In the world of gaming, the engagement and retention rate fluctuates within a week’s span or even a month as per industry experts. This is happening mainly because of the work from home culture which gives people enough time to play games and there are multiple options available in the store. The only way to maintain the popularity curve is to evolve from where it started. Nextwave Multimedia’s popular game World Cricket Championship 3 (WCC3) is one such example which has maintained it. From bagging Google Play Store’s Best of 2020 award in the users choice category, to becoming the first home grown esports game title in India, the game continued its journey to maintain the upward curve with no intention to slack off.
In conversation with AnimationXpress, Nextwave Multimedia co-founder and CEO P R Rajendran shared, “WCC3 brings in the thrill and excitement of cricket to a mobile game. Sports simulation are among the hardest games to build and we have stayed committed to the journey by continuously improving the game. We have lots of esports tournaments lined up for our most ardent fans for the cricket season. A major update of the game is also planned during the season.”
The game has attracted a lot of eyeballs from all over India. Along with the quality of the game, the strategies for promoting the game have also bolstered its growth curve.
Firstly, the game commentary is done by top class cricketers who are well known professional commentators in real life because of which the experience of playing the game has been lifted by many notches. There are many cricket simulation games in the Indian market but what makes WCC3 stand out is the real cricket experience it offers with professional commentaries which are available in various languages. He added, “We think language commentaries bring the fans closer to the game and keeps them more engaged. We have seen outpouring of emotions by our fans in social media from the joy of hearing the game commentary in their own languages. We are further expanding and adding more languages with each build.”
Secondly, they partnered with AXE Deodorant to offer their users double the amount of free coins, platinum every day for the entire duration of the campaign. “By doubling the in-game currency drops, the brand enables unlocking of premium content in the game simply by playing and not paying,” he shared. They are currently working with two major brands during the cricket season – Axe Deodorant and Redbull. Also, Redbull Mobile esports Open is live in WCC3 with daily prizes and from quarter finals onwards all matches will be live streamed and be culminating in a grand finale.
Today, a lot of brands are showing interest in exploring the gaming market and brand integration in games is one of the profitable ways to attract new users as well as revenue too. Speaking on the in-game brand integration, Rajendran shared, “Brand integration with a game results in creating exciting events or new content for the fan in the game, which benefits the game and the brand. Brand integration is also one of the sources for montising the game. In-game events with brand presence in the game deliver much higher brand recall.”
Over the years a lot of influencers shared that it is essential to choose branded content rightfully where the audience could find it relatable and the same rule is followed in games. He further shared, “Brand engagement in games has a much higher recall if the brand story is woven in the game. The medium has huge novelty and can engage with audiences like no other medium. The games being very cost effective versus other media is another reason.”
There are currently five esports tournaments happening in WCC3 through partnerships with Penta Esports, Redbull, ustreak, gamerji and Facebook. By staying focused in sports simulation, they now have a major build releasing soon post which they will be adding more content that is scheduled to release next year.