Poster Analysis #3 - Pokemon Battle Revolution

My final poster analysis is of the Fighting RPG, Nintendo Wii game, Pokemon Battle Revolution.

This advertisement has a large picture at the top showing two guys of different ages playing Pokemon on their DS consoles. It shows the DS game play on the TV screen which is one of the things Battle revolution prides itself on being able to do.

By having this photo, the advert is already trying to appeal to its main target audience (8-14 year old males), and what this photo is also doing is showing the function of the DS to Wii transfer and advertising their previous DS games (Diamond and Pearl for the DS which is used to control the action on TV). It also advertises the game play of this game by showing a screenshot (on the TV) which can entice viewer’s interest in the game.

‘BRING YOUR BATTLE TO Wii’ is written in capital letters and in a large font at the very top of the poster, the colours chosen for this text are Yellow and Blue which are Pokemon’s trademark colours. I think this form of typography works well to attract both Pokemon fans and regular people to the poster because of the use of colours and the brightness.

This poster is very simple and not over complicated. This may put more suggestion into the intended age group of it as it is not too complicated for a younger audience to take in. It is definitely for use in a magazine as the small print on it would not have been able to be viewed from a distance. It requires the viewer to be at a close proximity to be able to read some of the information on it.

A small insight into what the game play is like, is written below the picture, this is in a reasonably small font, which again, connotates it is not as important as the large text above. It uses phrases like ‘First time ever’ and ‘Ultimate’ and ‘Has never looked better or been bigger’ Phrases like these attract both previous players of Pokemon and new players, thinking they are missing out on something by not playing this game

The logo for the game is shown, this logo tells the viewer what to look out for in stores. Below this is a small diagram of how the DS to Wii function works. There is a small explanation of how this works beneath this, but the font size is very small, connotating that it is not very important and not drawing your eye enough to read it.

The Pokemon Company logo and Nintendo logo are at the very bottom, this uses iconography because they are both well known gaming logo’s and have been placed so that viewers of the advertisement recognise them. Also at the bottom of the page is the copyright information. The copyright details are really small as they are not relevant to the audience.

The game’s rating ‘E’, The Wii logo and the Wi-Fi Logo are shown at the bottom. This indicates to viewers what platform the game is on, what age group it is suitable for and whether it is compatible for online play. This is used to draw in target audience within that age group, but also used to target console owners.

Now I have a feel of some common conventions used within gaming poster advertisements, I will be looking at some gaming trailers. I am going to do this because it will provide me with an insight into conventions used within them, helping to equip me for when I begin the practical work of planning and creating my own gaming trailers.

Poster Analysis #2 - Mario

My second poster analysis is for the game, Super Mario Galaxy, a platformer released for the Wii home console.This game is aimed at 11-15 year olds, but also older gamers in their 20's who have grown up with the Super Mario games.

The poster has a large logo to draw your eye in. Players of previous Mario games may recognise the font used in the words ‘Super’ and ‘Mario’, creating interest.

The font is made to look 3D, making it stand out from the background, this form of typography is furthermore used for drawing your eye.

The games protagonist, Mario is shown in large, just below the logo, with a couple of characters, and a wisp of stars is trailing behind him, leading to the Mario logo, further used for drawing your eye.

I think the main character, Mario is almost used as an advertising point in itself, as most gamers, and even non-gamers, know or recognise him, and Nintendo draws upon this in their advertisements, using Mario as a semiotic to represent their company and games.

The font used in this advertisement is very easy on your eye, simple and readable. This is done to make it seem approachable as this game is suitable for all ages. If the game was a more violent, 18 rated film, they would most likely use more rough, edgy and less approachable text.

The use of this curvy, easy reading text enforces the genre of the game and will help to appeal to its target audience.

A brief insight into the game, using words to excite the viewer and make them believe that the game is interesting, making them want to play it.

Phrases like ‘Better than ever’ and ‘biggest’ are used to draw previous players back, believing the new game is even better than the games they’ve already played.

The text is used to stand out whilst still applying the colour scheme of blues and blacks. It is a gradient of a lighter blue with a white outline to make it stand out from the background.

