Task 1: developers and publishers

Research the following game developers/publishers:

Rockstar Games
Background: Founded in 1998 based in New York City
Owner/founder: Terry Donovan
Most successful games: GTA (grand theft auto)
Interesting fact about the institution: On GTA V, Rockstar games spent a sum of 300 million dollars and received it all back only on pre-sales. 

EA (Electronic Arts)
Background: Founded in 1982 based in Redwood city
Owner/founder: Trip Hawkins
Most successful games: The Sims
Interesting fact about the institution: Their most successful game (The Sims) is the worlds most successful pc game ever and they have been awarded 5 different Guinness world records.

Zynga
Background: Founded in 2007 and based in San Francisco
Owner/founder: Mark Pincus
Most successful games: Farmville
Interesting fact about the institution: Zynga is named after the found (Mark Pincus') dog.

Nintendo
Background: Founded in 1889 based in Kyoto Japan
Owner/founder: Fusajiro Yamauchi (founder) & Saturu Iwata (Global President)
Most successful games: Mario
Interesting fact about the institution: 4 of the top 10 selling games is Produced and Developed by Nintendo.

Sony Computer Entertainment
Background: Founded 1993 and based in Tokyo Japan
Owner/founder: Andrew House
Most successful games: Tekken
Interesting fact about the institution: The playstation was the result of a failed collaboration between Sony and Nintendo  

Task 2: Advertising agencies

Look at the following advertising agency websites:

W+K Amsterdam

1. What do the letters stand for? (Clue: look at the very bottom of the website)                                         Wieden and Kennedy
2. What brands have W+K Amsterdam advertised?                                                                                    Heineken
3. In your opinion, what is the most creative campaign on their website?                                                   I believe their most creative campaign is their new Coca Cola campaign, which is about connecting four people from rural areas in the world (including Palestine) in the world cup.
4. What videogame campaigns have they created?                                                                                    Fifa
5. What additional information can you find out about the FIFA14 advertising campaign?                            The rapper Drake promoted fifa14 and his album at the same time during FIFA14 advertising campaign                         

Rokkan

1. How long has the Rokkan advertising agency been around for?                                                               Since 2000
2. Where is Rokkan based?                                                                                                                      New Jersey
3. What brands have Rokkan advertised?                                                                                                  Canon Cinema EOS
4. Why was Rokkan's campaign for the videogame 'Dishonored' so successful?                                             They took a unique idea and title and made it to one of the most talked about games in the world
5. Who was the publisher for 'Dishonored'?                                                                                                Bethesda softworks

Task 3: Regulatory bodies

PEGI

Visit the PEGI website and have a look around. 

Now click on the FAQ section of the website and answer the following questions:

1. What is PEGI and where is PEGI based?                                                                                                 Pan European Game Information is a European video game content rating system.
2. How does PEGI rate games?                                                                                                                Self Regulated                                                                                                                                Eight content descriptors                                                                                                                    5 age categories                                                                                                                                  The descriptors advice the suitability and content of a game for one of the 5 age categories. 
3. What are the age classifications used by PEGI?                                                                                      3+ 7+ 12+ 15+ 18+
4. What are the seven aspects that PEGI look for when giving a game a rating (e.g. violence)?                   Content of the game, violence, bad language, fear/horror, sex, drugs, gambling, discrimination and online.
5. What is PEGI online? What does PEGI online regulate?                                                                            PEGI online regulates regulates the content and suitability for games made and put online.

ASA

Visit the Advertising Standards Authority website and have a look around. 

Now click on the About section of the ASA website and answer the following questions:

1. What is the ASA's mission?                                                                                                                   ASA's mission is to ensure that advertising in all media is legal, honest, decent and truthful, to the benefit of consumers, business and society.
2. What are the ASA's values?                                                                                                                  

   Our values

   Our shared values are to be:
   • Consistent and proportionate
   • Reliable and ethical
   • Fair and respectful to all
   • Accessible and helpful
   • Intelligent and thorough, but also timely and proportionate
   • Open and accountable, acting with integrity and never being afraid to admit when we’re wrong
   • An excellent team, inspiring excellence in each other
   Our external stakeholders will also find us:
   • Independent in administering the Advertising Codes
   • Evidence-based, targeted and consistent
   • Reflective of society, not a social engineer

Now click on the Rulings section of the website. This is where the ASA reports on recent complaints and whether they upheld the complaint or rejected it.

Choose one of the complaints and write the following:

1. The company that was advertising:                                                                                                      Paramount Pictures UK
2. Why someone complained:                                                                                                                    He/She thought that this game would be too scary and distressing for kids and it was put before a game on a children's website
3. Whether the complaint was upheld and why:                                                                                          Upheld
   The ASA considered the overall tone and the content of the ad, including in particular the scene of two young girls with a ghostly appearance and no eyes speaking in demonic voices, was likely to cause harm and distress to children.

