Midway Attacks Market With $10 Million Game Launch

Chicago -- In its most extensive marketing campaign ever, Midway Games, a developer of interactive video game software for platforms such as PlayStation 2, Xbox and GameCube, has attacked the gaming world with a $10 million promotional launch for its newest title, "Mortal Kombat: Deception" (MK:D), almost tripling its usual outlay for a new title launch. A key part of the program is customized distribution of MK:D's merchandising elements that the company says helped boost purchase of the product almost eight times over during the first week.The campaign "reaches beyond traditional channels to assure success as we add to the Mortal Kombat name, Midway's number one franchise, which has generated more than $1 billion for us since the title's inception in 1992," says Greg Mucha, director of channel marketing. Unveiled in September, it includes P-O-P, national television ads, cinema spots, online and print advertising, a dedicated Web site, fan community outreach, and major launch parties.The P-O-P aspect of Midway's marketing push ($400,000 of the $10 million) involves targeted character- and retailer-specific merchandising programs. Several unique collector's sets of MK:D are sold only by certain retailers. Each set gets its own packaging, in-store standees, posters, counter cards and other elements featuring a particular character.In the case of MK:D's Xbox version, for instance, GameStop stores carry a collector's set and P-O-P specific to the game's Baraka character. The set includes Baraka-related packaging, a serialized "kollector's" edition metal Baraka trading "kard," 40 minutes of bonus DVD content and more. The P-O-P consists of a 5-foot-tall Baraka standee, Baraka-related posters and counter cards. Only the Baraka collector's set can be purchased at GameStop. Similarly, at EB Games, the Xbox collector's set includes the Scorpion character. The packaging elements and P-O-P promotions throughout EB Game stores parallel GameStop's but feature only Scorpion.Wal-Mart alone markets the Raiden character collector's set and posters (it does not place a standee). The limited edition set and posters featuring the Mileena character can be seen and purchased at a variety of entertainment software retailers.Midway's creative team designed each of the collector's sets to feature one of four sectional elements of the MK dragon logo. The entire dragon can be seen only when all packages in the set stand together with their spines facing out.Mucha notes that Sony would not approve retailer-specific packaging, so all character-specific collector's sets of MK:D for PlayStation 2 are marketed at various retail locations, with a 60-inch-tall "generic" standee showcasing the Mileena and Sub-Zero characters.Tying specific game characters and promotions to specific stores is a first-time P-O-P strategy for Midway, notes Mucha, and it seems to have paid off. In its first week, the MK title sold 300,000 units, compared to 20,000 to 50,000 for most new titles released by Midway.MK:D's P-O-P merchandising elements were designed in-house. ABFAB International Inc., Manhasset, N.Y., produced the standees (1,900 of Baraka, 1,800 of Scorpion, and 2,500 for generic distribution) and 1,900 counter cards. Kelmscott Press Inc., Aurora, Ill., printed roughly 11,000 posters. Distribution by Air Inc., Bridgewater, N.J., handled fulfillment.One of the three corrugated and foamboard standees for MK:D features metal foil stamping, and two of the standees feature a battery-operated spinning logo. (The standee for GameStop stores has no moving parts because the motion may have triggered the stores' night alarms.)Mucha reports that Mortal Kombat has such a huge following in the gaming arena that a third-party merchandising company (National In-Store of Sarasota, Fla.) was hired to confirm that retailers received and implemented the P-O-P materials and to "police" execution to assure that materials for the popular gaming title didn't "walk off.""Using a merchandising company gets us more value for our dollars by helping us attain 95-100% compliance, compared to 75-80% without one," Mucha reveals. "Considering what we spend upfront in design, production and fulfillment, what it costs to assure that another 20% of the stores are complying is well worth the additional investment."Other retailers readied for battle with the elaborate P-O-P materials for MK:D include Blockbuster, Game Crazy, K-B Toys and several smaller specialty gaming stores.

Midway Attacks Market With $10 Million Game Launch

P2PI MEMBERS

JOIN P2PI

Related Images

Business Topic

Market Segment

P2PI MEMBERS

JOIN P2PI

Related Images

Related Articles

Business Topic

Market Segment