Joystiq

Counting Rupees: Bust Blox

Jeff Engel — 2008-06-19T22:30:00+00:00

Each week Jeff Engel and Geoff Brooks contribute Counting Rupees, a column on the business behind gaming:

Boom Blox seemed to have everything going for it. EA, one of the biggest and most successful developers and publishers, was creating it. The massively famous and successful director Steven Spielberg was directly involved with both the concept and the design of the game on an ongoing basis, and his name was featured on the cover art. Its simple and intuitive family-oriented concept seemed like a perfect match for the wildly popular Wii, where simple and intuitive family-oriented games thrived. And in the end, it debuted to relatively good reviews (and even a few outstanding ones) which should have ensured at least a positive word of mouth.

Apparently, there were not enough word-spreading mouths to begin with, as it only sold 60k copies in its debut month (which includes almost all of May, since it launched May 6^th). Despite what EA's CEO said, this was probably not what EA had hoped for with a game it had collaborated on with the most profitable director in the world. So, what happened?

There are at least a few reasons for its initial failure, but perhaps the biggest one is something I mentioned several columns ago: the "WiiCube" effect. Here's what I said back in April:

"The Wii isn't just selling Nintendo-developed games and some casual games to a big audience; the audience seems almost strictly divided into casual, low-attach-rate gamers, happy with Wii Sports and picking up the occasional Wii Play and whatnot, and Nintendo loyalists who have probably played Nintendo games since the NES days... The exception to these rules are well-established franchises, like Resident Evil or Guitar Hero, as even Nintendo loyalists (and some casual gamers) know about these and probably have played them on other systems, whether theirs or a friend's."

"Unfortunately, while the concept of throwing a ball is simple and intuitive, no one knows what a 'Boom Blox' is."

Since Boom Blox didn't include Nintendo characters and wasn't developed by Nintendo, it obviously wouldn't be a game for "Nintendo Loyalists." It was also a completely new franchise, unfamiliar to people who may have seen their friends' games or played a few titles in the past. That means that it would likely be up to the "casual, low-attach-rate gamers" to make the game a success. In some ways, it seemed like EA had the right direction for this. The game literally just has you throwing baseballs at a bunch of things on the screen (according to The Onion, this "Throw the Thing at the Thing" concept should've been a big hit.) Yes, there are a few other aspects of the game, such as the building your own levels, but at its core, the gameplay mechanics should have been familiar to just about anyone who had pitched in Wii Sports Baseball. Unfortunately, while the concept of throwing a ball is simple and intuitive, no one knows what a "Boom Blox" is. And this is where marketing comes in.

A lot of people are pointing to this being a failure of marketing. Anecdotally, most people didn't see any TV ads for the game (I certainly didn't). Doing a quick Google search for ads only produces a single result, and in it we can certainly see the explanation for most of us never seeing it.

Clearly, this ad is targeting a younger audience. There's nothing necessarily wrong with targeting a younger audience, but despite Nintendo's longstanding reputation of being for "kids", even Nintendo itself has said the average age of a Wii gamer is 29. This IS younger than the industry average, which the ESA pegs at 35, but it certainly means that a good portion of Nintendo's audience has aged (as Nintendo has clearly realized with products like Brain Age, Wii Fit, etc).

"The lack of any adult marketing for the game is a bit puzzling as well ..."

This wouldn't necessarily be a problem if the ad did a good job at reaching the target demographic. I can't claim to be knowledgeable of everything that kids think is cool, but focusing the first few seconds of the ad on the silly storyline and random talking blox seems like a mistake. Once again, the kids don't know what a "blox" is or why they should care about them, and simply making a bunch of them explode on screen probably isn't all that interesting, as they can see all kinds of explosions and such in their morning cartoons. Then, in the next 15 seconds, the gameplay elements are introduced at such a lightning-pace that you can barely even see what they're doing. All-in-all, it doesn't make a lasting impression about what the game is about and why you would have fun playing it.

