Zynga in the news

In the third quarter of the gaming year, Zynga has been through a lot of events which reflect the state of the social gaming market today. Zynga's daily active users have increased from 54-million in the third quarter of 2011 to 60-million in the third quarter of 2012, which shows an increase of 10%, and their monthly active users have increased from 227-million in the third quarter of 2011 to 311-million in the third quarter of 2012, an increase of 37%. This suggests that the popularity of social gaming is increasing, however, when we look at the statistics from other types of gamers, things for Zynga have not been too good. 'Monthly Unique Payers' for (gamers who pay for 'credits' on games) decreased from 4.1-million in the second quarter of 2012 to 3-million in the third quarter of 2012, down 28%. This shows that although social games are popular, the percentage of gamers who actually contribute to Zynga's profit is decreasing. This might imply that monthly gamers who pay for social games may be decreasing across all social games. However, even though Zynga had lost ome of their monthly paying gamers, Zynga launched four games during the third quarter of 2012, including two titles on web-based platforms: ChefVille, a social 'farmville-style' cooking game, FarmVille 2, Zynga’s next-generation game built entirely in 3D and the new chapter in its FarmVille legacy, and two titles on mobile platforms: Gems With Friends (the sixth title in the 'With Friends franchise'), and Montopia, a role-playing game in which players have to collect monsters through an adventure. This suggests that even if their monthly payers are decreasing, the social gamers still want more to play, meaning social games are still  very popular today.

 

This graph shows how at the second quarter of 2011, many people believed that the amount of Zynga's monthly active users could not increase - they thought that there may be a cap on the amount of users it could have. However, as I mentioned before, in the third quarter of this year, the number of Zynga's MAU's has increased to 311 million, clearly surpassing people's estimates. This implies social gaming may be on the increase.

Farmville 2

 

Since its release date on the 5th of September 2012, Zynga's sequel to 'Farmville', 'Farmville 2' has had over 60 million monthly users. This week, there has been an increase of 6,300,000 users - 64,700,000 people now play Farmville  every month. Zynga has marketed Farmville 2 mostly using viral marketing techniques and channels, where it promotes the game to its existing users. Also, naming it 'Farmville 2' was a simple marketing technique as Tim LeTourneau, vice president of games at Zynga states, "What you're really looking at is the brand equity of FarmVille. In all of our testing, even though we tested different names for the game players, even seeing it and knowing the differences, consistently came back and said that FarmVille 2 was their favorite name because I think FarmVille for this audience, which is not the same as a hardcore gamer audience, you know, this is a broad audience that thinks more in terms of movie sequels than they do in game sequels. I think for them the brand that they know is FarmVille, and this is a farming game coming from Zynga, and so the logical name is FarmVille 2. We saw players over and over again resonate with that name more than any other. That was the reason the we decided to go with FarmVille 2." Naming it Farmville 2 attracted many existing gamers, and advertising it virally, on the likes of Facebook (which sponsers the game) where original Farmville players can see the title, means that many of the people who see it will recognise the franchise.

 

Zynga Games

Zynga is a gaming company that develops games for mobile phone platforms like Apple iOS and Android, as well as developing games for social networking sites such as Facebook, which are free to play. Zynga's profit comes from two sources: debit/ credit card payments and business partnerships. A lot of Zynga games require a charcter to replenish 'energy levels' after they have completed levels/ missions. Between waiting for energy levels to replenish, Zynga games are linked to offers from several partners. This is when players can take surveys, accept credit card offers or even buy services from Zynga's partners in order to obtain game credits. These credits can then be used to replenish the character's energy levels, or buy currency that can be used in the game to buy goods. These microtransactions supply Zynga with part of their profit. As well as this, Zynga also sell advertising sponserships within games, such as movie tie-ins and other brands. For example, in February 2012, it was announced that Zynga and Hasbro had partnered to produce products based on Zynga brands. These are predicted to be up for sale in the autumn of 2012.

Skylanders Giants

Released on the 19 of October 2012 in Europe, Skylanders Giants is the second game of the Skylanders series, following the first game ‘Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure’, which was named the number 1 children’s game of 2011. The game was developed by ‘Toys for Bob’, ‘n-Space’ (for 3DS development) and ‘Vicarious Visions’ (for development for the new Wii U) and published by ‘Activision’. It is available for the Nintendo Wii, the new Wii U (available from the 18 of November 2012), Nintendo 3DS, Xbox 360 and the Playstation 3.

