Videogames Flashcards
Revenue stream meaning?
A constant supply of money / the business continually bringing in money
Technical convergence meaning?
All the media can be consumed on one place /device
What is a game developer?
The people /person that come up with the ideas / game themself (they PRODUCE the idea)
What is a game distributor?
The people / person behind marketing the game e.g on social media (responsable for getting the game to the customer).
Franchise meaning?
A set of games / sequels of the game so people who have bought and finished the original can continue to play (keeps the customer buying - brings a revenue stream).
Cross media convergence meaning?
When two different media work together to form synergy (e.g a game appears in a different game). This keeps together and is an example of synergy.
How many registered Fortnite players are there?
Around 650 million
How much money did Fortnite generate in the first full two years, after its launch?
Over $9 billion
Percentage of players age 18-35 years
85%
By how much do Fortnite events increase their monthly revenue by?
Around 23%
How many players did Fortnite’s biggest event have?
Over 15 million concurrent players
How many hours of Fortnite are streamed weekly on Twitch?
Over 13 million
What is the average amount of daily users on Fortnite?
1.1 million (October 2023)
How much did Fortnite make in 2024?
$5.82 billion
How much did Fortnite make in 2019?
$4.22 billion
What does the audience demographic suggest?
A younger audience (though many under 18s will lie about their age)
Percentage of people that play 0-5 hours a week?
36%
Percentage of people that play 21 hours a week?
5%
Who produces Fortnite?
Epic Games
When did Fortnite launch?
July 2017
What does the Franchise include?
Battle Royale, Save The World, Creative
What did players initially have to buy and when / what did this change too?
Initially had to buy Battle Passes, but in Sep 2018 the free Battle Royale was offered.
When were video games introduced?
1980s
What has led to an explosion in the gaming industry?
Diversity of game genres.
The variety of platforms they can be played on (online).
How many global gamers were there in 2014?
1.8 billion
Percentage of gamers under 18 in 2018?
28%
Percentage of gamers over 50 in 2018?
23%
Who started Epic Games and when?
Tim Sweeney in 1991
How did Epic Games start?
In his parents’ garage - humbling beginning may explain Epic’s decision to make the Unreal Engine available to amateur game designers.
What is the Unreal Engine and what does it create?
An open source that created an active audience (not passive)
What type of company is Epic Games?
A conglomerate company as owns Chair Entertainment, Cloudgine. It has studios in US, Uk, Japan, and Germany.
What is Tencent and what did they buy?
A Chinese investment company focused on Internet and AI development, that bought a 42% share of EP, in 2012.
What is an example of Epic Games being horizontally integrated?
It owns other game developer companies (e.g Tonic Games Group).
What is an example Epic Games being vertically integrated?
Epic sells games made by different producers via its website ‘store’ (it is involved in different stages of the production and distribution process).
Metaverse meaning?
A ‘virtual’ online space where people can meet to plays games of socially interact.
What is Fortnite’s genre described as on the Epic website?
Action/shooter/first person
What is significant about the visual element and lacks of violence?
The visual elements are bright and colourful and the violence is non-graphic, which may widen the demographic of the audience as appeals to younger players.
How are fans of different genres attracted?
The hybrid nature of the action/shooter genre and the building elements (familiar to players of Minecraft).
What type of platform is the Battle Royal Mode and what does this do?
A cross-platform as can be played on consoles, tablets and smartphones. Convenient so increases the social aspect.
What does the introduced element Party Royal do?
Offers a social experience to players as is a non-competitive area of Fortnite.
How is the game structured?
Split in chapters, which each chapter containing several seasons.
What happened at the end of Chapter 1, Oct 2019?
World of Fortnite disappeared into a black hole - created a huge amount of discussion and speculation among fans and so was widely reported in the news (shows its cultura, significance).
How much of Fortnite’s $2.4 billion revenue (2018) was from micro-transactions?
Over $1billion
Examples of micro transactions
Users can buy ‘V-bucks’ to make in-game purchases of items like ‘emotes’ and costumes.
What is the Fortnite Crew and what does it include?
It is a subscription and induced bonus content, monthly allowance of V-bucks and the Battle Pass.
Who was the promotional campaign for Fortnite’s launch created by and what did they do?
Fearless Media who targeted existing gamers
Example of synergy on Fortnite?
It had an integration of characters from other successful media franchises like Star Wars and Marvel films (e.g May 2018 realised a version called ‘Infinity Gauntlet Limited Time Mash-up’, crossover with successful film Avengers Infinity War).
What can the ‘buzz’ that synergy creates do?
Raises awareness of the game among young audience who aren’t existing gamers, so encouraging them to play.
When was the Fortnite World Cup first held and where was it streamed?
2019
On Fortnite’s Twitch channel
How did Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins become famous?
Playing Fortnite (he’s now a successful pro player) and was influential in building a fan base for the game.
An example of Fortnite hosting an event?
The Ariana Grand Rift tour in Aug 2021 - a series of scheduler virtual ‘shows’ publicised on Fortnite’s website and social media channels.
How was Ariana Grande’s rift tour publicised?
Teaser trailers + regular posts on X, Instagram and Facebook.
In-game purchases of Ariana costume and emotes
News + info on the website of how to join
How does the Fortnite website encourage audiences to engage with the product?
Homepage - bright, animated graphics, imperatives and exclamatives
‘Posts’ highlighting latest news and developments
Menu bar - links to pages for each mode + other features.
Link to EG website + other games for purchase.
Different variations of Fortnite (e.g alegó Fortnite) - Synergy
Content based on the season - e.g Halloween
Item shop
‘Proximity chat’ - communicate with other players
Different skins aimed at different audiences.
How are video games regulated?
PEGI (ratings clearly displayed - encourages player’s responsibility)
What is Fortnite rated and why?
12 for ‘frequent mild violence’ as has weapon use but is highly animated with a lack of blood and gore.
Fortnite CAN’T have:
Sexual references
Nudity
Swearing
Drugs
Excessive violence
What is the effects debate theory?
Audiences are passive and might be influenced by the media products they consume.
What percent of Fortnite players are male?
Estimated 65%
Uses + Gratifications offered?
P - playing and communicating with players like themselves
E - sense of achievement when they play, competitiveness
S - ‘Proximity chat’, multiplayer aspect, discussion on social media, watercooler topic
