Are you wondering what is the best way to get your game in front of audiences where they will actually pay attention?
Take a look at our examples of stellar video game marketing.
1. Influencer Partnerships:
Collaborating with popular gaming influencers and streamers can be highly effective in promoting a video game. These influencers have dedicated fan bases and their recommendations and gameplay videos can generate significant buzz and interest. Developers often provide influencers with early access to the game, allowing them to create engaging content and build anticipation among their followers.
2. Engaging Trailers and Teasers:
Compelling trailers and teasers can create a strong impact and generate excitement among gamers. By showcasing captivating visuals, intense gameplay moments, and a hint of the game’s story, developers can effectively generate curiosity and anticipation. Trailers that are well-edited, visually stunning, and accompanied by a powerful soundtrack can create a memorable and immersive experience, enticing players to learn more and eventually make a purchase.
3. Beta Testing and Demos:
Providing access to beta testing or releasing playable demos can be an effective marketing strategy. It allows potential customers to experience the game firsthand, providing a taste of its mechanics, graphics, and overall gameplay. This approach creates an opportunity for players to provide feedback, fostering a sense of community and investment in the game’s development. Positive experiences during beta testing or demos can lead to word-of-mouth recommendations and increased pre-orders or purchases upon the game’s release.
4. Social Media Campaigns and Contests:
Leveraging social media platforms is crucial in today’s gaming landscape. Developers can create engaging social media campaigns that involve the community, such as challenges, contests, or giveaways. Encouraging users to share their experiences, fan art, or in-game achievements with specific hashtags can generate organic reach and user-generated content. These campaigns not only build a sense of community but also create buzz around the game, reaching a wider audience and increasing visibility.
5. Cross-Promotions and Collaborations:
Collaborating with other popular brands or franchises can be a powerful marketing strategy. This can involve partnerships with movie studios, musicians, or even other video game titles. For example, featuring a popular character from another game or integrating a well-known song into the game’s soundtrack can attract the attention of fans from different communities. Cross-promotions allow for a wider reach and can tap into existing fan bases, generating interest and excitement around the game.
6. Community Events and Tournaments:
Organizing community events and tournaments can create a sense of camaraderie and competitiveness among players. Developers can host live events, both online and offline, where players can participate in tournaments, compete against each other, and win prizes. These events not only serve as a way to showcase the game but also foster a strong sense of community and engagement. They create opportunities for players to connect with each other, share their experiences, and promote the game within their circles. Additionally, streaming these events on platforms like Twitch or YouTube can attract a wider audience and generate further interest.
7. Fortnite’s Live Concerts
Remember a time when we were all sitting at home with nothing to do, a deadly plague outside our doors? There was a lot of creativity that came from the lockdowns. One such example is Fortnite’s live concerts streamed from the platform. Travis Scott, Lil Nas X, and Ariana Grande were all headliners in the Fortnite universe, where players logging in at a set time could be treated to a round of songs performed by a virtual Lil Nas X towering over their avatars.
It got people talking, although it hasn’t caught on as a regular thing. Maybe because as establishments opened up again, even Travis Scott hadn’t the time for a virtual performance.
8. Among Us’s Viral Multiplayer
Among Us are part team game, part co-op, and part single-player. Full of deceit, the premise is like something from Game of Thrones or Succession: to succeed you have to know when to team up and when to go it alone. As such, this game also benefited from everyone being forced to stay inside as friends would go searching for a game that allowed them to play together. Sure, there are MMOs everywhere as developers seem to think they’re the only thing gamers want nowadays, but they’re mostly FPS. Gamers have been begging for more co-op games in their social media publishing or at least more co-op options in games, and during lockdown Among Us was the closest they were going to get.
And influencers knew it too.
9. Countless: streaming content
A big part of the amazing Among Us success was the influencer teams that were formed. Say you were a JackSepticEye fan, he would join a team of Twitch stars you maybe hadn’t heard of before and suddenly you were privy to a whole host of fun personalities playing this game.
And that’s really the appeal of gaming influencers. You might want to play the game yourself, but you’re not watching for that: you’re watching for the gamer. You could have no interest in the game and want to watch the gamer and gain either their opinion or shining personality while playing it.
Streaming gaming content is a great way to get your game in front of a massive audience and have them pay attention to the game, rather than a simple mention.
10. Not enough: a finished game
There is nothing that will ruin ratings and reputations like a buggy and incomplete game. If you employ social listening, you’re going to get a lot of feedback about games that are consistently released with the unsaid promise that it will get better down the line. But when Lord of the Rings: Gollum, for example, was released with graphics that looked like they belong in the first generation of PlayStation, controls that didn’t work, a narrative that was derivative and dull, and levels that were half-finished, all for $60 on release, fans are going to comment.
The best way for games to actually keep that $60 price point for as long as possible and keep a lasting impression is to simply release a good game. Delay it if you need to. We’ll wait.