The game is very unique in its game play; it can be played on line, at home on games consoles and there are even Skylanders Giants apps for both apple and android phones. Skylanders is a game aimed for a younger audience. To play the game, several things are needed before you can access all the game has to offer. On the Skylanders Giants website, it tells you all that you need before you can ‘Start your adventure’. A Starter pack includes a hard copy of the game, several toy figures; ‘Tree Rex’, ‘Jet-Vac’, and ‘Cynder’ (toy figures are necessary for game play) and the ‘portal of power’.  This portal is essential for ‘Bringing the toys to life’ – when you place the toys on the portal, it ‘teleports’ them into the game, where you can play as that character – 48 toy figures are available in total. This is a very unique concept which is exclusive to the Skylanders series. Also included in the starter pack are universal codes that can be used to unlock characters and play games on line (Skylanders: Universe). Trading cards are also included, as well as stickers and posters. This unique way of gaming has attracted many children since the series’ release in 2011, and has been given many positive reviews so far. The Telegraph rated the game 4/5 saying, ‘Despite some unnecessary convolutions with its action-figures, Skylanders Giants is a refinement of the hit video game and toy line hybrid’. Skylanders Giants is anticipated to be even more successful than its series predecessor, which gathered an enormous profit of £350 million in its year of release.  

The collecting aspect of this game is a clever marketing ploy, as each character posses different powers and encourages children to own them all and build up a collection of all the figures that you can buy seperately from the game. On Amazon, a single figure (in this example, Crusher) costs £18.48 - a steep price for one single toy, considering the price that the starter pack costs. However, many children today are prepared to pay this, as you have to buy certain figures to complete certain tasks, in order to complete the game. This is an example of symbiosis - the figurines and game combination mean that the toys can be used with the 'portal', and also out of the game as action figures. Skylanders Giants has been marketed

In the UK, the game is available across a wide variety of shops and websites, including; Amazon, Argos, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Game, HMV, Toys R Us, play.com, and Smyths. The prices across the major platforms are all very similar – a starter pack costing around £52.47 and a booster pack costing between £36.99 - £39.99 on the Wii, PS3 and Xbox, and a starter pack around £49.99 on the Nintendo 3DS and a battle pack costing £24.99 across all platforms.

Synergy and symbiosis in the Games industry

L.A. Noire (developed by Rockstar Leeds) used both synergy and symbiosis in their marketing campaigns. On the 17th of May 2011, the 'Rockstar Games' label released the soundtrack for L.A. Noire. There was even a remix of the soundtrack released on the same date by Rockstar Games, featuring six classic jazz songs from the 40s (when L.A. Noire was set) remixed by modern DJs. A sixty minute long film was also created and previewed on the 25th April 2011 based on L.A. Noire. These are examples of how Rockstar used synergy in the promotion of their game.

Rockstar also used synergy and symbiosis in their marketing campaigns for Grand Theft Auto. Using synergy, Rockstar also released the soundtrack for Grand Theft Auto, featuring many modern songs from a range of genres. As well as this, Rockstar released a lot of merchandise for the game including; a mug with the GTA logo and knuckle duster handle, a GTA basketball with the logo on it, t-shirts also displaying the logo, and even an action figure of the character 'Claude' for GTA III. All of these products are examples of how Rockstar have used symbiosis on their promotion of the GTA series'.

Synergy and Symbiosis

Synergy - Synergy is when two or more parts of the same organisation work together to promote and produce outcomes for a product for a profit. In marketing, an example of this could be when Disney released High School Musical - a film soundtrack was released on CD, the film was released on DVD and a game was also created based on the film (all promoted by Disney).

Symbiosis - Symbiosis is when different companies work together to promote and produce a range of related products. Again, using an example of High School Musical, McDonalds could make High School Musical toys to put in their Happy Meals, and other products such as bedcovers, Easter Eggs and dolls could be created to advertise the film.

The Rockstar Family

Rockstar Japan  - Set up in 2005, Rockstar Japan is the Japanese version of Rockstar. They work in conjunction with 'Capcom' to produce versions of the original games for the Asian market.  

Rockstar North - This branch (set up in 2002) was formerly named 'DMA Design ltd', and is currently based in Edinburgh, Scotland. This branch is the one known for creating Rockstar's most famous games including Grand Theft Auto and Lemmings.

