Exam preparation task: Question 7

What impact have recent developments in technology had on the production, distribution, marketing and exchange of videogames?

The videogames industry is technologically driven, with new ideas and technologies pushing the industry forward. New technological developments impact on all areas of the industry, including production, distribution, marketing and exchange.

Recent developments in technology has had a huge impact in the area of production. New creation engines such as RAGE enable a relatively small number of programmers to create hugely complex games. For example, 150 people used RAGE to develop GTA4, a relatively small number of people when you think about the enormous size and complexity of the game. Similarly, the development of the Euphoria engine has meant that games physics has improved dramatically, making ever more realistic games. This improvement has lead to a huge amount of competition, as developers attempt to out do each others efforts.

Distribution has also been impacted by the improvement of technology. The recent development of websites such as Steam has changed the way that videogames are distributed. Steam enables users to purchase and download entire games directly. Whereas before buying games online meant having to pay for postage and waiting for the game to arrive, Steam is an instant service that removes the need for delivering a physical product and therefore removing some of the cost. In terms of exchange, Steam has also had an impact. As it's popularity increases, it is having a detrimental effect on the trade-in area of the market.

Marketing wise, new technologies are making a huge impact. With people spending more time on the internet, technology has enabled companies to market online and reach a larger audience. The recent increase in the use of social networking has allowed developers to improve the relationship with their audience by allowing them to communicate with them directly through websites such as Facebook and Twitter. This also improves the overall gaming experience as it extends it. An example of this is how Flickr was used to market Just Cause 2. An account was set up for the games protagonist, with screenshots of the game being uploaded as if they were the character's personal photos. This social networking aspect has had an enormous impact. As well as what I mentioned earlier, some games enable users to upload clips directly to Youtube. This example of technological convergence shows the growing importance of social networking in the video games industry.

Advert Analysis: Worms Armageddon Xbox Live

1) Do you think it is an effective advert and why?

I feel that this advert is quite effective as it reveals many aspects of the games content. The text breaks up the advert and reveals more about the franchise as a whole. These techniques are used as the game was released and advertised on Xbox live arcade, so it probably didn't have a huge amount of money to spend on marketing.

2) What type of audience is the game aimed at and how can you tell?

This game is aimed at both a younger audience as well as fans of the series. It appeals to fans of the series by mentioning aspects of previous games e.g. 'The worms are back... and they're bringing the whole arsenal along.' and ' The return of iconic weaponry. It appeals to a younger audience due to the cartoon look of the game and general .

3) Do you think it is a fair representation of the game?

Yes, as it uses gameplay footage extensively.

Beatles Rock Band Case Study: Marketing

Viral Marketing:

Guerrilla Marketing:


Specialist Press:Excited due to the fact it is part of Rock Band franchise. Magazines excited about release of new controllers due to similarities to actual instruments. Controversy due to price of the instrument controllers.

Mainstream Press: Heavily covered by mainstream press due to involvement of George Harrison, Paul McCartney and family members. Also because it was released to coincide with re-release of albums. surviving Beatles were present at enormous launch party. Heavily reported in Music magazines: split opinions due to Beatles huge fan base and influence.

Marketing Definitions

Marketing: The promotion, selling and distribution of a product or service

Viral Marketing: A method of marketing that relies heavily on 'word of mouth', often on the internet. The communication between potential buyers and their friends is hugely important for this to work. It creates 'buzz' or hype around a product.

Guerrilla Marketing: A method that is designed to create a 'buzz' or hype around a product through unconventional and unexpected techniques.

Specialist Press: Magazines, publications etc. that address a specific subject/industry that will only appeal to those with a prior interest.

Mainstream Press: Publications that are not linked to a specific industry or subject, therefore having a larger audience.

Production of The Beatles: Rock Band

The Beatles Rock Band is a rhythm based music game. It features music performed by the Beatles exclusively, whereas other band specific games feature other bands.

It was developed by Harmonix Music Systems, was published by MTV games and distributed by Electronic Arts.

Games Production Research

Zynga: A developer based in San Francisco that develops browser based games for social networking sites.

