Penny Arcade panels: A strong industry starts with gamers

BELLEVUE, Washington--In addition to Gabe and Tycho's speeches and the hotly anticipated musical program, the Penny Arcade Expo's enormous theater also played host to a variety of panel discussions. All discussions started with questions from PA's active user forums, followed by questions from the floor.

Not surprisingly, Rockstar and Hot Coffee were leading topics in the Games and Controversy panel, but the panelists explored other issues as well. Most intriguingly, they discussed what gamers can do to make their views known to politicians, who are now considering how--or whether--the game industry should be regulated. Considering this prospect, panelist Burnie Burns of Red vs. Blue commented "I don't think the government could do a better job [than the ESRB]."

Effectiveness notwithstanding, the panelists agreed that increased governmental regulation is a real possibility. Their suggested response? In the words of Jeff Kalles of Nintendo: "Call your local congressperson." Politicians care about votes, and a call from a constituent has a lot more power than an online petition signed by hundreds or even thousands of non-constituents, he said. However, the panelists recognize that gamers tend to be politically apathetic, so they gave an alternate suggestion as well: "Vote with your wallets. Buy more games."

As RvB's Burns put it, "As the industry gets bigger, it will protect itself."

Gamers know that marketing can make or break a game, and Sunday's marketing panel gave the attendees a chance to hear about the strategy and tactics behind today's game marketing.

The panel kicked off with a question on interactive TV and games-on-demand. There was general agreement on the panel that although the idea is interesting, the execution so far has fallen short.

One panelist underscored the problem by asking for "hardcore TV watchers" to raise their hands. Only a few hands appeared. The concensus: One reason gaming TV shows haven't caught on may simply be because the target viewers just don't watch much TV.

TV was just the first type of medium the panelists discussed. However, it was the only form of mass media that garnered significant attention, as most of the specific marketing strategies under discussion revolved around online initiatives, especially blogging and online communities.

As Alex Macris of advertising agency and game consultancy The Themis Group put it, "Blogging is becoming central to the marketing of games." Not only are developer blogs becoming common, but also marketing campaigns now are designed to win over trendsetters, like bloggers, guild leaders, and pro gamers, he said.

Macris pointed out this is cheaper than using mainstream media to target the mass audience. It's typically more effective too, because it takes advantage of these influencers' credibility in the community. Basically, make them fans and they'll spread the word on their own.

While the panels weren't the main draw at the Expo, they were well-attended and gave the mostly fun-oriented event a hint of gravity.