If you complete everything in class, choose another complaint and write about what it involved and whether it was upheld. Do you agree with the ruling?

Name of game: Grand Theft Auto V

Release date: September 17th 2013

Institutions behind the game (game studio/publisher): Rockstar Games/Rockstar North

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?                                                                                                    On this print advert I could see the product name which is in the famous GTA font, the central image also tells us what this game is all about.                                                                                               
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 review.                                 "Memorable missions, barnstorming heists, amusing side objectives and an almost impossibly immersive world to explore" This review is positive.                                                                                                                                                    " Crime, violence, sex, drugs, and alcohol = not for kids." Negative review                                            
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.                                            A front cover feature is successful in promoting a game because the usual readers of this magazines attention will be brought straight to the game.

Broadcast

1. Did your chosen game use a TV advert to promote the game? Embed it from YouTube if it did.                 
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.   
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.

E-media

1. Visit your chosen game's official website. How does it attract and maintain the interest of its target audience?
2. Are there any creative or interesting aspects to the game's official website?
3. Does the game have a YouTube channel?
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.

Other

1. 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?
2. Write down anything else of interest at the end of your case study blogpost.

General research

1. When was Wii Party released on the Nintendo Wii?                                                  Wii party was released on the 8th of October in 2010.                                             
2. Which developer/institution created Wii Party?                                                       Wii party is developed and published by nintendo.                                                   
3. How many copies has the game sold since release?                                                   Since release around 8 million copies were sold.

Broadcast

1. What are the key conventions of a videogame TV advert? What would you expect to see in most videogame TV adverts?                                                                         The key conventions of a videogame TV advert is that it must have the title and cover so that people would know how it looks like when they buy it in stores, also PEGI age ratings so people would know that they are qualified to buy a copy and most importantly some game play or people such as celebs playing the game.                                                                         
2. How many of the key conventions you have listed above appear in the Wii Party TV adverts? List them with specific details from the Wii Party TV adverts.                     All of the conventions I have listed above appear in the Wii Party TV adverts and this is the reason for its success.
3. What is the typical setting for Wii Party TV adverts? Why is that setting used?
4. How might the setting appeal to families?
5. What celebrities do the adverts feature?
6. What do you notice about the celebrities' costume and make-up?
7. Why do you think those particular celebrities were chosen?
8. What do the celebrities suggest about the Wii Party target audience?
9. What else can you learn about the Wii Party target audience from the TV adverts? Suggest a demographic profile: gender, age, social class etc.
10. What audience pleasures do the Wii Party TV adverts offer to viewers? Refer to Blumler and Katz's Uses and Gratifications theory when answering this question.
11. What examples of branding can you find in the Wii Party TV adverts - either for the game itself or Nintendo Wii?
12. Do you think the TV adverts were effective for promoting the Wii Party game?

Print

1. Find a Wii Party review from a magazine or newspaper. What does the review suggest about the target audience for the game?                                                      I found a review for wii party on a magazine/website called digital spy and automatically the title informed who the target audience for the game is, 
   'Wii Party U' review (Wii U): Fun for all the family'. This tells me that the target audience is wide in terms of age as it is aimed at families. 
2. Is the review positive or negative about the game? Copy and paste one quote from the review to support this view.
3. Do you think magazine reviews are effective in promoting the game to Wii Party's target audience?

E-media

1. Visit the Wii Party website. How does it attract and maintain the interest of a Wii Party fan?
2. What do you notice about the people in the scrolling central image featured on the website?
3. How many times can you find the words 'friends' or 'family' used on the official website? Why do you think the website emphasises this aspect of the game?
4. What is the colour scheme for the website? What does this suggest about the target audience?
5. Look at the 'Video Gallery' on the official website. What do the 'Invitation' videos suggest about the Wii Party target audience?
6. How many 'likes' has the Wii Party/Wii Party U Facebook wall had?
7. How does the Wii Party Facebook wall cross-promote other Nintendo games? Find three examples and explain why they appeal to the Wii Party target audience.
8. Wii Party does not have such a strong presence on other social networking sites. Why do you think this is?
9. Which platform do you think is strongest in promoting Wii Party to its target audience - broadcast, print or e-media? Why?

Fifa14 Case Study

Fifa 14 Case Study

The poster has a nice colour scheme, good font size and is very easy to understand. Interestingly, the central image is actually not on the middle slightly to the top right which is the natural centre of the page which the human eye sees rather it is on the oppistite side, this could suggest that the words "get on board" along with the rest of the words are more important than the image as it occupies the most important part of the page.

Review 1:

FIFA 14 is far from a revolutionary release, and it's arguably inferior to the much improved PES 2014 in terms of pure footballing gameplay. That said, FIFA 14 is the most complete virtual footballing experience available today. Whether in single or multiplayer, there's enough to keep fans busy well into the new football season and beyond.

