over 1.5 billion users , is a perfect platform to engage and gain more users for the application. It became the primary source of new users for the game in its initial stages.

Target Group

Users of candy crush aren’t limited to any specific demographics. Candy Crush is played by users of all age groups, belonging to all ethnicity and religions, and in all the 7 continents.

Fun Fact – The game was actually targeted to women aged 25-45.

Gamers can see and compare their progress with their friends and family members. This social motivation has made many users shed their money to compete and win against them. Reaching on a high level on Candy Crush is something to be proud of, you don’t reach there easily. The social factor became a good strategy to earn more as people like to show off to people they know.

One of the most important factors behind the success of the game is its quality. Candy Crush, which looks a bit like bejewelled, used great graphics mixed with soothing music and most importantly – no glitches. The game maintained top quality by not including advertisements and having full control in the hands of the developers.

Positioning

It takes hardly 2-5 minutes to complete a turn on Candy Crush. This helped the brand to position itself as a time killer and not just a fun mobile video game.

Number of Levels

There are currently more than 2000 levels in candy crush. The game becomes more difficult as the user levels up. It is certain, in this game of luck, that the user might get stuck in one or more of the levels. More challenging the levels are, more is the probability of user paying to get it cleared.

But Kings had to keep the difficulty moderate as many difficult levels might lead to users abandoning the game.

Use of Analytics

Candy Crush made good use of analytics to find out what makes their users play more and what is stopping them. Level 65 was considered as one of the most difficult levels and stopped users from playing ahead. This level was soon removed to make users stick and go deep in the game.

Other Marketing Strategies

Psychological Strategies

The main reason behind such a vast appeal of Candy Crush Saga is the clever use of –

While jewels are considered to be feminine, candies are liked by everyone.

Candy Crush is a mixture of every colour. Hence the game can be considered gender-neutral.

Use of words like delicious, sweet, etc. give short term motivation to the user and makes him play more.

Fewer lives

Majority of the candy crush game players haven’t paid a penny for extra moves. As a result, they get 5 lives to play and gets one extra life after every half an hour. Hence, they can’t play the game as much as you want in one sitting. This not getting enough of the game creates a desire to get more and this curiosity leads to addiction.

This strategy of limited lives is to counter a phenomenon called “ hedonic adaptation ” which refers to the fact that humans get used to nice things over time until they no longer anywhere near as pleasurable. Hence, people stick to this game for a long time without getting bored.

Game of luck (just like slot machines)

One of the major reasons people stick to Candy Crush is because of its unpredictability. Candy Crush cannot be conquered with a set of certain skills. Just like gambling, Candy Crush totally depends on luck. The arrangement of candies are totally random and no one can predict the result based on a few moves.

Psychology of gambling addiction can be applied to Candy Crush addiction as well.

The game can be played with one hand, doesn’t require an active internet connection (on smartphones) and doesn’t take much time to exhaust a life/level up. Hence, it can be played anytime and anywhere.

Fun Fact – Candy Crush has been played in Antarctica as well.

Never Ending

Candy Crush has released many new levels even after the previous levels being completed by the users. This has helped them in retaining users which would have otherwise deleted the game after completing all the levels.

Go On, Tell Us What You Think!

Did we miss something? Come on! Tell us what you think of this article on candy crush case study in the comment section.

A startup consultant, digital marketer, traveller, and philomath. Aashish has worked with over 20 startups and successfully helped them ideate, raise money, and succeed. When not working, he can be found hiking, camping, and stargazing.

15 Marketing Case Study Examples With Standout Success Stories

Some marketing campaigns leave a lasting impression. We’ve gathered insights from CEOs and marketing leaders to share one standout marketing case study that resonates with them.

Tomas Laurinavicius

15 Marketing Case Study Examples With Standout Success Stories

Dove’s real beauty campaign impact, oatly’s bold brand strategy, rockervox’s tax credit success, local bookstore’s community engagement, coca-cola’s personalized brand experience, dropbox’s viral referral program, authentic influencer marketing for cpg brand, airbnb’s “we accept” social impact, amul’s topical and humorous campaigns, axe’s “find your magic” brand refresh, squatty potty’s humorous viral video, old spice’s viral humor campaign, red bull stratos’s high-flying publicity, maple dental’s seo success story, dollar shave club’s viral launch video.

Some marketing campaigns leave a lasting impression.

We’ve gathered insights from CEOs and marketing leaders to share one standout marketing case study that resonates with them.

From Dove’s Real Beauty Campaign’s impact to Dollar Shave Club’s viral launch video, explore fifteen memorable marketing triumphs that these experts can’t forget.

AXE’s ‘Find Your Magic’ Brand Refresh

One marketing case study that has always stayed with me is the Dove Real Beauty Campaign. It really struck a chord when it launched in 2004, challenging the beauty standards and celebrating women’s diversity. What made it stand out was the “Real Beauty Sketches” video, where women described themselves to a sketch artist. Seeing the stark contrast between their self-perceptions and how others saw them was incredibly eye-opening and touching.

