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What’s in a Game?

by eunmac on January 22, 2010

We’re stoked that you’re interested in finding out a little more about games. We been using them since 1998 for digital marketing but there’s still a lot of stigma around who’s playing and how effective they are. Let’s take a deeper dive:

Fittingly let’s begin with a quick game of True or False.
Tip: Highlight the box at the end with your cursor to reveal the answer:

True or False? Answers

- The most frequent games buyer is 39 yrs old          [ True ] *
- Women play more PopCap games than men.           [ True 65% ] **
- Over 50 new Games released on iphone daily         [True = 69pd ] ***
- Farmville (Facebook) Attacts >70m users monthly [ True - 74m ] ****
- The average age of a gamer in 2008 Aus was 33      [ True ] *****
- 44% of World of Warcraft players are Female           [ True ] ******
- The top selling computer games are Shooters        [ False. Strategy games outsell shooters >3:1 ] *******

The insight into online games:
Online/casual games aren’t toys for boys anymore. Games are played by pretty much everyone these days and can act as a serious marketing tool with which can reach most audiences. They’re not just played by male geeks and teenagers (in fact these groups represent smaller segments for online gaming – they prefer PC and console gaming). Good online games create high engagement, word of mouth, repeat traffic and are fantastic to share and create digital conversations in social networks.

Above: Amnesia’s Paper Plan Game: 352 Million Games and counting. (see stats below)

What does Amnesia Razorfish think about gaming?
We’ve built over 150 games in the last 12 years. Those games have collectively been played over a billion times. We’ve learned a lot about what works, what doesn’t, why people cheat, when they play, what keeps them playing etc. Importantly we don’t believe that if you build a game it will become an instant viral sensation (ultimately the decision of whether something becomes viral is in the domain of the consumer not the client or agency). However creating a good online game enables companies to create new touch points, positive brand experiences and different ways of connecting beyond the standard ‘sign up to our newsletter’. There’s no bad news and no reason why a brand should not take games seriously.

It’s not just about the game…
As part of a search optimisation strategy, you need other sites to link in to your site. A good game can attract a lot of links from places you would not normally receive links from but they all count when it comes to boosting your SEO rankings.

What makes a good game??
This is a complex question but there are some basic rules to follow. Shorter is generally better (ie – a game you have to play for twenty minutes will not work as well as one that lasts 1 minute that can be played many times). Think of short sharp multi-directional bursts rather than long drawn out linear experiences. Games like Farmville can be played for many hours at a time, but also for just a few seconds if that’s all you have. Playability is critical. Ease of learning (if you need to read instructions on how to play, you’ll lose a ton of people on arrival). Rankings tables help, friend leagues are effective. Being portable (can you play it in Facebook as well as your own site?) and sharable is strongly advised. There are a few other secret ingredients we think really matter but they wouldn’t be secret if we listed them here

What makes a bad Game?
Great question. There are many hurdles that can easily trip up an otherwise promising project: Poor playability, unintuitive play, unclear objectives, long load times, games that take too long, lack of challenges, complicated controls, poor graphics, too much branding, poor sound, annoying interfaces, drawn out intros. The list goes on and on. The truth is that keeping the bad bits out is as important as getting the good bits in.

How much do games cost to produce?
Ahh we KNEW you were going to ask that. The reality is that some games take a few days to develop, others can take months. Sometimes we can take an existing game for which we own the rights, reskin it and license the engine which can reduce costs. The amount of graphics, animation, sounds, coding, testing, all affect how long it takes. Our own view is that games warrant a much bigger spend from marketing and media budgets and should not be an afterthought or the last cab off the rank in a campaign.

How do I know if my game will go viral?
It’s best to assume it won’t. Ultimately consumers will decide the fate of the game, not you or the agency. The important thing is to not leave it to chance. Plan to integrate your game in your marketing budgets. Display ads and search are effective start points and the more peopel you drive to your game this way, the better chance you have of seeing viral activity in the long run. Don’t forget, games inside banners are statistically the top category for interaction and click through.

In conclusion:
Brands should invest in developing digital strategies that involve entertainment experiences. Games are one of the best possible ways to engage your audience. Games can be used as part of a CRM strategy to collect data and provide insight and research. Games should considered beyond just campaigns and in fact work better as part of an ‘always on’ digital asset.

Further reading: We recommend Inside Social Games as a good place to read all about it.

~@eunmac

Above: 350 million paper planes thrown – mostly by women aged over 25.