The local web game market seems to be struggling at the poles of the game industry

The local Web gaming market seems to be struggling at the poles of the gaming industry.

On the one hand, the market growth is rapid, according to the game of the 2013 China Game Industry Report (semi-annual), the first half of the domestic web game users have reached 279 million people, the actual sales of up to 5.34 billion yuan, an increase of 39.8%. On the other hand, the number of new visitors to the page has decreased, and market share is being concentrated among a handful of companies.

Into the 2013, the page tour market first experienced a round of new outbreaks, but began to gradually be sung decline. Page Tour market began to enter the "fast consumption" period, a short period of time to introduce a product, through a variety of ways to import traffic, rapid transformation, a few months after the fire to walk away.

The popularity of the page tour, and the player's fragmentation time has a great relationship. Many game developers in order to make the game easier, introduced a variety of automation for the game settings, automatic Search Road, automatic play strange, automatic completion of tasks have been added to the game. This automation makes the "play" game become a "watch" game, the player can simply open the game to run automatically-these lightweight operations, so that the page tour of the plot settings-that is, the content-become more important.

But ironically, as a result of a large number of homogeneous product influx, resulting in almost saturated page travel market, a few new words can be said to the page tour products, the plot, the same picture, there is no complete world system, shoddy, with a wide range of types of pornographic ads Dogskin to lure traffic is very common.

This flow-oriented development strategy for the page, although it can be in a short period of time to pull up the game data, but in the long run, this method of cheating players is tantamount to introducing poison to quench thirst. When players are tired of the lack of a sense of the page tour, leaving the inevitable choice. What kind of strategy can enhance the player stickiness, become the main problem that the page swims the developer faces.

1

Internet giant's game strategy: stronger IP Awareness

Game market competitors have begun to reflect on the "sub-health" state of the market situation.

As mentioned above, more fragmented and lighter page travel, does not mean that the game is shoddy, but the page to make more stringent requirements. The player needs in the distraction time, also feels the game to bring the shock and the move, this to the game world view, the person set up, the thing set, the plot put forward the extremely high request.

Famous page Tour "Immortal Way" has achieved a great success, and the game category "Chinese Paladin" game settings are not unrelated. "The Chinese Paladin" as a generation of memory, in the hearts of players has established a classic position, and similar content settings, emphasis on the game can quickly give players to bring a sense of.

But this flattering approach is not without its drawbacks. On the one hand, because "Immortal Road" did not obtain the official authority of the copyright party, suffers from the Chinese paladin loyal pump question, is called "The name is not right, the speech is not smooth". In addition, the game itself because there is no related IP (intellectual property) accumulation, and then the imitators of a large number of entry, a variety of short-term profit-making behavior to make the whole market chaos.

And compared to these independent game companies (such as "Fairy Road" developer games), with the network literature platform, such as the integrated business of large internet companies, such as Tencent, Sohu and so on have more power of speech.

Take Sohu as an example, has now accumulated to Jin Yong paid 20 million yuan to buy the copyright of its novel, and to those who used the Internet without permission to use the game of the elements of the company sent a lawyer letter.

This resource monopoly has brought great benefits to Sohu tour. As the most familiar martial arts fiction system in China, the use of this system to set the world view clearly makes it easier for players to accept. Sohu Swim adhere to the Jin Yong line is not shaken, as a result of saving the high agency fees, the tour from the first quarter of 2012, its profit margins have exceeded the industry average.

And in the end of the game recession, more and more page share, this IP strategy to the page to expand also become inevitable.

Tencent recently launched a "product evolution" strategy based on IP (intellectual property) as its core. Tencent Games in the TGC conference on the latest release of the new page tour "Fighting Days" is a signal of this strategy.

This page of the tour, adapted from the end of the fight God of War, developed by the Tencent Speed of light studio, and its world view Framework is the "Wukong biography," the author of this is in person; it is worth noting that the same time in the TGC site also released a series of fighting the Battle of the Ares Magic spectrum. Tencent is using the new game to create a series of quality games around the IP. Through the continuity of the plot, I hope the player can integrate into the new game world more quickly, and its IP strategy will be revealed undoubtedly.

Cultural industry and game complement each other, competition of single product to industry chain development

The game based on IP strategy, on the one hand, can guarantee the monopoly of the game setting, so that it can find the road of differentiation in the homogeneous market. On the other hand, IP strategy gives writers especially the network writer with new development space, realizes the linkage of the industry, expands the income source of the cultural works, is a relatively mutually beneficial strategy.

In the Hollywood model, movies and games are always associated. The influence of the film can pull the sale of the game, and the game in turn allows the producer to better explore the value of IP.

Take "Harry Potter" department as an example, from the earliest novel, to later movies, and then to the game and a series of surrounding, creating a more than 10-year cultural myth. The theme game of Harry Potter has been quietly accumulating about 1 billion dollars while everyone notices novels and movies.

Tencent, China's largest game maker, cannot afford to miss the feast of IP games. Although Tencent in the IP accumulation is not particularly strong, but with the help of Tencent strong financial strength, can buy IP to achieve a strong IP reserves.

In January this year, the Tencent game signed a large-scale copyright cooperation agreement with the famous Japanese anime society. "Naruto" series of page tour is one of the works, while the other several well-known anime "Sea Thief King", "Dragon Bead", "Alare" related game products are also close research and development stage; Tencent game also with EA Treasure Open cooperation, won the "Plant War zombie" copyright.

The introduction of well-known overseas IP can use the influence of animation brand to enhance user stickiness. And the above mentioned "fight against the day" is Tencent hope that through its own IP, to achieve the entire industrial chain through.

In the media interview, this is said, in the framework of "Fighting Days" world view of the process inspired his creative inspiration. He even thought that this is a good opportunity, does not rule out will therefore continue to write "The unprecedented Enlightenment biography".

From this angle to push, you will understand, why Tencent in this year's high-profile launch of "Tencent literature." Because as an important part of the value chain, with the music, video, portals and other Tencent, the lack of network literature this ring. And to fill in this ring, will undoubtedly for Tencent in the game's expansion to add new vitality.

With the continuous development of game products and mature, in the future of the page tour and the game industry competition, will not only the game itself competition, but including IP, the whole industry chain of all-round competition.