The ultimate game hype tracking guide

Feb, 2024 The ultimate game hype tracking guideGet more from your game’s purchase funnelFebruary 2024

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Is your game getting the hype it deserves?PC and console gaming evolves at sonic speeds, with 2023 witnessing a surge of hit releases and more coming in 2024. With an ever-expanding array of games vying for players’ time, attention, and money, standing out has become increasingly challenging.Amidst this dynamic landscape, is your game receiving the hype it deserves?Understanding the hype surrounding your game and benchmarking it against competing titles is essential to gauge success and secure your unique space in the market.This guide explores how to track gaming hype from pre- to post-release, answering:•Does your game have sufficient visibility before launch?•Who is most likely to pick up your game, and what’s the best way to reach these players?•How do you measure post-release performance and track your game alongside its closest competitors?•Which variables are the most useful for targeting primary and secondary audiences and sustaining long-term success?This free resource serves as a glimpse into the powerful insights provided by Newzoo’sGame Health Tracker, our Platform’s tool for charting gaming buyer journeys.We hope you find this guide as fun to read as it was for us to create. Happy hype tracking!Nazrin AzisSenior Product Manager3

Pre-launch game hype trackingWhat to track and how it will inform your pre-launch strategy

0%10%20%30%Unaided awareness: The “buzz” around your gameSource:Newzoo|Game Health Tracker, Q. Unaided awareness (upcoming games),Base: All recalling at least one title | Past 6 months PC and/or console players in the United States (~3,000 per month)Unaided awareness gives you an unbiased snapshot of a game’s buzz. Tracking this metric (our rule of thumb is from six months prior to release) helps you measure hype over time to boost visibility and pre-release interest. In this guide, we’ll focus on several games to show how certain releases and events impact awareness and other hype metrics. Let’s start with Tekken. The totalunaided awareness for Tekkengrew steadily from September 2023 in anticipation of Tekken 8. This shows that the game is generating more and more buzz, a positive development despite being overall less than franchises like Call of Dutyand Grand Theft Auto. Notice, too, that buzz for these games fluctuates, corresponding to major events. Upcoming games: Total unaided awareness | Combined Mentions of COD vs. GTA vs. Tekken | Sept/23 – Jan/24Base: Past 6 months PC and/or console players | United StatesHow we gather unaided awareness data: To gather unaided awareness data, we tell players in the survey to think of announced titles that have yet to be released. Players then share the first upcoming games that come to mind—big announcements likeGrand Theft Auto IVimpact unaided awareness scores for other titles. Data can include released titles as well.Sep/23Oct/23Nov/23Dec/23Jan/24Sep/23Oct/23Nov/23Dec/23Jan/24Sep/23Oct/23Nov/23Dec/23Jan/24GTA VI trailer releaseRelease of Tekken 8NEWCOD (any title)GTA(any title)Tekken (any title)Release of Call of Duty Modern Warfare III5

Aided awareness: A game’s broader recognition and maximum reachSource:Newzoo|Game Health Tracker, Q. Aided awareness (upcoming games)Base: April 2023 to December 2023 | Past 6 months PC and/or console players in the United States (~n=3,000 per month)Pre-release aided awareness | Tekken 8 vs. Mortal Kombat 1Base: Past 6 months PC and/or console players | United States0%10%20%30%40%50%60%Apr/23May/ 23Jun /2 3Jul/23Aug/23Se p/ 23Oct/2 3Nov/23De c /2 3While unaided awareness measures spontaneous recall, aided awareness gives you a glimpse into a game’s maximum reach to gauge how effective your marketing strategies are prior to release. Many factors can influence a game’s awareness, including competing releases, a franchise’s scale, and genre popularity, to name a few. Comparing a game to similar titles can help you build a strategy for establishing your game in the market. Let’s look at Tekken 8: The game ranked seventh for aided awareness in its release month, significantly higher than its unaided awareness. It saw noticeable awareness bumps in August 2023, following its Gamescom trailer, and again in the months leading to its launch, after character and gameplay reveals. Comparing this to the pre-launch of Mortal Kombat 1, the latter game held a higher profile overall, with a drop in awareness over the summer before a surge ahead of its release. The period between Mortal Kombat 1’s announcement and launch was unusually short, so drip-feeding information and releasing consistent trailers up to its release may explain why its awareness curve differs from Tekken 8s.Release: 14-Sep* Titles are updated based on release schedules each monthgamescom: Gameplay enhancement and story cinematic. 23 – 27 AugCharacter + Gameplay Reveal (Nov – Dec)Tekken 8Release(d): 25th Jan 24Mortal Kombat 1Release(d): 14th Sep 23Comparing unaided and aided awareness: Unlike unaided awareness, which measures general buzz by asking players to identify the first games that come to mind out of every possible upcoming title, aided awareness involves showing players a list of titles so they can pick the ones they know or have heard of. 6