The lack of any adult marketing for the game is a bit puzzling as well, considering Steven Spielberg's oft-reported comments that he "wanted to create a video game that [he] could play with [his] kids." Had Boom Blox been advertised as a family game that Steven Spielberg claimed to have set out to create, rather than just a kids game, it could've hit that lucrative cross-generational appeal. This makes good business sense as well, as kids have little to no money and usually need to beg their parents to buy games for them. Wouldn't a parent be far more likely to buy a game that they were aware of because they saw an ad suggesting a family experience, versus one that they've only heard about through their kids? It probably just sounds the same to them as another Pokemon or Dragonball.

And as for Spielberg himself, while there is no evidence to suggest that his name would have special pull with the gaming audience, there's probably not much evidence to suggest that it wouldn't either. While Spielberg's name is on the box, it is not particularly prominent, nor is it very prominent in the above ad. The box simply says in smallish letters above the "Boom Blox" name, "A Steven Spielberg/EA Game". The Amazon.com Product Features, which are often provided by the publisher, do not even make a mention of Steven Spielberg. Perhaps the game would garner more attention if it had been prominently titled "Steven Spielberg's Boom Blox" a la Sid Meier games. It certainly seems like the adult / parent crowd would at least be more interested in the title if they were more aware about his participation in the game. This may not have been possible for a variety of legal or practical reasons, but for as much as EA was promoting Spielberg's work on the game pre-release, it seems like the publisher toned it down a bit for the actual debut.

Certainly, Boom Blox could still succeed in the end, as even Zack & Wiki has finally found a decent audience of around 300k. Still, if Boom Blox 2 is going to come out, EA had better understand that the part of the Wii audience it's trying to reach may require a lot more marketing effort to reach.

As co-editors of A Link To The Future, Geoff and Jeff like to discuss, among many other topics, the business aspects of gaming. Game companies often make decisions that on their face appear baffling, or even infuriating, to many gamers. Yet when you think hard about them from the company's perspective, many other decisions are eminently sensible, or at least appeared to be so based on the conditions at the time those choices were made. Our goal with this column is to start a conversation about just those topics. While neither Geoff nor Jeff are employed in the game industry, they do have professional backgrounds that are relevant to the discussion. More to the point, they don't claim to have all the answers -- but this is a conversation worth having. You can reach them at

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Boom Blox sales: EA content, analysts less upbeat

Ross Miller — 2008-06-17T18:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Nintendo Wii, Business

While we thought sales of Steven Spielberg's Boom Blox was less than stellar (in all fairness, it did sell about twice that of Zack and Wiki in its first month), Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitello said the game has met internal expectations. Speaking at a William Blair Investor Conference today, he said "It's continued to sell well. It did break into the top 10 for the Wii, and the advertising is doing exactly what [our] team expected to: drive sales."

MTV Multiplayer spoke with a few analysts who were decidedly less impressed with the sales so far. Pacific Crest Securities, who initially predicted 250,000 in unit sales, said, "It appears that success on the Wii will remain difficult to achieve." Michael Pachter, who wasn't too hopeful in the first place, wondered if it was a marketing problem on EA's part.

Joystiq's official in-house analysts all agree that the game would have sold a minimum 3 bajillion more copies had it kept head tracking. Maybe it's going multi-platform, after all. Riccitello also said the game could sell several hundred thousands, and given Zack and Wiki's continued sales, he may have a point.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Boom Blox a bust at retail, sells only 60k units

Christopher Grant — 2008-06-16T13:28:00+00:00

Filed under: Nintendo Wii, Business

While the myth of third-party Wii software languishing on store shelves has been handily disproven by repeat NPD all-stars like Guitar Hero III (#8 this month), Mario and Sonic: Olympic Games, and even Carnival Games, the ugly truth is that those are the only third-party Wii games to break the 1 million unit milestone, according to NPD.

Why do we share such harsh statistics with you, dear reader? Because NPD just confirmed with our buddies at GameDaily that the well-received Boom Blox, an EA title with Steven Spielberg's name prominently places on the box, and the sixth highest-rated third-party Wii title on Metacritic, managed to sell only 60K units in its first month of sales. The title ranked 25 in the list of top sellers in May, and only managed to come in at number 9 in the list of top Wii sellers for the month. GameDaily did the math and determined that, using a North American install base of 10.2 million Wii units, Boom Blox's tie ratio was a barely noticeable 0.6%.

