MARKETING AND
P
UBLIC RELATIONS
In This Chapter
• Working with Marketing
• Packaging
• Demos
• Marketing Assets
• Working with Public Relations
• Tradeshows
• Asset Deliverable Checklist
13.1 I
NTRODUCTION
T
he marketing team, in conjunction with the game’s producers, coordinates
the game’s marketing campaign with its release date. The team’s mission
is to generate game sales through advertising, so they need input from
the development team in order to ensure that the game’s key features are com-
municated effectively to the audience. However, though they may simply want
to create a high-quality game that does well, marketing’s last-minute asset or
feature requests can create friction with the development team. In this chapter,
we’ll discuss ways to keep the relationship between the marketing department
and development team harmonious.
Chapter 13 Chapter 13
206 THE GAME PRODUCTION HANDBOOK, 2/E
13.2 WORKING WITH MARKETING
It’s important to involve the marketing department early in the development
process, as they have access to a great deal of information about competing
games, focus testing, sales, and industry trends. During the concept stage, the
game’s core hook is usually decided on, and marketing often has useful feedback
on this hook.
To facilitate communication with marketing, establish a single point of con-
tact on the development team whose job it is to work with the marketing team.
If marketing requests demo code from one developer, game code status reports
from another, and manual assets from a third, the situation can become confus-
ing and frustrating for the development team. Misunderstandings about prod-
uct features can create ill will among the fans if misinformation is disseminated
through interviews or the game’s web site. A solid communication pipeline will
minimize the risk of such problems.
The development team will need to furnish the marketing department with
screenshots, demos, game builds, and the manual text. The marketing team’s
requests can seem overwhelming particularly if the team doesn’t know in ad-
vance what to expect. However, if the development team’s contact is working
closely with the marketing team, and can schedule requests for deliverables, it
can streamline the process, reducing the pressure on the development team.
Development Milestone Schedule
Prior to making requests, the marketing team needs to be aware of the devel-
opment schedule, in order to avoid requests for assets during critical develop-
ment dates. The marketing contact will be aware of major milestones, and
can help the marketing team establish a schedule, which should include the
following:
■
Alpha
■
Beta
■
Submission
■
Code release
■
Release date
Figure 13.1 is a schedule with the key development milestones and general
timeline information.
Game Documentation
Marketing will need information about the game’s story, main characters, and
features in order to create an effective ad campaign. They’ll also need to know
MARKETING AND PUBLIC RELATIONS 207
what the game’s target audience is, and they’ll need to be apprised of any assets
or features that are available in different versions of the game. The marketing
team may request that different versions of the game feature platform-exclusive
content, such as characters or levels. The development team should present the
following information to marketing:
Feature list: This list includes the game’s major features, levels, characters,
and gameplay mechanics. It also details any platform-exclusive elements.
Story: The plot is summarized, along with any story elements that impact
gameplay.
Control scheme: This gives the marketing team an idea of how to navigate
in the game world, which can be communicated to the audience through
marketing materials.
Core gameplay rules: These documents delineate the way that the game
works. The marketing team must understand the game’s mechanics, or they
won’t be able to communicate these to the audience. A brief summary may
be more effective than core design documents, particularly if the latter are
complicated or lengthy.
Character descriptions: These detail each character’s appearance, voice,
and personality. Characters are often used as part of a game’s marketing
campaign, so these documents can be quite useful. If celebrity voice actors
are used, these should be noted here.
Cheats and walkthroughs: In order to demo the game to journalists and
buyers, the marketing team will need cheats and walkthroughs. This will
allow marketing to complete the game in a competent manner, showing off
its key features.
Focus Groups
During the pre-production phase, marketing will probably arrange for focus test-
ing of the game. This will result in feedback on the game’s concepts, features,
Milestone General Timeline Deadline
Alpha ~ 6 - 8 months before ship date March 15, 2009
Beta ~ 1 - 2 months before ship date August 15, 2009
Console Submission ~ 4 - 6 weeks before ship date September 15, 2009
Code Release ~ 2 - 4 weeks before ship date October 1, 2009
Ship ship date October 15, 2009
FIGURE 13.1 Key development milestones.
