2. Glossary Open Source software - is computer software that is available for use that is free of
copyright reservations. This means that users of the software can
study, change, improve and at times also distribute the software.
Parent Company - A company that controls subsidiaries Technical Convergence - Technological convergence is the tendency for different
through its ownership of voting stock, as well as runs its technological systems to evolve towards performing similar task
own business. Cloud computing - Cloud computing refers to the provision of computer resources
Subsidiary - Controlled by a holding or parent company (primarily software) on demand via a computer network. Its principal is, in effect, no
Vertical Integration - The combination in one company of different to the supply of gas or electricity – the digital content is streamed down the
two or more stages of production normally operated by internet to the users computer ready for immediate use.
separate companies Gaming-on-demand - Gaming on demand is a game service which will take advantage
Horizontal Integration - Production of different varieties of a broadband connection, large servers and digital encryption and compression to
of the same product, or different products at the same stream game content directly to a subscriber. Game content isn't stored on the user's
level of processing, within a single firm. machine and game code execution occurs primarily at the server so a less powerful
Publisher - A person or company that prepares and issues computer can be used than the game would normally require.
books, journals, music, or other works for sale OnLive - is a cloud computing, gaming-on-demand medium: the games are
Game Developer - A person who develops games. synchronized, rendered, and stored on remote servers and delivered via the Internet.
Distributor - An agent who supplies goods to stores and Onlive itself is not a platform. The games offered run off of Onlive servers (mostly
other businesses that sell to consumers installed with Windows). The Onlive service allows game content to be passed along
Software Developer - A software developer is a person or the internet to end users running the Onlive game system.
organization concerned with facets of the software
development process
Transnational - A large company operating
internationally; a multinational
Globalisation - growth to a global or worldwide scale
Exclusivity - This refers to an advertiser requesting that
their ad not be shown in rotation. This normally results in
a higher fee for the publisher, as it reduces the number
of ads they could otherwise show.
Synergy - The interaction or cooperation of two or more
organizations, substances, or other agents to produce a
combined effect greater than the sum of their separate
effects
Partnership - A business or firm owned and run by two or
more partners
Proprietary software - Computer programs which are the
legal property of one party, the use of which is made
available to a second or more parties, usually under
contract or licensing agreement.
3. Factfile
Made by Rockstar Games
Rockstar Games are the Subsidiary of Take-
Two Interactive
This means that Take –Two is the parent
company as it owns Rockstar.
Who is Rockstar?
Rockstar Games is a Publishing company that
publishes games such as Grand Theft Auto,
Midnight Club and Red Dead Redemption.
Who runs Rockstar?
The Rockstar Games label started in New
York in 1998 by the English video game
producers Sam Houser, Dan Houser, Terry
Donovan, Jamie King and Gary Foreman.
4. For Red Dead Publisher
Rockstar Redemption
Rockstar Games
Were the various Rockstar Studios something else before
they became Rockstar studios?
Developer
Some studies have been renamed and taken over by its
parent company, Take-Two Interactive. This is to mix Rockstar San Diego
the two companies together although some studies
have kept their Brand so that they can become part of
the companies ‘2k Games division’.
Distributor
Rockstar San Diego – Angel Studios
Ditan Distribution
Rockstar Vancouver – Barking Dog Studios
Rockstar Vienna – Neo Software
5. Vertical/Horizontel Ownership
Rockstar is Parent Company
Take-Two Interactive The parent company,
controlling the
Take-Two Interactive
production at two
Owns the Publishing
stages of the
Publisher company Rockstar.
production, the Rockstar Games This is vertical
publishing and
integration as it is
the game
owning or controlling
developing as it is Game Developer
production at
the same Rockstar San Diego
different levels.
company at both
levels. This is
vertical Distributor Parent Company
Titan Distribution Take-Two Interactive
integration.
Publisher
Different companies are Rockstar Games
working together on the same
level of production as a Game Developer Software developer
Rockstar San Diego Natural Motion
partnership; nobody owns
Natural Motion.
Distributor
This is horizontal integration. Titan Distribution
6. How is a game actually made?
Rockstar Advanced Game Engine (RAGE)
Made by RAGE Technology Group at
Rockstar San Diego. Create the ‘game world’
using Euphoria, an
Euphoria character animation example of cross-media
engine at Natural Motion convergence.