The Text used at the bottom of the page, stating the date and console keeps to the theme of the game, Space, as it states ‘In Earth Shops’ giving you the idea that this game is not situated on Earth itself. The gradient light blue text is once again used, with the white outline. This larger font denotes importance to the audience, making them want to read it.

The background of this advertisement is very plain and depicts a planet with space around it. I think this background is made simplistic so that the viewer’s eye is not drawn away from the main points of the poster.

I think that by doing this, not only do they dennotate to the audience what the game is about (Mario and Space), they also make it a lot more interesting than if a simple white background was used. 

I will be analysing one more poster to finally give me an all round insight into what should be expected of a gaming poster.

Magazine Ad Analysis #1 - Animal Crossing

To start off, I will be analysing an advertisement for the game animal crossing, a  social simulation Wii game released and developed by Nintendo in 2008.

The “Animal crossing” logo is a semiotic, many people will recognise it and this is probably the first thing that will draw their eye to the advert. The Animal Crossing logo isn’t particularly colourful, being brown and yellow; (It has been made to look like a sign, such as the entrance to a village or city) however, this does not stop it drawing your eye. The logo is well known by players of Nintendo games, due to the first animal crossing game, released a couple of years before this which was made for the Nintendo DS.

An extra piece to the logo has been added on, giving viewers the name of the new game ‘City Folk’, this is done to help distinguish it from the previous animal crossing game.

The advertisement is colourful and friendly to attract it's target audience, children 10+ years of age. The character you play within the game is young, this constructs a reprisentation of the audience the game wishes to appeal too.

A screen shot of some of the game play is featured within the snow globe. The picture is distorted slightly to seem as though it is being seen through glass.

The whole advertisement has a winter/Christmassy feel to it. Snow is seen at the top of the advertisement, one of the characters is wearing a Christmas outfit and a snow globe is used as the centrepiece of the ad. This use of representation connotates to the audience that the release of this game was during the winter.

The background for this advertisement is very simple, this is done so that your eye is not drawn away from the text or character images on the page, the things advertisers want you to focus on. 

The advertisement is made very inviting; ‘come and stay a while’ is a very warm phrase and makes you want to play. The snow globe makes it seem as though it is a small secluded and homely town, making it more inviting.

A small box art picture is placed on the advertisement, giving viewers an idea of what to look for in shops. This being an advertisement meant for magazine websites, it also includes a ‘buy now’ link, so that people interested in it can order it straight away, using online services.

Logo’s and age ratings are shown at the bottom of the poster, these use iconography, as many game players will recognise them and know what they mean. It denotates to viewers what gaming platform the games are on, as well as copyright information and an age rating.

Next I will be looking at another magazine/poster advertisement, this time for another game. 

A brief history of the game industry

I researched into the history of the games industry, picking out some of the most interesting and crucial parts to its development over the years. I also took a look into the concept of advergaming (product placement within games), deciding whether of not I wanted to use this form of advertising in the product I am hoping to create.
I made a powerpoint displaying this information and presented it to my class. I uploaded this to a website names slideshare and embedded it, seen below.

A brief history of gaming

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Brief and Explanation for choosing it.

A promotion package for a new computer/video game, to include two TV advertisements together with two of the following three options:

• The cover of the games package;
• Two hyperlinked pages from the games website;
• A magazine advertisement for the game.

I have chosen this brief mainly because it fits in with what I aspire to do in later life. I would like to go into a job based in the animation or games industry and I feel that by choosing this brief, I am both, playing close to my interests, as well as getting a small insight into what the games industry is like. My choices of the options will be; A magazine advertisement for the game and the cover of the games package.

In AS, I studied the print brief in which I created a front cover, double page spread and contents page for a music magazine. By doing this I gained basic experience in both the workings of the Apple Mac computers and editing programs such as Photoshop.

I chose this brief because I feel that it will allow me to develop my practical skills in this area and help me to better learn vital software such as Photoshop. I also decided on it because it is something that interests me and it will help equip me with skills needed for my future career path.

As a starting point, I will be analysing existing products, such as magazine advertisements of games similar to the one I wish to produce. I will use this research to gain ideas on what I want my final product to be like, looking at target audience, design for game advertisements and existing products.