Call of Duty: Ghosts

Final Case Study research

Name of game: Call of Duty: Ghosts

Release date:  November 5, 2013

Institutions behind the game (game studio/publisher): published by Activision and developed by Infinity Ward

Gaming platforms it is available on (e.g. PS4, PC, and Wii etc.): PS4 & Ps3, XBOX One & 360, Wii U

PRINT

A promotional poster/print for Call of Duty: Ghosts have been very attractive through the first glance. This poster shows that the game is targeted towards male teenagers and early adults as it only shows a man who dressed like an assassin/fighter. This is effective because it looks extremely exciting before even playing the game. The promotional reason why Activision have used print advertising is because, to create awareness of the campaign and increase customers to purchase the game.     

E-MEDIA
The website is effective in attracting the audience because it shows you how to join up, it allows players to check out new clips and screenshots, and it shows what new maps there are and what you can buy. It gives you information at the bottom of the screen on the latest Intel. The interesting features of the website are it allows you to personalize your weapons, it allows you to purchase new things and shows new feeds. On YouTube, there is user-generated content from You Tubers such as, Ali-A, Sea-nanners, The Syndicate project etc. this helps to promote the game because YouTube is mainstream it allows millions of people to look at the videos. Each video receives more than 5,000 views plus. So it allows many people to look at it and the word will go around so other people know. They have a Facebook page and they have 661,541 likes. The posts appeal to the audience by sharing their interests by interacting with their audience. They keep their audience engaged by posting things that the audience are familiar with. They keep you up to date with latest information and news.

Other
For marketing, they done launch parties where they invited people to watch the launch and have a sneak peak of the gameplay. They advertised during a basketball match when loads of people are their already watching the game they can look at the adverts. They held conferences such as E3 where they announce the game and its content. Despite shipping $1 billion worth of units to retail channels within 24 hours of the game's launch, overall sales were down compared to 2012's Call of Duty: Black Ops II. Activision blames the upcoming, 8^TH generation consoles.  

Wii Party case study

General Search 

Wii party is a video game published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Wii game console.This game was released on 8th October 2010 in Europe. It sold 7.94 million copies worldwide.

Broadcast
In most TV adverts we tend to see an age rating, dramatic music from game,  some game play footage, celebrities, an atmosphere that suits the game. the typical setting for any Wii party advert will be in a bright well lighted house, with family or friends playing the game itself. the items in the house will be of expensive items which a middle class people will likely own. The reason these tv adverts on wii party may have a family playing game could be to show that it is game might be better enjoyable to play with family and they all seem to be happy. Also, since in the family there is a variety of age groups playing, it could mean that people of any age can play this game weather they are old or yound. There also seems to be maily white people in the advertisements.

Most adverts feature celebrities from male and female pop bands such as JLS. This is to attract the fans of this boy band group in order to get more customers and play this game. The audience for the JLS advertisement suggest that since the the celebrities have an urban kind of style and are at the age of 19-24, it could mean that you don't have to be young to play this game and that people at that age range will enjoy it as well. I think that the TV adverts were effective fro promoting the Wii Party Game.

Print

http://www.metacritic.com/game/wii/wii-party

The reviews of this game are highly positive and less negative. One of the comments are "But what it does have it wears on its sleeve - hundreds of hand crafted miniature challenges - and that's what I keep coming back for." This shows that the game was successful and enjoyable. However there were some negative points on which why people hated this game.

AIDA exercise: marketing a new game

Game 3

Task 1 

Game Title: Exerplay

The people who have a will enjoy playing this game because they want to be fit and healthy. This game is specially designed for women of the middle class who want to stay fit and exercise indoors instead of going outside. This game will be available on different game consoles such as Playstation move, Xbox kinect and Nintendo Wii. This game will also include mini games for kids to play along and get fit.

Task 2

A:How will you create marketing materials that attract audience attention to the game?

To attract the audiences attention i will display this game on fitness magazines because a lot of women read these type of magazines about fitness and health care. This game will also be advertised in shops, billboards and in pharmacy to attract the audiences attention. The color scheme of the poster will be calm and joyful at the same time. The calm colors could attract older people for this game where as the joyfull bright colors could attract the younger people.

