Gamer brand fandom Assessing partnership suitability between games and entertainment brands

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The 20,000 foot view

Entertainment partnerships in games are booming, with games companies being approached with opportunities from all directions. This increased level of opportunity puts pressure on the available time and resources to properly evaluate each proposal. Simultaneously, the continuous influx of opportunities, coupled with ongoing games release deadlines, make it hard for games companies to step back and apply macro frameworks for partner assessment and prioritisation effectively. 

Key Insights

• Games companies need measurement and prioritisation frameworks to assess brand collaboration success amid an overload of brand partnership approaches
• Entertainment brands require a framework to better focus their brand partnership testing efforts in games ecosystems
• Beside positive brand sentiment, negative sentiment also needs to be considered. The closer the two, the more tribal / controversial the response to a partnership may be
       of gamers are fans of IP universe brands compared to        who dislike them, making it the most suitable category for brand partnerships in games
• Sports brand fandom is the most tribal, with        of gamers being fans of the tracked sports brands, and        disliking them
• Disney has the highest fan penetration among gamers        while simultaneously having the lowest negative sentiment       
• Though among gamers, the Pokémon brand has a higher fan penetration        than G.I. Joe        it also has a higher rate of negative sentiment        versus        making it less suitable for brand partnerships overall
• Console gamers have the highest entertainment brand fan penetration compared to PC and mobile gamers
• Games aficionados (the most valuable gamer segment) have the highest brand fan penetration, highlighting the importance of cross-entertainment partnerships for games companies and brands alike
• Sandbox and open world players have the highest brand fan penetration rates across all entertainment sectors, but first-person shooter (FPS) players could provide a bigger opportunity, given the genre’s size
• Puzzle games present an opportunity for music brands (e.g., artists, creator tools, and festivals) due to the favourable overlap and lower brand partnership competition from other entertainment sectors

Companies and brands mentioned in this report : Adele, BTS, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Bulls, Chicago Cubs, DC Universe, Disney, FaZe Clan, FC Barcelona, G.I. Joe, Harry Potter, James Bond, LEGO, Lord of the Rings, Los Angeles Dodgers, Marvel Cinematic Universe, New England Patriots, New York Yankees, Pokémon, Real Madrid, Spider-man, Star Wars, Taylor Swift, Transformers