Rockstar Leeds - Rebranded from 'Mobius Entertainment' in 2004, this branch of Rockstar is based in Leeds, Yorkshire (as the name suggests). Rockstar Leeds is well known for publishing handheld games for the Game Boy Color  and Game Boy Advance. It is also known  developing Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition and the Grand Theft Auto Stories games for the PSP.

Rockstar San Diego - Formerly 'Angel Studios', Rockstar San Diego was the leading studio for creating 'open world racing games' such as 'Midtown Madness' for PC in 1999. This branch of Rockstar is also responsible for creating the 'Red Dead' series of games (starting with 'Red Dead Revolver' in 2004 for PS2 and Xbox).

Rockstar Vancouver - Situated in the Canadian city of Vancouver and previously known as 'Barking Dog' studios, this branch of Rockstar has released many titles including the controversial game 'Bully' in 2006. They also created the third game in the 'Max Pyne' series earlier this year. Over the next 6 months, Rockstar Vancouver will be merging with a neighbouring branch - Rockstar Toronto.

'Reality Is Broken' by Jane McGonigal - Gaming Facts

• Globally, the online gamer community - including console, PC, and mobile phone gaming - counts more than 4 million gamers in the Middle East, 10 million in Russia, Mexico and Vietnam, 13 million in Central and South America, 15 million in Austrailia, 17 million in South Korea, 100 million in Europe,105 million in India, and 200 million in China.
• There are more than 6 million people in China who spend at least 22 hours a week gaming (the equivalent of a part time job).
• More than 10 million 'hard core' gamers in the UK, France and Germany spend at least 20 hours a week playing and more than 5 million 'extreme' gamers in the US play on average 45 hours a week playing games.
• The gaming industry is expected to have a profit of $68 billion per year by the end of this year.
•  69% of all heads of household and 97% of young people play computer and video games.
• 40% of all gamers are women.
• 1 out of every 4 is out of the age of 50.
• The average gamer is 35 years old and has been playing for 12 years.
• The scientific journal 'Cyberpsychology, Behaviour and Social Networking' reported in 2009 that 61% of surveyed CEos, CFOs and other senior executives say they take daily game breaks at work. 

'Indie' games

Independent games (more commonly known as 'indie games') are games that are created by small teams or sometimes even individuals without financial support of publishers - they often rely on digital distribution for their funding and marketing. In contrast to more mainstream developers, indie developers do not have creative limitations and don't require approval from publishers. This means that indie games are known for their creativity and artistic experimentation. Indie games tend to be less expensive to develop, as they don't need to pay license fees. For example, to develop for Nintendo Wii, Xbox 360, or PlayStation 3 there is a  license fee of between $2,000 and $10,000 (in addition to yearly developer fees and profit cuts). However, development for Xbox Live Indie Games only requires $99 per year.

The creaters of Indie games usually have a significantly smaller budget than more mainstream 'Blockbuster' games, however, the teams who create them are smaller, so less money has to be spent paying a huge team. Over the past few years, many Indie games have become very popular, some of the most successful being; Braid, Fez, World of Goo and Minecraft...

Minecraft

Developed and published by mojang,  Minecraft was created by two Swedish designers - Markus "Notch" Persson Jens "Jeb" Bergenstenis - as a first-person 'sandbox' (open world) game, focused on creativity, and the building and developing of your own, in-game world. The game allows players to roam an open world, which allows them to do anything they choose and interact with anything they like. It requires players to maintain their health, build shelter, survive attacks from mobs (creepers, zombies, skeletons etc) and mine the resources that are available in their world. This world is composed of 3D blocks which are made of materials that the players can use to their advantage. Several different modes of Minecraft exist, of which most have different aims;

Survival - In this mode, the players have a health bar  which is depleted by attacks from monsters, falls, environmental damage, drowning, or falling into lava and a hunger bar, which must be maintained by eating food. By mining resources, tools and items can be crafted which can help players through out the game. Villager mobs are also in this mode, which players can trade items with. A multiplayer server can also be set up.

Classic - This mode is free, but is no longer updated. Players have access to all the unlimited resources. It functions similar to creative mode, allowing players to build and destroy any and all parts of the world either alone or in a multiplayer server. There are no computer creatures in this mode, and environmental hazards such as lava will not damage players. However, some blocks function differently since their behaviour was later changed during development.

