与游戏行业并不沾边的公司推出自己品牌的游戏并不稀罕，但丹麦Just-Eat公司的iPhone游戏《Belly & Brain》却不简单，因为它确实是一部好作品，而非单纯的广告游戏。这家在线外卖服务公司为何要推出这款游戏？近日，pocketgamer记者向该公司的市场营销总监马特·布雷迪（Mat Braddy）了解了有关情况，以下是访谈内容：

belly-and-brain

为何要推出手机游戏？

成熟的答案：如果你去查看外卖送货上门服务市场的人口统计资料，就会发现30%的消费者是游戏玩家。

对我们这种正在成长，打算吸引这些男女生玩家的品牌来说，这是非常重要的市场信息。我们之前在Xbox和PS3平台的游戏投放过广告，事实证明这一招很管用，所以我们就决定推出自己的游戏。

真实的答案：我们自己就是游戏粉丝，我们喜欢玩游戏，所以忍不住想试试推出自己的游戏。Belly和Brain的卡通形象很受欢迎，所以我们想给它们创造些其他增加曝光率的渠道。

哪种内部管理入股对你们来说必不可少？

这种问题让我觉得好像我们是在为一个商业大鳄卖命，但Just-Eat并不实行这种制度。

虽然我们规模很大，但仍然保持新企业的创业热情。如果说真有什么内部压力促使我们市场营销团队去寻找制作游戏的门路，那就是Just-Eat拥有许多热情的游戏玩家。

你们是怎么找到这个游戏开发团队的？

我们见过一些出色的游戏代理公司，它们非常擅长为其他品牌开发游戏。这种运营方法可能很有效，也可能适得其返，开发出乏味的广告游戏。

Lava Level是一家位于英国敦提市的开发商，曾经与Denki、DMA、Codemasters合作过，拥有真正的玩家基础，我们很看好这一点。

为何选择推出轨道风格的游戏？

在我们的电视广告里头，Belly很饿却不知道怎么喂饱自己，Brain通过附近的外卖网站解决了这个问题，我们很希望这个点子可以植入游戏玩法中，所以轨道风格成了最合适最自然的选择。

Belly & Brain

你们的游戏不但植入多人玩法模式，还绑定了Facebook功能，你认为病毒性推广的重要性如何？

我们很喜欢PlayStaion上的《百战天虫》（Worms）这个系列的游戏，尤其是它的多人玩法模式，当玩家绕过房间里的控制器再转弯的时候，就会发生相互碰撞的情况。我还是学生的时候，曾经和室友连续好几个月泡在那款游戏上。iPhone居然也能提供那样完美的游戏体验，实在很让我们吃惊，所以我们就考虑增加了多人玩法模式。

Facebook功能的绑定是为了让用户向好友晒晒自己的游戏积分，只有在游戏中拿到3颗星的玩家，才能向好友亮出分数。

广告游戏并不需要像付费游戏那样提供多个关卡，你认为《Belly & Brain》应该怎样做最好？

作为游戏玩家，我们在项目开始时就决定要制作一款好游戏，我们极力避免品牌形象与产品特色格格不入的情况，这种现象我们称之为Pringle Kong综合症。

Pringle游戏是一种质量很高的Flash游戏，玩家可以和电影《金刚》（King Kong）里面的人物一起在丛林中奔跑，跳跃躲过不断滚过来的薯片桶。

它是一个好游戏但为什么呢？我并不记得里面的世界八大奇迹是怎么打败用马铃薯和小麦兵器武装起来的恐龙。

如果你也制作一款那种类型的游戏，作为市场营销人员的你，最终只会在人们过目即忘的产品上，白白浪费好几个月时间和大笔钞票。

我们在过去的事业生涯中也都做过游戏，遇到了这种问题，所以我们希望从自己的经验中汲取教训。

你们衡量《Belly & Brain》是否成功的标准是什么？

真正的考验应该是，用户几周内是否都在玩这款游戏，我们并不指望它成为一夜走红的类型。

这款游戏现在才刚发行，有没有收到什么用户反馈？

目前为止市场反应都很好，它不但免费下载而且包含100多个关卡这一点似乎备受用户推崇。大多数免费游戏都是限制关卡数量的测试版本，而我们这款游戏却是很有趣的完整版。

这款游戏应里面含有Just-Eat的在线链接，有什么重要意义吗？

我们希望游戏可以通过口碑营销，对还没看过我们电视广告、没听说过Just-Eat的用户进行病毒式推广，所以在游戏中添加了关于我们业务介绍的链接。

《Belly & Brain》的下一步计划是什么？

我们正在制作将在明年投放的新一季电视广告，希望Lava Level工作室也能从中得到新的游戏灵感。（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译）