Purchase intent: Insights into a game’s primary target audiencesSource:Newzoo|Game Health Tracker, Q. Aided awareness (upcoming games), Purchase intent (upcoming games)Base: April 2023 to December 2023 | Past 6 months PC and/or console players in the United States (~ n=3,000 per month)Pre-Release Aided awareness and Intent to purchase | Tekken 8 vs. Mortal Kombat 1Base: Past 6 months PC and/or console players | United States0%20%40 %60 %-6 month-5 month-4 month-3 month-2 mon thRele asemonthMeasuring purchase intent helps to gauge interest in a game before its release, though it’s important to recognize that it doesn’t guarantee actual sales.Many other factors, like concurrent competitor releases, review scores, and fan reception, will impact whether a game sells. However, purchase intent is an excellent real-time indicator of the effectiveness of your pre-release campaign in generating genuine interest. For instance, assuming awareness is driven by media spend, NetherRealm Studios might have expected a more substantial increase in its intent curve for Mortal Kombat 1.Purchase intent rose in the final month prior to release, though not as steeply as awareness. Of course, an uptick is still an uptick. 0%20%40 %60 %-6 month-5 month-4 month-3 month-2 mon thRele asemonthTekken 8Mortal Kombat 1Pre-release aided awarenessPre-release purchase intentPre-release aided awarenessPre-release purchase intent7

Conversion rate: Benchmark your success against competing gamesUpcoming games: Purchase intent funnel | Mortal Kombat 1 vs. Tekken 8 | Last month pre-releaseBase: Past 6 months PC and/or console players | United StatesBenchmarking a game’s pre-release conversion rate from awareness to purchase intent can gauge the effectiveness of your pre-launch efforts versus competing titles.Conversion rate reflects the extent to which a company has raised awareness of a game and how much that investment has influenced your potential players’ desire to purchase your game. Generating hype is only one step toward a game’s commercial success. You need to ask questions like, “Where will my expenditure yield the greatest impact?” and “Who should be my primary target players, and where can I reach them?” We’ll focus on these questions in the next sections.Source:Newzoo|Game Health Tracker, Q. Unaided awareness (upcoming games), Aided awareness (upcoming games), Purchase intent (upcoming games), Base: Past 6 months PC and/or console players in the United States (~=3,000 per month)40%17%Pre-release unaided awareness:Pre-release aided awareness:Pre-release purchase intent:44%54%21%3%Tekken 8Mortal Kombat 139%Conversion Rate: (purchase intent as a % of aided awareness)8 5%How we measure purchase intent:Prior to a game’s release, we ask players how likely they are to pick up the title. Players can answer that they intend to purchase the game, are considering it, or don’t think they’ll buy the title.

Identifying audience opportunities What kinds of players to target and where to find them

Uncovering what kinds of players want to purchase your gameTekken 8 | The Demographics of pre-release purchase intenders | December 2023Base: Past 6 months PC and/or console players | United StatesSource:Newzoo|Game Health Tracker, Q. Gender, Age by purchase intention, Base: December 2023 | Past 6 months PC and/or console players in the United States aware of Tekken 8 and intend to purchase it (n=532), don’t intend to purchase it (n=238)GenderAge68%31%66%30%47%28%25%37%31%32%Intend to purchase Do not Intend to purchase Tekken 8MaleFemaleOthers10-2425-3435-50Statistically significant difference, compared to non-intenders.Understanding the types of people who comprise your target audience is essential to marketing your game in a way that resonates (and matches the audience expectations you had during development). Marketing spend is often limited, and obtaining a better data-driven understanding of your primary target audience can help focus your marketing resources on the right players and channels. This insight may align with your initial expectations of your primary audience but could also reveal overlooked demographic segments.Here, we’re focusing solely on age and gender, but the Game Health Tracker enables you to analyze various dimensions to pinpoint our most promising audiences. For instance, in the case of Tekken 8, the gender balance between purchase intenders and those who do not intend to purchase the game is quite even. However, the proportion of 10-24-year-olds is quite a lot higher among intenders (47%, compared to just 37% among non-intenders). In other words, these players are more typical of Tekken 8’s target audience.10