What I found so compelling about this campaign was its message of self-acceptance and empowerment. Dove didn’t just try to sell products; they took a stand for something much bigger, and it resonated deeply with people. Using video storytelling was a genius move as it made the message more impactful and shareable. I believe Dove showed how brands can make a real difference by addressing important social issues in an authentic and meaningful way.

Nicole Dunn , CEO, PR and Marketing Expert, Dunn Pellier Media

As a content and brand marketer, Oatly’s brand strategy always inspires me. They are a textbook example of comprehensive brand-building.

Their visual style is instantly recognizable—bold, disruptive, and often filled with humor, making oat milk a statement and something you’d be proud to display on your shelves or socials.

Their tone of voice is witty, sometimes cheeky. They’ve even printed negative feedback on their packaging, which really just shows how they court controversy to spark conversations and enhance their brand’s visibility.

And there’s a strong story behind Oatly, too. They promote sustainability and aren’t shy about their environmental impact, which has simply helped them grow an enthusiastic community of environmental advocates. Clever in endless ways, such that tons of oat milk brands have followed suit.

Wisia Neo , Content Marketing Manager, ViB

One standout marketing case study that sticks with me is the implementation of our RockerVox Restaurant Bundle, aimed at optimizing cash flow through targeted use of employer-based tax credits. The power of this case study lies in its immediate financial impact on the client, a local restaurant chain that was struggling to keep its doors open in the wake of the pandemic.

By integrating the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) and other relevant tax schemes into their payroll setup, we enabled the restaurant to reclaim a significant amount in tax credits. The real game-changer was not just the financial relief but also how it was achieved. We combined this with StaffedUp’s Applicant Tracking System, which improved their hiring processes and decreased employee turnover. This holistic approach led to a sustainable improvement in their operations and cash flow.

What made this case study so great was its tangible results. The restaurant saw a cash flow improvement of over 100%. This wasn’t just a number on a report—it meant being able to invest back into the business, enhance their services, and ultimately, keep their community fed and employed. This approach of integrating technology with financial strategy can be adapted by other businesses striving for similar resilience and growth, especially in times of economic difficulty.

Philip Wentworth, Jr , Co-Founder and CEO, Rockerbox

Certainly, one particularly impactful marketing strategy I led at FireRock Marketing involved a small local bookstore that was facing steep competition from online retailers. Our challenge was to increase foot traffic and reinforce the store’s brand presence in a highly digitalized market.

We initiated a campaign called “Local Pages, Local Stages,” where we leveraged digital marketing alongside community engagement. The bookstore held monthly events featuring local authors and artists, which we promoted heavily through targeted social media ads, email marketing, and local influencer partnerships. This multifaceted approach tapped into the community’s growing interest in supporting local ventures, enhancing visibility significantly.

The outcomes were remarkable. Over the campaign’s six-month duration, in-store sales increased by 40%, and the bookstore saw a 65% rise in attendance at events, which also boosted ancillary revenue from merchandise and cafe sales. Additionally, social media engagement metrics increased by over 150%, reflecting greater brand awareness.

This case study sticks with me because it exemplifies the power of combining digital strategies with community-based marketing to create a sustainable growth model. It shows how businesses can use holistic, integrated approaches to effectively adapt to new consumer behaviors and competitive landscapes.

Ryan Esco , Chief Marketing Officer, FireRock Marketing

A memorable marketing case study is the “Share a Coke” campaign by Coca-Cola. Initially launched in Australia in 2011, this campaign personalized the Coke experience by replacing the iconic Coca-Cola logo on bottles with common first names.

The idea was to encourage people to find bottles with their names or those of their friends and family, creating a more personal connection to the brand. The campaign was an enormous hit and was quickly rolled out worldwide, incorporating more names and even terms of endearment in different languages.

The brilliance of this campaign lay in its use of personalization, which tapped directly into the social media trend of sharing personal moments. People enthusiastically shared their personalized Coke bottles on various social media platforms, significantly amplifying the campaign’s reach beyond traditional advertising media.

This strategy boosted sales and reinforced Coca-Cola’s position as a fun and innovative brand. The “Share a Coke” campaign is a powerful example of how traditional products can be revitalized through creative marketing strategies that engage consumers personally.

Sahil Kakkar , CEO and Founder, RankWatch

For me, a standout marketing case study that really sticks with me is Dropbox’s referral program strategy back in their early days. By offering free storage space for every successful referral, they incentivized existing users to spread the word organically, resulting in exponential growth at virtually no acquisition cost.

What made this case study so brilliant was how elegantly it aligned product experience with viral sharing. Users had a vested interest in sharing Dropbox since it directly expanded their own cloud storage. This created a self-perpetuating cycle where better product engagement fueled more referrals, which then improved engagement further.

