Market Analysis
My SWOT analysis was as follows;
When I actually spoke to the class about my analysis, I tried to give a more informal feel - but keep the important information clear. I then went on to speak about similar games that had been produced to ours and how that would affect our releasing the game.
Giant Wheel Cowboys and Indians (1955)
My SWOT analysis was as follows;
STRENGTHS
·
There are no other recently released (within the
last 5 years) board games aimed at our age group with the cowboys and Indians
theme – yet our theme is time-less. Everyone knows the story of cowboys and
Indians which means that the game is immediately identifiable with what
children already know. If a child is already familiar with the story of the
game, they are less likely to get bored learning the rules as it is not a
barrage of new information to them.
·
The game is very tactile, involving 3D totems
and towers to build, and areas of the board to turn.
WEAKNESSES
·
The game does include chance cards and a dice
which takes some focus off the element of strategy in the game.
·
7 and 8 year olds are at a pivotal stage of
development meaning that although two children are the same age, one could be
more mature than the other mentally.
·
There are no ‘playable’ female characters in the
game meaning that girls might not find the board game as appealing as boys.
OPPORTUNITIES
·
Similar games created for adults with a tribal
theme have been very popular. Our design for a younger audience fills a current
gap in the market.
·
Parents can identify with the story of the game,
meaning they may prefer to purchase it over a game about ‘war-hammer’. This
gives us a competitive edge over who will actually be purchasing our game.
THREATS
·
Whilst our board game design might seem fresh at
the moment, it could easily be copied if not patent protected properly.
·
Existing successful board game companies such as
the new Lego line might decide to mimic our theme and thus usurp our sales
because their brand image and name will be better known than ours. Thus we
would need to produce other games with similar themes alongside this initial
game such as Cops and Robbers, Vikings and Saxons, Witches and Wizards…the list
goes on.
When I actually spoke to the class about my analysis, I tried to give a more informal feel - but keep the important information clear. I then went on to speak about similar games that had been produced to ours and how that would affect our releasing the game.
Cowboys and Indians (1954)
A spin and move
track game that was a food premium mail in game. The game came in an envelope
from Ellis Canning and featured a growth chart on the back.
Game features a
giant wheel that looks somewhat like a large gambling wheel, and a giant
gameboard. Simple game of spin the wheel and move along the gameboard, first to
finish wins the game. Ages 6 - 12, 2-4 Players.
Cowboys and Indians (1958)
COWBOYS AND INDIANS board game for young players. Build a Corral, Capture a Pony. The directions are 2,3, or 4 may play, each playing from a Cowboy or Indian "corral" as selected, with colored sticks to match. Each player spins in turn. The first player spins the arrow. It if points to a pony, the player places a pony in his own corral. If the arrow points to a color, the player holding sticks of that color, places one stick in his own corral, no matter who did the spinning. This continues in turn until one corral has been completely fenced in. Then all the players count their ponies and the one having the most is the winner.
An entry in
the 2001 About.com 8x8 Game Design Competition. Ages 10+
You need:
* An 8x8
Checker/Chess board
* 15 cowboys or U.S. Calvary circa 1800s; 10-15 mounted on horseback
* 15 Indians; 5-10 mounted on horseback
* 2 six-sided dice
* 15 cowboys or U.S. Calvary circa 1800s; 10-15 mounted on horseback
* 15 Indians; 5-10 mounted on horseback
* 2 six-sided dice
This game is
designed to utilize those plastic cowboy and Indians lying around your house
and put them to use in an entry-level wargame.
Goal:
Capture your opponent's Fort or Village.
Mark made a very good point (but not entirely relevant in my opinion) to the possible racial issues surrounding the use of terms such as "Indian" in our game. We have decided against the 'historically linked' idea for the game, and based it on more of a fantastical 'childhood story' type of style. I believe our theme is timeless and ageless, but I plan on doing a quick survey of friends and family to gain more insight into this.
No comments:
Post a Comment