57%47%47%45%40%57%37%31%39%22%Identifying the channels for effective game release promosTekken 8 | Game news sources | December 2023Base: Past 6 months PC and/or console players, aware of Tekken 8 | United StatesGame News SourcesSocial mediaOnlinepromos/adsOnline storesCreators/ influencersSubscriptionsuggestions89%68%68%65%46%84%57%55%45%29%Social Media PlatformsYouTubeFacebookInstagramTikTokSnapchatTekken 8Intent to purchaseDo not intend to purchaseSource:Newzoo|Game Health Tracker, Q. Sources to get news and information on video games, Base: December 2023 | Past 6 months PC and/or console players in the United States aware of Tekken 8 and intend to purchase it (n=532), don’t intend to purchase it (n=238)Statistically significant difference, compared to non-intenders.Identifying your primary audience’s game news sources is essential for meeting your players where they are (and maximizing marketing spend). There are so many channels out there, from specialized game news sources to social media platforms with limitless gaming channels. So, which channels are the most effective for reaching your primary target audience?Let’s look at the players intending to purchase Tekken 8 versus those who don’t. Clear differences emerge.Players intending to purchase Tekken 8 gather information from a wider range of sources, with a higher likelihood of obtaining it from online promotions, ads, and creators. Compared to non-intenders, purchase intenders are especially likely to gather insight from online stores and gaming subscriptions. When they engage with social media, purchase intenders are more likely to use all platforms, but the difference is most significant for TikTok and Snapchat. Tekken 8 has the most to gain from targeting younger players who prefer short videos and similar media. 11

Maintaining a game’s hypeStrategies to sustain and scale success after a game’s release

0%25 %50%75 %Apr/23May/ 23Jun /2 3Jul/23Aug/23Se p/ 23Oct/2 3Nov/23De c /2 3Jan/24Aided awareness: Staying on top of key metrics post-releaseSource:Newzoo|Game Health Tracker, Q. Aided awareness (upcoming and released titles)Base: April 2023 to January 2024 | Past 6 months PC and/or console players in the United States (~n=3,000 per month)Pre- and post-launch aided awareness | Cyberpunk 2077 vs. Starfield vs. Baldur’s Gate IIIBase: Past 6 months PC and/or console players | United StatesGames plateau in awareness over time as they grow and mature. Games aren’t always fresh in the collective consumer imagination. So, it’s essential to use pre-and post-launch data to guide how you acquire new players and maximize revenue per player. When comparing Baldur’s Gate 3 and Starfield, two recent releases, we see that Starfield’sawareness fluctuates more. Most likely, we can attribute this inconsistent awareness to the fact that Baldur’s Gate is a more established franchise with a dedicated fan base. Also, the game was in beta for three years. Starfield is a new IP that’s still establishing its industry presence and ideal audiences. Cyberpunk 2077, released in December 2020, plateaued in awareness last year but still experiences little ups and downs. DLC releases, anticipated updates, and other game launches may have contributed to these changes. * Titles are updated based on release schedules each monthStarfieldBaldur’s Gate IIICyberpunk 2077Release: 3 AugPhantom LibertyDLC drops: 26 SepRelease: 6 SepDLC release date announced 11 Jun Several pricedrops announced13

11%36%40%13%Reasons to play: Fine-tuning your marketing to convert more playersStarfield | Profiling Players Considering Purchasing Post-Launch Base: Past 6 months PC and/or console players, considering purchasing Starfield | United StatesSource:Newzoo|Game Health Tracker, Q. Purchase intention, reasons to play games, Base: Sep-23 to Jan-24 aggregated | Past 6 months PC and/or console players (n=3,152) , PC and/or console players who are aware of Starfield and have already bought it (n=47), will buy it (n=183), who might buy it (n=144)There are many ways to profile your primary and secondary player audiences, and digging into motivations to play helps to understand how to reach players who are still on the fence about buying the game.Every game attracts its unique audience of players with varying preferences and motivations. Understanding the variations among your audiences is essential for marketing optimizations, especially when targeting the ”Might buy” consumers. Let’s launch back into Starfield. You can see nuances among players who’ve either purchased or may or may never buy the game. Role-playing themes and mechanics motivate (or, in this case, motivated) players who already bought the game, while prospective buyers focus a bit more on socializing. Interestingly, high-quality graphics and unique art styles are influential for players who might buy Starfield. This provides an angle to consider for secondary player acquisition. Won’t buyMight buyWill buy Already boughtTop 5 reasons to play37%31%31%29%26%Role playing CustomizationTactics/strategySocializing Deep,interestingstoryline32%30%30%30%29%SocializingAdrenaline/excitementDeep, interesting storylineExploring andfinding secretsRole-playing30%28%28%27%25%Already boughtHigh-qualitygraphicsExploring andfinding secretsSocializingUnique art styleCustomizationStarfield14 Will buyMight buy

