CASE STUDY- SUPER MARIO BROS.

Name of game: SUPER MARIO BROS

Release date: September 13, 1985

Institutions behind the game (game studio/publisher):  pseudo-sequel to the 1983 game mario bros.

Gaming platforms it is available on (e.g. PS4, PC, Wii etc.): Wii, PC and many more.

Print

1. What print adverts were used to advertise the game? Find examples and post them on your blog. 
2. What key conventions of print adverts can you find on the example you have chosen? Product name? Font? Slogan? Central image? Colour? title, image, uses bright colours.
3. Find three reviews for your game that were originally published in videogame magazines. Are they positive or negative about the game? Copy and paste one quote from each reviews- Wildly overproduced and derivative,                        Despite eye-catching sets and smart casting, this first feature-length film to be adapted from a video game is a bloated muddle,                       Super Mario Bros. is about as playful and challenging as an unplugged pinball machine   
4. Did your game feature on any videogame magazine front covers? Find examples and explain why a front cover feature is so successful in promoting a game to its target audience. 

Broadcast

1. Did your chosen game use a TV advert to promote the game? Embed it from YouTube if it did and explain how it fits the key conventions of a TV advert. it it shown on both TV and Youtube. for the Youtube one, the key conventions used are simple, it uses a title, image or in fact a video of family and friends playing the game on the console.
2. Is there a game trailer on YouTube? Embed it on your blog and explain why it is effective in promoting the game to its target audience. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmMTrTF4524
3. Can you find any other broadcast features on the game - interviews, launch party events, video reviews, clips of the gameplay on YouTube etc. Write about how they effectively promote the game to its target audience.  the reviews on youtube will help the audience know more about the game because people around the world are playing it and have a hint on what it might feel and how much they will enjoy after buying it.

E-media

1. Visit your chosen game's official website. How does it attract and maintain the interest of its target audience? it will interest certain targeted audiences, for example males, because the website uses alot of blues.
2. Are there any creative or interesting aspects to the game's official website? yes, there is, there is a show of the game play on the background, which shows how the game may be and look like. 
3. Does the game have a YouTube channel? yes
4. Can you find any examples of user-generated content on YouTube that players have created and uploaded from the game? Embed any examples on your blog. 
5. How does user-generated content such as gameplay videos help to promote the game? 
6. How many 'likes' has your chosen game's Facebook wall had?
7. Choose five of the posts on the Facebook page's wall, screengrab them and explain how they appeal to the game's target audience. 
8. What is your chosen game's Twitter hashtag? 
9. How did the campaign use Twitter to promote the game?
10. Can you find any other creative uses of e-media to promote the game? This might include hashtags, competitions, Instagram, user-generated campaigns or anything else that is designed to draw attention to the game.

Pre- and post-release

1. What was the game's release date? 13 september 1985 was the old one
2. What is the earliest reference you can find to the game before the release date? Was it announced at a gaming conference (such as E3)? How did the publisher get a potential audience excited about the forthcoming game? through research there might be another mario game coming soon 
3. How did the institution promote the game after it was released? they promoted audiences at commercials.
4. Does the game have any way of making the publisher additional income post-release (such as in-game purchases)?  yep,it uses in-app purchases, for example, you had to buy something to jump higher.

Other

1. Who do you think is the target audience for this game? Make up a potential target audience demographic and explain why you think it fits the game. What psychographic groups would be attracted to this game? this game is targeted for people aged 8+ to 30, this is because this game is for people aged younger and prefer it to be younger as they like to adventure.
2. What else can you find from the marketing and promotion of your chosen game? A launch event? Stories appearing in newspapers? Celebrity endorsement? Scandal or controversy?
3. How does the campaign make an emotional connection with the audience? What is the audience appeal of the advertising campaign?
4. Can you find any images of how the game was promoted in-store - displays, point-of-sale promotions, window displays etc.?
5. Write down anything else of interest at the end of your case study blogpost.

Long-term campaigns: Star Trek videogame

Star Trek: blog tasks

1) Pick out the five most significant aspects of the Star Trek campaign from the list above and explain why they were important in creating a buzz about the game. 

- E3 announcement and teaser trailer- it tells the audience what the game is about. 

- New teaser trailer released- this gives audiences to know more about the video game, give them more of a taster.

-Game co-promoted TV and radio adverts- this helps the audience know when the game is about to release.

- Interview with Brian Miller released- this is important because people would want to know what the aspects of this game is. Brian Miller would then help the audience understand what the game is about and why they have brought this game up.

2)Watch the following YouTube trailers and explain why they might appeal to an audience: 3) How many views did these trailers receive in total?

• Teaser trailer- 107,   732
• Xbox teaser trailer-  7883
• Full trailer-   4052
• Comedy trailer with William Shatner-   124

4) Why did the Star Trek video game publisher develop the marketing campaign over such a long time? to build up the prestige of the game and make  people know more about the game.

5) What other examples can you find online from the Star Trek marketing campaign? Print? Reviews? Broadcast? E-media? Do you feel the campaign as a whole was successful? 

  It offers what the audience like and it shows you what console can be played in this game, it also shows you the people playing in the game as well as the weapons used in their.

Phone and tablet gaming

Phone and tablet gaming: tasks

Read this BBC News article about Candy Crush Saga. Answer the following questions:

1. How much money is Candy Crush Saga estimated to make each day from its users?  Candy Crush Saga is estimated to make £610,000 ($1,000,000) per day from its user
2. How does it make this money?  free to download but generates extraordinary revenues by nudging addicted players into paying more to get gizmos that help them progress through difficulty levels.
3. How many people are estimated to have installed Candy Crush? 5 million people have installed Candy Crush
4. Where do people play?  people play worldwide, such as public transport, work, if they are free etc,
5. When was the game released? on Facebook this game was released on the 12th april and 14th november on smartphones.
6. When did it reach 500 million downloads? november 13th
7. Who is the typical Candy Crush gamer? young men at home, using consoles :/
8. What percentage of gamers have spent money on Candy Crush, buying in-app purchases etc.? 25% 
9. What percentage say they are addicted to the game? 30% say they are addicted to this game
10. What is your own experience of playing Candy Crush? Have you played it? Yes i play it when im bored or free, i really enjoy it because its challenging. 

AIDA exercise: marketing a new game

Task 1
Summarise who might play the game and what platform they will play it on. Give it a title.
The X-Factor 
The target audience for this game is 12+ because people at the age age of 12 watch X-factor which means they would be attracted to the game.
The platform they would play this game is on PS3 and Wii. 
Demographically the target audience for this game is for both genders, Male- 35% and Female-65%, this is because you have to sing in the game, which females 



Task 2
Use AIDA to plan a 10 minute marketing campaign for the new game:

A: How will you create marketing materials that attract audience attention to the game? There can be a free trial. People would get attracted to it because they would get to know how the will look and work.
I: How will you generate audience interest? I would definitely talk and give details about the game, I will also   show them the cover of the game. 
D: How will you stimulate audience desire to buy the game? talk about the features and make them play the game in store to give them a taster.
A: How will you promote audience action? to watch the actual TV programme is free, so the game itself is cheaper than other music games.

Task 3

Write up your notes on your blog and be prepared to share your ideas with the class.

Game 9
Music game. Players use a special microphone to pick up their own musical sounds, and play along to a series of tracks. They can use any musical instrument, or sing, and the game will interpret the notes they produce and check them against the original track. Their ability to play / sing in time and in key will be assessed for each song. Play can be in rehearsal or gig mode. In gig mode, the higher the score, the better the venue for the next gig