I:How will you generate audience interest?

To get the audience interest I could put some of the famous celebrities advertising the game. this way, the fans of these celebs will see the celebrities as motivating the audience as well as entertaining them.Another way could be by bringing in some sports celebrities as well since they are fit and healthy. 

D:How will you stimulate audience desire to buy the game?

In order to stimulate the audience desire to buy the game, we could advertise my game on social networking sites such as twitter, face book, instagram and youtube, this way more audience will be interested in buying Exerplay.

A:How will you promote audience action?

To promote the game we will have a trailer which will be broadcast on tv, radio social media such as Youtube. By putting the ad on Youtube will make the viewers share the trailer to their friends and family and get more buyers. The trailer will contain gameplay footage and other people playing the game which will inform the viewers on how the game is played and what it looks like when played. 

Planetside 2

Planetside 2

What is Planetside 2? It is a massively-multiplayer online video game

What genre does the game belong to? First-person-shooter video game

Planetside 2 developer/publisher: Published by Sony Online Entertainment

When was it launched? November 20, 2012

How does the gameplay work?

What are the six different player classes in the game? 

The Infiltrator is a sniper class with special abilities of cloaking and hacking, and can use sniper rifles, scout rifles and submachine guns to deliver a devastating effect.

The Light Assault class is a scout who uses carbines, submachine guns and shotguns. The Light Assault's special ability is Jump Jets, which allow them to fly through the air for a short period of time.

The Combat Medic is a healing class. Their weapons include assault rifles, shotguns and submachine guns. The Combat Medic's special ability allows them to heal and resurrect other players.

The Engineer class has the special ability of repairing vehicles, turrets, and MAX Units. The engineer also has the ability to build anti-infantry and anti-vehicle turrets. The Engineer's weapons include carbines, shotguns submachine guns and battle rifles.

The Heavy Assault class has light machine guns, submachine guns, shotguns, battle rifles, and also Rocket Launchers, which are effective at destroying enemy vehicles. They also have the special ability of shields to help them endure heavy fire.

The MAX class has a mobile armoured suit that allows them to take significant damage before dying. However, due to the suit they are also the slowest class. They have access to anti-infantry, anti-vehicle, and anti-air weapons. Max units cost resources to use.

What is the story or narrative to the game? Planetside 2 is a science fiction massively multiplayer online first-person shooter set approximately 300 years after the discovery of Auraxis, although the chronology of the game universe starts a few years before. 

Business model

Now look at the section on the Planetside 2 business model.

How much does Planetside 2 cost to play? £14.99

What does a subscription offer to players? One entire month of unlimited playing Planetside 2.  

What can the in-game currency are used to buy? Weapons, food and war luxuries. 

Why do some players dislike games in which users can buy additional weapons or health?

The three factions

Summarise the three factions that players can join in the game.

The Terran Republic: An authoritarian government that leverages military might to maintain strict control over the colonial citizens. The Terran Republic is obsessed with the preservation of law and order through violence, and are thus seen by some to be an oppressive and dictatorial force, but many view the TR as the only hope for lasting security on Auraxis. Their colors are red and black. TR forces are distinguished by their use of rapid fire weapons and miniguns, large magazines, and high speed medium tanks and fighters.

The Vanu Sovereignty: The Vanu Sovereignty believes that only through the mysterious power of ancient technology can humanity truly evolve its next state of existence. They are an advanced and cunning faction, employing powerful alien technology on the battlefield. Their singular purpose is to uncover the secrets hidden away in ancient artifacts scattered over the surface of Auraxis, and they annihilate anyone who interferes with their progress. Their colors are purple and cyan. Vanu employ advanced plasma and laser technology on the battlefield, distinguished by lack of bullet drop, high accuracy, and low recoil, as well as highly maneuverable hovering tanks and Empire Specific Fighters such as the Scythe.

