Assassin's Creed: Valhalla - Audiences

Answer 1

• Typical fans of the Assassin’s Creed Franchise tend to be mostly technologically-savvy, enthusiastic white male gamers living in the Western world.

Answer 2

• They tend to be millennials (Generation Y) - born within the 1980s-early 2000s (30-50 years old) with comfortable disposable income and some time on their hands.

Answer 3

• Audiences are engaged by sub-plots and side-quests which they can complete (but which may not be vital to the overall main plot or completion of the game) to enrich and further add character / customised items.
• More complex story-lines, puzzle solving and an appreciation for historical contexts may link to the fact that the average age of the UK gamer is 34 and more educated than originally first assumed.
• Cut scenes are used to add cinematic scope and real audience engagement -
  although they may not be playable they do add depth to narrative and therefore long term character / story investment.
• Beginner gamers new to the franchise / genre are taught new skills through
  tutorials & ‘practice runs’ with little / no risk to the character.
• Many ‘walkthroughs’ are created both officially and unofficially (in the form of user generated content - UGC) to help gamers ‘stuck’ on a particular mission or section of the game.

Question 4

Where are majority of the Assasin’s Creed games released and what might this reflect about the game franchise?

Answer 4

• Most of the video games within the Assassin’s Creed franchise were released on the major consoles (predominantly the Xbox and PlayStation) and PC.
• This may imply that the majority of the mainstream video games in this franchise are aimed at a more serious and dedicated gamer.

Question 5

What kind of audiences seek games like AC:Valhalla?

Answer 5

• Audiences who play ‘core’ platforms (PS, XBOX, PC) often seek video games that re more challenging, have a significant complex narrative and also have more complicated and engaging game-play functionality.

Answer 6

• Console and PC audiences are also dedicated when it comes to the hours that they play on video games, often
  seeking video games that reward them for loyalty - such as additional content that can be unlocked.

Answer 7

• Gamers more familiar with a less popular method of gaming (hand held or mobile phone, for example) are also catered for by this franchise.
• They have been made to feel
  more involved through exclusive releases unique (initially until some are remastered and released on mainstream consoles) to the niche device.
• These variants offer a ‘same but
  different’ experience and are often linked to the ‘standard console’ flagship version of the game.

Answer 8

• The majority of the protagonists for most of the games in the franchise are male (and white), although efforts have been made to increasingly alter the gender (and race) of the hero to appeal to more varied audiences (and therefore exploit a market which prior to this remained relatively unexplored by earlier chapters of the franchise).
• It is important to note, that adopting a female protagonist is NOT the games obvious USP (Unique Selling Point) when utilised by this franchise (like many more exploitative video games - such as the eariler released Tomb Raider), rather more often than not, a subtle device used to frame the narrative.

Question 9

Who else might be attracted to the AC:Franchise?

Answer 9

• The many games within the AC franchise also may appeal to a secondary audience of casual gamers - those not truly invested in the long term story generated across all of the games content - they may be younger and like faster paced action games (like COD).