Just-Eat’s Mat Braddy on making advergames that don’t look like ‘dad flirting with your girlfriend’

It’s no surprise that a company that has nothing to do with games has decided to do its own branded release.

No. What’s significant about Just-Eat’s Belly & Brain for iPhone is that it’s good.

Still why would an online takeaway service provider want to release even a good game?

We caught up with chief marketing officer Mat Braddy to find out.

Pocket Gamer: So what’s the deal with releasing a mobile game?

Mat Braddy: Grown-up answer: If you look into the demographics of the home delivery takeaway market you can see around 30 percent of consumers are gamers.

It’s really important to us as a growing brand to reach out and appeal to these guys and girls. We have previously advertised within Xbox and PS3 games, which worked really well, so we wanted to build on that.

Real answer: We are gamers and we love games so couldn’t resist commissioning one of our own. The Belly and Brain characters are well loved and we wanted another outlet for them to develop.

What sort of internal management buy-in had to be obtained?

Ha – that question reminds me of working for big corporate beasts. Just-Eat is not that kind of establishment.

Although we are big, we still have a energetic start-up approach. If anything there was internal pressure on the marketing team to get on with making a game as the company is full of passionate gamers.

How did you go about finding a development team?

We saw some excellent agencies who specialise in creating games for brands. That method can work but it can also backfire and result in something bland – an advergame.

Lava Level are Dundee-based developers who used to work at Denki, DMA and Codemasters so have a real gamer heritage that we loved.

Why did you end up going for a trajectory type game?

In our TV ads, Belly is hungry but too stupid to feed himself and Brain solves this problem with your friendly neighbourhood takeaway website. We really wanted this dynamic to be at the heart of the gameplay and the trajectory genre seemed the most natural fit.

You’ve got a multiplayer mode and Facebook integration, so how important is viral promotion?

Worms. We loved Worms on PlayStation, especially the multiplayer where you passed the one controller around the room taking turns to thrash each other. I wasted months on that game as a student playing with my housemates. It struck us that iPhone games would be perfect for that experience so we’ve had a little crack at it.

Facebook integration is just a cute add-on to allow us to brag about high scores. The game only suggests you post scores if you get three stars.

Advergames don’t have to have the same level of quality as paid games, so what was your view on how good Belly & Brain had to be?

As gamers we started this from the point of view of trying to make a good game. We really wanted to avoid what we termed Pringle Kong syndrome where brands shoe horn themselves into ill fitting clothes and end up looking like dad flirting with your new girlfriend.

The Pringle game was a very high quality flash game where you played a chap from the King Kong movie running through the jungle whilst timing jumps over rolling tins of crisps…

Now it was good work but why? I don’t recall the eight wonder of the world fighting off dinosaurs armed with potato and wheat-based weaponry.

If you make a game like that, as a marketing person, you will spend months of time and thousands of pounds on something that people glance at once and forget about. We’ve all made games previously in our careers that suffered from this problem and so we’ve hopefully now learnt our lesson.

What are the metrics you’re using to measure its success?

The real test will be if people are playing it in a few weeks time. We really didn’t want to be a one night wonder.

It’s only just been released but what sort of feedback have you been getting?

It’s been brilliant so far. People seem to really appreciate the fact the game is free but contains over 100 levels. Most free games are limited trials whereas this is a full release with weeks worth of fun.

The game contains an in-app link to use Just-Eat online. How important is this?

We hope the game will spread virally through word of mouth to people who may not have seen the TV ads or heard of Just-Eat; so it is important to have a link to our core business to explain who we are and what we do.

What’s next for Belly & Brain?

We are working on the next set of TV ads for the new year so hopefully these will inspire a new game idea from Lava Level.（source:pocketgamer）