0%20%40 %60 %Sep-23OctNovDe cJa nPlays like discounts and DLC drops can boost the intent to play for gamers who haven’t yet purchased a given title. Some tactical measures can also strengthen retention for players who’ve bought the game and may stop playing. When a game launches, core enthusiasts and early adopters will likely flock to purchase it, riding the initial wave of excitement fueled by pre-launch hype. However, a broader audience, comprising secondary and tertiary segments, will always wait to buy the game until after the hype dies down. Tactical measures like price drops, additional content drops, or a whole host of other plays can effectively attract those players (and primary audience members who didn’t buy the game). Strategic pricing adjustments have proven to be a powerful tool in drawing in a wider group of players. If we look at Cyberpunk 2077, we see that strategy come to life. Significant price cuts on major platforms boosted engagement for players who hadn’t yet converted to customers. What kinds of tactical marketing measures have the most impact?Source:Newzoo|Game Health Tracker, Q. Play intentionBase: September 23 to January 2024 | Past 6 months PC and/or console players who haven’t played Cyberpunk 2077 in the past 3 months Cyberpunk 2077Game events for November 2023Price drop: Steam Store Discount (40%)Nov 1, 2023Price drop: Xbox Store Discount (40%)Nov 17, 2023Price drop: Steam Store Discount (50%)Nov 22, 2023+6% play intent15 Cyberpunk 2077: Intent to play (non-players) [September – August 2023]Base: Past 6 months PC and/or console players who haven’t played Cyberpunk 2077 in the past 3 months

A game doesn’t have to be top of everyone’s mind to be a success.PC and console gaming has its heavy hitters, but these are not the only titles on gamers’ minds. If you focus too much on your game or franchise’s daily buzz, you likely won’t get the whole picture and may miss ways to achieve success on your own terms. It’s vital to understand your game’s purchase funnel from awareness driven by campaigns to how effectively that impacts intent to purchase and beyond. Understanding how to broaden and sustain consumer interest post-release is equally pivotal. You must be on the minds of the customers you care about most. And you should know how to (and be ready to) modify your approach if that isn’t happening. Yo u ’ r e n o t s e r v i n g e v e r y player. Your most valuable audiences matter most.Tracking awareness and purchase intent becomes actionable when you can dig into the demographics, psychographics, and other profiling and targeting data about the players most likely to convert. While many studios out there have the vision to make games for everyone, only a few games actually draw in a critical mass of players. The better you know your current and potential player base’s backgrounds, attitudes, and behaviors, the better you can communicate with them to help them discover and fall in love with your game (or IP/franchise). It’s easier to be precise and compelling when talking to well-defined player segments than it is to appeal to a varied mass of global gamers. Yo u c a n a l w a y s b u i l d awareness and grow your audiences after launch. While it’s vital to focus on the effectiveness of marketing campaigns pre-launch, it’s equally important to continue tracking awareness and purchase intent well into a released game’s lifecycle. There are always purchase intenders that haven’t converted yet and new audiences waiting to jump in outside your primary and secondary segments. Also, games often evolve. Updates, fixes, new content, franchise entries, and more are always on the horizon, each a reason for players to finally convert. Tracking your game’s hype metrics and those of competing titles helps you to keep a finger on the pulse of the market and the kind of impact your game is having on it. Our Game Health Tracker is the prime toolkit for this. Now that you’re equipped with purchase funnel insights, what comes next? Key takeaways12316

225+Released PC and console titles40+Upcoming PC and console titles200+Variables trackedGame Health TrackerContinuously fielded game-level consumer insights for upcoming and in-service titles across PC and console gamingIncludes:3,000+ PC/console players in the US surveyed monthly (covering 6 months of activity)(Un)aided awareness, play/purchase intent, player demographics, and attitudesMeasure pre-launch hype, awareness, and purchase intentKeep a pulse on post-release funnel metrics and audiencesMonitor the effectiveness of ongoing marketing effortsEasy-to-use platform & data viewing tools60+Publishers & developersFind out more17

What’s covered in the Game Health Tracker
Upcoming titles
•Unaided awareness
• Aided awareness
• Purchase intent (P2P)
• Play intent (F2P)
Released titles
•Unaided awareness
• Aided awareness
• Play behavior (current / past)
• Play intent (non -players)
Among [title] players:
• Platform played on
• Likelihood to recommend (NPS)
• Amount of money spent on
• Monthly time spent playing
• General rating
Profiling, behavior, attitudes
•Demographics
• Leisure activities
• Social media usage
• Favorite gaming platform
• Reasons for playing games /
player motivations / personas
• Sources of video game releases /
news
• Video game content viewing
• Gaming subscriptions
Key metrics
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