Posts Tagged ‘dean takahashi’

Microtransactions take the cake in anticipated development survey

Tuesday, March 24th, 2009

According to a survey of approximately 160 members of the games industry, as conducted by VentureBeat, microtransactions took the number one spot in the ‘most impactful’ areas of the games industry.  Smartphones took the number two spot.

Sixty six percent of respondents voted for microtransactions as THE area to watch, while sixty one percent clocked smartphones.  The VentureBeat survey broke user generated content out into it’s own category, but this area has obvious microtransaction implications, and forty three percent gave UGC top ratings.  Without surprise, the current advertising rates freefall also factors into the survey, with only twenty one percent calling IGA the hot spot, and voice recognition rounds out the top four with an eighteen percent vote.
VentureBeat lead writer Dean Takahashi comments, “The trends match closely to what is currently being funded by the venture capital community”

When speaking of platforms with the most potential, naturally, Apple’s iPhone received kudos, receiving a massive seventy four percent vote of confidence from survey responders.  Never left out of a good party, Social Networking nabbed sixty five percent of the vote, casual, web-based platforms, sixty two percent,  and home consoles rounding out the top four in this category at fifty seven percent.

This survey was conducted as part of VentureBeat’s GamesBeat event, which kicks off today in San Francisco, literally just down the street from the GDC.

“The content of GamesBeat was designed to stimulate discussion and understanding of the current and future market trends and attendees will find each of the top trends on the agenda and under discussion both on stage and in the hallways,” says Takahashi.

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IGA Worldwide: We need more funding, or a buyer

Monday, March 16th, 2009

It looks like Tim Chang’s predictions on what’s hot and what’s not in the gaming industry are already proving to be right on the money.  Or lack there of in this case.

iga_worldwide_logoLate last week, Dean Takahashi reported on a response the VentureBeat team received from IGA Worldwide chairman Justin Townsend, confirming that the Gordian Group has been hired to keep the company afloat, either via a new injection of capital, or a possible sale.  Townsend says that the company’s preference would be to finish closing a third round of funding, but that IGA Worldwide also has a financial responsibility to it’s shareholders to consider selling the firm.

The Gordian Group has set a deadline of March 27th for interested parties to submit their bids, and Townsend remains adamant that no “low ball” offers will be accepted.

IGA Worldwide and Townsend find themselves in a rather sticky situation.  While the gaming industry has been one of the few areas to remain (relatively) untouched by the global financial crisis, IGA Worldwide specializes in advertising, an area that has taken quite a beating since September.  Townsend admits that times are tough, and that IGA Worldwide laid off 25 percent of their staff in November, staffing the firm with approximately 45 employees.

While the privately held company does not release it’s financial data, according to a VentureBeat source, IGA Worldwide lost close to $11 million on revenues of $3 million in 2007.  IGA Worldwide then projected to lose $26 million on revenues of $3.4 million in 2008.  Townsend was quick to comment that the firm did not, in fact, lose all of that projected cash, as is renegotiated deals with game publishers and platforms.  Townsend also admits that IGA Worldwide had previously guaranteed payments to publishers in exchange for the rights to insert ads into their games.  These agreements simply no longer made sense after the economic collapse made revenue projections unrealistic, says Townsend.

“We had to sit at the table and come up with a new business model that worked for all parties,” Townsend said.

Since being founded in 2004, and launching their first series of ads in 2006, IGA Worldwide has worked with top brands including IBM and McDonalds.  They have raised more that $46 million in two rounds of funding from investors including Morgenthaler Ventures, Itochu Technologies, Translink Capital, Sumitomo/Presidio STX, Easton Capital, DN Capital, Intel Capital, GE/NBCU’s Peacock Equity fund, and KTB Ventures.

Now this is an interesting story to watch.  IGA Worldwide, one of the biggest players on the in-game advertising circuit, is on the rocks.  Will they in fact land more capital and continue forging on through rough waters?  Or, will Microsoft’s Massive, recent news makers Double Fusion, or the big G (Google) step in and snatch IGA Worldwide up and include it in their growing Adsense for Games project?

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Big Stage seeks to make You Portable

Thursday, December 11th, 2008

Riding high from their first success: The Digital You, Big Stage Entertainment wants to help you create your perfect avatar and then carry it around with you, cross platform.

As Dean Takahashi from VentureBeat reports, Big Stage uses a 3D facial modeling system to render a rather convincing 3D version of a person from 3 digital photos take from slightly different angles.  This image can be created in roughly two minutes, so no complex know-how is necessary.  Once your perfect digital you is created, the Big Stage technology will then allow you to carry this avatar with you from one application to another, provided that the platform conforms to Big Stage’s API.  While this API is still proprietary, the long-term goal at Big Stage is to make this API an industry standard.

