Gamification: a bubble soon to go burst!?

In a relatively short timeframe gamification turned into a proper movement. The official blog; a full-fledged book; a summit; and many (self-)proclaimed experts are advocating the use of game mechanics in non-game settings. Gamification can be seen as the logical next step in the diffusion of games as it commoditises games by making them part of the marketer’s toolkit without her actually having to design games. Is the rapid rise of the phenomenon at hand legit, or is gamification a bubble soon to go burst? Continue reading...

Five objectives for remarkable brand positioning in the Digital Era

In a world of digital distribution where video game developers become more and more independent from publishers, marketing increasingly becomes something that ought to happen within the boundaries of the firm. Returning guest author Bart Hufen explores five objectives to pursue in positioning your brand in the digital era. His views are largely derived from his book ‘A Brand New Playground – Building brands in the Digital Era’ that can be downloaded for free here.

In the current era of digitization, an organization can no longer afford to produce products that do not meet brand promises. Almost two billion people worldwide are connected through the Internet, and stories from one side of the globe can reach the other side almost instantaneously. Also, communication nowadays is far more reliable than when we were still sending letters to each other through the mail. Once a consumer has posted something on his/her weblog or on Twitter it will stay there and will remain accessible and findable. This ‘forces’ organizations and brands to be more truthful in what they communicate (‘walk your talk’ and ‘practice what you preach’).

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10 Key Social Gaming Figures

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An overview of online gambling and social gaming

Betting in social gaming is on the rise. Yazino has established itself as a legitimized player in the social gaming sphere while start-ups like Plumbee are bound to enter with a bang. At this year’s Social Gaming Summit, Facebook’s Julien Codorniou offered developers one piece of advice: develop mobile social casino games! I invited Julia Maxwell Research Analyst for CasinoTopLists to write an article about the current state of online gambling and its early footsteps into social gaming.

In many ways the world of online gambling is a unique beast. It generates revenues in the tens of billions of dollars each year, yet it has only really been in existence for the last 15 years, with the first substantial online sites emerging in the mid-to-late 1990s. While the basic core of the online gambling business remains the same – offering people the chance to play poker, blackjack games, and bet on sports from the comfort of their home – the industry has already seen several major changes during its brief lifespan, with plenty more on the way.

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Social games marketing 101

Lessons learned from the Social Gaming Summit

If there is one thing that last week’s social gaming summit made abundantly clear, it’s that it is just as much about the marketing as it is about the game. Whereas last year’s summit revolved around the growth and consolidation of the social gaming market, this year’s summit reaped the consequences of that trend. Social gaming has matured, the market has become crowed, and heavyweight  company’s such as Zynga and Wooga are dictating the capabilities and budgets required to win. What follows is an overview of some of the marketing lessons taught at the summit. Continue reading…

Mario on iPad in an all digital console industry?!

The future of the console industry according to the London Games Conference

These are not the console industry’s most flourishing times. Nintendo reports significant losses, there is little growth in both the hardware and games markets, and console development studios are being closed after being unable to meet expectations. In the midst of this context, roughly a week ago, there was the third annual London Games Conference (LGC). With over 300 execs attending, predominantly from console-related backgrounds, surely this one day event would be good indicator of where the industry is heading. Continue reading…

PopCap’s 10 rules for commercial failure in mobile games development

PopCap, the company behind social gaming hits as Plants vs. Zombies and Bejeweled, has a way of doing presentations at conferences. Last year’s Social Gaming Summit presentation was insightful in the sense that developers were advised to postpone trying to make money from their game until there is some serious traction.

At yesterday’s London Games Conference, PopCap’s presentation was equally remarkable. During a brief presentation David Bishop (Senior Game Designer) presented the mobile development community with 10 rules that would ensure commercial failure in mobile games. Game producers take notice, or not… Continue reading…

Gaming Business Review collaboration – events coverage!

After having contributed to Gaming Business Review on several editorial articles, and attending this year’s Mobile Games Forum on their behalf, this week we have taken the next step in our collaborative efforts. Gaming Business Review is run by M2 Research, a company that provides strategic consulting and market intelligence in the digital games industry. Starting this week, I will be GBR’s European Contributing Editor as well as M2’s London based analyst. Continue reading…

The Zelda Swansong and Nintendo’s diversification strategy

Exiting the tube station last Tuesday had me clueless for a few minutes. The London Apollo Hammersmith venue was just across the street, but its supplying roads were blocked by a mass of people. What was going on? Surely they could not all be attendees to the Legend of Zelda 25^th anniversary symphony orchestra performance. Upon closer observation, the 600 meters long cue was occupied with tunic wearing, 3DS playing, Zelda storyline debating individuals. Not too amused with the length of the cue I had no choice but to join. The idea however that so many likeminded people showed up to this one off European event was soothing. Despite the negative financial situation Nintendo is facing, tonight’s crowd and event showed no signs of demise. Continue reading…

Game Theory: The Added Value of Publishers in Digital Distribution

Every first Tuesday of the month I will loosely discuss an academic publication that deals with industry matters under the header of ‘Game Theory’. These publications often provide AN answer to topics of debate, or offer fresh perspectives worthy of placing in practical context. What better way to start by discussing recently published work from my own hand?!

Rightfully Envious?

It’s a commonly held debate. Do publishers still have right of existence in a landscape where developers can freely distribute their own games on digital distribution channels such as WiiWare, PSN, and iOS? The indie community like their audience to believe that this is not the case. Indeed, in a world where the physical and financial barriers to game production and distribution have eroded, who needs Chillingo anyway? This somewhat offensive stance from the development community is well explained, the perceived publisher added value has even further diminished with the advent of digital distribution channels while the value they capture remained largely intact. A situation in which the perceived value divide is in disequilibrium at the cost of the value creating firm leads to so called value chain envy. Are video game developers rightfully envious of their value appropriating publishing counterparts? Continue reading…