COMP150 Game Design LESSON #13: Game Marketing #2 Guest Lecture #3: Brianna Wu

TODAY: 1. Open Digital Prototype Testing! 2. Guest Lecture #3: Brianna Wu on “Choosing Your Character” 3. Game Marketing Materials: Press Kit and Trailers. DUE NEXT WEEK: Alpha Build and First Draft Marketing Materials

PART 1: DIGITAL PLAYTESTING SET UP (<5 minutes): 1.Teams Choose Tables 2.Set up game digital prototype on 2-3 laptops. 3.Decide initial Observers (1-2) and Players. 4.Discuss: Do you want 1-3 points/ instructions to share with visiting players? Write them down!

PART 1: DIGITAL PLAYTESTING PLAYTEST ROUNDS (20 minutes each): 1.Observers stay to manage playtest, Players find other games to play. 2.If team chose 1-3 instructions, give them. 3.Players attempt to play prototype (5-10 min). Observers take notes! 4.Players fill out questionnaire (5 minutes). 5.Time permitting, discuss answers.

PART 2: GUEST LECTURE ON INDIE PUBLISHING

PART 3: GAME MARKETING WEEK #2: TRAILERS, PRESS KIT, and WEBSITE For next week, please zero-draft: WEBSITE: Use school webspace or another free option like Wix.com. Include: Trailer/Press Kit, Team (bio/class/photos), Game Download Link PRESS KIT: High Res images (screenshots, characters, logo), Press Release, and Trailer. TRAILER: seconds, featuring gameplay. Consider audience to decide core message (explain game vs awesome) and pacing. Capture with Fraps, Quicktime, etc., edit in iMovie, After Effects etc.

Question: Why Make a Trailer? Or… Why do people watch game trailers?

Question: Why Make a Trailer? 1. INFORMATION: Explain the game: What are the key play mechanics and story elements? 2. ENTERTAINMENT: Grow interest in the game: What is fun, exciting, and unique about this game? 3. AUDIENCE: Engage the population you want to play your game: use editing/pacing, font and audio style to connect your game to a genre.

Question: Why Make a Trailer? Robot Roller-Derby Disco Dodgeball: Audience/Genre? DinoTrucks: Mechanics and Audience Slam Bolt Scrappers: Mechanics and Audience: Girls Like Robots: Mechanics Ridiculous Fishing (Pacing): Kiwanuka (pacing, music): Organ Trail (Call back): AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! (Force = Mass x Acceleration) Shoot Many Robots: Teaser: Gameplay: Re-announcement:

PRESS RELEASE: Tell a Story The press release is to largely do the job for the press: give them all the info they need to share your news with their audience. Engage them with a story: the story of your game or how it was made. TRADITIONAL PRESS RELEASE: 2-7 short paragraphs. Part 1: Date/location and 1 sentence: the main point! Part 2: Key features: what is unique/exciting? (1-2 par) Part 3: Quotes: developers + reviewers (1-2 par) Part 4: Details: Availability Part 5: info on the company/developers

PRESS RELEASE: Tell a Story … BUT: to get the attention of the press, you may want to break with the traditional mold, and try mixing in other approaches: Funny/snarky language. Fantasy story of others creating your work (tradition of authors pretending to “find” the book). Wild/ridiculous exaggeration of user responses: reports of spontaneous death, rapture, etc. Use your imagination!

