Gamer 2.0, Exploring the use of Gaming, Community & Social Media

1. Gamer 2.0 :Exploring the use of Gaming Community & Social Media Karen O’Brien, Partner Chris Terschluse, Analyst Crimson Interactive Services August, 2009

3. Current Gaming Trends

4. GamerPersonas

5. Gaming Community & Social Media Best Practices

7. Provide insight into gamer lifestyle, behavior, needs, desires, and motivation

10. Gamers want gaming experiences that are customizable and interactive

11. Multiple revenue models are utilized to monetize games

12. Gamers now demand social experiences within games

13. The use of social networks is growing at an exponential rate – especially among adults

14. Gamers are avid social networkers, often sharing information such as photos, videos, or blogs.

15. Social media has a major influence on consumer purchase decisionsSource: Essential Facts About the Computer and Video Game Industry, Entertainment Software Association, 2009; Crimson analysis

17. 21% percent of adults report playing daily Source: Essential Facts About the Computer and Video Game Industry, Entertainment Software Association, 2009

18. Trends: Changing Gamer Demographics Online and mobile casual gaming is growing. Who is Playing Video Games Online Source: Essential Facts About the Computer and Video Game Industry, Entertainment Software Association, 2009

20. Online gamers are more educated and earn a higher annual income

21. Moderate video gamers have an aggregate income of $1.4 trillion, or 35% of the aggregate income of all video-gamer players, compared to the $766 billion of avid gamers

22. Women

23. While women account for only 34% of Avid gamers, they comprise 57% of Moderate and 53% of Occasional gamers

24. Most online gamers 30 years old and over are women. Female online gamers are especially prevalent among online gamers in the 45+ age groupNintendo Wii & DS “In the wake of the introduction of these two new systems, internal Nintendo research showed a 42% increase in DS purchases among women, a 127% increase among people over 30 and a 212% increase among people over 35 during an 18-month period ending in Spring 2007” - Advertising Age, October 15, 2007 Source: The Adult Video Game Market in the US Packaged Facts ‘09

26. Video gamers with children at home account for 52% of all those playing games on their cell phones, 43% of online game players and 46% of those playing offline computer games.

27. Seniors

28. The number of 18- to 24-year-old male video gamers is expected to increase by 7.4%, while the number of video gamers among 55- to 64-year-old men will grow by 34.4% into 2012 Source: The Adult Video Game Market in the US Packaged Facts ‘09

30. Theuse of video games to boost brain power and encourage physical activity is sweeping the senior population - Consumer Reports on Health (September 2007)

31. The University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey used the Wii system to help a patient with cerebral palsy, a movement disorder affecting balance and coordination.

32. Exercise Games: Wii Fit & EA Sports Active

34. Sony Playstation’s EyeToy & Eye PetTechnology uses a camera/sensor to track a user's movements, and map that movement to an avatar/character in the game-space – controller free Augmented Reality systems utilizing a motion tracking camera and motion sensors to bring users into the game

35. Trends: New Gaming Experiences Mobile games allow for virtual game play in real life environments.

37. Gamers want to influence the storyline or create their own

38. Dynamic Virtual Worlds – 2nd Life, Free Realms, WoW

39. Integration of user generated content (customize in-game characters, environments, avatars, profiles, and personalities)

40. Sims 3

41. Spore

42. Open API game development and user generated game portals

43. Little Big Planet

45. As of June 2009, more than 900,000 user-created levels have been published and these had been played 200 million times.

46. Microsoft’s XNA Creators Club allows users to create and build custom games. For a subscription fee, games can be submitted to Microsoft, reviewed, and displayed on the community game portal. Sources: Wikipedia & http://www.us.playstation.com/News/PressReleases/509

48. Weekly or monthly contests are held in which the highest rated game of that month/week wins a cash prize

49. Kongregate functions as a social network with in-game chat features, profiles, real time rankings/user standings

50. A built in rewards system awards users points for reviewing games, referring friends, and completing achievements Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kongregate

52. Members of the community will be introduced to a democratic voting system and society. Developers will place ideas out to the “cartel” and allow them to decide the direction of the game, genre, storylines, controls, and even the name.