It was an ingenious lever that capitalized on the inherent sharing dynamics of their service to ignite explosive growth. The simplicity and potency of this growth hack is what truly resonates as a paragon of effective guerrilla marketing.

Ben Walker , Founder and CEO, Ditto Transcripts

One marketing case study that has always stuck with me was a campaign I led for a major CPG brand a few years back. The goal was to increase awareness and trial of their new line of organic snacks among millennial moms in a crowded market.

We developed an influencer seeding strategy focused on relatable mom micro-influencers on Instagram. Instead of just sending products, we worked with the influencers to develop authentic content that told real stories about the role of snacking and nutrition in busy family life. The photos and videos felt genuine, not overly polished or promotional.

Engagement was through the roof—the content resonated so strongly with the target audience. By the end of the 3-month campaign, we increased awareness by 45% and trial by over 20%. The CPG brand was thrilled, and the case study became an example we still reference today of the power of influencer marketing done right. Authenticity wins.

Gert Kulla , CEO, RedBat.Agency

One marketing case study that stuck with me was the Airbnb “We Accept” campaign, launched in 2017, focusing on social impact. This response to the global refugee crisis aimed to promote inclusivity, diversity, and acceptance within communities worldwide.

What made this case study remarkable was its ability to leverage the Airbnb platform to facilitate connections between hosts and displaced persons, providing them with temporary housing and support.

Airbnb demonstrated its commitment to using its platform for social good and making a tangible difference in the lives of those in need. This aligned with its mission to create a world where anyone can belong anywhere.

At the end of the day, Airbnb’s “We Accept” campaign was a compelling case study showing brands how to address social issues, promote inclusivity, and drive positive change in communities worldwide.

Peter Bryla , Community Manager, ResumeLab

One standout marketing case study that sticks with me is the “Amul” marketing campaigns by Amul, the iconic Indian dairy cooperative, make for excellent and impactful case studies as well. Here’s why Amul’s marketing stands out:

The Amul Girl – The mascot of a mischievous, friendly butter girl has become one of India’s most recognizable brand icons since her inception in 1966. Her presence on topical ads commenting on the latest news and pop culture trends has made Amul’s billboards a long-standing source of joy and relevance.

Topicality – Amul’s billboards and newspaper ads are renowned for their topicality and ability to humorously comment on major events, celebrity happenings, and political developments within hours. This real-time marketing has kept the brand part of daily conversations for decades.

Humor – The not-so-secret sauce is the brilliant use of puns, wordplay, and satirical humor that Amul consistently delivers through the eyes of the Amul Girl. The healthy, inoffensive jokes have earned a cult following.

Longevity – Very few brands can boast an equally iconic and successful campaign running for over 50 years, still keeping audiences engaged across multiple generations. The long-running property itself has become a case study in sustaining relevance.

Local Connect – While achieving pan-India recognition, the puns often play on regional language nuances, striking a chord with Amul’s Gujarati roots and building a personal connection with local consumers.

The impact of Amul’s long-running topical billboard campaign is unmatched—it has not only strengthened brand recognition and loyalty but has also made the cooperative a beloved part of India’s popular culture and daily life. Creativity, agility, and contextual marketing at its best!

Yash Gangwal , Founder, Urban Monkey

Axe (Lynx in the UK) had created a problematic brand image from past marketing efforts. Their focus on ‘attraction is connected to conquest’ hadn’t dissuaded men from buying their deodorants, but had a toxic effect on perceptions of women. Research conducted on brand equity showed that brand equity was declining, with this perception of the brand aging poorly and desperately needing a refresh to continue allowing the brand to be relevant for the future.

That led to a superb partnership with creative agency 72andSunny Amsterdam. Unilever was able to tap into an entirely new philosophy for its brand:

Empower men to be the most attractive man they could be – themselves.

With that idea in mind, 2016 saw the launch of the AXE ‘Find Your Magic’ commercial, a stunning celebration of the diversity of modern masculinity. The campaign also saw the release of a new range of premium grooming products and a supporting influencer marketing campaign featuring brand ambassadors, including John Legend.

While not all parts of the creative were successful, the campaign drove more than 39 million views and 4 billion media impressions in the first quarter after the launch. But most critically, AXE saw a 30+% increase in positive perception of their brand.

This campaign will stand the test of time because it combines several important and brave initiatives:

A forward-thinking mentality that the brand image you have today may not be suited for a future world
A broader understanding of what your customer base looks like – women also play a big role in men’s choice of deodorant
A big and bold attempt to change the way your brand is perceived – and succeeding with flying colors.

Yannis Dimitroulas , SEO and Digital Marketing Specialist, Front & Centre

One standout marketing case study that sticks with me is the campaign for Squatty Potty. The brand created a humorous video featuring a unicorn pooping rainbow ice cream to demonstrate the benefits of using their product. This unconventional approach garnered widespread attention and went viral, generating millions of views and shares on social media platforms.

