Missed marketing opportunity - CFL Video game

[steveisdaman20113]

Being someone who has worked for years in marketing as well as the "arts, media and tech" industry, I must speak out and say the CFL has lost a Colossal marketing opportunity using videogames. And it's really really sad. Consider the numbers below, which came from a 2014 report on the Canadian videogame industry.... (A link to the report is below)

81% of Canadians aged 13-17 have played videogames in the last 4 weeks.
64% of Canadians aged 18-34 have played videogames in the last 4 weeks.
54% of Canadians overall identify themselves as "gamers"
62% of Canadians own a video game console.

Every one of those gamers (millions - mainly in the GTA) are playing one football game. And that's Madden NFL football. That's it. Kids and young adults across Canada are interacting online with 3D games in a super commercialized NFL world. They can BE the bills. THEY CAN CONTROL TOM BRADY. And they are learning about nothing but NFL players, NFL rules, NFL hype and NFL glory. That's it. And when they can completly immerse themselves in a NFL world, for hours on end, it becomes appealing. If the CFL wants to say "videogames are for kids".... Or "their not creating new fans".... It's truly ignorant. The report also says the global economic impact of the videogame industry by 2017 will reach 102,000,000,000!

Today, I heard another 14 year old talk about the new Madden game coming up. He's pumped. Lives on the prairies...... And could probably name more NFL players then CFL players.

This is a bigger marketing opportunity than broadcast television in my mind. And it's sad to see the CFL left behind.

I spoke with someone who's highly prominent in the industry about this. This person said the CFL would need an investment of about 12 million dollars just to get 1 major game released on XBOX-ONE or PS4. The CFL continues to say it's not a profitable investment. They couldn't sell enough games to make their money back. And their right. 1 in 3 videogame users would have to buy it for the league to break even.

But that's not why investing millions into videogames is a good investment. What makes it a good investment is once people play a CFL game, and interact it, and immerse themselves in it, and enjoy it, they will want see the product at the stadium, or on TV. The videogame becomes an interactive commercial for the CFL.

But for some reason it doesn't happen. I've been told by VERY CREDIBLE SOURCES that a CFL videogame (For Wii - XBOXONE or PS4) is not going to be produced or released in the foreseeable future.

That's too bad. So this fall, me and millions of others will flock to game stores, and by Madden. Sit in front of our TVs, and play NFL football. And soak in the NFL (or NHL, or MLB, or PGA, or NBA, or F1, or TENNIS) more, and more, and more.

[tennyis]

It wouldn't even come close to covering costs, and I don't thinkt he CFL is in a position to sink 40+ Milliion into developing a new game.
The only chance would be to have it as an addon to Madden, a "CFL Mode" so to speak. NHL does it with the Euro teams and the AHL teams.

[Will]

I heard some excuse about a "CFL Mode" being difficult to implement because of the differences between the two games or something like that.

[bluto]

Oh look... this thread again...

[Argocister]

A video game is a golden opportunity ..... As Bluto mentioned, there is a previous thread, but it may be a couple years old .

I believe a CFL game was created but to put it on the shelves and make it viable or actually purchased on a regular basis ( with updates) was the problem. Remember for every Canadian purchasing the Madden game, there are at least 20 Americans .... 10 for the population difference and 10 for the football interest. You won't get near that for the Canadian game ..... Canadians have a tendency to support American stuff .... Sad really.

Mind you, if you could allow a loss for 5-10 years and still update the game, I'm sure some turnaround would happen.

[Rich]

But for some reason it doesn't happen. I've been told by VERY CREDIBLE SOURCES that a CFL videogame (For Wii - XBOXONE or PS4) is not going to be produced or released in the foreseeable future.

I wouldn't be so sure. One of the main reasons the league hired Orridge as commish is his background in sports videogames. He was Director of Sports Licensing for Warner Brothers. He knows his way around the videogame industry, and you can be sure he knows the importance of this to the CFL moving forward.

[ArgoZ]

This topic has been discussed at great length, since the inception of the internet. The closest game was Dave Winter's Maximum Football for PC, which had CFL rules. The financial numbers will never make sense for this to become a reality. It will be a lost investment to all parties involved. It will be great for exposure, but it's easy spending someone else's money.