The New Conglomerates: The New Conglomerate operates as a loosely organized band of highly effective freedom fighters, vehemently opposed to the stranglehold that the Terran Republic has on Auraxis. Led by an unusual quorum of outcasts, industry titans, and pirates, the New Conglomerate is unwavering and prepared to achieve freedom from oppression by any means necessary. Their colors are blue and gold. NC forces use hard hitting gauss weaponry that is devastating at short and medium ranges with a medium reload time, supported by heavily armored assault troops and durable tanks and fighters that also have the highest damage per shot in the game

Institution questions

EA (Electronic Arts)

Background: 1982 in California

Owner/founder: Trip Hawkins

Most successful games: FIFA

Interesting fact about the institution: They had become one of the world’s largest third-party publishers by the early 2000s

Rockstar Games

Background: 1998 in New York City

Owner/founder: Sam Houser and Dan Houser

Most successful games: Grand Theft Auto series

Interesting fact about the institution: They made the amount of production budget back before the game was released

Zynga

Background: 2007 in California

Owner/founder: Mark Pincus

Most successful games: Farm-ville

Interesting fact about the institution: Their shares dropped to $2.09 in 2012

Sony Computer Entertainment

Background: 1993 in Japan

Owner/founder: Andrew House

Most successful games: Little Big Planet

Interesting fact about the institution:

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Nintendo

Background: 1889 in Japan

Owner/founder: Fusajiro Yamauchi

Most successful games: Donkey Kong

Interesting fact about the institution: Since December 31, 2013, Nintendo has sold over 669.36 million hardware units and 4.20 billion software units

W+K Amsterdam

What do the letters stand for?

Wieden + Kennedy Amsterdam

What brands have W+K Amsterdam advertised?

Tesco, Powerade, Heineken, Nike, Coca-Cola

In your opinion, what is the most creative campaign on their website?

Heineken

What videogame campaigns have they created?

FIFA14

What additional information can you find out about the FIFA14 advertising campaign?

There is a true-to-life living avatar of Lionel Messi

Rokkan

How long has the Rokkan advertising agency been around for?

14 years

Where is Rokkan based?

New Jersey

What brands have Rokkan advertised?

Hyundai, JetBlue Airways, American Express serve

Why was Rokkan's campaign for the videogame 'Dishonored' so successful?

There was a link where it leads you to playing some of the game online on the website.

Own Casestudy

Name of game: SIMS 3

Release date: June 5, 2009

Institutions behind the game (game studio/publisher): Electronic Arts

SIMS Case-study

Print

1. What print adverts were used to advertise the game? Find examples and post them on your blog.

1. What key conventions of print adverts can you find on the example you have chosen? Product name? Font? Slogan? Central image? Colour?

The colour scheme of the print is purple to highlight wealth and fortune which will appeal to sim consumers because they will also feel superior, however some may argue that purple is more feminine so they added a blue title of 'sims' to balance it out- as blue is seen as masculine colour. The images are on both sides so the texts is highlighted more than the picture

1. Find three reviews for your game that were originally published in video game magazines. Are they positive or negative about the game? Copy and paste one quote from each review.

Metascore- " Create lifelike Sims with a unique personality and take them anywhere in the neighborhood. The powerful Create-a-Sim tool allows you to create Sims that are more realistic than ever." this review is seen as positive because it tells us the best bits about the game and doesn't mention any faults

Danger- " For a game that gives you a fake life all of these are good things." this is a blunt reply as it mentions a fault that can be been with playing the game then contradicts it with something good in the end.

Cynamite-"Sims 3 is the perfect example for a brilliant, fun game that works without any violence." this is also a positive review because overall there weren't many bad reviews, it talks about bad things that it doesn't include which overall makes the game look better

1. Did your game feature on any video game magazine front covers? Find examples and explain why a front cover feature is so successful in promoting a game to its target audience.

This is unique as this magazine which talks about this particular "SIMS" game and includes all useful information and reasons/background idea of the game. This would make the consumers consider buying the game.  

