creating casual games, content and applications for the mobile long tail

Creating ‘Casual’ Games, Content and Applications for the (Mobile) Long Tail

Creating ‘Casual’ Games, Content and Applications for

the (Mobile) Long Tailby Yiibu


What is content?


Once upon a time, this was content.

(except we usually just called it what it was)

portraits, family photos

books, newspapers, almanacs

film, theatre storytelling

radio(music, news, radio plays)

television(news, documentary,

comedy etc.)

art

content


We often classified itby subject...

(remember the Dewey decimal system?)

• Generalities • Philosophy & psychology • Religion • Social sciences • Language • Natural sciences & mathematics• Technology (Applied sciences) • The arts • Literature & rhetoric • Geography & history


...or genre...

(film, books, theatre...)

• Action/Adventure• Mystery• Historical• Documentary• News/Information• Learning• Comedy, Humour• Sports• Lifestyle• Kids


With the advent of digital content, things seem to be changing...

(definitions found online, notice things are starting to get a bit abstract)

“the details or stuff within a document—all of the words, images, and links which a user can read and interact with.”

“the message rather than the medium”

“information and experiences created to entertain, or instruct an audience.”

“subject of the plot, the events, the characters”


...and lately, content simply seems to be....

(as rich in context as “Lord of the Rings”, and as abstract as a 00123.jpg)

“a generic term used to describe any digital piece of work”


As a result, we increasingly experience content like this...


...classified by media type, format or container...

play• Flash game/web game• Java game• Console game• .mp3, .wav• Flash animation, .swf• Film, Video, CD, .mov• .jpg• Wallpaper, Screensaver, Photo• Web Feed (RSS)• Mass media paperback• Coffee table book

Increasingly, the ‘contents’ seems less important than the data type, the market, or the functionality.

sound

motion

images

words


...then, by a mixture of brand, genre, sub-format and subject matter

• 3D• Card/casino• Sports• Action/adventure• Retro• Word & trivia• Paris Hilton

• ‘Her favourites’• Disney• Adult swim• Languages• Animation• World Cup• Muppets

(a hodge-podge of mobile operator ‘content’ categories)


But why do we choose to consume content at all?It’s not necessarily because we simply

(quantitatively) want more stuff.


But why do we choose to consume content at all?It’s not necessarily because we simply

(quantitatively) want more stuff.

It’s maybe not even because we love a certain brand or genre.


It’s because we (conciously

or subconciously) want to fulfill a personal want, desire, or need.

(even if sometimes, that want or need hap-pens to be for more stuff :-)


In other words...people consume content that

(for some reason,)

is important to them.


Most people don’t wake up in the morning and say...

I must add another 20 mp3s to my collection.

I must purchase

more Disney stuff today.

I feel an urgent need

to buy a book.

My feed-reader isn’t full enough!


But they may wake up and say...

I’m in the mood for

Jazz

My kids love Disney .

Let’s rent their new

movie.

I’d loveto sit down with a good detective

novel.

I’d love to learn some-thing new.


Mobile content worksin much the same way.


Where am I?

Information/DataTask Completion

I need to find out how ‘x’ works...

What time is it?

How do I get to the cinema?

How do I call a taxi?

I consume mobile content because....

I want to order a pizza...

Is my flight on time?

Where can I get a beer

nearby?

(most common mobile search queries based on recent UK study)


Knowledge

What’s an elephant

path?In 1492...

Why do birds

migrate?

What’s CDMA?


“People treat information as a self-contained substance... something people pick up, posess, put in a database, lose, find, write down, accumulate... knowledge, by contrast doesn’t take so kindly to

ideas of shipping, receiving and quantification... Knowledge is something we digest...”1

1. Distraction: Being human in the digital, age Mark Curtis, FutureText, 2004, www.distractionculture.com


Boredom

I’m stuck at this Mobile Monday meeting. I want to pretend I’m

somewhere else.

I’m fidgety.

This meeting is

boring. Give me something

to do...

I’m falling asleep.

Challenge me!



Help me wake up!

I want to relax.

I want to escape.

I want to be someone else right

now.

Stress/Fatigue

I’m too tired to think right now...

I want to calm down before I do

‘x’.

I need to slow down.

I’m grumpy. and

frustrated...



I want people to see me this way.

This helps me feel young.I made

this!

This represents the way

I want to feel.

Social Identity/Persona

This makes me feel like an adult.

I know this is strange but I don’t

care.

A friend I trust uses

this.

This repre-sents the way I feel

right now...



This is practical.

This makes me feel

nostalgic.

This helps me stay

up to date. This

reminds me of home.

I look cool with

this.

This reminds me of

someoneI love.

Personalization/Lifestyle

I am retro man :-)

This isn’t me anymore but I don’t know

how to delete it.

This suits my style.

This makes me look

more professional.



I need to speak to...

I feel like being argumentative.

I want her to know

i’m thinking about her.

I want an opinion

on ...Do I know

you?

The people here are boring.

Has anyone seen...?

Social Interaction/Social Play

I want to chat.I want to

share ideas.I want to flirt :-)

I want companionship.



I want to feel in control.

This makes me feel safe.

Safety/Control/Independance

Don’t bug me right now.

I want to look busy.

I want a private

moment.

I want to be alone with my

thoughts.



LOL!This makes me feel like

a kid.

I love a challenge.

Private Play

I love this thing. I want another

one like it.

I always do this when

i’m in a good mood.

This makes me happy.

Don’t ask me to explain.It’s private.


Don’t tell anyone I do this.

This is fun!


Ok, but this isn’t new.You can say many of these things

about books, movies, music...Why is mobile content different?

(and why should we care)


It’s the device stupid....;-)Most of us have one...

We take it everywhere...It’s always on...

