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I bought Empire magazine the other day, and with it discovered a free Gamecube sized disc to play on my PC. It came in a purple sleeve, designed to look like the top and bottom of the Gamecube.
On the disc were clips and pics of many of the launch games, hardware profiles, and links to the website.
Now I knew this disc existed, and new you could get it with NOM, but never did I expect to see it in Empire magazine, that's so different to any marketing Nintendo have done before! Usually they don't bother much, apart from ads in console magazines. They really are trying to widen the appeal, aren't they?
On the disc were clips and pics of many of the launch games, hardware profiles, and links to the website.
Now I knew this disc existed, and new you could get it with NOM, but never did I expect to see it in Empire magazine, that's so different to any marketing Nintendo have done before! Usually they don't bother much, apart from ads in console magazines. They really are trying to widen the appeal, aren't they?
THere's also a fifth area of marketing - profit, although it's not strictly an area. Just another P so textboks can make it look nice.
i dont hav that
i get
i get
Gaz, you can't play the games.
Product. Price. Place. Promotion.
The four areas of marketting.
There's no doubting that the GameCube is one hell of a machine. Turning out a game like StarFox Adventures and Resident Evil isn't something you could on an Atari. And while the GameCube isn't quite as powerful as the X-Box, most games still look the same... (Some Even Better)!
And it isn't just the console, 'the product' does infact include the games. The only reason people buy the product is to play the games... would you buy a GameCube if it couldn't do anything?! (Tapes RBS' mouth up...) I've said it before and i'll say it again... the GameCube will inherit the most impressive library of games after just one year of availability - You know the games i'm talking about!
Price wise, I think Nintendo have hit the nail on the head. The chances are, people will bundle a game or two with the console putting the price up to a cool £239. While this isn't mega-expensive, it's still over £200 but no so much that people think they're paying £300. The £170 price-tag for the console alone is also good, because people think that while it is quite cheap, the quality is still there because £170 is still twice the price of a bottom of the range DVD player. And for something that, excuse me, 'only plays the best games in the world' - that's quite a price... according to some!
The games should come in at £40-45 which is the average for next-gen consoles. SR are bound to do cheaper games after launch, and their current 'play-it-safe' idea to charge the RRP before the console is launched is NOT an indication for anyone to think that the games will cost anymore than was previously announced.
What has intrested me, like it did Meka, was the places where Nintendo are advertising. They're going full-throttle with this 'Gaming for Everybody' idea, and they're not ashamed of it. What's good is that they haven't switched target markets, but amazingly broadened the current one to include absolutely everybody! it's an amazing feat, and one they've already pulled off in Japan and the US!
They're also in need of praise for the way they've plugged the GameCube as a toy. Games consoles aren't entertainment centres... sure, the medium of the games for PS2 and X-Box means that DVD's can also be played, but is certainly isn't the primary function of the console! The handle is also a good idea. Not because you can carry it around, although you can - but because it has a subliminal message... one that reads: "GameCube is a toy, you can take it anywhere, it shouldn't JUST sit under one TV and fit in with all the other electrical equipment!" GameCube IS it's own, just like a GameBoy or a Pogo-stick... it doesn't have to fit in with anyting else! It's unique!
Promo-wise we've seen all the ad videos on IGN. They're very clever, but what wporries me is that a lot of people won't understand them. They don't give a message that EVERYONE will understand, and if, like Nintendo say, GameCube is for everyone, it's something they need to portray through their adverts. I would have thought that there would be a range of adverts aimed at different age groups... maybe not.
All in all, Miyamoto's-Marketing-Men seem to have hit the nail on the head. TV ad's should start soon, and hopefully Nintendo will employ more and more magazines to let the people know about all things GameCube! Nintendo certainly aren't cutting any corners off their marketing Cube, and it's beginning to show!
Great Post, Meka!
Game
The four areas of marketting.
