The release of Skylanders: Giants!

Being a huge a Spyro nerd when I was younger, owning a Spyro game on nearly every console I owned, the new release of Skylanders: Giants looked really interesting to me even though I didn't buy or play on it's worldwide success predecessor Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure, which was renowned as the No.1 kids toy of 2011. The new set to be pre-teen game success was released just a few days ago on the 19th October in Europe and October 21st in North America. The developers - Toys for Bob and n-space (Nintendo 3DS), and publisher- Activision, massively allowed the expansion of popularity of the game by releasing it on various different platforms that were clearly target audience driven (aimed at pre-teens) with the console choices being; Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Nintendo 3DS, Wii and the soon to be released Christmas hit; The Wii U (as mentioned in a previous blog post). It is no surprise that this anticipated sequel is said to be even more successful which is hard to outdo from Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure generating nearly £350 million and the sales of close to 30 million Skylanders toys in 2011.

The Skylanders franchise pushes the boat on new thought out technology that works so cleverly to sell the game using symbiosis by merging a line of cross-platform toy figures with a video game world. This is done through the consumer/player being able to purchase over 40 new collectible figures as well as importing characters and their progress from the first game, as they are compatible with the same IP . However, it will also include a set of interactive characters that feature new light technology integrated into the toys. These are known as Lightcore characters that when placed on an electronic "portal", called the "Portal of Power", will cause the base to light up on contact with objects etc within the game. This is possible through the integration of a microchip in the base of the figures, no batteries or power source required. This makes the game very unique and up standard as we move into the 8th generation of gaming. The symbiosis between the two platforms are a perfect profit generator as the player, as just mentioned, can still use their current "portal" and characters from Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure, but new consumers/players or those wishing to use the new characters must purchase a "Starter pack" or a "Booster pack". For these packs on the Nintendo Wii would cost you £49.99 for a "Booster pack" and £64.99 for a "Starter pack", and the individual characters being priced between £10-15. These figures alone just for the Wii show just how much profit can be attained easily from the combined popularity of the franchise and heavy pricing. Another unique factor of the game which I believe will mostly be apparent for the Wii, is the newly addition of difficulty modes. With the Wii reaching out to younger/family audiences with most of the games being around 3/6+ age ratings, Skylanders: Giants has opened new doors and audiences by having not only easy difficulty modes for casual gamers, but adding medium, hard and even a stage called Nightmare Mode that would appeal and be more relative to more hardcore gamers, expanding the audience further.
This also lead to the addition of game modes that can be played. Skylanders: Giants has definitely increased the sense of player individual achievement which all gamers strive for when trying to complete an RPG by adding individual toy quests to strengthen their own power. Not only single player mode is available either. Co-op, battle-mode (competitive PvP) and online multiplayer with drop out- drop in mode. This encourages social interaction and an online community for communication.

Skylanders: Giants has primarily been marketed through viral marketing with the creation of their own YouTube channel promoting different aspects of the game and their many TV advertisements. This use of viral marketing allows Activision and Toys For Bob to reach out to a much wider audience by getting them captivated in the small snippets of new exciting footage and game-play up until the day of release. Also this way of marketing is a prime technique in capturing the attention of their young target audience of 7+. This is because the largest percentage of the population who spend the most time watching television is between 7-15 years meaning they are more likely to consume the adverts, successfully attracting their target audience who will want to buy the game. Having a young target audience will allow Activision to grasp and expand their audience and popularity through may different forms of cross media convergence as an attraction.
Compared to Rockstar marketing their GTA franchise through Guerilla and viral methods, the two are carried out very differently. Rockstar spend most of their money drip feeding information to the specialist and mainstream press, co-operative marketing with Microsoft and retail, TV press and billboard advertising, whereas Activision throw a lot of their money into the productivity side of the franchise such as the production of the figurines, the add on packs (starter and booster) and making captivating advertisements boasting all of the amazing components to expect with the game. With Rockstar this is all kept very secretive and undisclosed to get their audience talking about the game before it is released. Both are very effective ways of marketing on different platforms and with the obvious triumph of the GTA franchise we can only wait and watch Skylanders: Giants gain worldwide success!