It’s incredibly private...It’s incredibly social...


Most of us have one...

As of Q1 2006, 30 countries have exceeded 100% mobile penetration.3

In Japan, mobile penetration in the 5-9 year-old age group is ex-pected to reach 64% in 2007 but the largest number of new subscribers in 2006 will come from the 55-65 age group.1

50% of the world’s population will have access to a mobile phone by 2005.2

There are about 2.5 billion mobile-phone users in the world.3

40% of Russians have 2 mobiles, 21% have 3, 10% have 4 and 3% of them have more than 4 mobiles.4

1. http://www.wirelesswatch.jp/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1759

2. http://www.telecommagazine.com/TechZones/services/article.asp?ID=AR_2148

3. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/5048966.stm

4. http://servicesmobiles.typepad.com/services_mobiles/2006/07/les_mnages_russ.html


We take it everywhere...

A 2006 survey of 5,500 people aged 18-35, in 11 nations, revealed 33% would rather lose their wallet or purse than mis-place their mobile. 1/5 would even rather lose their wedding ring!3

“A salesman explained that he had ‘one phone for work, one for family, one for pleasure, and one for the car”1

Carnival Cruise Lines has recently equipped its ships with mobile phone access.3

1. Motorola - On the Mobile by Sadie Plant


3. http://www.pocket-lint.co.uk/news.php?newsId=3754

49% of Britons surveyed say owning a mobile phone makes them feel safer and more secure.4

4. http://www.ipsos-mori.com/polls/2002/vodafone.shtml


It’s always on...

A recent study showed 81% of 15 to 20 year olds sleep with their mobile phone turned on.2

36% of British mobile TV users surveyed use the service at home.1


2. http://www.proximitylab.com/ - Wireless Works Booklet

3. http://www.pdatoday.com/more/2598_0_1_0_M/

73% use their mobile instead of a wristwatch.1

“..the driving force behind young children owning mobile phones is not the mobile industry, but the parents. Most have cited security concerns as one of the main reasons..”3


It’s incredibly private... It’s incredibly social...

Children’s charity NCH surveyed 770 youngsters and found 14% of 11- to 19-year-olds had been threatened or harassed using text messages.1

Women in Japan have daytime and evening phones as other women have daytime and evening handbags.2

1. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/4614515.stm

2. http://www.proximitylab.com/ - Wireless Works Booklet

Almost 63% of consumers surveyed would not lend their mobile phone to someone. In Japan, the figure rose to 90%.2

In a number of countries, there is a growing trend of people wishing to be buried or cremated with their mobile phones when they die.3

3.http://www.eurescom.de/message/messageJun2006/Ringtones_from_the_coffin.asp


But how does this affect the content and applications

we create?

Ok—mobile is all these things...


1. Design for interruptions...

Embrace the small things!

What else can you do to make your application more privately useable in public places?

Plan for micro-breaks vs macro breaks Much content consumption on mobiles fills smallbits of time—many of them unplanned.

Build content that can be enjoyed in small doses

Lessen the disappointment of interruptions It’s never fun to be interrupted in the middles of something long and complicated. Build simplicity into it the content or interactions. ex. chaining small doses of content together, creating shorter levels.

Interruptions go both ways. Remember—mobiles are private objects used in public places.The ability to control sound effects removes the embarrassment in public places and makes your content or application more usable.


2. View limitations as opportunities

Keep it simple, make it fun, (be sure it works :-)

Don’t simply repurpose—re-think, re-create, re-invent; with user experiencein mind. This isn’t print, video, web or interactive!

Simplicity encourages varietySmall amounts consumed over small periods—some people call it ‘content snacking.’ A snack should not be a three course meal but simplicity doesn’t have to mean “dumbed-down.”

Less is more!

1 hand1 thumb

small screen

ambientnoise+ + etc.

etc.


3. Design for diversity...

Long-tail games, content and applicationssuit many people, ages, needs, styles of play and types of interaction.Content consumption is a form of personalization. Diverse content offerings reaches more people on a more personal level and provides more meaningful opportunities for personalization.

Diversity + Choice = meaningful personalization

Design for the ‘long-tail’Each person is their own vertical market. Their collection of favourite content will be different from the next person’s.


4. Design for personal time...

Design for play, quiet contemplation, exploration, discovery, suspense, laughter, friendship, joy...(remember boredom, stress, fatigue, personalization,control, play—everyone’s personal time is different)

Personal time is an expensive commodityHow can your content or application enrich personal time?

Create small, targeted experiences for thosein-between moods, moments and needs.


“How do we design to be sometimes off

in a world that is itself always on?”1

Marko Ahtisaari, Director of Design Strategy, Nokia

1. http://ahtisaari.typepad.com/moia/2005/09/blogging_over_l_10.html

...and finally...


5. Design for health, learning and quality of life...

We can learn through play, and it can be fun :-)“listening, observing, imitating, questioning, reflecting, trying, estimating, predicting, “what-if”-ing and practicing. All of these learning processes can be done through our cell phones.”1

We also learn better with context.Learning opportunities provided in context of a real want, need or activity can be more memorable and compelling.

Promote relaxation, stress relief, brain health, pause and balance.Over 2.5 billion people are now ‘always on’. Maybe we could all use a bit of quiet during those ‘in-between moments’.

1. http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky-What_Can_You_Learn_From_a_Cell_Phone-FINAL.pdf

Promote healthy

snacking.


“To be able to fill leisure intelligently is the last product of

civilization...” Bertrand Russell, Conquest of Happiness (1930) ch. 14


Creating ‘Casual’ Games, Content and Applications for

the (Mobile) Long Tailby Yiibu

Yiibu creates unique and engaging user experiences for mobile devices. Visit Yiibu at: http://yiibu.com Contact us at: [email protected]

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