Target Audience Overview

Having the right target audience is a very important part of advertising a product. Making sure I am aiming my game at the right audience is something I will need to establish to ensure its success.

There are two main theories called upon in advertising. Maslow’s published paper, ‘A theory of human motivation’ which has been adapted to marketing, and theory being social grade theory.

Maslow’s theory outlined that people have a hierarchy of needs, these needs are often pinpointed by marketers who are quick to use these needs to as a means to sell their products. The five main needs, stated by Maslow are as follows – Self Actualization, Esteem, Love/Belonging, Safety and Physiological.     These needs were converted into a table of social value groups created from a study of UK values and change. The insight value group scale claims to be an accurate representation of the groups that exist in the UK today. The official insight into social value group.ltd table is shown below.

I think when it comes to gamers, the majority would fit into the disconnected or self actualisers. I think this because many gamers play games to escape reality (known as escapism) and because many other groups of gamers will play for the thrill of exploring a new place and figuring things out for themselves.
Katz and Blumler established the audience uses and gratifications theory, they claimed that audience uses media for a variety of purposes such as Diversion (Escapism), Personal Identity (self understanding), Surveillance (information retrieval) and personal relationships (conversation and companionship).
However, I do not have any evidence to support these theories, so I will be addressing social value groups in my questionnaire and finding out if I am right to aim my advertising about people in these groups.

The second theory applied to advertising is social grade theory. This theory states that depending on the social grade (correlated with earnings) is how likely they are to buy a product. For example, a student with not much time on their hands would be more likely to buy a video game than a doctor, who is working full time. I think students or those in semi skilled or manual jobs are the most likely to play video games, due to having more time on their hands.

The official social grade chart, based on social status is shown below.

Social grade will be another thing I will be researching during my audience research, this will help me test this theory and will help me better apply my product to a target audience.

Next, I will be conducting a survey, using www.Surveymonkey.com and analysing these results to see what I will need to be consider during the designing and making of my game, but also to see if these audience theories can be applied.

Common Conventions of the Games Industry

After analysing trailers, posters and covers. I feel I have a much better understanding of some of the common conventions seen within the game industry. Below, I will be listing several of these for each. This should be easier for when it comes to applying these conventions in the production of my final piece. 

Gaming Poster/Magazine Adverts 

• The game’s Rating, ESRB or PEGI. This is done to inform viewers of the suitable age group for the game.
•  Gaming platform name or logo. This identifies what the game can be played on and is used to excite players with that platform at home and encourage viewers without that system, but interested in the game, to buy one. This serves as an advertisement for both the game and the platform. 
• Logo for the game, Iconography is commonly used for this. If the game is a sequel or part of a well known series, displaying the logo helps advertise the product and encourage older players back. If the game is new and has not had sequels or previous instalments, displaying the logo in this way helps introduce the game and shows viewers what to look for in shops.
•  Easy to read and eye catching font that connotates to the audience the genre of the game (eg. Gothic typography for a horror game, friendly looking text for a game aimed at all ages)
• Usually a main image of a character, or several characters recognisable or not
•  A simple background as to not draw attention away from the main focus of the poster.
• Most will have a screenshot or several screenshots of the game to gain attention and make people want to play.
• Language used is emotive to make you want to play. 

 Gaming TV Trailers - 

•  A maximum of 1 minute in length, usually around 35-40 seconds as not to be too expensive when aired on television.
• Normally will start or end with the platform/s the game can be played on, this is done to help appeal to viewers with those consoles, as well as to inform people thinking of buying the game.
• Non diegetic music  or soundtrack from within the game to set the theme (eg, a horror game would have spooky music whereas a more laid back game would have light hearted music)
• Imagery or iconography from within the game is shown, often a key mechanic, type of game play or character is introduced, this works well when drawing in the audience and making them want to play, making them part of the action before even purchasing the game.
• The logo of the game is shown at some point, this works as iconography if the game is well known and also shows viewers what to look for in shops.
• The clips used are usually the most exciting parts in the game, this is to make it seem action packed, and encouraging people to buy it, feeling it will be worth their money.
•  A voice over is often given, explaining the main aspects of the game and using exciting and emotive language to make the game sound interesting and fun.