This review is half positive, half negative, quite critical but does recognize that Fifa 14 is the best virtual game out there.

Review 2:

 FIFA 14 rocks!!!!! Its the best football game till date. Much more realistic features, improved gameplay than FIFA 13.Awesome game play much slower, which makes it more realistic. Some genuine improvements, particularly in terms of animation, physics, artificial intelligence, and Ultimate Team. Top notch presentation and the usual full suite of licences. Go for it guys.. Worth Buying the game.

This review is extremely positive and doesn't have a single flaw about the game mentioned, the writer also states that it is "top notch" implying it can't get any better, they even suggest buying the game yourself.

Review 3:

The worst Fifa of all time. Players move with the agility of a bus. 70% of the crosses are goals. Players are slow, they can't change pace or direction without losing the ball. EA has done a great job of undoing all the good things they have done for the series in the past 5 years. Please fix this as soon as possible EA.

This review is by far the harshest out of the three, the writer does not point out one good feature of the game but instead says it is "the worst fifa of all time" and highlights their personal disliked features pertaining to the game.

Broadcast:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVsgso273EE Yes, they did.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpiTucFQuwA. 

this gameplay trailer of fifa 14 is extremely effective in drawing in fans and prompting the game to the target audience because it gives the viewers a taste of what they will recieve if they purchase in the this game. It also helps the audience see any new differences compared to the previous game in the Fifa series such as; players, teams, and graphics.

E-media:

The official website on which it's promoted shows official trailers, talks about the games features and shows pictures of the gameplay and the cover itself.

The official page is white and makes the pictures quite big and fades them into the background, this can give the effect of an amazing game because white usually represents good and the pictures fading in could represent the game in a virtual paradise.

The game itself as Fifa 14 doesn't have its own channel on Youtube however it is promoted by the larger company of EA sports along with other games.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mmc91IPk9ww

The gameplay from the user-generated audience is extremely beneficial in giving the target audience a clear picture of what the game would be like had they played it themselves, instead of buying the game themselves and possibly wasting their money, they watch and see what they like and if they don't like it then they leave it.

The game Fifa has almost 200 thousand likes on facebook.

#FIFA14

They promote the game by using alot of pictures and updates to keep the audience up to date with what is going on whilst giving tasters to the fans to keep them interested.

Applying Theory

Todorov Equilibrium:

• Equilibrium 

Batman is living his normal personal life, owner of a company and is adequate in his home.

• Disequilibrium

There is a new villain in town who is very dangerous and so Bruce Wayne has to get back to being batman.

• New Equilibrium (expectation/predicition)

Batman defeats the villain, his town is safe again and he can come back to being Bruce Wayne.

Propp Character:

• Batman Protagonist
• Bayne Antagonist
• Selina Helper/Sidekick

Representation Task

Representation:

• Men: The men in this movie were presented as tough violent and brave people. I wouldn't say that they were all heroic as most were villains. You could say that the normal stereotype of men in the media was reinforced. It also represents men in a way where its his daughter and he would do anything to get her back as he is a heroic man.
• Women: Not much older women were shown in this movie other than the mother. She was presented as an emotional person who wasn't able to handle all the emotions and pressure. This means that the stereotype was reinforced.
• Teenagers: One of the main subjects and character in this movie is a teenager, and they were portrayed as rather ignorant people who were wild and careless and was put into danger when they went to a strangers party. This also reinforces the usual stereotype of teenagers.
• Foreigners: Foreign people were unsurprisingly the villains who were very evil and had no care or relationship to anything else but business as all they were after is money. They would kill and steal heartlessly in order to get what they want. This also reinforces the usual stereotype. 
• Black people: There was one black person and it subverts the usual stereotype as it shows him getting beaten up and we usually see black people and the media draws an image of them being strong and athletic.

Mock Exam Revison

Mock Exam Revison

Black Ops II:

This advert is in the media platform of broadcast as it is an advert made for TV, however it is kind of tricky as this advertisement could go under web based as most of its fame came through people sending and forwarding to each other on E-Mails and social networking such as twitter and facebook.

It is noticeable that in this advert Call Of Duty are trying to get more of the female gender to play their games as they included many females and they are trying to aim at a wider age range.

The also did contain the main objects and settings that the game Call Of Duty would contain.

They also attracted attention through celebs such as Kobe Bryant and Jimmy Kimmel.

Call Of Duty has also produced and made a game for tablets and mobile phones to attract a bigger audience.

It is also free so more people would play it and feel free to try it out and may motivate them to buy it on a better console.

This poster is very well thought about because they have collided two different worlds and put them together which is obviously going to make their audience larger as they would attract more people interested in music and mainly in Eminem who is a very famous rapper.

Fifa 14

In this trailer they have mainly focused on the