FIFA14 CASESUDY

Name of game: FIFA14

Release date: 24 September 2013

Institutions behind the game (game studio/publisher): Electronic Arts

Print

1. Find a FIFA14 print advert and describe how it promotes the game. 

2. What key conventions of print adverts can you find on the FIFA ad? Product name? Font? Slogan? Central image? Colour?

We can see the print consists of Lionel Messi along with Gareth Bale, they deliberately used these characters because Lionel Messi is supposedly ‘the best player in the world’, however they also used Gareth Bale so they could appeal to a variety of consumers.

3. Find three reviews for FIFA14 that were originally published in videogame magazines. Are they positive or negative about the game? Copy and paste one quote from each review.

Huff sports Tech- “FIFA 14 is a success and the game-makers have evidently listened to the criticism which 13 generated. With its nifty layout and slickness, it is a vast improvement and all the more enjoyable for it. ”This review gives a positive insight of FIFA14 as it highlights that the problems that were there before have been resolved, this attracts consumers who may have had a problem with it. Met score- “in FIFA 14 players have better decision making and teams play smarter on both the attack and defence to bring the beauty of the game to life ”This review is also a positive review by demonstrating the best bits of the game it makes others want to try it too. Video Gamer- “The only issue I noticed was in Be A Pro, where the game often stuttered when using the Pro camera angle. “On the other hand this review is negative because it underlines the worst bits of the videogame.

4. Why are magazine reviews effective in promoting the game to FIFA14's target audience? Magazine reviews are effective in promoting the game to FIFA14’s target audience because those who want to buy the game will refer to the reviews before buying it. Consequently, if the reviews are bad the audience are less likely to buy it, also the magazines are specifically targeted to the reader’s views and interest therefore the audience will go alongside what it says.

5. In your opinion, is print or e-media more effective in reaching the FIFA14 target audience?

I believe that the e-media is more effective because FIFA14 buyers are interactive with social media more than seeing the prints around us in society therefore it will reach the target audience’s needs. Also we are able to see promotion from different devices through e-media – e.g. the TV and phone.

Broadcast

1. Watch the FIFA14 TV advert on YouTube. How the does the advert attract an audience?

 In the audience we immediately notice the variety of ethnic groups; this instantly reaches out to lots of consumer. They also use the celebrity, which may be seen as an idol to some viewers therefore they will copy the actions there idol does- henceforth if drakes fans see him playing FIFA14 they will also want to do so.

2.  Why is Lionel Messi driving the van?

Messi is driving the van to show he’s the main one promoting in, we can see how he’s supposedly leading the rest of the people by driving the van, this also denotes

3.  How does the TV advert feature the FIFA14 brand? Font? Slogan? Main star?

At the end they take the time to tell us when it’s out and what platforms we can play it. Also throughout the whole advert the website is at the bottom- informing the viewer where we can get more information. And at the end the slogan appears ‘we are FIFA14.                   

Why is there a combination of famous footballers, celebrities and regular people in the advert?

 So they can reach out to a combination of class’s, genders, ages, and ethnicity.

5. Watch the FIFA14 trailer on YouTube. How does it differ from the TV advert?

The trailer on YouTube is more like a virtual insight of how the game will look like when you play it, and it also highlights key features specifically in the game. This would be specifically for people who already have some sort of interest in the game. However the TV advert it targeted to attract consumers and reach out to a wider audience than the YouTube trailer.

6. Why is the trailer effective in promoting the game? Because it’s promoted through the internet which is the best way to reach out to young people which is the general target audience for the game.

E-media
1. Visit the FIFA14 website. How does it attract and maintain the interest of a FIFA14 fan?

 It gives the viewer a chance to connect and compare with other players.

2. How many 'likes' has the FIFA14 Facebook wall had? 21,343,938 

3. Choose five of the posts on the Facebook page's wall, screen grab them and explain how they appeal to the FIFA14 target audience.

4. Find three examples of celebrity/footballer promotion on the Facebook wall and write how they promote the FIFA14 brand.5.  What is the FIFA14 Twitter hash tag? A way to promote through something else.

6. What is the FIFA14 Twitter account currently tweeting about? Find three recent tweets and explain why they would appeal to the FIFA14 target audience.