208 THE GAME PRODUCTION HANDBOOK, 2/E
story, or characters. The marketing team usually works with an external vendor
to set up the focus testing.
Often, developers find it useful to receive direct feedback from the target
audience, particularly if the game in development represents a major change to
the direction of a franchise. In this case, the game’s producer may communicate
specific questions that the development team wants to ask the focus group. Any
developers attending the focus testing can gain firsthand knowledge about the
group’s reaction to a feature or aspect of the game.
When formal focus testing isn’t possible, the developers might choose to
arrange informal focus testing on their own. In this case, it’s important that the
participants sign non-disclosure agreements (NDAs). Please see Chapter 4,
“Legal Information,” for more information on NDAs.
When conducting informal focus testing, establish the exact objectives be-
forehand. If the developers are hoping for some feedback about the control
configuration, ensure that the build is stable, make sure that there’s enough
hardware for all participants, and be sure to establish some method for gather-
ing information about the testing, such as a questionnaire that the participants
need to fill in.
13.3 PACKAGING
The marketing team will need all necessary assets for the creation of the box,
manual, and inserts, and it’s the developer’s job to furnish all of these. Deadlines
for these deliverables should be factored into the development schedule, in
order to avoid unnecessary delays (such as being forced to wait for the comple-
tion of the user manual). Smaller developers will need to create the packaging
and deliver it to the printer, but larger studios typically rely on a creative services
department that produces all packaging. Still, the developer will need to furnish
the necessary assets to this team on time, such as manual text, screenshots, and
controller configuration.
Manuals
The producer will need to work closely with the marketing team in order to
ensure the successful creation of the user manual. The development team is
responsible for creating the final draft of the manual text. Early on, the producer
will need to establish a deadline for the final draft’s completion, to allow the
marketing team enough time to edit, layout, proofread, and print the manual
before the game’s ship date. In order to reach that deadline on time, the market-
ing department may ask for the final manual draft before the game’s features
have been implemented. You will need to furnish the most accurate information
MARKETING AND PUBLIC RELATIONS 209
possible, and to keep the marketing team and manual writer up-to-date on any
changes to gameplay.
Because of the localization process, it’s likely that the international market-
ing department will need a copy of the English manual before their American
counterparts. For PC games, marketing typically needs the final manual about
six to eight weeks prior to ship date. This will give them enough time to get the
printing and delivery taken care of.
For consoles, the timetable is different, because the packaging needs to
be approved by the console manufacturer prior to replication. Therefore, it’s
important to work closely with marketing to be certain that all of the packag-
ing assets are received in time. Games have missed their initial ship dates be-
cause the packaging didn’t receive approval in time. To avoid this, be sure to
verify the packaging submission dates with the appropriate third-party account
managers.
Early in the process, you need to establish a process for updating and cor-
recting the manual text. After the final version has been sent to the marketing
team, critical issues will be discovered, such as feature cuts or additions.
An easy way to furnish these updates is to provide a 95 to 99 percent com-
plete draft of the manual to the marketing on the requested due date, but allow
time in the schedule for another round of revisions and updates. These changes
should be scheduled as late as possible to make sure that the developers have as
much time as possible to adjust the text to accompany any gameplay changes. Be
sure to communicate all these changes to the team members responsible for the
localized version of the manual.
When discussing the manual with your marketing team, find out if there
are any word limits, and communicate this information to the manual writer. In
some cases, localized manuals will have a maximum word count that is smaller
than their English-speaking counterparts, so it may be necessary to create a
shorter version of the manual for them. Otherwise, the international marketing
department may need to edit the manual themselves, which would result in the
inadvertent omission of important information.
Screenshots often appear in the manual in order to present UI elements to
the user. Localized manuals will require localized screenshots. You don’t need
screenshots of the final build for the localized version; the important thing is that
the shots are legible and clean.
The marketing team may request an electronic version of the manual for
the gold master of the PC version. On budget-priced games, for example, this
can help save on manual printing costs. Electronic manuals are also effective if a
game ships with several languages on a single disc, or if the game is released as
part of a bundle.
If an electronic manual is needed for the gold master, be certain that every-
one is aware of the deadline for getting the final electronic manual to marketing.
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