53. Community members will be asked for $50 fee that will guarantee a copy of the game, and will provide incentives along the way to participate

54. Funded by the community. Goal is to get over 100,000 members, generating $5m in revenue up front for developmentSource: http://news.cnet.com/gaming-and-culture/?keyword=Video+game

56. Subscription Services

57. Digital Game Services

58. Offers/Incentives ( Offerpal, Super Rewards, Peanut Labs etc.)

60. In 2007 MapleStory sold $30m of digital goods in the US alone with a subscriber base of 6 million – ARPU $20 month

61. As of May ‘08 prepaid cards used to buy game items are now the 2nd best-selling entertainment gift card at Target stores in the U.S., after cards for the iTunes Store

62. DFC’s estimated revenue for 2008 ranges between $150-500m placing it 3rd amongst top 10 revenue generating MMO’s“Estimated $1.8 billion microtransactions or sales of virtual goods in virtual worlds in 2009, worldwide” – www.fastcompany.com Sources: http://www.virtualgoodsnews.com/2009/02/maple-story-nets-150500m-in-revenue-for-2008.html http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121150576226416235.html?mod=2_1567_topbox

64. Users can design their rooms to fit their personalities with IKEA made items including sofas, beds, tables, TVs, desks and much more. Each item is available in a variety of colors and patterns for a customized look

65. More than 3.3 million Ford vehicles have been downloaded in the game, making The Sims the most successful Ford dealership in the worldSource: http://www.gamershell.com/companies/electronic_arts/452016.html

66. Trends: Changing Revenue Models Digital game services offer al-a-carte game downloading for the PC and console

67. Trends: Changing Revenue Models OnLive offers cloud-based gaming services and large scale community infrastructure.

69. Social Gaming

70. Mobile Gaming

71. Online Gamer Conversation

72. OpenID

73. Gaming Communities

74. Gaming Wiki’s “One of the central elements of the video gaming experience in 2009 is its capacity to serve as a tool to build social networks and communities – both real and virtual – as well as to function as a means of pure entertainment.” The Adult Video Gamer Market in the U.S., Packaged Facts ‘09

76. Reputation tools important to community and can now be displayed on social networking profiles

79. Games have a major viral aspect encouraging players to invite friends to play games with them during game play.

80. Games are embedded in user profiles as applications and offer game play statistics and rankings.

81. Social gaming developer Zynga is on track to generate more than $100m in revenue in 2009

84. Designed by Super Rewards, the purchased virtual currency allows users to pay for virtual goods that enhance game play such as health, money, ammunition, etc. Source: http://money.cnn.com/2009/06/23/technology/twitter_140mafia_game_profit/?postversion=2009062316

86. Makes it easy for community members to advertise participation on the site using the Facebook news feed

87. EA utilizes Facebook Connect with its phone Scrabble gaming app while Zynga uses it in the most popular game on Facebook: Texas Hold ‘Em Source:http://www.maclife.com/article/news/ea_announces_facebook_connect_iphone_scrabble_rest_2009_games

89. OpenFeint is currently available on 100+ mobile games and open to all developers

90. Platforms are integrated with Facebook (via Facebook Connect) and Twitter in order to provide real time status updates of game play as well as off the ability to play, share, and discover games with existing SN friends

92. More than 1,000 aspiring fashion designers and fans of The Sims submitted designs that were voted on by more than 100,000 people and viewed by more than 500 million people in the six weekly fashion shows on Yahoo.

93. The winning outfit was selected to be manufactured, and will be available in nearly 1,000 stores worldwideSource: http://pc.ign.com/articles/886/886170p1.html

94. Trends: Gaming Goes Social Gaming wiki’s and widgets are becoming essential for hardcore gamer strategy and communication.

96. Pietheory.com is a story-based massive multiplayer online alternate reality game that ran across traditional, social and emerging marketing platforms.