The success of this campaign can be attributed to its creative storytelling, humor, and shock value, which made it memorable and engaging for viewers. By thinking outside the box and taking a risk with their messaging, Squatty Potty was able to create a unique and effective marketing strategy that resonated with consumers.

This case study serves as a reminder that creativity and originality can set a brand apart in a crowded marketplace, ultimately leading to increased brand awareness and customer engagement.

Carly Hill , Operations Manager, Virtual Holiday Party

The Old Spice ‘The Man Your Man Could Smell Like’ campaign remains etched in my memory. Its brilliance lies in its humor and creativity. By featuring a charismatic spokesperson and employing absurd scenarios, it captured viewers’ attention and went viral.

The campaign seamlessly integrated across platforms, from TV to social media, maximizing its reach. Its cleverness and entertainment value made it unforgettable, setting a benchmark for engaging marketing strategies. The case study showcases the importance of storytelling and humor in capturing audience interest and driving brand awareness.

Dan Ponomarenko , CEO, Webvizio

A marketing case study that has made a lasting impression on me is the Red Bull Stratos Jump. This campaign was for Felix Baumgartner’s record-breaking jump from the edge of space, sponsored by Red Bull. The goal of this campaign was to create buzz and generate brand awareness through this extreme event.

The reason why this case study stands out to me is because of its successful execution in capturing the attention and interest of not just extreme sports enthusiasts, but also the general public.

The live broadcast of Baumgartner’s jump on various channels and social media platforms garnered over 52 million views, making it one of the most-watched live events ever. Red Bull’s strategic use of real-time marketing, storytelling, and high-quality visuals made this campaign a huge success, resulting in a significant increase in sales and brand recognition for the company.

This case study serves as a great example of how a well-planned and executed marketing campaign can effectively reach and engage with a wide audience.

Brian Hemmerle , Founder and CEO, Kentucky Sell Now

One standout marketing case study that resonates with me is the SEO transformation for Maple Dental. This campaign dramatically improved their local online visibility, leading to a substantial increase in new patient appointments. The integration of Google Maps SEO proved to be a game-changer, emphasizing the power of local search optimization in attracting nearby clients.

What made this case study exceptional was the measurable impact on the clinic’s business. For instance, the campaign led to a 230% increase in phone calls and a 223% increase in website visits. Such clear, quantifiable results showcased a direct contribution to business growth. These metrics are vital for demonstrating the return on investment in digital marketing efforts.

Additionally, the use of a targeted approach to enhance Google Maps visibility was particularly compelling. By optimizing their presence on Google Maps, Maple Dental saw a 250% increase in monthly maps impressions, which directly correlated with increased patient inquiries and visits.

Ihor Lavrenenko , CEO, Dental SEO Expert

One case study that always comes to mind is Dollar Shave Club’s launch video in 2012. It was called “Our Blades Are F*cking Great,” and let’s just say it got people talking! This video was hilarious and totally different from those fancy shaving commercials we were used to seeing. It spoke directly to guys, poked fun at expensive razor prices, and offered a way to get awesome blades for much less.

Additionally, it told everyone to check out their website. It was short, catchy, and made a huge impact. This is a perfect example of how a creative and funny video can grab attention, make people remember your brand, and get them to become customers.

Perry Zheng , Founder and CEO, Pallas

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Understanding Mercedes Marketing Strategy: A Case Study

August 23, 2024

Mercedes marketing strategy – Ever wondered how Mercedes-Benz stays at the top of the luxury car game? Their marketing strategy is a big part of it. You’re about to dive into the world of Mercedes marketing, where cutting-edge techniques meet timeless brand appeal. From sleek digital campaigns to innovative showroom experiences, Mercedes knows how to catch your eye and keep you hooked.

In this comprehensive analysis Mercedes marketing strategy, we’ll take an in-depth look at the multifaceted marketing strategy of Mercedes-Benz, exploring the key elements that have propelled them to the pinnacle of the luxury car market.

Read More: Analyzing Lamborghini Marketing Strategy – Full Breakdown

Core Elements of Mercedes Marketing Strategy

Brand positioning and value proposition.

Mercedes marketing strategy – When you think of Mercedes-Benz, what comes to mind? Luxury, quality, and innovation, right? That’s no accident. Mercedes has carefully crafted its brand image around these key elements. Their slogan, “The best or nothing,” sums up their commitment to excellence.

Mercedes positions itself as a premium automotive brand, targeting high-end consumers who value luxury and comfort. They’re not just selling cars; they’re offering a luxurious lifestyle for the upper class. While some brands focus on the thrill of driving, Mercedes puts the spotlight on comfort and sophistication.

Target Audience Segmentation

Mercedes marketing strategy – Now, you might think Mercedes is only for the super-rich, but that’s not the whole story. They’ve actually gotten pretty clever with their target audience segmentation.