Creative - In Creative mode, players have access to unlimited resources or items through the inventory menu, and can place or remove them instantly. Players also do not take environmental or mob damage, is not affected by hunger, and can fly freely around the game world; they can only die by breaking through bedrock and falling into the void.

Adventure - In Adventure mode, the gameplay is similar to survival mode except players are unable to break or place any blocks. The players can still interact with items, such as chests, and mechanics, such as buttons.

 

The game was originally available for the PC, but more recently the game has been released on platforms like Xbox 360, and even Android and iOS. As of the 25th of May, 2012, the game has sold over six million copies on PC and over nine million copies across all platforms, proving it to be one of the most successful 'indie' games so far, and this number is increasing at a large rate. Minecraft was released as a developmental "alpha" release on the 17th of May, 2009, with a beta version on the 20th of December, 2010. The game is only available for digital download. Official versions for iOS and Android have been released and the full version of the PC game was released on November 18, 2011 at 'MineCon' 2011. This convention was specifically titled 'MineCon' and was dedicated to Minecraft alone, showing how passionate people are about the game.

 

In December 2010, Good Game selected Minecraft as their choice for "Best Downloadable Game of 2010" title,Gamasutra named it the eighth best game of the year as well as the eighth best indie game of the year, and Rock, Paper, Shotgun named it the game of the year. Indie DB awarded the game the 2010 "Indie of the Year" award as chosen by voters, in addition to two out of five Editor's Choice awards for "Most Innovative" and "Best Singleplayer Indie". All of these awards and positive reviews prove how successful Minecraft has become.

 

 

Modes of Game Development

There are many ways you can make video games, rather than the ways Rockstar make their games...

The 'Tent Pole' business model - This way of making games is similar to the business model of a lot of Hollywood studios; the idea is that the publisher release one 'blockbuster' game with heavy marketing and investment. Then the money made from this supports the development of other 'riskier' and potentially more creative games. E.g. GTA brings in a lot of income for Rockstar, which allows them to invest in smaller games such as 'Bully' and 'L.A. Noire'. However problems can occur with this: the company gamble with the game being aq hit, and sometimes this doesn't happen.

The Hollywood model - This idea is to contract out parts of the games design (art, car physics, assurance etc.) to other companies in order to lower development costs. So, instead of having a permanent 'in-house' team of 50+ people, the developer can have a team of just 10-20 piecing the work together undertaken by specialist external teams.

Independant Game Development - Until recently, creating games was a very expensive business, usually requiring a publishing contract in order to pay for development and a license fee required to develop the game for a particular console. However, more recently, the 'Indie Game' market had grown. Open source softwares such as Apple's App store and Xbox Live Marketplace have allowed small teams and even individuals to create games and get them distributed to make money. New technology, convergence and new ways of distribution means that more abstract games are now being developed.

Modding

The 'Hot Coffee' mod (Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas)
After the release of a mod for 'Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas' for the PC in 2005, a formerly inaccessible minigame was discovered. The minigame caused a lot of controversy, as it included adult content which would mean that the game would have to be re-rated. Previously, the minigame was completely disabled, however, by the 9th of June 2005, people found ways to enable it using hacking tools. On the 20th of July  2005, the ESRB (Entertainment Software Rating Board) announced that it was changing the rating  from 'Mature' to 18+ . Rockstar stated that it would discontinue the current version of San Andreas, and produce a new version that would not include the the Hot Coffee mod, allowing it to be re-rated as 17+. There was a massive recall on all GTA: SA games that had been released, and this affected the retailers, and Rockstar alike. On the 21st of July, the day after the rating change, North American chain stores and retailers, (which accounted for every major retailer in the United States and approximately 85% of the game's market in the country) removed the PC and console versions of the game from their store shelves, either restickering the box with the new rating, or returning it to the Publishers and Developers (Take Two Intertive). There was less of a reaction in the EU however. In Europe, the game was already an 18+ before the discovery of the mod. Unlike the US, many European nations operate the same classification as they do to films - it is a criminal offence to sell adult-only games to people below the age of the rating. In December 2005 after the huge issue that this mod had stirred up, Senators Hillary Clinton, Joe Lieberman and Evan Bayh introduced the 'Family Entertainment Protection Act', which called for a 'federal mandate enforcement of the ESRB ratings system in order to protect children from inappropriate content'. This reaction proved how huge of a problem this mod had become - the government were even involved.