Playing Fez and Trials Evolution got me thinking – Considering the amount of nostalgia that these and other indie games create in us as gamers, i am pretty surprised that Indie Game Developers don’t milk the power of nostalgia even more when marketing their products.
Indie Game Developers need to use the memory connections that their games create, as a weapon in their customer loyalty arsenal. Research has shown that memories for your brand and game wont fade or disappear when your game constantly reminds players of favourable past experiences. The thing is , people (and especially gamers) are inherently nostalgic creatures, and we love to relive enjoyable past experiences whenever we have a chance.
Keep in mind that your game doesnt have to share any of the mechanical or technical parts of the games that you are creating a memory bond with. In fact your game will probably come with all of the conveniences that gamers now expect in their games. Yet if you show that you went out of your way to keep much of the styling’s of the original game/s that gamers have a memory of, you will be able to create a new game wrapped around powerful old memories.
Think about it, when we buy the umpteenth release of Mario or Zelda or whatever else, we intrinsically know that we are buying a “new game with old memories”. One of the reasons that i believe that games like Trials and Superbrothers are so succesful is because they remind us of our past.
Indie Game Developers, should follow Volkwagen’s example with the Beetle… Volkswagen began by kindling the strong brand-memory connections that prospective buyers had with the older Beetle. Likewise, Indie developers can kindle the strong brand-memory connections that gamers have with their games by launching a Social Media Marketing campaign that includes nostalgia heavy slogans.
The nostalgia push if used correctly can work. How ?
Remember Nostalgia is power. It rekindles old memories and helps create new ones.
As gamers we yearn for the past. Give it to us.
And who knows, the nostalgic connection and memory connection might even bring you new customers that you otherwise wouldn’t have had.
If you have any questions , advice or suggestions – Send Yaseen Dadabhay
an email at [email protected]