In our video series Conversations, we ask developers and industry experts for their insights into the world of gaming. At this year’s Gamescom, games guru Christopher Bergstresser was very generous in giving up his time to speak with Audiencly’s Angelo Simon about a whole range of subjects.
In this video, Chris talks about how AI may be used to improve games marketing.
“I think there have been strains on how people are able to market,” says Chris of the mobile industry’s recent history. “And costs have crept up.”
He says that some developers have been using alternative app stores as a way to build audiences, finding they have more freedom there.
“They’re able to garner the kind of data [they need] and then extrapolate that to iOS, and that’s given them a little breathing room,” he explains.
And for those interested in marketing direct to consumers, he says, regulatory changes have been healthy.
But AI is likely to have a huge impact in the future, though Chris is cautious about how it will be used.
“I think there are two sides to it,” he says. “One side is you get a lot of people very giddy about new technologies and they might overuse it or use it in the wrong way.”
He doesn’t believe AI is something that you can use to make a game. He thinks the human element will always be fundamental to a good design. “Where AI is useful is as an assist, allowing, for example, an artist to be more focused on character design and being really creative there.”
AI agents may also come to dominate the design of non-player-controlled characters (NPC) in games, giving designers the ability to tailor game responses to individual players.
But he highlighted a less obvious use of AI as a way for improving marketing, finding and engaging with online communities appropriate to your game. He gave us an example of how this might work:
“In all these countries, people are using these channels to talk about simulation games or talk about first person shooter games. And then that’s where the human aspect comes in, and you can start designing your marketing campaigns or your messaging to then talk directly to those communities.”
This is going to be particularly important for developers who want to reap the benefits of direct to consumer, chief among which is the retention – keeping them coming back to replay your game.
“There are some significant things [with AI] where you’re going to be able to stay in better touch with the audience more directly,” he says. “Especially if you want to do direct to consumer.”
Check out the video here: