Messaging is everything. 

It’s how a brand communicates with its audience, setting expectations for products and values. A brand that frames its communication around sustainability is telling its customers that it takes an “environment-first” approach. One that emphasizes community development is more likely to give back to local schools or programs.

If you were around for Coca-Cola’s “I’d like to buy the world a Coke” Hilltop campaign, you may remember its messaging being about inclusivity. Coca-Cola was for everyone.

The difficulty with messaging in the gaming industry is that you really only get one shot. Remember Pepsi’s Kendall Jenners disaster? The company has had plenty of time to recover. Your video game won’t. If you’re not clear and focused from the beginning, it can lead to a disastrous launch.  

As a developer, you must be mindful of how you present your project to your audience. One incorrect word, an overlooked feature, or a poor presentation can confuse players about what your game is or make them adverse to ever playing it. Luckily, you can learn from the mistakes of other developers and publishers. In the history of gaming, many have been made.

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The Result of Misrepresentation

You’ll probably see instances of this more than anything else in gaming. Games are ever-changing. What a project looks like on day one will likely differ significantly from its final release years later. Showing off a game early and representing that as how it will look on launch day can land you in hot water.

Just ask Randy Pitchford, CEO of Gearbox Software. 

In 2011, Pitchford presented E3 audiences with gameplay from Aliens: Colonial Marines. The incredible recreation of environments from James Cameron’s Aliens coupled with the promise of swarms of intelligent xenomorphs and squad-based combat really sold the idea behind Colonial Marines. 

Then the full game was released. Within two years, a pair of players filed suit against Sega and Gearbox, citing false advertising. After all, Pitchford’s messaging promised a completely different experience. The CEO’s presentation was so skewed, in fact, that Sega laid full blame on him and Gearbox, stating that they had completely mismanaged the game’s marketing.

Colonial Marines is the perfect example of being honest and upfront with your messaging. When players feel deceived, whether intentional or not, they'll find their entertainment elsewhere.

Minimizing Player Concerns

Pitchford also drew ire with his messaging regarding Borderlands 4 and the future of $80 video games. Simply, the CEO fired back against concerns that the latest Borderlands game would be $80, stating “If you’re a real fan, you’ll find a way to make it happen.”

Maybe that’s true, but it also came at a time when players were actively worried about games getting more expensive. When your core audience is concerned about something, the worst thing you can do is address the issue without a hint of compassion. 

Getting Antagonistic With Your Messaging

Blizzard suffered maybe its biggest marketing blunder (outside of maybe Overwatch 2) during the reveal of Diablo: Immortal. You know Diablo, right? Blizzard’s flagship action RPG series that has pretty much carried the same format on PCs (and sometimes consoles) since the ‘90s. During Blizzcon 2018, Blizzard revealed Diablo: Immortal, a game that included many fixes that players wanted for Diablo III. 

Then, the dreaded reveal came. Immortal was planned exclusively as a mobile game, eliciting audible boos from the audience. Doubling down on the already poor reception, Blizzard’s principal game designer Wyatt Cheng fired back with, “Do you guys not have phones?” 

Clearly not a premeditated response to the reveal, Cheng’s words immediately shifted Immortal’s messaging. It was no longer about taking Diablo in new directions. It was about not caring to appeal to fans of the long-running series. 

Granted, Immortal did eventually garner success. However, it was not the note to start out on, especially since it had been six years since the last new Diablo. A company without the name power of Blizzard would have suffered more because of that antagonistic messaging.

Gaming’s Biggest Mixed Message

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All of these examples pale in comparison to what could be seen as one of the top blunders in gaming history: the Wii U. Coming off the wild success of the Wii, Nintendo sought to take its motion gaming one step further by creating a controller that would further immerse players into the game's mechanics. The center touchscreen could stand in as an inventory menu; scan environments like a special tool; act as an interactive map; and so much more. It promised an experience that wasn’t just a rehash of the Wii. 

Unfortunately, somewhere along the way, Nintendo’s messaging completely failed the product. The Wii U is the perfect example of how an unclear message could affect a launch. Marketing was a mixed bag of miscommunications and confusing messaging. Was it a new console? Did the controller connect to the original Wii? Would old Wii games work with the new controller? 

Virtually every question the casual consumer could have, Nintendo failed to answer clearly in its messaging. That’s who you have to be mindful of: the Casual Consumer. Nintendo die-hards were absolutely in tune with what the company was doing. Consumers on the outside of the industry saw a product they didn’t quite understand and shied away. 

That’s why the Wii, which was incredibly clear in its messaging for a family-friendly gaming console, is one of the top-selling consoles and the Wii U failed to clear even half the number of sales of its predecessor.

Learning from the Mistakes of Others

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When it comes time to define the messaging of your game, it’s crucial to remember two key elements: 

• Be clear
• Be honest

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Should the situation call for it, be sympathetic. The messaging you attach to your game will define it, likely for the entirety of its marketing run. You don’t want to start on a bad foot, providing players with an unclear message that doesn’t sell the finished product. 

You also don’t want to misrepresent any part of the game, from the development process to the actual release that will land in the consumer’s hands. Don’t sell your game as one thing if it’s something else entirely. 

How Do You Define Your Messaging?

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It starts with really understanding your product and your audience. Then, you set goals. Who do you want to reach? What vision of your game do you want them to walk away with? Are there complex or unexpected mechanics that could make or break the game’s success once in the player’s hands (think Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and the dodge/parry mechanic that was spotlighted in much of the marketing)?

Since messaging can be so delicate, it may not be something you want to tackle alone. Contact us today, and we’ll help you perfect your marketing, ensuring your messaging speaks to your intended audience and effectively sells the experience you’ve built. 

After all, as Gearbox and Nintendo have proven, messaging can absolutely affect your launch. And these are just two out of dozens of examples. Of all the things developers stumble on, messaging seems to be high on that list!