97. Superstruct is the world’s first massively multiplayer forecasting game. By playing the game, you help chronicle the world of 2019--and imagine how we might solve the problems we'll face. It’s about making the future, inventing new ways to organize the human race and augment collective human potential. www.Superstructgame.org

100. Gamers communicate primarily through groups and blogs over forums

101. Gamers are 2x more likely to view, upload or share pictures as compared to videoSource: Lotame ID Report: Video Gamers and Social Media 2009

103. More likely to be influencers: creating, sharing, uploading, rating content.

104. Blogging was a likely action of video gamersSource: Lotame ID Report: Video Gamers and Social Media 2009

106. Gaming Personas

107. Definitions Hardcore Gamer; n. Term used to describe a type of video game player, or gamer, whose leisure time is largely devoted to playing video games. Typically, they will play a game to mastery before moving on, in the process becoming very knowledgeable about individual games. The opposite of the hardcore gamer is the casual gamer. Casual Gamer; n. Casual gamers are occasional video game players who might not even identify themselves as a gamer. What this group lacks in enthusiasm for the latest and greatest hardware and engrossing game play, they make up in sheer numbers. Source: Wikipedia

109. Multi-tasker

110. Online Critic/Content Creator

111. Socially Active

112. Impatient

113. Goal Oriented

115. What is the best online community for gamers like me?

116. What kind of gaming related widgets or apps can I download?

117. How can I share pictures and video’s of my game play?

118. Can I get the a better value from video game services like Steampowered?

119. When is the next MLG tournament?Source: http://media.onsugar.com/files/upl2/1/15111/22_2009/6f9f39ce8764d638_video_game_couple.larger.jpg

120. Personas – Hardcore Gamer (continued) HIS STORY A university graduate, who has been playing computer games for almost 12 years, and is an avid video/computer gamer. Eric’s favorite types of games are action adventure, shooter, sports, fighting and his favorite MMOG, World of Warcraft. He plays at least an hour of online multi-player games a week, participates in major league gaming tournaments, and commonly uses the internet to support his in game activities by reading and posting to blogs, forums, and reviews on websites such as GotFrag.com and Gamespot.com. He grew up in a single parent household in the Midwest, eats fast food regularly, reads books often, relies on the internet as a news source, and drives a Volkswagon. Eric is a hard worker, constantly striving to improve himself and climb the social ladder in the work place. Eric likes to spend money, especially on computer gadgets. He is fashion forward and admires people who stand out and express themselves. He watches Comedy Central, HBO, and some of his other favorite shows on Hulu.com. His favorite websites are BestBuy.com, Techcrunch.com Gamespot, Google, and Facebook. TECHNOLOGY USAGE Eric is very tech savvy and spends three and a half +hours online a day. He was an early adopter of the iPhone, owns an upgraded PC for gaming and constantly communicates with friends online through IM, social networks and email via the PC and more often the mobile phone. He often purchases computer products online and often reads websites such as Techcrunch.com, or Wired.com to stay up to date with the latest technology. MARKETING Focused on value and quality, as well as making practical purchase decisions. He Is highly adept at comparison shopping online and is skeptical of big corporations and advertising claims, although he has a slight tendency to be brand loyal. Responds to messaging that dares to “stand out” and is straight forward and fact based. ONLINE ACTIVITY Plays solo and multi-player games on the PC and console, visits game sites, and participates in many online communities and forums, many of which are related to gaming. He has various social networking profiles and proudly sports his Xbox Live game card on his Facebook and MySpace pages. He always keeps up to date with forums of his favorite MOGG’s looking the latest patches, add-ons, and developer blog posts. Eric constantly searches for new and interesting websites utilizing sites like Digg and Reddit, He passes around user generated humorous content, receives and sends photos, streams radio and video, downloads music from paid music sites, and likes to download podcasts, game demos, and movie clips. He plays online multi-player games every week. Previews many products and services and buys online. He will do the research to make sure he is part of the best site and community online for gaming. Eric Age: 28 IT Manager

122. Seeks Moments of Escape

123. Family Oriented

124. Well Organized

126. If I subscribe will I get new games too?

127. Which games are my Facebook friends playing?

128. Where can I find fun online shopping games?

129. What kind of online games can I play with my kids?

132. Hardcore gamers are more apt to join social networks and maintain profiles, use social bookmarking and RSS feeds, and publish blogs, post articles, comments, and upload multimedia.

