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Video games are undoubtedly among the biggest businesses globally, and gamers will not quickly forget that one billion US dollars were brought in by Black Ops II’s Call Of Duty in two weeks. This mega-hit record saw it displaced the 2009 Hollywood’s Avatar. In that sense, gaming companies produce video games for game enthusiasts and spend millions of dollars just to ensure they get the right PR campaigns.
In 2013, actioner Grand Theft Auto V from Rockstar Games saw a massive development and outlay marketing of about 290 million US dollars, making it the most extraordinary gaming title ever produced. The massive amount recorded indicates that video games, even on free slot machines, can break a new release with the right PR campaigns. In addition, successful PR campaigns may help bring low-budget work to the public while a huge success follows. An example of this is the popular Angry Birds game. Here are the most extraordinary video game PR campaigns.
The 2013 Grand Theft Auto V
This game has been a subject of discussion, popularly known as GTA by players worldwide, ever since 1997. A tweet nonchalantly came from Rockstar games in October 2011, which contained a link to the official website of GTA V. Soon after that, Rockstar dropped a trailer that caught the attention of users even up to this moment. Another was issued a year after the first trailer, followed by the December Game informer cover story. GTA’s campaign also consisted of a viral marketing drive. The game also had an extraordinary PR campaign via
- posters,
- billboards,
- amazing pre-order deals.
This extraordinary PR campaign saw Rockstar shell out a reported 265 million USD; even before its release on September 17, 2013, gamers were already enthusiastic about it. Within a day, the open-world action title raked in 800 million USD, leading it to gain a spot on Guinness World Records, coupled with a property gross of 1 billion USD from swiftest entertainment.
Call Of Duty: Black Ops II 2012
This game has an extraordinary PR campaign that made it sell more than 5.6 million USD units in a day, including a grossed one billion USD in forty-five days. Gamers across the world could no longer wait for its release, following a superb trailer that revealed the game’s futuristic setting. A new Amazon pre-order record was set through the title and more than 32 million YouTube views. Additionally, Call Of Duty’s campaign boasted a strong mobile element, including a live-action ad that featured Robert Downey Jr. In just two weeks, Black Ops II already had a gross of 1 billion USD and was quicker to attain the figure much faster than the blockbuster Avatar in 2009.
Angry Birds 2009
Even before the release of this game, gamers across the world could no longer wait. Angry Birds game is available on Play Store and App Store if you choose to download it. The anticipation and expectations were thanks to its extraordinary PR campaign. Although Angry Birds may not be a game to watch out for, it has, however, one of the most extraordinary PR campaigns gamers will ever imagine. After launching on the iOS Appstore in December 2009, more than one billion gamers have already downloaded the game on different occasions. After Angry Birds climbed the top chart in countries such as Finland and Greece, the Finnish developer, Rovio, lined up with the publishing company Chilingo which saw Angry Birds in the Apple play store. This showcased the games as “game of the week” in the UK Appstore. From here, the Finnish developer launched the game’s trailer on YouTube. With over 100 million views on YouTube, Angry Birds’ trailer remains one of the most viewed games’ trailers globally. Today, Angry Birds have several empires, such as:
- stuffed toys,
- board games,
- branded spin-offs which can be seen in most online casino slot machines.
Wii Sports 2006
Wii Sports is one of the games that is gender-friendly. It started during its 2006 launch that its new audience will include soccer moms and grandparents. Sounds astonishing, right? The game was also selected for its global appeal. Due to the early input from gamers, Nintendo released characters from the Super Mario series to favor cute and editable avatars being referred to as Miis. With a series of PR campaigns and marketing, the game’s effort highlighted its ease of use, including social appeal. An excellent trailer of the game featured senior citizens, families, and friends enjoying pleasurable moments and stretching out the Wii gaming kinetic aspect. The PR campaign of Wii Sports cost over 200 million, with three campaigns consisting of TV ads, music tours, and even in-store displays. Other campaigns include demo kiosks and public events. Up to this moment, Wii Sports has shifted 82.54 million copies across the globe.
Skylanders: Giants 2012
Using McDonald’s happy meal approach to a PR campaign, Activision’s Skylanders is one of the most extraordinary video games campaigns. Apart from being a video game producer, it also combined a pocket-lining incredible range of fancy collectible toys. Thanks to its marketing initiatives which helps to catch the attention of millions of users globally. Giants pointed out the fresh characters of the game, including its toy figures’ new sizes, poses, and all other characters that have helped improve its initial release. Incredibly, all these products were a hit, with 500,000 packs moved inside 14 days. Up to this moment, there has been an excessive shifting of 175,000 million toys and grossed 2 billion USD with the franchise by Activision.
Conclusion
The most sought-after games have put some things in place, even before being launched into different platforms. The right PR campaign can build up a fan base long before the release date and drastically ensure large profits at the start of a game launch. PR campaigns guarantee that players will continue to download and engage in more video games. And a PR campaign can also help revive a game that doesn’t have as many users as expected.