Game Packaging -

• At least one screenshot, these serve the purpose of showing a certain part of the game play, hoping to interest the viewer
• Descriptions of the game, many interesting words are used during this, such as ‘best ever’ to make the game stand out and make people want to play it.
• The games rating, this iconography is required by law and shows viewers what age group this game is suitable and intended for.
• The platform the game is on, this can be shown anywhere on the games box and most will have an overlay, so the console is clearly defined.
• Some games will use quotes or awards as a way to draw in their audience and make them think the game is something special and worth their money.
• The logo for the game is often shown numerous times on the packaging, this form of iconography is used to make the game recognisable.
• A large image on the front cover related to the game in some way, usually a character or a graphic showing some of the game play. This is usually not a screenshot of game play itself, rather a drawn version.
• Copyright information, this is very small as it is not important to the viewer, however, all games have it.
• Other forms of iconography, such as publisher or developer logo’s, seals of quality and game engine logo’s are used, these are usually on the back cover and are used to denotate to the audience information about how the game was made and who it was made by.

Now that I have established some of the common conventions of each of these aspects of a game, I will be conducting some audience research; this should help me plan my game better, with an audience in mind. I will be referring back to this conventions research when it comes to designing my final pieces.

Game Cover Style Models

Some style models to work from when creating my game I have picked out below, these games are all similar in gernre and target audience to the game I will be creating/advertising. 

Cover Analysis #3 - Spyro - Enter the Dragonfly

 My final cover analysis is of the Platformer game, Spyro: Enter the dragonfly. This game was released in 2002 by Universal Studios (the one of the publishers for Spyro before Activision). The game was released for Nintendo’s Gamecube and the Playstation 2. This Spyro game was the first Spyro game to be released for generation 6 consoles and was also the first not developed by insomniac games.

The game is mainly aimed at ages 12+ and I feel that this somewhat shows in the style that this cover is done in.

The front cover of the packaging of this game features the games protagonist, Spyro. The Spyro games are a series, many games were produced before this one, and therefore it is recognisable to previous players. Much like the character Mario, Spyro acts as iconography in the gaming world, the Spyro franchise is incredibly popular. The colour scheme for this game cover consists of purples, lilacs and greys; this fits in well with the colour of his scales. This front cover features nothing much more than an extreme close up on Spyro and the Spyro logo.

The typography used on the logo is very fitting with the game. The ‘S’ has scales and a tail and the text ‘Enter the dragonfly’ is written inside a double headed dragon. This form of typography both looks interesting, but also somewhat informs the viewer about certain aspects of the game. The Spyro logo, used in other Spyro games, is also, well known and uses iconography to become recognisable to fans.

This game has 3 icons on the front cover. The ESRB rating which informs viewers that this game has been rated E – for everyone. The Universal interactive logo which detonates to the audience the publisher of the game and the official Nintendo seal of quality, something put in place by Nintendo to stop bootleg games being purchased unknowingly, this features on all of Nintendo’s products, including merchandise.

At the very top of the cover, the Nintendo Game Cube logo is shown in a curved black box, this is shown at the top of all Nintendo Game cube games and is put in place to both attract players with Game Cubes, but also to show new players what gaming platform said disk works on.

The Spine of this box art is very simple; this is done to make it easily identifiable on a shelf and not too overcrowded. This spine simply features the Spyro logo, ‘Enter the dragonfly’ in a simple red text and the Game Cube logo overlay, as seen with all Game cube games. This overlay continues on to the back cover of the game and is used to place the barcode, warning messages, icons, copyright information and more about the age rating.