133. Casual gamers are more apt to post ratings/reviews of products or comment on blogs and forumsSource: http://www.forrester.com/Groundswell/profile_tool.html

134. Gaming Community & Social Media Best Practices

136. Create new gaming experiences that offer practical benefits such as exercise, education, training, etc.

137. Allow gamers to become long term contributors and participants within the gaming community

138. Encourage gamers to express themselves through custom profiles, pages, avatars, characters, or entire games

140. Insight into real-time gaming trends and conversations across the web

141. Allow users to upload UGC such as game reviews and ‘lifestyle’ content (allow users to share what they think is cool)

142. Surveys and Feedback

143. Invite users to participate in a survey and ask questions about what content they would like to see on the site

145. Enable gamer profiles that aggregate statistics, achievements, and real-time game play - allow them to embed and share gamer profiles across the web and social networks

146. Provide statistics, user rankings, battles, contests and other tools that allow members to gauge and improve community status

147. Incentivize site users - incorporate loyalty programs

148. Points or achievements for participating on the site, redeemable for prizes/free stuff, or more games

149. i.e. Kongregate, GamerDNA, etc.

150. Give ‘em their props

151. Have a small section on the site that features accomplishments of its users or a featured user

153. Enable users to invite friends to play along and share gaming experiences – reward them for invites

154. Encourage groups to form and offer guild hosting to support small gaming team communities.

155. Create large scale community based games

156. Live interactive game shows such as Microsoft’s 1 vs 100 are engaging and fun while community members compete for real prizes

157. Enable use of real-time status updates and offer real-time tracking of community conversation and game play trends

159. Offer unique content supplemented with User Generated Content

160. Integrate with existing mainstream social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, FriendFeed, Flickr, etc.

161. Enable the ability to broadcast real-time status updates across multiple social profiles

162. Contextual recommendation engines - Highly customizable recommendation engines for games, products, or community members built through user profile context.

164. Easy for new members to recruit existing friends and contacts

165. Create OpenID custom URL’s for profile pages to make profiles portable and transferable across networking sites

167. Integrate user generated content with product and ecommerce pages

168. Including ratings/reviews for products, screenshots, and video clips

169. Creation of a media portal for video, photos, music and podcasts

170. Enable ratings/reviews for UG multimedia – much like a YouTube

171. Feature most viewed/highest rated UG videos

173. The Sims 2’s partnership with H+M created a tremendous amount of buzz and awareness for the multiple sponsors.

175. Create a community events calendar that allows members to connect and play with similar community members based on affinity, gender, location, etc.

176. Xbox Live has an excellent calendar offering game nights for families, girls etc.

177. Xbox hosts game nights where members play celebrities and musicians

178. Generate blog postings that stimulate conversation

179. Interact with members- reply to comments or questions pertaining to individual posts

180. Engage audience members on popular social networks

181. Create a social graph across multiple social networks

184. Partner with brands, bringing real life products and merchandise into the virtual world

185. Allow users to upgrade, improve, or add to their existing gaming experience over time

186. Create long term value for users by combining gamer reputation management with virtual goods

190. Technology

191. Marketing

192. Management ConsultingDeep Expertise Industry-Leading Clients Cisco Microsoft HP SAP Adobe Seagate BEA Oracle

193. Questions? Please contact:Crimson Consulting4970 El Camino Real, Los Altos, CA 94022650.960.3600 www.crimson-consulting.com Karen O’Brien Partner, Interactive Services 415.720.6859 kobrien@crimson-consulting.com T: @bondjanebond