Open Source bullet physics engine
7. What processes and people are
involved in this long and complex
process?
Development
Trailer of the game was sent to Sony which also promoted the new Play Station 3 as it had yet to be released.
Marketing and Release
Allowed people to ‘pre-order’ the game and gave them a vote on what outfit the main character could unlock
straight away, which instantly provided new content to the game depending on the outfit they chose.
Exclusive additional things such as new gang buildings were available if you bought it on PS3.
Downloadable content that expanded the game with new missions and guns.
8. What gaming platforms is Red Dead Redemption
available on? Why do you think it is these
consoles and not others?
I think the game is only available on PS3 and XBOX
360 as it is probably a game that requires good
graphics and a high standard of game play, a
system that is fast and can deal with a big
sandbox game. As the game is 3D is probably
takes up a lot of space and needs to have a good
console to support it. I also think it could be
because it means the company can charge more
for the game as generally, games for these types
of consoles are more expensive as they are
newer. Also, people will want to buy it for these
two consoles as they are most popular at the
moment and if they brought it out for PC, it may
not do as well. These consoles are also more likely
to be bought by people around the age of the
target audience for the game, 18. Other consoles
such as the Wii is more suitable for the younger
generation and families; therefore it wouldn’t get
many sales if they brought it out on that platform.
9. Which technologies do they converge and what
impact does this have on the game and its
players?
Xbox and Play station 3 have similar qualities so it means the game can be made alike and less money has to be
spent on making it available on those two platforms. The interaction is very similar when using both consoles
and you are able to carry out similar tasks on them due to what they can provide, they are like different devices
in one.
Does this impact on the game?
This does impact on the game as it means that Rockstar can produce upgrades for the game and people can buy and
download the upgrade or expansion packs to make the game better and introduce new things to the game all
of the time. This impacts the game as it means it isn’t being forgotten about and the company can spend
money on improving the game and giving the players what they want so that they will spend more money and
get more out of the game overall. You can already download this new content for the game:
Undead Nightmare
Liars and Cheats
Legends and Killers
Outlaws to the End (co-op mission pack)
Does this allow for extra revenue to be generated?
It has slightly allowed for extra revenue to be made as games on these two platforms can be expensive, especially
when they first come out. As both consoles are in high demand and are popular due to the fact you can go
online and play with other people, whilst also being able to access stored games and have the ability to save
the game whenever you want. The technical convergence has allowed more revenue in a way because people
are willing to pay for a high quality game that is modern and can do new things on the consoles.
10. Take Two Interactive
Is a large American publishing company that is headquartered in New York
It is also a developer and distribution company as it owns:
2k Games and Rockstar Games.
Games it has produced:
Grand Theft Auto
Midnight Club
Manhunt
Bioshock
It is a transnational business.
Why?
It sells its products beyond the boundaries and world wide. Therefore it is also a global and has globalisation
due to the fact it uses other companies internationally to create the games.
Globalisation of the game means that the game is available globally, in many different countries instead of just
one. The game is distributed to a lot of places and is growing due to this. The movement of people, goods,
capital and ideas due to increased economic integration which in turn is propelled by increased trade and
investment. The sharing of goods, services, knowledge and cultures between people and countries.
11. Which Game Engines run Red Dead
Redemption?
Rage Euphoria Engine
Who owns them?
Natural Motion
How does this relate to cross-media
convergence?
Because Natural Motion also is used on other levels of production such as the
game developer and software developer.
12. Marketing
How was the game marketed in the UK?
Trailers –
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gBctl1h_2o
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QxQi1qasY4&feature=r
esults_main&playnext=1&list=PLBE314F1453C2B65C
THERE ARE MANY OTHER TRAILERS AVAILABLE
Bonus’ were available such as ‘the War Horse’
Free Red Dead Redemption t-shirt if you pre-order the game
online.
Exclusive additional content like gang hideouts for the Play
station version.
The game features rewards for your console avatar.
First ever trailers at the cinema for the game.
There was a half an hour short film made:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZUUVV2rjoc
Pre-order deals – Look at slide 7.
$20 Walmart gift card and free pack of cards
Building sized billboard posters in New York
Games Magazines
14. Black, white and red colour scheme.
Game Box Cover
Black connotates death and mystery.