The back cover, similarly to the Portal and Peggle boxes I analysed, contains screen shots. Four very different game play screenshots are shown on this box art, these are used to excite the viewer and make them want to play. Each of these screenshots has a caption below, explaining what is going on or making a statement about the game. Words like ‘Stunning’ and ‘Beautiful’ are used to entice viewers into wanting to buy the game, believing that it is going to be worth what they pay. Some of the captions refer to the viewer as ‘your’ instead of Spyro. This puts you into the place of the character and gets you involved. The use of words like ‘your’ when referring to a character, acts well as an invitation for viewers of the box to play the game.

A sub title ‘The way of the dragon. Strength, Discipline and Bubble Breath’ brings comedic value to the game, having comedy in a game is another way to light heartedly sell your product and get more people playing it.

Finally, a short paragraph is displayed on the back of the box, this, similar to a blurb on a book, briefly gives you a feel of what the game is about. It uses words like ‘Dazzling’ and phrases like ‘Hottest adventure ever’ to make viewers think they are missing out by not getting this game.

Now, after analysing 3 Posters, Trailers and Box arts, I feel I know enough about some of the common conventions used within the gaming industry. Next I will be summarising all of these, this will make it easier for me to apply these conventions to my final piece when it comes to making my product.

Cover Analysis #2 - Peggle Nights

 

The second cover art I will be analysing is the 2D puzzle game; Peggle Nights, this game was produced in 2008, distributed mainly via Steam (Digital Distribution) and was made as a sequel for 2007’s ‘Peggle’, also for the PC and distributed through Steam.
‘Peggle nights’ features game play similar to that of an arcade game and has become very popular over the years.

The first thing that hits you when you first view the cover is the colours used, unlike the Portal cover that I analysed on the previous blog post, Peggle uses a variety of bright colours to draw your eye to it, rather than using the air of mystery Portal used.

Peggle was developed and published by Popcap games, a subsidiary of Electronic Arts (A publisher/developer I have previously looked at). Their logo, which serves as iconography to players already familiar with their games, is featured on the front, back and the spine of the games package. This is done so that it can be seen whichever way the game is displayed in a shop.

The main game play of Peggle consists of the player using a ball to hit pegs placed around the screen. The game is very fast moving and has many levels to keep the player engaged; the original ‘Peggle’ game became the Action and Arcade game of the year in 2008. The box points out this to draw attention to it and make the audience believe that it would be worth their money to buy it.

The front cover features a very bright graphic, portraying a ball bouncing towards you. It is set in the night time on a city scape, this links to the name of the game, being Peggle ‘Nights’. The cover is colourful to appeal to its main target audience of 8-15 year olds and serves as a way to draw the viewer’s attention.

The Peggle logo is used throughout all the Peggle games, this features on the box to inform players of the original game that this is a sequel. The word ‘Nights’ is written underneath in a bright glowing blue joined up font, similar to neon lights you’d see at night time outside casinos in a city.

As with all commercial video games, the ESRB rating is posted in the bottom left hand corner, this is done to denotate to viewers whether the content is suitable for certain age groups. This on has the rating ‘everyone’ meaning that anyone can play it. Next to this icon is an icon showing that it is a game designed for the Mac and PC platforms. This is used to inform the viewer where this game can be played to avoid confusion.

One interesting feature of this box art is overlay of red on it. Most games, such as the one I have already analysed, will not use overlays and will just show the graphics for the box, however, some, such as this, will not. Overlays are used as a source of iconography, not many game publishers use this, but Pop cap and Sold out software are two notable examples. This is done so that gamers recognise them, often publishers using overlays will be selling the games incredibly cheaply and most gamers will have at least one game from them in their collection. Sold out software is notorious for this.

This game uses Bejewled, another incredibly popular puzzle game that received worldwide success, as a selling point, featuring ‘From the makers of Bejewled’ in the bottom right hand corner. This is intended to encourage Bejewled fans to pick up the game and give it a try.