Traditionally, Mercedes targeted wealthy individuals who craved comfort and luxury. But as times changed, so did their strategy. They realized they needed to appeal to a younger crowd without losing their prestige.

So, what did they do?. They created “Generation Benz,” an online community of 20 to 39-year-olds. This group gave Mercedes valuable insights into the preferences of younger buyers. Armed with this information, Mercedes launched successful campaigns like the one for their CLA model.

Digital Marketing Initiatives

1. social media presence.

Mercedes marketing strategy – When it comes to social media, Mercedes-Benz doesn’t just cruise – they drive full throttle. You’ll find them revving up their engines across platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. On Facebook, they’re posting 2-3 times a day, keeping things visually stunning with a mix of images and videos. It’s not just about showing off shiny cars; they’re telling stories that’ll make you want to hop in the driver’s seat.

Over on Twitter, Mercedes is even more active. They’re tweeting 6-8 times a day, sharing everything from single shots to full albums. And here’s a cool trick – they’re cross-promoting content between platforms, so you’re always in the loop, no matter where you follow them.

But if you really want to see Mercedes shine, check out their Instagram. With a whopping 5.7 million followers on their global account, they’re posting 5-7 times daily and getting some serious love – we’re talking 50K to 100K likes per post. They keep things fresh by mixing in user-generated content from racing stars, bloggers, and even regular folks like you and me.

2. Content Marketing

Mercedes marketing strategy – Mercedes knows that great content is the key to revving up their digital marketing engine. They’re not just selling cars; they’re selling a lifestyle. Take their partnership with Casey Neistat, for example. This cool, edgy influencer created videos that spoke directly to younger audiences, giving Mercedes that authentic vibe millennials love.

They’ve also teamed up with popular photographers to showcase their new models. Imagine cruising in a Mercedes A-class with celebs like Tinie Tempah and Daisy Lowe, chatting about fashion and style. It’s not just a car ad; it’s content you actually want to watch.

3. Online Customer Experience and E-commerce

Mercedes marketing strategy – Mercedes is taking your online car-shopping experience to the next level. They’ve realized that 80% of customers now use online sources when they’re thinking about buying a car. So, they’ve revved up their digital game with some pretty cool tech.

Picture this: you’re browsing Mercedes’ website, and suddenly you’re chatting with a smart sales assistant. It’s not just any chatbot – it’s powered by AI and can help you schedule test drives or even start the buying process, all through natural conversation. This virtual assistant is already cruising through European markets and is set to go global in 2024.

But Mercedes hasn’t forgotten about the human touch. They’re using AI to bridge the online and offline worlds. So when you finally walk into a dealership for that test drive, the dealer already knows what you’re interested in.

Innovative Marketing Techniques

1. influencer partnerships.

Mercedes marketing strategy – Mercedes-Benz knows how to rev up its marketing game with some seriously cool influencer partnerships. Take their collab with rap queen Nicki Minaj, for example.

They cleverly tapped into her unique style and star power to appeal to a younger crowd who dig her vibe. It’s not just about selling cars; it’s about selling a lifestyle that resonates with the Instagram generation.

But it’s not all glitz and glamor. Mercedes also teamed up with outdoor brand North Face for an epic 3,000 km road trip from Canada to Alaska.

2. Brand Ambassadors

Mercedes marketing strategy – Mercedes doesn’t just stop at influencers; they’ve got a whole squad of brand ambassadors. These are the folks who live and breathe the Mercedes lifestyle. They’re not just customers; they’re superfans who create content, show up at events, and spread the word about how awesome Mercedes is.

And get this – when Mercedes launched a Father’s Day campaign for their fragrance line, they didn’t just pick any old influencers. They handpicked 25 lifestyle influencers who really got what Mercedes was all about.

The result? A staggering 98,872 engagements, including 7,634 shares. Plus, they snagged 2,500 new followers on their Instagram account. Not too shabby, right?

3. Virtual and Augmented Reality Experiences

Mercedes marketing strategy – Now, let’s talk about how Mercedes is bringing the future to your fingertips. They’ve jumped headfirst into the world of virtual and augmented reality, and it’s pretty mind-blowing. Imagine checking out your dream Merc without even leaving your couch.

That’s right – Mercedes has set up VR showrooms where you can walk around cars, peek inside, and even start the engine.

But it doesn’t stop there. They’ve also created smartphone apps that let you see how a car would look parked outside your house. Just point your phone, and bam – there’s your new ride.

And when you’re actually behind the wheel? Mercedes has you covered with their AR head-up display, projecting all the info you need right onto your windshield.

Read More: Exploring Microsoft Marketing Strategy: Tips for Success

Mercedes marketing strategy exemplifies a mastery of brand building and customer engagement. By accentuating heritage, innovation, and exclusivity, they’ve successfully nurtured a loyal following and maintained their position as a luxury automotive leader.

Their ability to adapt to evolving consumer trends and leverage a multifaceted marketing mix serves as an invaluable case study for businesses across various industries. By comprehending and embracing some of these key principles, companies can aspire to achieve similar levels of success in their own marketing endeavors.