Red connotates death, danger, anger.
White connotates purity, simplicity and
Shows snapshots of
emptiness. All of these things match
the action on the back,
to show what parts of
the genre of the game as it is a violent
the game are like and game. The character has
give examples of the a gun as a prop, to
graphics. show that there is
going to be
violence and
shooting within the
game – something
that will attract the
target audience.
Already introducing
the main character
as a medium shot.
Allowing you to see
his appearance. He
is scruffy and looks
rough, his hair looks
greasy and like he
doesn’t care. He has
a serious facial
expression which
means he has
power; his stance
helps with this idea
too.
15. Why do you think the RDR’s cinema advert
was shown before screenings of Robin
Hood, Iron Man 2 and Prince of Persia?
Because the films will have a similar target audience so by playing the
trailer for the game whilst waiting for one of the films to start, it will
introduce the people to the game. They chose to do it at these screenings
as they are probably the type of people who are most likely to buy and
play a game like this. The films are action films that will be mainly watched
by males around the age of 18 and over, they include violence and have
similar story lines. If they were to show the advert on films such as Bride
Wars, it would get ignored as it wouldn’t be being shown to the type of
people that would buy it.
“Speaking to MCV, Rockstar GM Neil Stephen said Redemption will get
the company's first ever cinema advertising campaign."We think the
cinematic nature of the game makes it a perfect fit for cinema," Stephen
said; the game will be advertising to audiences of Robin Hood, Iron Man 2
and Prince of Persia.”
16. “Rockstar added that its cinema campaign will incorporate some kind of
Bluetooth-enabled content download via posters in the cinema foyer”
This is an example of convergence as it is two companies
working on the same level in order to provide something.
The companies are coming together to create something on
a whole.
17. What partnerships did Rockstar make with various
retailers in order to generate pre-orders for RDR?
Rockstar made cross-media convergence partnerships as they were working with other
companies on the same level of production.
This level of production was marketing as they were coming up with ideas to promote and get
their product out there and known. So they did this by working with other companies such as:
Walmart – gift hard and free playing cards
GameStop – to provide the pre-order bonus on slide 7
PlayStation
Xbox
Game
HMV
18. Where any of these partnerships set-up
in the UK?
Rockstar set up partnerships with companies such as HMV and Game in the UK so that they could sell the
game. They also set up cross-media convergence partnerships with online stores such as AMAZON UK,
as they are popular and many people would rather buy a copy of the game online from a well known site
that they trust and that offers good prices. There are other partnerships that were also set up in the UK,
including:
HMV – The War Horse
GAME – The Deadly Assassins Outfit
GOOGLE SEARCH – Red Dead Redemption UK Pre-order Edition
AMAZON UK – The Golden Guns Weapon Pack
Why do shops form these partnerships with game publishers?
By using these partnerships, the shops gained sales too as they were offering special things compared to
other shops. People would rather go to a shop that has a special deal on the game and gives you more
for your money than a different shop that isn’t offering more for what you are paying.
Why would someone buy the game at the same price as somewhere that is offering it and more?
20. Distribution
• Physical or Digital media?
Xbox Marketplace (http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-GB/)
Physical includes the actual Digital media is things for the Digital media is
console itself: game that you can download much cheaper to
The CD online: do as it means less
The Game box Expansion packs post production
Blu-ray Play station Store costs, and it is also
Wii Optical Disc Steam quicker. This means
UMB Direct2Drive that the game can
- They are different Mac App Store be made cheaper
depending on the console. - These also vary on the for people to buy
console that you are using. so maybe more
people will buy it.
Steam (http://store.steampowered.com/)
Windows Live Marketplace (www.gamesforwindows.com/en-GB/)
21. History of Take-Two Interactive
As a company do they have a in-house distribution division or has
this recently changed? If it has, who now distributes the games?
opopooopopoo opopooopopoo
How are Rock star's games distributed?
In-House Developers - These are
studios that are owned by a larger
They are distributed by Take-Two publisher, developing exclusively for
interactive. that publisher. They have varying
degrees of autonomy within the larger
publisher, but typically have fewer
funding issues. Examples
include Rare and Lionshead owned.
22. Was Red Dead Redemption released simultaneously across the globe
or was it a staggered release?
