In the beginning we played video games because we were friends! Now we are friends because we play video games.
Gaming is more social than social media.
Gaming is live. Friends play together.
Candy Crush has three billion downloads worldwide. Bigger than anything.
Gamers are everyone. We really shouldn’t call them Gamers. We should call them players. After all, people who watch TV are not viewers.
So why is gaming so big?
1. Winning: In life, winning is hard. But in gaming everyone, big or small, wins every day!
2. Identity: we get to choose our own avatar! When we were born, we had no choice.
3. Collaboration: To defeat the enemy, some gamers need to work together and play together
4. Progression: The feeling of progression when someone just level up. In real life, we don’t know when we will get promotion or progress. In games, it happens every day and makes players feel good.
5. Exploration: Players can explore other worlds. Reach fantasy destinations, explore new dimensions. They form memories. It is not a virtual memory because it is a virtual game. It’s a real memory.
Watch the World of Warcraft movie. It’s fantastic.
6. Blurring the lines: what’s real and what’s in the engine? Drones can make videos and that can be imitated in games. The real world is brought into games and games are brought into the real world.
When a new medium becomes popular, brands tend to expand their TV campaign, or on ground boards during physical games, to virtual games. We have to treat it differently.
An example is Heinz’s hidden places in games, where players can eat safely without dying. Heinz found safe spots in some games, and players organically found hidden spots in other games.
If a fashion brand wants to associate itself, get in on the costume game. Then take these costumes to the physical collection. Do not interrupt the game.
Think about what you’re good at and expand that into the game.
(The author is a director at BCCL)
The GST Council on Wednesday postponed its decision to impose a 28% tax on casinos, online gambling, horse racing and lotteries pending further consultation with stakeholders.
Social media has found its way into our muscle memory. And it is an ecosystem that is constantly evolving. What can we expect from the future of social media?