Lydia Pricillia

Exploring Microsoft Marketing Strategy: Tips for Success

August 22, 2024

McDonald’s Marketing Strategy: A Recipe for Success

August 21, 2024

Analyzing Lamborghini Marketing Strategy – Full Breakdown

August 20, 2024

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From job seekers to job creators: game’s impact on entrepreneurship awareness.

‘Game’ is focused on transforming the working culture in the country. The brand looked forward to promoting entrepreneurship as a career choice and mobilizing action to address the challenge of job creation in India.

We shared experiences to inspire job seekers to become job creators.
We launched a digital campaign titled “1000 stories in 1000 minutes” through a 16-hour Twitter marathon. This involved 41 industry experts sharing inspiring stories of entrepreneurship from 28 different states in India.
The focus was on SMEs and MSMEs, women entrepreneurs, and youth to create a potential for job creation.

The campaign generated a nationwide ripple, reaching over 4.8 million people, with 90,000+ people witnessing the event live and 4,200+ people engaged. It received positive reactions from news publishers organically and was featured by many online publishers. Countless young Indians were inspired to consider entrepreneurship a viable career choice, achieving the campaign objective.

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Aaron Allen » Insights » 5 Case Studies to Help You Grow in the Restaurant Industry

5 Case Studies to Help You Grow in the Restaurant Industry

With over 2,000 engagements across 100+ countries, Aaron Allen & Associates has helped some of the world’s most recognized restaurant chains, investors, suppliers, and tech companies achieve remarkable growth. We’re sharing five restaurant case studies that showcase how we’ve driven enterprise value and transformed challenges into opportunities.

These examples offer insights into how strategic actions can lead to significant, measurable results….

Our client list, as may be expected, includes many esteemed brands throughout the world. Moreover, our experience means that we have a deep knowledge of the players, market dynamics, trends, and both the micro and macro factors shaping the industry around the globe. We are restricted by confidentiality agreements and the boundaries of our own ethical sensibilities from disclosing our clients past and present, and therefore do not provide full client lists out of an abundance of caution for discretion. Below is a brief sampling of some of the initiatives and results we have helped our clients implement and achieve.

Restaurant Case Study #1: Casual Dining Chain Leveraging the Menu as a Catalyst for a Turnaround

Focused on reinvigorating a casual dining national brand through strategic marketing , operational improvements, and executive leadership guidance during critical transition periods.

BACKGROUND AND CHALLENGE

COMPANY STATS:

Enterprise Value: ~$2b
Sales: >$1b
# Units: 100-150 range

Problems identified by AA&A:

Slow service speeds and long customer wait times
Highest volume profit centers bleeding the most traffic
Understaffed in peak periods
High employee turnover
Inefficient equipment plans and layouts
Menu misaligned

ACTION AND APPROACH

Granted special access to extensive data, AA&A utilized advanced data science techniques to identify and address operational bottlenecks and market opportunities.

Process flows
Menu ideation
Signature items
Capacity assessment
Productivity benchmarking
Guest experience assessment
Price and performance correlation
Menu merchandizing recommendations

RESULTS AND IMPACT

Recommendations for changes in kitchen equipment leading to faster service and improving returned guests statistics
Recommendations on ”can’t do at home” items, extensions on customization ability, signature items
A streamlined menu helped improve margins, with Adjusted EBITDA going from 23% pre-engagement to over 27%

Take Action Today

Restaurant case study #2: multi-brand portfolio strategic mid- and long-term business plan advisory .

The client was a multi-brand, multi-product platform in Latin America .

COMPANY STATS

The group had 10-15 brands in LATAM and was backed by one of the most important family offices in the region
Annual revenue in the $40m-$50m range, ~10% EBITDA

Scope of work:

5-year plans and priorities
Roadmap and critical path
Budget and CAPEX parameters
Shared services and infrastructure
Broad-brush organizational design
Post-pandemic growth milestones
Identifying target growth markets
Brand strengths and opportunities
Franchising vs. corporate expansion
Business model recommendations
Timelines for expansion

Some of the strategic advice given by AA&A that the company followed:

M&A: Divest — AA&A recommended divesting brands to focus on the high achievers. The company exited one of the brands identified as a low-margin brand
5-year plans are starting to be applied, with remodels happening selectively as well as SG&A, food cost, and labor cost optimization
Labor cost optimization opportunity in one of the countries
Opportunity to Optimize corporate SG&A with the divestiture of low-performing brand and units

Restaurant Case Study #3: Commercial Due Diligence and Investment Thesis Validation for Foodservice Tech Company

We supported a middle-market investment group in North America with more than $200m in assets under management investing across more than 20 industries. The company was doing diligence for an investment in a restaurant technology company in the U.S.