There's no doubting that the GameCube is one hell of a machine. Turning out a game like StarFox Adventures and Resident Evil isn't something you could on an Atari. And while the GameCube isn't quite as powerful as the X-Box, most games still look the same... (Some Even Better)!
And it isn't just the console, 'the product' does infact include the games. The only reason people buy the product is to play the games... would you buy a GameCube if it couldn't do anything?! (Tapes RBS' mouth up...) I've said it before and i'll say it again... the GameCube will inherit the most impressive library of games after just one year of availability - You know the games i'm talking about!
Price wise, I think Nintendo have hit the nail on the head. The chances are, people will bundle a game or two with the console putting the price up to a cool £239. While this isn't mega-expensive, it's still over £200 but no so much that people think they're paying £300. The £170 price-tag for the console alone is also good, because people think that while it is quite cheap, the quality is still there because £170 is still twice the price of a bottom of the range DVD player. And for something that, excuse me, 'only plays the best games in the world' - that's quite a price... according to some!
The games should come in at £40-45 which is the average for next-gen consoles. SR are bound to do cheaper games after launch, and their current 'play-it-safe' idea to charge the RRP before the console is launched is NOT an indication for anyone to think that the games will cost anymore than was previously announced.
What has intrested me, like it did Meka, was the places where Nintendo are advertising. They're going full-throttle with this 'Gaming for Everybody' idea, and they're not ashamed of it. What's good is that they haven't switched target markets, but amazingly broadened the current one to include absolutely everybody! it's an amazing feat, and one they've already pulled off in Japan and the US!
They're also in need of praise for the way they've plugged the GameCube as a toy. Games consoles aren't entertainment centres... sure, the medium of the games for PS2 and X-Box means that DVD's can also be played, but is certainly isn't the primary function of the console! The handle is also a good idea. Not because you can carry it around, although you can - but because it has a subliminal message... one that reads: "GameCube is a toy, you can take it anywhere, it shouldn't JUST sit under one TV and fit in with all the other electrical equipment!" GameCube IS it's own, just like a GameBoy or a Pogo-stick... it doesn't have to fit in with anyting else! It's unique!
Promo-wise we've seen all the ad videos on IGN. They're very clever, but what wporries me is that a lot of people won't understand them. They don't give a message that EVERYONE will understand, and if, like Nintendo say, GameCube is for everyone, it's something they need to portray through their adverts. I would have thought that there would be a range of adverts aimed at different age groups... maybe not.
All in all, Miyamoto's-Marketing-Men seem to have hit the nail on the head. TV ad's should start soon, and hopefully Nintendo will employ more and more magazines to let the people know about all things GameCube! Nintendo certainly aren't cutting any corners off their marketing Cube, and it's beginning to show!
Great Post, Meka!
Game
Excellent idea. I usually get Empire, so I'll play this disc. I wouldn't mind playing a few Gamecube games. Might persuade me to sell my PS2, which playing a few X-Box games didn't.
I guess it's to do with the movie tie-in games they've got coming out. Star Wars, Resi Evil etc.
Good move by Nintendo.
Good move by Nintendo.
I bought Empire magazine the other day, and with it discovered a free Gamecube sized disc to play on my PC. It came in a purple sleeve, designed to look like the top and bottom of the Gamecube.
On the disc were clips and pics of many of the launch games, hardware profiles, and links to the website.
Now I knew this disc existed, and new you could get it with NOM, but never did I expect to see it in Empire magazine, that's so different to any marketing Nintendo have done before! Usually they don't bother much, apart from ads in console magazines. They really are trying to widen the appeal, aren't they?
On the disc were clips and pics of many of the launch games, hardware profiles, and links to the website.
Now I knew this disc existed, and new you could get it with NOM, but never did I expect to see it in Empire magazine, that's so different to any marketing Nintendo have done before! Usually they don't bother much, apart from ads in console magazines. They really are trying to widen the appeal, aren't they?