Similar to Portal, the back of the box features both a screenshot of the game to view potential players in, but also a small summary of what the game is about. This summary goes out of its way to make the game seem exciting and fun to play, the explanation mark is used a lot.

The very bottom back of the box, in small print, shows the system requirements for the game, this is small so it doesn’t detract from the main area of focus, the screenshot, visual and other forms of text on the cover.
Below this is the copyright information, something Valve also had for Portal, this is made small due to its irrelevance to the audience it is focusing on.

The barcode is placed in the bottom right hand corner of the back of the game, this is a common place for PC games to have their bar code, unlike the unusually placed Portal barcode that went against conventions for most video games. 

Next I will be analysing one more video game cover, before going on to summarise the common conventions I have found between all the area’s I have looked at – Posters, Trailers and covers.

Cover Analysis #1 - Portal

My first box art analysis will be for the first person puzzle game, Portal. This cover is for the original game, which was primarily released in a box set along with two other valve games, Team Fortress 2 and Half Life 2. This game was released in 2007 on the PC platform, nowadays; it is also available for purchase on Steam.
The background of the front of the box is very simple; it features a grey, slightly highlighted background, with some very faint chamber warning signs from within the game.  A simple background like this is used so that the audience’s eye is not drawn from the main logo and image. The Portal logo, the O being a blue portal itself (Iconography), is featured near the bottom of the box. Underneath this is a variety of logos, including the ESRB ratings logo that I have previously discussed. 

The ‘PC gamer editors choice’ logo is also shown, this is done to give the game more status, making people want to pick up and play it because it seems important and must be good to get a status such as that. The ‘Game developers choice awards’ logo is also displayed for the same reason as this. Portal won this award in 2008, a year after release. It was not originally given a single release this was because it was released within ‘The Orange box’ as the developers did not count on it being successful. Since then, it has won many awards and produced a sequel that is proving equally as successful. Including these logos connotates to the audience that this game is going to be a worthwhile purchase.

The Valve logo, in the right hand corner, is recognizable and acts iconography to previous players of their games. Valve is the name of the developer and publisher of Portal and is one of the companies I have researched before.

From the packaging, it is not clear what target audience the game is aimed at, the ESRB is the only clue and that is only a guideline. The ESRB rating notes that the game is suitable for teenagers, but it has many older gamers and was considered a fad at one point.

The PC CD logo, which is incredibly well recognized is shown to denotate to players what gaming platform, this game has been produced for.

Portal, as a game goes against many conventions discussed by theorists. Cumberbatch and Negrine (1992), Barnes (1992) and Longmore (1982) stated that disabled people are either screened out or in limited roles.
The representation of Chell, the character you play as during this game goes against this theory, with her being mute, a form of disability.
Mulveys theory is another theory that cannot be applied to this game, Mulvey introduced the concept of the male gaze, a theory in which, females are portrayed as objects of desire for heterosexual males in the audience. Chell, although being female, is not portrayed in this way. She is given scruffy, tied up black hair and is fully covered up by an orange jumpsuit. She is clearly not put into the game as an object of desire.

Chell’s non sexualisation has been praised by many, in particular, GamesRadar who commented "the hero of Portal just happens to be a normal-looking and normal-dressing woman, like 50% of the world's population", naming her ‘one of those mediocre game babes’.

The spine of the package also features the Portal logo, this is done for display in shops, this is done so the game can easily be noticed and picked out. The companion cube is shown above the Valve logo. This cube also acts as iconography, as it is a widely recognized element of the game, called upon when the game was going through a fad stage.

The back of the box art, once again features the companion cube. It also features a variety of screenshots from the game, making sure to show some of the main dynamics of the game, for example, traveling through space using a portal. Underneath each of these screenshots, 3 in total, there is a brief summery under each of these, explaining elements of the game play and using language to excite the reader and make them want to play.