TARGET COMPANY STATS

Leading company in its category (top two by sales)
Had raised a cumulative of close to $100m in funding at the time of the project

Support with custom research to evaluate the market, positioning, and risk of a target company in the foodservice technology space. Insights into the foodservice industry landscape included:

State of the Industry
Total Addressable Market
Competitive Landscape (past, present and future)
Timelines for Growth, Partnerships
Consumer Decision Process, Penetration and Retention
Adoption Rates
Risk and Relevance for the Technology
Disruption and Mitigation Strategies
Forward-Looking Support with Investment Thesis

ADVISE AND IMPACT

The diligence work from AA&A advised in favor of the investment, with a few yellow flags for competitive threats
Three years later, the target company had its IPO and raised more than $100m in cash, giving an opportunity to exit the investment and make a return in a short time

Start a Transformation

Restaurant case study #4: qsr operations audit and sales turnaround for multi-brand f&b group.

Illustrated comprehensive value creation through operational and financial analysis, leading to an IPO and substantial revenue growth. The focus was to streamline operations, ignite growth, and pave the way for a substantial IPO.

~20 brands across 15-25 countries and 2,000+ outlets
Large operator in Food Away From Home and QSR across MENA
Master franchisee and proprietary brands
On-site field work, visiting every major market for each brand (1k+ photo observations)
P&L gap analysis
Systems gap analysis, accuracy, SOPs assessment
Location performance cross-section assessment
Labor analysis
Purchasing analysis, supplier analysis
Menu analysis, comps
Tech stack gap analysis
Employee survey, morale assessment

This project demonstrates AA&A’s capability to facilitate large-scale strategic overhauls and highlights our expertise in steering companies towards successful public offerings

Sales Turnaround : Strategic initiatives, particularly in technology and operational efficiencies, led to a +12% boost in same-store sales for the leading brand
Investment into New Categories : strategic advice to acquire brand rights for high-growth-forecast categories led to the expansion in coffee
Service Standards : suggestions to improve service, speed, order accuracy, and cleanliness led the company to obtain accolades from the franchisor and improvements in operations compliance scores of 60%
Productivity improvements : the year after the engagement employee productivity increased by close to 10%

Restaurant Case Study #5: Comprehensive Understanding of the Foodservice Equipment Landscape

An Original Equipment Manufacturer (“OEM”) had questions relative to commercial foodservice equipment purchases, technology/innovation, and restaurant decision-making. The company was looking to get a comprehensive understanding of the foodservice equipment (FSE) landscape to decide whether or not to get into the foodservice space at scale.

$20-$30 billion range in annual revenue
More than $1 billion adjusted free-cash-flow
60k-80k employees range

Insights into the foodservice industry landscape, including:

Competitive landscape
Deep dives into competitors’ product portfolio
Equipment acquisition cycles for restaurant chains
Restaurant chain typical equipment allocations
Equipment efficiencies in labor, maintenance, food cost, etc.
Complexity and variations by type of restaurant segment
Cost of switching/stickiness
Restaurant decision-making process (mind of the buyer)
Decision-making for franchisors vs. franchisees
Operating model OEM-dealer/distributor

Drawing on our firm’s industry experience, expertise, network, know-how, and know-who, we applied a holistic approach and combined anecdotal, qualitative, and quantitative insights to provide answers and tools:

Audited the competitive landscape and areas of opportunity
Surfaced white space and identified gaps existing in the offerings of domestic commercial foodservice equipment providers
Introduced opportunities for disruption via innovation related to labor automation and alternative formats
Recommended a dual focus on North America as the biggest segment but also a different market as the fastest-growing
Inorganic approach to fast growth

About Aaron Allen & Associates

Aaron Allen & Associates is a global restaurant consultancy specializing in brand strategy, turnarounds, and value enhancement. We have worked with a wide range of clients including multibillion-dollar chains, hotels, manufacturers, associations and prestigious private equity firms.

We help clients imagine, articulate, and realize a compelling vision of the future, align and cascade resources, and engage and enroll shareholders and stakeholders alike to develop multi-year roadmaps that bridge the gap between current-state conditions and future-state ambitions. Learn More.

Global Restaurant Industry Experts

We are focused exclusively on the global foodservice and hospitality industry. You can think of us as a research company, think tank, innovation lab, management consultancy, or strategy firm. Our clients count on us to deliver on our promises of meaningful value, actionable insights, and tangible results.

Founded and led by third-generation restaurateur, Aaron Allen, our team is comprised of experts with backgrounds in operations, marketing, finance, and business functions essential in a multi-unit operating environment.

How We Help

We bring practical, relevant experience ranging from the dish room to the boardroom and apply a holistic, integrated approach to strategic issues related to growth and expansion, performance optimization, and enterprise value enhancement.

Who We Serve

Working primarily with multi-brand, multinational organizations, our firm has helped clients on 6 continents, in 100 countries, collectively posting more than $200b in revenue, across 2,000+ engagements.

