Tencent entered the party game with "Dream Star", which is quietly rewriting the category pattern.
According to the data, the game topped the free overall list of the Apple App Store and the third best-selling list in 90 minutes on the first day of the open beta, and ranked second on the best-selling list on the second day of the server. For several days, the game ranked second only to "Honor of Kings" on the best-selling list.
There have been many people in the outside world who have questioned whether Tencent can replicate its previous achievements in the field of MOBA and tactical competition in the field of party games, which is a big DAU game? Judging from the current market performance, Tencent may go to the next level in the field of social games and big DAU games.
Why did "Dream Star" get such amazing results, and what kind of logic and rules did Tencent do behind it?
Find valuable tracks, choose the right time, and enter the game accurately
According to Gamma data, the number of mobile casual game users in China has exceeded 500 million, and the actual sales revenue of the domestic mobile casual game market in the first half of 2023 will be 16.705 billion yuan, and it will reach 31.841 billion yuan in 2023.
Gamma Data's "2022-2023 R&D Competitiveness Report of Chinese Game Enterprises" shows that the needs of Chinese game users have undergone new changes:
- Lightweight – preference for lighter, faster-paced, and more enjoyable gameplay;
- Lots of gameplay - play a variety of games, such as medium and heavy games to add casual side play;
- Good graphics - a game with cool graphics and high art level.
These three trends directly point to boutique casual games and mid-to-light games.
The market size of casual games is limited by two major constraints on the supply side: the limitation of edition numbers and the scarcity of high-quality popular products. Although the DAU of casual games tends to be high, the ARPU is low, and there are few large manufacturers that are willing to lay out projects and tap potential in the past, and there are even fewer manufacturers with comprehensive capabilities such as products, distribution, and platforms. However, given the 500 million user scale, the ceiling of the boutique casual game market is expected to be further pushed up.
Naturally, Tencent will not miss it. In Tencent's third-quarter earnings conference this year, Tencent President Martin Lau said: "We see a growing interest in casual games, and we see this as a new investment opportunity. ”
The supply of party games is small, but there have been phenomenal hits one after another, which shows that it is a blue ocean track in the subdivision of the casual game field. Tencent's "Yuanmeng Star" is a product born based on the above-mentioned market judgment.
"Yuan Dream Star" entered the game at this time, and the timing was very accurate. Backed by a network of acquaintances, "Yuan Dream Star" has played a multi-circle social positioning of "family carnival". Based on the network effect of the party game itself - the more people play, the more entertainment value can be generated, the product is likely to gradually form a trend of social fission, and then the acquaintance network can play an advantage and spread fission. The marginal cost of the new users brought about by social fission is extremely low.
Therefore, the previous model of party games focusing on content (including AIGC, PGC, UGC) to invest in continuous customer acquisition is expected to be changed: after the social fission of joining the acquaintance relationship, the comprehensive acquisition method of marketing + content + social + channel + word-of-mouth is expected to dilute the cost of customer acquisition.
Looking back on the timeline, "Yuan Dream Star" got the version number at the beginning of the year, and it is reported that there was already a playable version with a high degree of completion at that time, but after 8 months of polishing, it was exposed to the public in September and opened the internal test, and it was officially launched on the whole platform in December.
In the past 10 months, Tencent has actually continued to polish its products. Judging from the final online version, in addition to the common parkour gameplay of party games, "Yuan Dream Star" also covers more than ten kinds of gameplay, such as the action type of "Smash Bros.", the classic shooting type of "Charge Competition" and "Biochemical Chase", the werewolf killing type of "Who is the Werewolf" and "Undercover Action", the racing type of "Forza Motorsport", and the tactical competition type of "Breakout Neverland......
In a live broadcast clip of "Yuan Dream Star" with many KPL players, the UGC map of "Charge Race - King Canyon" experienced by these professional players integrates FPS and MOBA features (these are Tencent's two most successful gameplay methods), so that the gameplay of "gunfight in the King's Canyon" can be realized. Professional players still have a good time playing, and it is conceivable that the integration of innovative gameplay must be a novel experience for ordinary players.
It can be seen that Tencent will not play easily, but will wait until the gameplay experience of the product reaches a high level, and it will be able to win with one blow before making accurate shots.
Not only a game, but also a comprehensive social entertainment platform
Behind the multiple gameplay, UGC maps, and the integration of multiple contents, the core of "Yuanmeng Star" is actually carrying out "platform construction".