The main screenshot on the page shows you looking down through a blue portal at some of the test chambers you will face within the game. This screenshot serves as an introduction to the Turrets, military androids within the game that you will need to solve puzzles to get around. It also shows the red Aperture science button, another key part of the game play within Portal.
The language uses a formal mode of address, simply explaining what the game is about whilst trying to draw potential players in.

Text is placed on the top left, which reads ‘Find out why the critics are raving’, this sentence both serves as an invitation to players to play the game, but also shows off the large amount of brilliant reviews the game has gained from critics.

The bottom section of the back of the box set is dedicated to the iconography of the companies and game engines that Portal runs on, along with copyright information that is made small due to its irrelevance to the games target audience. The Valve logo is once again shown here, along with the logo for Source (the engine the game runs on) and Nvidia, the graphics processor. The ESRB logo is also shown for a second time, this time noting why it has been given that rating.

Finally, the barcode is shown at the top of the box set, something that isn’t usually done for PC disks, but fits well where it has been placed.

I will be looking at two more game covers to, like with my poster deconstructions, get a better feel of the common conventions used within this type of packaging.

Legal Affairs in the Game Industry

As with all industries, the gaming industry also has legal affairs linked with it. I have done a little research into some of these affairs, such as age ratings and the companies responsible for them.

Games will be produced with a target audience in mind (This is something I will need to think about further on in my research, once I have a clearer idea for my game). All commercial game developers and publishers will need to think about this, for example, if they are aiming their product at 12 year olds, they do not want the game to be rated higher than that, so will have to keep violent and gory themes to a minimum.

Most regions have a ratings board, for example, games released for sale in America will have been rated by ESRB (Entertainment Software Rating Board). Games to be released within Europe will be rated by PEGI (Pan European Game Information) and New Zealand and Australia have a similar system with the Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC) rating their games. Japan has the CERO (Computer Entertainment ratings organization) and most British games will usually be rated by PEGI, however the BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) will also occasionally rate video games. These boards are usually government funded in some way and are put in place to help parents make informed decisions on what games they are buying for their children.

The way in which these games are rated differs between rating boards, the two main boards, PEGI and ESRB choosing to use different ratings to distinguish games. Below I have shown examples of their rating systems.

Pegi rates in age categories, for example 12’s or 18’s, much like films are rated, whereas ESRB uses ratings such as ‘teen’ and ‘mature’ for theirs. These are both iconography as they are widely recognisable by gamers.

Both of these rating systems serve well as a way to deter younger gamers from violent and gory themes. This is done because young players are deemed vulnerable and easily imposed upon. The hypodermic needle theory implies that the media we see in society can have a direct and powerful effect on the audience it is viewed by, the use of powerful and positive words are often used in advertising to persuade viewers into buying a product, or thinking they need it. After the clockwork orange murder case, people are becoming more and more concerned about the effect of violent movies, books and video games on the people viewing. The games industry in particular is often criticized for making kids ‘violent’ due to the game play within them. Germany, has made the decision to ban all violent video games rated 18+, this was put in place after a school shooting. Video games are now highly regulated and Germany has its own rating board for this. I will be looking further into the effects of video games at some point, along with escapism and why people choose to play video games in the first place.

During official TV trailers, the rating is usually shown at the beginning or the end, this is done to show viewers what content deemed for a certain age group is contained within the game. Each ratings company has a variety of themes that contribute to their overall rating, for example, sexual themes, violence, substance use and violence, along with others such as gambling. The overall rating for the game is compromised of how mild, if at all, these themes are implemented into the game play.

Legal affairs associated with the advertising of the game, state that all game play or footage captured for the poster or trailer must be suitable for everyone, if shown before the watershed or in a place where under aged people may view it. If I decide to make a violent, mature rated game, this will be something I will need to keep in mind.

Another thing I will need to be keeping in mind is copyright. I will need to produce my own graphics and use my own, or royalty free music in the production of my game and my trailer.

Next I will be deconstructing the packaging of three video games, this will help me find some common conventions within them, which will be useful when designing and planning my final product.