January 11, 2008
Devs may be
out of touch with target audience when it comes to kids’ games
By Michael
Lafferty
Kids are much more proficient
at gaming now than they were 10 years ago
One wonders just how far out
of touch developers of kids’ programs are with their target audience. Do they
even know what or who their target audience is?
There was a time when kids’
games labeled for ages 4-10 meant something, but not any more. Children have
grown up in the video-game age, and their skills are much more proficient than –
it seems – developers give them credit for. Hence we see a host of games geared
for children that are really suitable for ages much younger than what the
developer assumed was the correct age.
I speak from experience. When
first starting out in the business, games from Humongous crossed my desk. There
was Pajama Sam, Freddi Fish and Putt Putt. These were games that
underwent focus testing and were deemed suitable for the age group
targeted. They were entertaining and educational – hence the coining of the
phrase ‘edutainment.’ My daughter, in the target group, benefited from the
games. At times they were too easy, but in other areas, what was obvious to me
was a bit more challenging to her. In other words, they combined solid gaming
elements.
But that branch of Humongous
went away when the company was sold.
Today, what seems to pass for
children’s games are either too easy, thereby underestimating the target
audience, or just too silly to hold even younger players’ attention for long.
Movie-licensed games try to combine tried and true platforming elements with
aspects of the feature film and fall flat. Why? Because players demand more.
Kids today have grown up in
the video-game era. They understand how to control games, they understand core
puzzle concepts and they have reflexes capable of succeeding at higher
difficulty levels.
This was obvious to me years
ago, back when my now-19-year old was in the 11-12 age group. She had soccer
teammates over and they were producing a minor neighborhood disturbance while I
was trying to work through a Tomb Raider game. There was a particular point I
was stuck on. Lara was supposed to leap from a ledge, grab a vine, swing across
a chasm, and at the right moment let go of the vine and land on a ledge that
seemed about as wide as a dime. I had failed several times as the group of girls
cycled past and then stopped to watch. Finally, one of them said, “can I try?”
“Might as well,” I muttered. She did … and nailed it on the first try. From that
moment on, she was the one playing the game, to the delighted squeals of the
other girls, and I was the spectator.
How often have you heard an
FPS gamer lament being “pwned” by
a bunch of 12-year olds in the multiplayer element of a game? Sure, there is a
current of sarcasm in their voice, but the truth of the matter is there are a
lot of 10-12 year olds out there who are very proficient in multiplayer arenas.
Can you see these kids being content with a Freddi Fish adventure now?
Youtube.com recently featured
a video of a 9-year old beating Dragonforce’s Through the Fire and the Flames
(the final payoff song in Guitar Hero III) on the expert difficulty setting.
Nice job, kid, now go play your Pajama Sam game!
Kids have changed and the
gaming industry needs to do some serious focus studies, realize that and then
start producing games that challenge the younger generation of gamers. After
all, young gamers will grow up to be mature gamers and will keep the industry as
strong as it currently is.