Take Tencent Video as an example,In the function of Star Home,There is a free tool——Projector。 The projector has a built-in Tencent video massive film and television comprehensive resources,It also has a built-in Tencent video searcher。 On content platforms such as Bilibili and Douyin, you can see many players sharing interesting experiences of watching Tencent videos in "Yuan Dream Star", such as friends getting together to watch "Crayon Xiaoxin", during which players can interact through text or voice.
This feature comes from an interesting phenomenon during the second beta of "Dream Star": in the open party list, a large number of parties are named after film and television works, or clearly express the desire to watch movies together and catch up. So "Yuan Dream Star" realized it according to the needs of players.
Rather than being a game, "Metadream Star" is more of a "small metaverse" that integrates a variety of online social entertainment methods. It uses content as a link and connects players with the starting point of "family carnival" - through all kinds of content to reach, link, and gather, and build a diversified online entertainment scene.
At the same time, the emotional positioning of "Family Carnival" in "Yuan Dream Star" introduces richer social relationships, which is expected to reshape the business model of the party track. It cuts into specific online entertainment scenarios with a richer chain of social relationships, which can not only build a "big square" scene to meet strangers, but also a "small garden" scene to gather more private and smaller groups of like-minded interactions.
It can be predicted that in the following winter solstice, New Year's Day, Spring Festival, Valentine's Day, Lantern Festival and other festivals, "Yuan Dream Star" is likely to give birth to more subdivided and more layered online entertainment scenes (such as couples watching romantic movies in the game). And players will inevitably enjoy the joy of getting together in a festive atmosphere.
Vigorously explore the value of UGC content and become the next long-distance running champion
Although Tencent's "Yuan Dream Star" has only been launched for a few days, the results of the iOS double list are indeed far ahead. This can't help but make the market feel Tencent's insight into social products, the big DAU track, and young players, as well as Tencent's strong R&D and publishing capabilities. The classic way of seizing the key opportunity and entering the game with high-quality products is already a very mature set of playing methods for Tencent.
Of course, whether "Yuanmeng Star" can maintain stable operation in the long term in the future depends on whether the UGC content ecology of the game itself can develop healthily and continue to feed back to the game itself. To this end, the game officially announced the first phase of an ecological incentive plan totaling 1.4 billion, covering three dimensions: UGC map creator incentives, game content creator incentives, and e-sports event creation.
Player-generated map levels are the first and most important part of UGC content. Excellent player-made maps can not only drive players in the game to be active, but also detonate social network discussions for game highlights. To this end, "Yuanmeng Star" officially announced the first phase of the 1 billion "Dream Making Plan", which supports UGC map creators through the "Dream Chasing Star Journey" national incentive activity, national creation activities, super grand prix with tens of millions of offers and super traffic support. Among them, the ecological incentive plan of up to 43.3 million in the first season has been officially implemented with the launch of the game.
At present, there are many UGC maps in "Metadream Star", which have aroused the attention and discussion of players. For example, a racing map called "Times Star Stage" in "Yuan Dream Star" was initiated by the Times Youth League, the spokesperson of "Yuan Dream Star", with the theme of simulated concert, integrating "modern + cyberpunk" elements, and the number of map plays has exceeded 3.328 million and received 275,000 likes.
Secondly, for game content creators, "Dream Star" has also launched a content ecological incentive plan called "Dream Partner". "Yuanmeng Star" joined hands with 9 major platforms on the whole network to jointly launch the project, providing a total of 300 million yuan in incentive fund incentives in the first quarter, hoping to build a rich content ecology based on multiple dimensions such as game guides, map levels, fashion, social activities, talent live broadcasts, hand-drawn second creation, and COS.
In addition, "Yuanmeng Star" will also build the world's leading national party e-sports event ecology, and in 2024, it will invest more than 100 million yuan in three different levels of events under the first "Yuanmeng Star Champion Cup", including bonuses and competition investment, and there is no upper limit on the long-term investment in the e-sports ecosystem. Bonuses, events, and the love and novelty of a large number of players, "Yuanmeng Star" has a certain advantage in this dimension.
The UGC content ecology is bound to be a marathon and a protracted battle. "Yuan Dream Star" already has the necessary ability and combat power. The market's expectation for "Yuan Dream Star" is not only to overtake in corners, but also to become the next "evergreen" game of Tencent Games after MOBA and tactical competition.
(This article was first published on the Titanium Media APP, edited |.) Li Chengcheng)