We help executive teams bridge the gap between what’s happening inside and outside the business so they can find, size, and seize the greatest opportunities for their organizations.

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50% GMV Growth! A Case Study on the Southeast Asian Scale-up Journey of International Footwear Brand POSEE

Southeast Asia’s hot and humid climate fuels a robust demand for breathable, lightweight footwear in the fast-paced e-commerce market. Amidst the competition, POSEE has carved a niche by prioritizing comfort that resonates strongly with local consumers.

About POSEE

Founded in 2023, POSEE rapidly gained recognition for its iconic flip-flops. Targeting Southeast Asia’s dynamic market, the brand launched on TikTok Shop in 2022, promising consumers the ultimate “sinking-into-comfort” flip-flops.

As POSEE expanded its product line beyond its iconic flip-flops, it faced the hurdle of driving significant Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) growth across its overseas stores.

To overcome this, POSEE partnered with Nativex, a global digital marketing platform, to execute a localized TikTok marketing strategy encompassing performance advertising, influencer marketing, and content marketing. This comprehensive approach proved instrumental in unlocking the potential of the Southeast Asian market and boosting sales substantially.

Key Achievements:

Over 50% GMV growth in the TikTok Shop store.
600 million+ exposures on TikTok.
240 million views of POSEE’s brand advertisements.
TikTok For Business Award recognition for outstanding marketing performance, setting a new industry benchmark.

Marketing Strategies

Creating buzz with an influencer matrix.

POSEE’s content strategy is rooted in a deep understanding of user reputation and community dynamics. Influencers serve as vital bridges connecting the brand with consumers.

Nativex recommended a strategic influencer selection process aligned with POSEE’s target audience. Given TikTok’s predominantly young, trend-conscious user base closely matches POSEE’s consumer profile, collaborating with influencers who resonated with this demographic was crucial to enhancing brand awareness and promoting products effectively.

POSEE’s 1:10:100 influencer matrix strategy meant:

1% Top Influencers: Driving new product launches and generating significant buzz.
10% Mid-level Influencers: Expanding brand awareness and reach.
90% Micro-Influencers and Regular Users: Fostering strong word-of-mouth marketing.

To maximize brand exposure and sales growth, POSEE implemented a phased approach:

Early Stage: Leveraging existing users to create viral short videos for organic reach.
Middle Stage: Partnering with cost-effective KOCs/KOLs for broader promotion.
Mature Stage: Refining influencer selection, prioritizing TikTok’s top influencers to expand product categories and increase visibility.

For cross-border sellers on TikTok, early-stage word-of-mouth marketing through KOCs is essential for building a solid market foundation.

Utilizing Local Popular Gags for Viral Short Videos

POSEE empowers local influencers with creative freedom and leverages Southeast Asian cultural icons to generate viral content. By incorporating authentic local elements, the brand fosters deeper connections with consumers and creates more engaging experiences.

Nativex’s strategy involved:

Collaborating with top TikTok influencers, such as @atumreview, known for their entertaining content, to showcase product comfort in a fun and engaging way.
Translating key selling points into local languages to enhance brand impact.

This approach yielded impressive results, with videos under the hashtag #poopooslides garnering over 3 million views on TikTok.

Source：TikTok @atumreview

Source：TikTok @it.diamonddad

Integrating Brand & Performance Advertising for Enhanced Reach

POSEE effectively combined content marketing and strategic advertising to maximize the impact of high-quality content. Short Video Shopping Ads (VSAs) were strategically employed to seamlessly guide users from engaging content to product pages and the TikTok Shop store, driving efficient conversions.

To foster deeper consumer engagement, POSEE created multiple TikTok accounts for live streaming, incorporating interactive elements like games and lotteries. Live Shopping Ads (LSAs) were utilized to drive traffic to these live sessions.

POSEE’s approach included:

Leveraging influencer content and live broadcasts to sustain user interest.
Implementing a combined bid and brand advertising strategy to ensure consistent brand exposure within a week of user interaction or purchase.
Employing real-time campaign monitoring and optimization, including adjustments to observation periods and content updates, to maximize advertising effectiveness.

Campaign Results

Thanks to Nativex’s comprehensive marketing strategy, POSEE achieved scalable growth in the Southeast Asian market through influencer marketing, creative content, and targeted advertising.

Nativex has provided efficient influencer marketing, professional video production, and insightful creative content suggestions. Their in-depth data analysis and precise measurement of advertising effects have ensured our marketing efficiency. Nativex’s expertise has been a great support for POSEE’s Southeast Asian market development, driving significant brand and sales growth. — POSEE

Why Nativex？

Looking for a professional TikTok expert to work with? Nativex is here to bridge the gap. We understand creativity and localization are key to success and to truly resonate with your target markets. Hence, we can help clients to deliver a more holistic approach across multiple ad solutions on TikTok and different types of content, creative, and influencer solutions!

Contact the Nativex team today to start your business on TikTok!

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