Gameset - presentation for V4 Future Sports Conference 2019 - Turkowski

1. WHY THE BATTLE ROYALE GENRE BECAME
A BIG THING IN ESPORTS?
LUKASZ TURKOWSKI / GAMESET

2. Source: Gameloco blog
CHALLANGE FOR BUSINESS
FAST CHANGING TRENDS

3. 2013
“The Goal Is to Become HBO Faster Than HBO Can Become Us”
2019
“We compete with (and lose to) Fortnite more than HBO”
WHY DOES NETFLIX FEAR FORTNITE?

4. WHY DOES NETFLIX FEAR FORTNITE?
250 M
PLAYERS
140 M
CLIENTS
Such comparison is obviously flawed - Fortnite is a free-to-play
game, while Netflix has a subscription fee.
>

5. WHY DOES NETFLIX FEAR FORTNITE?
6-10
HOURS PER
WEEK*
8-10
HOURS PER
WEEK**
Time spent is the most important variable - both platforms rival
essentially for the same time.
?
Own calculations based on::
*https://www.pcmag.com/news/364107/fortnite-by-the-numbers-how-many-hours-are-you-playing-each
** https://www.marketwatch.com/story/we-now-spend-more-time-on-netflix-than-we-do-bonding-with-our-kids-2018-09-13-12882032
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/netflix-takes-8-percent-time-152700650.html

6. =
NEW GAMING PARADIGM
>
Gaming is driven primarily by engagement,
that is prioritized over spending.
Viewing became as important part of gaming
world as playing itself.
Gaming is a unique entertainment, with it’s own set of rules that can be
used to the advantage of any business - including consumer brands.

7. BATTLE ROYALE AS A PERFECT FULFILLMENT OF THE NEW PARADIGM
FROM MOVIES
The Idea of Battle Royale comes from
Japanese culture.
THROUGH MODS
Japanese movies were an inspiration
for books and movies from the Hunger
Games series - which motivated the
creators of mods to recreate the
formula in games.
TO STAND ALONE GAMES
Developers picked up the trend and
began to create separate games based
on this concept.

8. HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT FORTNITE?
HAVE YOU PLAYED FORTNITE?
HAVE YOU WATCHED FORTNITE?

9. WHAT IS FORTNITE?
A. AN ONLINE ACTION GAME WITH BATTLE ROYALE MODE?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2gUtfBmw86Y

10. WHAT IS FORTNITE?
B. A POP-CULTURAL PHENOMENON?
Antoine Griezmann
celebrating a goal
Thanos dancing like no
Avenger is watching
Jimmy Fallon invited top k-pop band BTS
to perform Fortnite dances together

11. WHAT IS FORTNITE?
C. A GAME OF CHOICE FOR MAINSTREAM CELEBRITIES?
Zlatan Ibrahimović casually streams Fortnite games
followed by e.g. Dele Alli or Mesut Özil
Drake broke Twitch records when
he joined Ninja on stream
Kevin Knox wore a custom made
Fortnite suit to NBA Draft

12. WHAT IS FORTNITE?
D. ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR VIDEO GAMES IN THE WORLD?
Monthly Active Users
in Sep 2018
78,3
mln
8,3
mln
1+
bln
1st
place
Max Concurrent
Players in Sep 2018
Revenues since
launch
Most watched game
on Twitch and
Youtube in 2018

13. WHAT IS FORTNITE?
ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR VIDEO GAMES IN THE WORLD ✓
A GAME OF CHOICE FOR MAINSTREAM CELEBRITIES ✓
A POP-CULTURAL PHENOMENON ✓
AN ONLINE ACTION GAME WITH BATTLE ROYALE MODE ✓

14. WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS?
You can play the game on
almost any gaming device
with connection to Internet
Comic and colourful makes
it appealing to masses while
still being unique
Through either patches and
fixes or new content: skins,
map area or game modes
You can meet people, build,
shoot, dance and compete
seriously or casually

15. Source: Peter Warman, Newzoo
CONTRIBUTION TO ESPORTS INDUSTRY

16. MAJOR QUESTION?
IS THE BATTLE ROYALE GENRE ALREADY
A BIG THING IN ESPORTS?

17. CURRENT SITUATION
Fortnite esports
prize pool
100
mln $
2,3
mln
Mobile
Max Concurrent
viewers of Fortnite
World Cup
PUBG is betting on
mobile (ASIA)

18. CHALLENGES
ESPORTS CAN’T BE MORE IMPORTANT THAN GAMEPLAY
WITHOUT SUPPORT OF TALENTS VIEWERSHIP PLUMMETS
NEW GAMES ARE COMING (TfT) GATHERING ATTENTION

19. TAKEAWAYS AND INSIGHTS
1. Follow trends. Utilize interests in new games but don’t bet on sports performance. Bet on
personalities who attract people.
2. Building a long lasting position requires time so for strategic presence in esports “old”
games are most reliable choice. Battle Royale needs time to find own way in esports
worlds.
3. Battle Royale games are expensive and difficult to host an events. Choose online events,
make shift towards entertainment - this will support a brand and more competitive
oriented divisions.
4. New games come and go. Talents last.

20. THANK YOU!