Presented at the Social Gambling & Gaming Summit Berlin, May 14, 2013.
Description: Player acquisition is the lifeblood of the game industry. No players, no game. The competition is brutal. Over 150 games are submitted to the Apple App Store every day. If you want to survive that maelstrom, player acquisition must be a core focus from day one. It needs to be designed into the DNA of the game. In this talk we’ll tackle the alchemy vs. science in player acquisition. We’ll look at just what falls under a developer’s control and what remains in the realm of luck and black magic. We’ll review current best practices, where they work and where they don’t. We’ll dive into the shark–‐filled social media waters and examine the potential and power of Peer2Peer referral. And we’ll risk reading the tea leaves to take a stab at what might be coming down the pike.