PRESS RELEASE: We announce two games coming to Steam March 14th! 2/14/13 Includes BBQ Defense simulator Go Home Dinosaurs as well as the PC port of Slam Bolt Scrappers Cambridge, MA— 2/14/13 — Today Fire Hose Games (that’s us) proudly announces the upcoming release of two games on Steam for March 14th, The first game is the long-awaited BBQ Defense Simulator Go Home Dinosaurs. The second is an updated PC version of the fast and frantic puzzle-brawler Slam Bolt Scrappers, with porting help from Twitchy Thumbs Entertainment. Both titles will be available together in a Fire Hose Games Bundle for $14.99 (25% off buying the titles separately). “Releasing one game at a time? That’s for chumps. Two games! That’s what the kids want nowadays. Two games, and their wub-wubs music or whatever,” shouted the bathrobed Fire Hose founder and Fire Chief, Eitan Glinert, at passing cars. The Games: Go Home Dinosaurs is the most important, mind-blowing, and historically accurate BBQ Defense Simulator ever released. Play as an adorable burrowing gopher that is determined to save the grub from rampaging, adorable Dinos. Collect tower cards (from gophers tossing snowballs to oversized lasers to giant magnets that pull meteors from the sky) and place them on the field to keep Dinos at bay. Rotate the uniquely shaped towers to fit them into the board like weaponized puzzle pieces. Purchase power ups and costumes at the in- game store (no IAP) to make your gopher more powerful and stylish. Defend your BBQ in 60 levels spread across three prehistoric worlds. Go Home Dinosaurs is super easy for anyone to pick up and learn but also challenges hardened strategy fans. Oh and did we mention there’s a magnet that pulls meteors out of the sky? Slam Bolt Scrappers is the PC version of 2011’s Puzzle-Brawler mix-up. Choose your character, tussle with monsters for building blocks, fit those blocks together to make tower weaponry then destroy your opponent’s tower to win. It mashes the best aspects of puzzle games and brawlers for something like you’ve never played before. Up to 4 friends can play at the same time either cooperatively in the Campaign mode or competitively in Battle mode. It will fully support Steam’s Big Picture mode so prepare for large screen living room action for the whole family. 3/14/13 Availability: The games will be available separately for $9.99 each (10% off preorders, $8.99) or together in the Fire Hose Bundle for $ The games are available for preorder now on our website - ### For more information contact: Sean Baptiste For more information on Fire Hose Games, Go Home Dinosaurs, or Slam Bolt Scrappers visit:

PRESS RELEASE:

What makes this a great PRESS RELEASE?: Evaluation by marketing pro Emmy Johnson Gets to the Point in First Sentence: Most of your press release’s readers will only read your first sentence, which means you need to get to the point. Captivates ENTIRELY: This press release is E-N-G-A-G-I-N-G! I can’t stop reading. The game’s description is so vivid and unique that I feel compelled to not only read to the end, but learn/see more. Directs Where to Learn More: Just as I finish reading the game’s description, Dejobaan gives me what I want: where to learn more. Instead of searching the Web on my own (which most will NEVER do), I can easily click or copy and paste the link. Omits the Egotism: A big buzzkills for a writer is reading about a killer game and then drudging through multiple paragraphs about the creators. Unless your studio’s story is your pitch, don’t talk about yourself so much. Dejobaan gives a brief three-sentence summary with a “learn more” link. Provides Contact Info: It amazes me how many studios forget to put their contact info at the bottom of their releases. If you produce a sweet press release, make sure to let writers know how to reach you.

WEBSITE: Game Title, Pitch, Gameplay Trailer, Download link, and Presskit.

WEBSITE: Presskit: high res images that the press can use, press release, quotes.

DRAFT YOUR MARKETING QUICKLY! This week you are still finishing you game, so only spend enough time to make quick, “zero draft” attempts at each material. You will revise next week! CELEBRATE your game, and others will want to join you in the party! COMP150: Marketing Materials Due next: Marketing Plan, based on audience research second Game Trailer featuring gameplay. Website showing Trailer, Team, and Game. Narrative Press-Release, with Press Kit images.

PART 4: TEAM MEETING (if not in class, then outside as soon as you can) Convene to discuss observations and materials. Read responses and review test-runner notes. Choose a facilitator Discuss responses—what feel like the biggest ideas, the most pointed critiques? Plan to type up and post your notes. Discuss Production and Marketing goals (top priority items for POLISHING you game, and creating initial marketing materials) and divide work equitably.

Due Next Week: HOMEWORK #13: Game Alpha: POLISH levels/content, and zero-draft Marketing: Website, Trailer, Press Kit TEAMS: 1.Divide Unity/Art/Audio production equitably. 2.Meet with your team at least twice to discuss progress, solve problems, consolidate build, and draft Marketing Materials. 3.Test clarity with at least two new players. 4.Submit eight digital build to class next week. Individually: Progress Report #9: Submit typed page: What you agreed to produce, what you accomplished, self-evaluation/related screenshots.

Have an alphalicious week! And don’t forget to us with questions: Instructor: JASON WISER Available an hour after class and daily . TA: MIKE SHAH Lab hours: Wednesdays 4:30-5:45