[AngeloV]

This topic has been discussed at great length, since the inception of the internet. The closest game was Dave Winter's Maximum Football for PC, which had CFL rules. The financial numbers will never make sense for this to become a reality. It will be a lost investment to all parties involved. It will be great for exposure, but it's easy spending someone else's money.

Exactly. Canada is not a big enough market to warrant it, and if there were U.S. sales, the numbers would be very small. Hard to sell a sports game when the players are not household names.

[Argocister]

Although ..... Let's see what the age groups are that are watching ESPN CFL games. We may be able to attract a niche market that wants to play the rouge, and forget about the fair catch!

[1argoholic]

I could care less about video games and the last time I played a so called video game it was pong hooked up to the tv.

The Argonauts have missed out on marketing for never doing quality marketing if any at all. It's Toronto with surely some of the best marketing companies in the world. Perhaps next year they may hire one.

[Argo57]

I could care less about video games and the last time I played a so called video game it was pong hooked up to the tv.

The Argonauts have missed out on marketing for never doing quality marketing if any at all. It's Toronto with surely some of the best marketing companies in the world. Perhaps next year they may hire one.

Completely disagree, my source told me Braley and Rudge have secured the financing $100 for CFL15 which will use Atari as the game platform, Ricky Ray on the cover.

[AngeloV]

Completely disagree, my source told me Braley and Rudge have secured the financing $100 for CFL15 which will use Atari as the game platform, Ricky Ray on the cover.

Huh!! And some people really dis Rudge and the job he has done.
My questions are will Atari produce the game, or will it be Activision made for Atari? Will there be an intelivision version of this game?

[argonaut11xx]

Completely disagree, my source told me Braley and Rudge have secured the financing $100 for CFL15 which will use Atari as the game platform, Ricky Ray on the cover.

DAMN....i have Intelivision....

[ArgoRavi]

Huh!! And some people really dis Rudge and the job he has done.
My questions are will Atari produce the game, or will it be Activision made for Atari? Will there be an intelivision version of this game?

Hopefully, as Intellivision is better.

[Argo57]

DAMN....i have Intelivision....

Braley pulled the plug on the Mattel project, went over budget.
We're all showing our age, Intellivision was the best (I still have mine as well).

[Gill The Thrill]

Custom made CFL games were made in the past when Canada's population was even smaller 18 to 22 million.


This was a coleco product from the early 1970's. Notice the 2 fifty yard lines...Notice Coleco Stadium was ahead of it's time as it had shorter end zones than the regulation 25 yds before BC Place was ever built.I wonder if the width of the board was wider than the American Football boards. I remember knowing someone who had this magnetic football game and it was the CFL board with the Canadian cities on the scoreboards. Remember one of the figures that would go around in circles while the other guys went to the sidelines...hilarious but fun.

[Will]

I play the CFL computer game at CFLapedia. It isn't anything flashy as you only select the plays and there are a lot of bugs, but I don't think the guy who created it is a professional or anything. You can recreate approximately 30 CFL seasons (he has the '96 and '97 seasons available on DOS, but not on Windows). I cheated with the 1981 season since a lot of those players ended up being on the successful teams that came the following two seasons. I manipulated the player rankings to make them into a decent team.

[argonaut11xx]

Just my 2 cents, but make a dumbed down CFL game as an app,offer it for free (like clash of clans), and see what happens.

[T-Bone]

Just my 2 cents, but make a dumbed down CFL game as an app,offer it for free (like clash of clans), and see what happens.

The problem there is that Clash of Clans generates revenue from in game content which covers the developers costs. I guess you could sell retro jerseys etc. in a CFL game app but would it be enough to cover the developmental costs, is the question?

Braley pulled the plug on the Mattel project, went over budget.
We're all showing our age, Intellivision was the best (I still have mine as well).

There is a group that programs the old Tecmo Super Bowl game with all the current players every year and it can be purchased for NES. They also do R.B.I. Baseball. It's pretty awesome.

[argonaut11xx]

The problem there is that Clash of Clans generates revenue from in game content which covers the developers costs. I guess you could sell retro jerseys etc. in a CFL game app but would it be enough to cover the developmental costs, is the question?

I wouldn't look at it as a money maker, but rather "advertising", and target a younger demographic. Then IF it catches on, you look at ways of increasing revenues through the game. If it doesn't catch on, then so what, it was a budgeted expense.