Capcom: An international developer that is based in Osaka, Japan. They started by making electronic game machine in 1979. Famous for Resident Evil games.

In the 12 months ended March 31, 2009, it has reported an increase in sales of 10.6 percent to 91,878 million yen ($924 million/£615 million), while net income rose 3.3 percent to 8,063 million yen ($81.1 million/£53.4 million)

Wideload games:Wideload games an American game developer located in Chicago, illinois

Wideload focuses on a core team and many external developers in developing games. The goal was to counteract the growing development costs associated with the current game industry, and to prove that smaller companies with relatively modest funds could make a game that could still sell well compared to releases from larger corporation.

Xbox Live Marketplace (XBLM): is a virtual market designed for Microsoft's Xbox 360 console that allows Xbox Live members to download purchased or promotional content, demos trailers, games on demand and themes.It was made available in the summer of 2007.

Braid: A platforming game where you can manipulate time to complete puzzles. It was released on 6th August 2008 for Xbox live arcade. A PC version was released on 10th April 2009. It was designed to look as if it had been painted and was part of a childrens book.

Open-source software (OSS): is computer software that is available in source code form for which the source code and certain other rights normally reserved for copyright holders are provided under a software license that permits users to study, change, and improve the software.It is mainly used ny development companies, but some software is availble to the public. Open source is a development method for software that harnesses the power of distributed peer review and transparency of process. The promise of open source is better quality, higher reliability, more flexibility, lower cost, and an end to predatory vendor lock-in.

Euphoria

Euphoria is a game animation engine created by NaturalMotion based on Dynamic Motion Synthesis, NaturalMotion's proprietary technology for animating 3D characters on-the-fly based on a full simulation of the 3D character, including body, muscles and motor nervous system.

GTA 4: No more pre-animated material. All motion is simulated in real time so you can get literally an infinite number of movement types. It is intended to create a more realistic representation of how a real human would react to the i game content.

Ideas behind GTA 4

The main theme of GTA 4 was about being different and standing out. While GTA: Vice City and GTA: San Andreas were considered to be part of the GTA III trilogy (same graphics engine, similar characters, similar mission style, etc.), Grand Theft Auto IV is considered a fresh start for the GTA series, focusing more heavily on realism and storytelling than in previous titles. This is why it's been dubbed GTA4 and not GTA6 (as many had originally anticipated), even though it's the sixth major title in the series.

http://www.gta4.net/overview/


GTA 4 was intended to be a departure from the earlier games, with a more serious tone, a deeper, darker story and less cartoon aspects.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/video-games/4373632/Dan-Houser-interview-Rockstar-Gamess-writer-for-GTA-4-and-The-Lost-And-Damned.html

First Task

Rockstar Table Tennis
1: Fun to play with another person, but could be dull on your own. Quick to get into and it doesn't take long for a game to start. Good graphics
2: Aimed at fans of the table tennis, sports fans in general.
3:There isn't enough variety. The game itself is really repetetive and gets boring quickly.
4: The controls are overly complicated.
5:No references to other media.
6: Very differnt to other Rockstar games as they focus heavily on either crime or driving.
7: It was on Xbox 360. This is because the characters and envrionment are highly detailed and at the time of release, it was the most capable console.

Our games history

What was the first ever game you played?
Tom: Super Mario Bros. on NES
Gabriel: Lego Racers

What games did you used to enjoy playing and what did you like about them?
Tom: Gold Eye on N64, because it was James Bond game
Gabriel: Time Splitters on PS2 because it was an enjoyable game

What do you play now and why do you enjoy them?
Tom: GTA 4 (Xbox 360) fun game play lots to do but I rarely play it
Gabriel: Call of Duty 4 online (Xbox 360) varied levels with lots of unlockable content

What consoles have you bought and why?
Tom: Xbox 360 because it was up to date by much cheaper than Playstation 3
Gabriel: Playstaion 2, PSP and Xbox 360 the xbox was much more affordable than the PS3 at the tine




Do you play games online? If yes, what games and where do you play them?
Tom: Occasional mobile gaming
Gabriel: No