It was released at the same time everywhere and on both available platforms.
PS3 & XBOX – 18th May, 2010.
But then different expansion packs were released at separate times.
On June 22, 2010, they released the first downloadable expansion pack for Red Dead
Redemption - Outlaws to the End.
And then other downloadable content was released on different dates, making it available
for players.
July 8, 2010
August 10, 2010 and so on.
The short film directed by John Hillcoat was released on May 29, 2010.
If it was staggered, what implications are there for the
distribution of the game?
In a way, it was staggered as you couldn’t buy the complete game as there were always
new packs to download and improve the game. This had implication on the distribution of
the game as it meant they had to make all of the packs available and send them out on
the right time and make people aware of the new one.
23. 1)Where can the game be bought?
2)Does this impact on the distribution of the game?
3)Are these various points of sale going to have an impact on the price?
1) The game can be bought many places including online and in shops. Some examples of shops that would sell the game are
HMV, Tesco, Game. And also online shops like AMAZON. The prices may vary depending where you buy it from due to the
bonus deals that certain places have with the game. The game can also be downloaded on the gaming platform itself I
think, making it easy.
2) This does impact on the distribution of the game as they can only be bought at certain places meaning the distribution
process could be difficult although there are many places it can be bought from so people shouldn’t have any trouble
finding it.
3) It definitely has an impact on the price as certain shops have special bonus deals on when you buy the game, which other
places may not have.
Do any of the above points of
sale relate to technological
convergence?
Yes, the fact you can
download new content online
on the gaming platform.
24. USEFUL ARTICLES –Online Gaming
www.dfcint.com/wp/?p=14 http://www.detecon-dmr.com/en/article/the-
In 2006, DFC estimates that the worldwide online game market
evolution-of-video-gaming-distribution_2010_01_19
was $4.5 billion. They think that by2012 the worldwide online
game market will pass $13 billion. 40% of online games revenue coming from digital distribution by 2012
and revenue from digital distribution of console games to surpass $1
Broadband penetration in the twenty leading online game billion by the same year.
countries is expected to increase 48% from 2006 to 2012.
Mobile gaming, which is predominantly digitally distributed, already
generated $5.8 billion
The total overall number of online gamers in the twenty leading
online game countries is expected to increase 51% from 2006 to
With digital distribution, developers and publishers can avoid retailers
2012. entirely and distribute games to consumers themselves or through online
aggregators such as Direct2Drive and Gametap. Console makers have
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology- also launched digital distribution networks on their game systems to
17458205 allow consumers to directly download content to internal hard drives.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology- The first successful video game digital distribution platforms was Valve’s
17464931 Steam client - distributes almost 600 games available for download and
has 16 million users.
Telecom providers should be able to play a key role in the development of
gaming digital distribution.
27. Consump
tion
describes the audiences actual interaction with
the media text. This can be either passive or
interactive engagement :
Passive engagement is when you watch something
on TV or on the internet and think about it.
Interactive engagement is when you describe the
media text.
consumer to manipulate the technology in some
way to either to access the media text or to
progress it in some way – using an iPhone to
access the internet, bid on eBay or purchase an
item from Amazon would be a good example of
the former while playing console games would
28. What interactive elements encourage the
audience/consumer to buy Red Dead
Redemption?
• Violence
• Online
• Story
• Combat
• Gunplay
29. How does the Open World/ Sandbox nature
of the game (in terms of different
outcomes / challenges) relate to
Consumption?
Online gaming – interact with other players
Multi player gaming
30. Sales figures for Red Dead Redemption: Undead
Nightmare.
How do these compare to the original games
release?
• Red Dead Redemption – 11 Million sales
• Read Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare – 2 million so it
is a lot less!
31. What are the key
characteristics of RDR game
play? game that enables up to 16 people to play the
• It is an online
game at once together, so it is also a multiplayer game. This
offers a different type of game play that people will like. The
players can also interact with the environment and the world
of the game as it is a sandbox game, so it shows a good
perspective of the actual life of the character and includes a
3D image of the world he lives in.
• The players can also, along side of the main storyline, take
part in special ‘random’ tasks.
In what ways is this similar to the way we
consume other media products?
RDR game play is heavily reliant on technology.
Describe the technologies used in online gaming,