The portable avatar is currently available at Big Stage.com and interfaces with Facebook and MySpace.  But Big Stage has larger aspirations, with speculation about using you digital you in MMO’s such as World of Warcraft and Star Wars.  IBM took point on opening discussions with a number of virtual worlds, but the going hasn’t been easy.  The first virtual world that will make use of Portable You is Icarus Studios, a white label virtual world creator.

“The idea could catch on because it fits with the theme of personalization that is taking over everything, from YouTube personal video channels to social networks,” says Big Stage CE Phil Ressler

And Big Stage isn’t just limited to social networking and games customization.  The Venue Network is already using Portable You in its VenueGen virtual conference product that is slated to hit the streets in 2009.  What’s more, Big Stage has secured a deal with Lion’s Gate Entertainment, and will run a promotion tied to the upcoming film, The Spirit, where users can create their Portable You avatar and insert it into key scenes from the movie.  Who needs Keanu Reeves to do all the cool stuff when you can simply insert yourself?

Ressler says that the company plans on monetization via microtransaction based avatar customizations including glasses, different hairstyles, etc.

The South Pasadena, California company currently has 20 employees on staff and was founded in 2007.  The company grew out of an advanced stereo reconstruction technology R&D project at USC funded by the CIA and other government grants.  Big Stage Entertainment has raised $7.9 million in funding from investors Mission Ventures, Selby Ventures and Tech Coast Angels.

Having a cross platform portable avatar does have a number of appealing aspects, so long as it’s an option and not a requirement.  For example, I’d rather keep my bad @$$ looking orc face on my warrior, rather than plaster my mug all over it.  Something about leading a raid with my baby face might not exactly inspire confidence in other players.  On the other side of the coin, watching my face battle through some highflying space battles with Han Solo at my side would be pretty darn cool, I have to admit.  Cross platform avatars, what’s next – a cross platform currency for microtransactions?  If only there was a company that could accomplish that.  Oh wait….there is!

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KinsIsle Entertainment brings microtransactions AND subscriptions to Wizard101

Tuesday, November 4th, 2008

Want to plunk down your monthly fee and play as much as you want?  That’s fine.  Want to use microtransactions to buy individual pieces and areas of the game?  That’s also fine.  Texas based KingsIsle Entertainment has set out on an interesting experiment whereby they’re now offering players of Wizard 101 the option to play via a subscription payment OR utilize microtransactions to purchase additional areas of the game.

The game’s main features will remain free-to-play but players may now either pay a monthly fee of $6.95 – $9.95 per month to access additional gameplay, or pay as little as $1/ transaction to open smaller, bit sized portions of the game.  Here’s a perfect example of players with plenty of time to play (subscription players) AND casual players that don’t want to commit to a subscription, but still want to enjoy the same level of gameplay (microtransaction players).

“We looked at our feedback and found that half the people liked subscriptions and another group wanted micro-transactions,” said Elie Akilian, chief executive of KingsIsle

Wizard101 is a spell-casting adventure and card-style game.  The game has family focused play style (lining up perfectly between parents and teens), a chat system with a number of options and a character name selector.  The game contains no blood, and characters do not die if defeated in a duel of spells – they are simply returned to a safe area to regain health.

In a recent interview with Dean Takahashi at VentureBeat, Akilian said that the teen niche hasn’t been well served by the game industry.  He points out that games such as World of Warcraft feature plenty of blood and gore, where players can run rampant, while on the opposite side of the spectrum, there are other games with much tighter controls, Disney’s Club Penguin for example.  Wizard101 is rated for everyone 10 and old, and KindsIsle has seen a number of families playing together.  The switch to a flexible pricing model shout increase not only the number of teens playing, but also the number of overall players.

Wizard101 currently features approximately 300 hours of playtime in four worlds.  KingsIsle plans on expanding this content over time.  The game currently features 170 different spell combinations, but has limited pvp combat; presumably do to the kid/family friendly rating.

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Free to Play ACE Online enters Open Beta

Monday, September 1st, 2008

A while back we wrote about Dean Takahashi’s coverage of Wicked Interactive acquiring the North American publishing rights for a number of Yedang’s free to play, ad supported titles.   Wicked Interactive plans to release “Priston Tale”, “Priston Tale 2,” and “ACE Online”.  It seems like the first title out of the gate is ACE Online.  Perhaps a wise choice given it’s unique gameplay and wide audience appeal.  Wicked Interactive recently opened the doors on it’s new free to play title ACE Online.  The game is hosted on Wicked Interactive’s web portal: subagames.com.

Wicked Interactive is doing a bit of celebrating in game via various world events, giveaways, PvP tournaments, special item lotteries, and “Last Nation Standing” Nation Wars.

“This is a major milestone for Wicked Interactive and Suba Games as we launch our first open beta and begin to build the ACE Online and Suba games communities,” said Stanley Yu, CEO of Wicked Interactive Ltd. “The response to the game’s closed beta release has been overwhelming and we are truly excited about the community that is building around the game and the Suba Games platform. ACE Online really is an innovative title that combines elements of strategy, role-playing and aerial combat to offer an experience fit for every type of player.”

