Bridging cultural gaps and earning more with IP collaborations
An interview with Yodo1 CEO Henry Fong
Would you play a game just because it contained an IP you loved? Would that IP make you more or less likely to not only play the game, but spend money on it?
Integrating recognized IPs into games – or building entirely new games around an IP – has been a trendy topics in gaming for years, with brand collaborations becoming standard practice for many of the biggest games in the world.
Last month, the influential tech investor Jiyuan Capital invited our CEO Henry Fong to talk about how the union of games and IPs from other media can help game makers breach cultural barriers to find new players and maximize revenues.
Check out this adaptation of Henry’s interview, or read the original piece in Chinese.
IP collaborations are a go-to strategy for mobile game developers and IP holders
Game and IP partnerships are now a common play because not only do they unlock new ways to experience media outside of their original sources, but they’re also cost efficient.
Game development involves long, expensive production cycles. It’s practically unavoidable. Developing a large-scale mobile game can take over a year, and AAA games on PC and console can take four to five years to complete. It took a massive team eight whole years to release Red Dead Redemption 2.
While crossover events between two game IPs or a game and an IP from outside the gaming world don’t carry the same cultural significance or novelty, they are far easier to create.
You can integrate an IP into a game via skins, characters, and game modes, giving players something new without reinventing the wheel. It’s a lighter and faster strategy that can take under half of a year from conception to implementation. In fewer than six months, an old game can find new players from more expansive markets.
How to bring together games and IPs successfully
According to Henry, game and IP collaborations are essentially all about marketing.
Game developers and publishers who turn to IP holders for partnership opportunities to break into new audiences they otherwise may not be able to access. The game mechanics and loops will often stay the same, so as to not alienate existing players, but characters and stories get interwoven to give new customers a way into the world of the game.
In other words, the right IP elements integrate seamlessly into gameplay to activate users through emotional resonance.
The strategy stands to win big among game developers in China. Henry says that IP collaboration is a key tool to open new markets for Chinese developers wishing to expand beyond their home market. NetEase’s Identity V is a great example of this. In 2019, the game partnered with an iconic RPG from Japan, Persona 5. This helped NetEase expand its survival title into the Japanese market, while also bringing more discoverability to Persona 5 in China.
IP collaboration is also a hugely important strategy for mobile game developers in Japan. In 2013, Mixi’s Monster Strike collaborated with more than 25 IPs, which contributed to the game generating $10.8 billion in Japan alone.
What IP holders get out of the deal
The benefits for mobile games are super clear, but what about the IP holders integrating their narratives, characters, and other iconic elements?
Over the past couple of years, Hasbro has brought the Transformers brand into the Chinese gaming market, partnering with multiple developers and publishers. For Hasbro, this was an effective way to grow in Greater China, reaching an already engaged audience.
For Henry, though, one of the issues is that game developers and publishers and big IP holders don’t always find each other organically. Most of the time, there needs to be bridge to show both players the benefits of the strategy and how to put it all together.
One of major factors that hold IP holders back from partnering with game companies is the complicated nature of such a collaboration. Both sides want to retain creative control and have oversight of the process.
What’s more, IP holders don’t always have experience integrating their stories and characters into games. Watching a cartoon is a very different way to consume Transformers content than playing Optimus Prime or Bumblebee in a mobile game. IP holders want the game experience to stay true to the universe they’ve established over so many touch points.
Having a mediator in the center of the partnership ensures that all of these concerns are addressed and both parties get the most out of the collaboration and all crossover events.
How game developers should choose the right IP for collaborations and crossovers
According to Henry, the key is finding an IP that your target users already love and connect to on an emotional level. That IP may have a wealth of potential players who otherwise wouldn’t have discovered your game without this type of activation.
Once you’ve identified the IP to bring into your game, the job is to propose new narratives that naturally continue on from the IP’s core stories, and figure out which characters to bring in as playable or non-playable characters.
The most vital element is to keep the IP’s core worldview in mind. Stunning visuals and mechanics are no substitute for the emotional connection, and getting that wrong can lose you existing and potential players.
At Yodo1, we believe content is king. You must create products that are responsive to players.
Your game should strive to become an IP other games want to partner with
The match-3 game Candy Crush Saga launched in 2012 and has lasted for 13 years. For a long time, it has contributed roughly 30% of Activision Blizzard’s revenue. In fact, 70-80% of top-selling games today are not new titles, but long-lasting, constantly updated games. Mario evolved from “Jumpman” in Donkey Kong, and kept jumping upward to eventually reach the pinnacle of gaming IPs.
From 1893’s Super Mario Bros. to Odyssey, Mario-based games have sold over 300 million copies. It’s the best-selling video game IP ever.
If we try to measure how much a game IP like Mario is worth, it’s value is beyond just money.
About Jiyuan Capital
Jiyuan Capital is a venture capital firm that focuses on technology and consumer sectors. They primarily invest in early and growth-stage startups, especially in fields such as the internet, software, healthcare, and consumer goods. The team at Jiyuan Capital consists of experienced investment professionals who not only provide financial support but also offer valuable industry resources and strategic guidance to help entrepreneurial teams grow rapidly. Overall, Jiyuan Capital holds significant influence within the tech industry and is an important partner for many outstanding startups!
Start licensing with Yodo1
Every game faces the same trials of losing players to other games (and media) or simply running out of stories to tell. IP licensing is a way to keep players engaged, expand into new markets, delight potential players who may not have found your game otherwise, and monetize more creatively.
Over the past decade, Yodo1 has helped leading mobile games and top IP holders come together for crossover events and strategic partnerships. So, we’ve learned a thing or two about partnering smarter and more effectively.
Our new IP licensing playbook gives you some of that insight, and shows what you can achieve with Yodo1.
