Video: How Habbo kept players engaged with smartphone spin-offs

Paul LaFontaine, then CEO of Habbo developer Sulake, discusses keeping players engaged in a game world as they move across platforms in this free video lecture from GDC 2012, courtesy of the GDC Vault .

He shares that one problem Sulake has is the split attention span of its core, teen players that is frequently diverted by several devices. To recapture their attention, while allowing them to move across platforms, the studio created two mobile adventure games to complement Habbo 's online world.

Niko awarded badges that displayed in Habbo player profiles, and Lost Monkey awarded players a pet they could bring back to the Habbo world. One game was downloaded twice as many times as the other. Find out which and why in this free lecture.

Session Name: Moving Audiences Across Platforms

Speaker(s): Paul LaFontaine

Company Name(s): Sulake Oy

Track / Format: Social and Online Games Summit

Overview: It used to be said that getting a new customer was harder than keeping an existing one. Not so with closed online social networks, mobile platforms and competing devices. Now the harder task is keeping the attention and loyalty of a customer whose interests span Facebook, smartphones, and open web. This session is for game designers faced with difficult platform marketing challenges and aims to share practical field lessons on techniques that work.

The session is broken into sections that cover the ecosystem, the marketing problem, techniques that tie games together and ways of adapting gameplay. Data will be shared regarding techniques that worked, and those that did not.
About the GDC VaultIn addition to this presentation, the GDC Vault offers numerous other free videos, audio recordings, and slides from many of the recent GDC events, and the service offers even more members-only content for GDC Vault subscribers. Those who purchased All Access passes to events like GDC, GDC Europe, and GDC China already have full access to GDC Vault, and interested parties can apply for the individual subscriptions via a GDC Vault inquiry form.

Group subscriptions are also available: game-related schools and development studios who sign up for GDC Vault Studio Subscriptions can receive access for their entire office or company. More information on this option is available via an online demonstration, and interested parties can find out more here. In addition, current subscribers with access issues can contact GDC Vault admins.

Be sure to keep an eye on GDC Vault for even more new content, as GDC organizers will also archive videos, audio, and slides from other events like GDC China and GDC 2013. To stay abreast of all the latest updates to GDC Vault, be sure to check out the news feed on the official GDC website, or subscribe to updates via Twitter, Facebook, or RSS.

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