This intense 3D space shooter combines elements of action and MMORPG games.  Coming out of the Yedang Online studios, one of Korea’s top gaming enterprises, the game places players as fighter pilots in ships known as “Gears”.  Facing an intergalactic world at war, players complete missions along with engaging other players in intense aerial dogfights.

While still heavily influenced by the traditional MMORPG game format, ACE Online also adds a dash of action and shooting elements into gameplay.  Players not only quest and level, but must have quick trigger fingers and tight barrel rolls and the ability to shake bogies at top speeds.  As players improve and level up their fighters, they acquire credits which can be used in the game’s item shop to purchase hundreds of customizable weapons and add-ons for their “Gear”.  These customizations aid players in becoming a master pilot.  The games PvP system features intense player vs. player combat know as “Nation Wars”.  ACE Online seeks to differentiate itself from competitors with this unique blend of action/shooting/RPG gameplay format.

ACE Online is a free to play title with no monthly subscription fees.  It features four unique “Gears” to choose from, each with it’s own specialties, along with deep leveling and gear customization features via the in game shop.

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Wicked Interactive launching Korean free to play titles in North America

Tuesday, August 12th, 2008

More and more North American publishers are beginning to realize the benefits of free to play, micro transaction or ad supported business models in the North American market.

Venturebeat’s Dean Takahashi reported yesterday on Wicked Interactive, a Toronto, Canada based company that will shortly be launching new free to play titles in the North American market.  Wicked Interactive will publishing a number of popular, free, ad-supported games from South Korean online game publisher Yedang Online.  Wicked’s chief executive, Stanley Yu said that his company has private funding from angels and institutions, and has 15 staff members.  Prior to Wicked, Yu served as the head of TrekLogic, a Canadian information technology outsourcing firm.

Wicked plans on publishing three of Yedang’s top titles; “PristonTale”, “Priston Tale 2”, and “Ace Online”.  Priston Tale 2 already has 1.5 million registered users in Asia, and was developed over 4 years at a cost of $10 million.  While Yu acknowledges this growing competition in the free to play market, his hope is that Wicked will differentiate itself from others by delivering high quality free to play titles.

While Yedang’s most popular game “Audition,” a dance title with over 100 million registered users worldwide will not be in Wicked’s lineup, Yu said that the company is working on additional licensing agreements over the next few years.  To put Audition in perspective, one of the world’s most popular MMO titles, World of Warcraft, has just over 10 million subscribed users.

Wicked and company face a growing number of competitors, with Outspark’s growing catalogue of free to play titles, along with OGPlanet importing and modifying popular Korean titles for the US market.

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Are micro transactions on the horizon for Xbox avatars?

Sunday, August 3rd, 2008

Microsoft corporate Vice President John Schappert recently spoke with Venturebeat’s Dean Takahashi on a number of topics including a micro transaction based model for Xbox avatars.

The Microsoft avatar system was announced at E3, and one thing was clear: There’s a lot of potential for micro transactions in the Microsoft future.  With the recent interview, Schappert puts the official stamp on the ‘It’s something we’re seriously considering’ rumor.

“That may be in the future,” Schappert said when asked about the prospect. “In the near term, we want to launch these with great customization and a great library of accessories this fall. I think there is a lot more we can do with them. You will see us continue to add experiences that make use of the avatar.”

“To me, avatars are a logical extension to give us countless ways to personalize our own styles,” he said.  “It’s not like we are using avatars to recreate the perfect human body. And it’s not too cutesy. It’s in the middle. It dresses up the core first-person shooter, who can be edgy. And the more casual player can dress up to look friendly.”

If this sounds more than familiar, just have a think for a second about the Nintendo version: Mii’s.

“I have to make a shout out to the Miis and say that Nintendo did a phenomenal job integrating them into the Wii games,” Schappert said. “There was a lot of inspiration from them. At the same time, it’s a logical evolution of our gamertags on Xbox Live. It was a question of when to introduce it.”

It’s good to see that Microsoft isn’t just doing a bit of chest beating, but giving a nod to the Nintendo boys for beating them to the market.  Whether these custom, micro transaction based avatars will cost an unruly amount of Microsoft Points is yet to be seen.

Micro transactions for in game avatar customization; good or bad?  While the topic can and most certainly will rage on in forums, blogs, and chat channels, isn’t it simply a case of two different types of gamers?  Will the ‘hardcore’ category yet again be the most vocal in it’s opposition, while the ‘casual gamer’ category silently goes about it’s business, dropping a buck here and there to truly customize and enjoy their in game toon?  Clearly the market has shown growth in the micro transaction field, both in interest and development.  With Microsoft putting more resources into developing a program, isn’t this a clear stamp of approval?

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