WirEless Week
JANUARY I, 200'D
Mobile Game Standouts
Wireless operators weigh in on what it takes to make a top-selling mobile game.
w IK-II it comes to dcvel-
o[iing a coiiipclliiig mo-
biie game, tiiere aa* no
clear-cut rules lor cre-
ating a blockbuster.
l-inick> consumers. risk-uii\'cisL' oper-
auii^, compiex icchtiologics and an un-
proven market are all hurdles to a tno-
bile game's success. Game developers
take quite a gamble when ii comes to
trying lo develop games that will res-
onate with wireless consutiiers and. in
turn, generate revenue for developers
and citn iers. And it's quickly ttecumlng
clear that what SJKIIS success in the tra-
ditional game market doesn't necessar-
ily translate to the mobile world.
One major diflereiice between mo-
bile and console games is thai mobile
games attract a slightly ditTerent demo-
grapbic than traditional games. Ac-
eording lo Seanius McAteer. senior an-
alyst at M "Metrics, a higher percent of
mobile game players are female - a fact
ihat is dramatically different than tradi-
Content and Applicatinns
BY SUE MAREK
tional gaming where young tiiales dom-
inate game sales. "We have fotind that a
sllgblly higher percentage of mobile
gamers are female and young." McA-
teer says.
As more research becomes available,
operators are getting a better under-
standing of what types of games appeal
to their subscribers - and thai
games are getting." says Michael Gal-
lelli. director of content services at T-
Mobile USA.
Most of ibe U)p games designated by
wireless operators are known for their
simplicity aiid brand recognition. Top-
sellers tend lo be classic games based
KEEP IT SIMPLE While hardcore gamers on popular thctne-s from the past, or
want fiwt-paced action, compelling audio gatnes that use familiar concepts such
and lifelike grapbies, mobile gamers as bowling, solitaire or poker.
tend to be more at ease with simpler Currently there is no independent
games that are easy to un- source to compile and rank mobile
knowledge is making derstand and navigate. "We games based upon sales Iigures. In ihe
them savvier when are finding that brand ringtone business, analyst firm Consect
it comes to game recognition, tallies ihe top 20 ringiotie cliart in con-
selection. "You simplici- junction with liilihimnl Muiidzinf.
can see that over ly and Likewise, in the traditional video
the last two to three mindless game world, game relailel^ pixivide sales
years, most of the games do informaiion about their uip-selling
early entrants - aside well," says Chris games to the industry. "Tbis is great for
Iroiii Janidai Mobile - Wiihrer. senior product the industry because everyone knows
were focusing on port- manager for digital media how they are doing." says Mike Yuen,
ing titles that did v\eli in at Boost Mobile, an direclor of FiRKW developer relations
the console and VC MVNO owned by Nextel at Qualcomtii Internet Services. Yuen
area. They have done Comtiiunicalions thai caters hopes that one day a similar ranking
well, but they have piimaiily lo tbe youih seg- system will exisl for mobile games be-
not seen the same main- ment and recently topped I cause it helps generate competition
stream take-up that casual million in subscribers. among publishers.

OLDIES BUT GOODIES Operarors may
not provide spccifif game sales Hguivs,
but they have hinted at iheir top-sclHng
games. Verizon Wireless. Sprint and T-
Mobilc USA name Tetris by Blue Lava
Wireless as a top seller. Likewise. Atari's
Driv3r by Sorrent receives top-selling
marks from Citigular Wireless. Verizon
Wireless mid Boost Mobile.
Other top-sellers mentioned by car-
riers include Jumdai Bowling. Sponge-
J J J J_l
Hob Bowling by THQ. NFL 2005 by
THQ. PAC-MAN by Namco. Bejew-
eled by Jamdat and Ms. PAC-MAN by
Namco.
A common theme running among
these lop-sellers is the consumer likely
will know exactly what type ol game
they are buying without having to ex-
perience the game or read about it. "The
No, 1 thing to look lor with a top-sell-
ing game is consumer expectation." says
Lou Fasulo. senior manager of down-
loadabies. games and application soft-
ware at Cingular. "When customers
look at our storefront, they can look at
the top five games and know what they
are getting before they download. You
don't see some obscure product that
you couldn't imagine what the game
would be."
"We are finding that brand recognition,
simplicity and mindless games do well."
senior product manager
CHRIS WUHRER*
for digital media at Boost Mobile
This has hecome particularly im-
portant because some carriers have
stopped offering demos. Sprint moved
away from that demo concept because
the carrier found it wasn't worthwhile.
"U you have 50 demos, the customer
will never pay," says Jason Ford, gen-
eral manager of games for Sprint. But
he doesn't aile out the use of demos in
the future, particularly if games become
more sophisticated. "I think that as
games get more complex and in-depth,
it may warrant demos."
However, other operators still advo-
cate demos. T-Mobile USA recently
launched a promotional campaign called
"Try It, Like It, Buy It" in which the
company allowed customers to try
games for
free. The
carrier
pro-
moted
the offer
with Hyer.s
in more than
4.000 retail stores as well as through
bill stuffers to 9 million customers. "This
is the first time we've done something
like this, and it's been very exciting."
Gallelli ,says. "In this husiness. it all has
to do with the capability of the handset.
So many handsets had the capability of
playing games, but that capability was-
n't tapped into. This promotion provid-
ed a great message to our base and re-
minded them that they have this capa-
bility."
Boost Mobile also advocates detnos.
The company has several demos of
games preloaded on its iDEN handsets
and at the end of the demo version there
is a link to the company's Website for
consumers to purchase the game. "We
put full version preloads on handsets."
says Craig Thole, director of value-
added services at Boost. "Part of our
strategy at Boost is to provide that in-
stant gratification that you don't neces-
sarily get with a traditional carrier."
ROTATING GAMES Boost Mobile may
have a relatively small subscriber ba.se
Activate Your
compared to the nationwide heavy- Cingular
weight operators, but company execu-
tives say they believe they have some Brand!
of the highest game consumption in the
industry. Because of thai hi"h con-
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Cingular's most
sumption, the MVNO rotates its games
frequently to keep customers coming
trusted supplier,
back for more. "Content must be tar- Superior offers
geted and rotated often. We try not to premium quality
allow it to be stale." Wuhrer says. Cingular-packaged
Of course, a game's popularity also
OEM & aftermarket
is tied closely to its placement on the
operator's top deck. Without this key accessories, easy
placement, games ;ire less likely to have online ordering,
success. "Deck placement is the pritnary & the convenience
driver and the strongest marketing you of a separate
can do." says Cingular's Fasulo. "Prod-
ucts gel placement on the deck because
credit line just for
of good game play." accessories.
But securing that top deck placement
can he dillicult. Al Sprint, company ex- You'll also be eligible
ecutives evaluate games based upon for free merchandiser-
game reviews, comments from Sprint's with-purchase offers!
Game Lobby and also through the per-
ception of the PCS Game Boiuxl, a group Cingular-brand
of Sprint employees that provide feed-
back on games. According to Ford, the
accessories; the name
members of the Game Board rank customers trust.
games based upon many factt>rs. hut in-
novation and fun are weighted most Call 877.522.4727
heavily by the company.
As mobile gaming grows in popu- New Agents!
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more skilled in their selections of games Booth 35351
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an exact science,
T-Mobile USA's Gallelli admits that Exclusive & Premier Agents
the popularity of Tetris still amazes him,
"I knew anecdotally that Tetris was
doing well, but it has drawn the kind of SUPEFilOR
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