After the Zak and Wiki calamity of ought-seven, we're again afraid there's just no room for good third-party titles (even family friendly and marketable ones like Boom Blox) on Nintendo's console. In this case, where did EA go wrong (besides taking out head tracking)?

Gallery: Boom Blox

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Metareview -- Boom Blox (Wii)

Alexander Sliwinski — 2008-05-07T21:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Nintendo Wii, Puzzle, Metareviews, Casual

They're tiny, they're toony, they're all a little looney, and in this video game they're exploding your TV. Steven Spielberg's first foray into video games brings us Boom Blox for the Wii. Reviews have been pretty glowing or just good. Don't expect some Spielberg epic here, it's definitely a casual title designed for the Wii, which apparently uses the Wiimote quite competently.

1Up (100/100): "Boom Blox is simply a laundry list of great features and options wrapped around an incredibly fun, expertly designed, and well-tuned puzzle game. Sure, its cute veneer won't do it any favors with the more intense console crowd, but I found it charming and refreshingly cheery. It's a casual game made for a casual crowd, but it's far and away the best one I've ever played. Buy this game."
IGN (81/100): " If you're looking for a game you can play with friends and family - - one that everybody will be able to pick up and enjoy in a matter of minutes -- look no further than EA Boom Blox. It's a fun puzzler and also a game that really puts Nintendo's controller to great use."
GameTap (80/100): "In Boom Blox, however, you might complete one level that is pretty challenging only to unlock a new level that's strangely simple, which is particularly odd in a game that requires you to finish one level in order to move on to the next. ... Nevertheless, Boom Blox is still a worthy purchase for Wii owners. It's one of those rare family games that doesn't fall into the genres of minigame collection or rhythm title, and your seven-year-old kid will have as much fun as you do."

Gallery: Boom Blox

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

New games this week: Boom Blox edition

Justin McElroy — 2008-05-05T09:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Nintendo DS, PC, Sony PlayStation 3, Sony PSP, Nintendo Wii, Microsoft Xbox 360

After the release of Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Mario Kart Wii, this week's release of Boom Blox completes a hat-trick of really solid recent Wii releases (or, as we like to call it, the "Sorry You Can't Play GTA IV 3-Pack"). Perhaps even more so than the previous two, Boom Blox seems to be an experience perfectly suited to the console, despite the opportunities for it to go elsewhere.

The other big two are (by far) getting the shorter end of the stick this week, with nothing on the Xbox 360 and just the Call of Duty 4: Game of the Year edition on PS3. Check out the full list after the break.

Gallery: Boom Blox

PS3:

Call of Duty 4: Game of the Year Edition

Nintendo Wii:

The Dog Island
Boom Blox
Speed Racer
Rebel Raiders: Operation Nighthawk

PSP:

SNK Arcade Classics V.1
R-Type Command

Nintendo DS:

Brain Voyage
Crosswords DS
Speed Racer

PC Games:

Great War Nations: The Spartans
Supreme Commander Gold Edition
Baseball Mogul 2009
Neverwinter Nights 2 Gold
Iron Man
Sword of the Stone: Collector's Edition

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Boom Blox could go multi-platform

Justin McElroy — 2008-04-24T13:25:00+00:00

Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii, Microsoft Xbox 360, Puzzle

We know that, if you haven't played it, the charms of Boom Blox don't immediately reveal themselves. But trust us when we say that to play this "tangible actualization of what Wii games are supposed to be" is to love it. So it should come as good news that Amir Rahimi, senior producer on the game, recently told VideoGamer that "there's definitely the possibility of going to other consoles."

Though it might be passable with the SixAxis/DualShock 3, we're concerned with how the package would translate to the 360. Unless of course, you work for EA and you know that Microsoft is developing a motion control device ... Not that Amir Rahimi knows that, of course. We're just saying.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Joystiq impressions: Boom Blox (Wii)

Zack Stern — 2008-04-15T10:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Nintendo Wii, Online, Puzzle, Casual, Galleries

In our previous coverage of Boom Blox, we highlighted the basic way you toss baseballs, bowling balls, and other objects at the blocks. But this casual game has even more game modes that have gotten less coverage. I sampled some of the lesser-know variants at the Nintendo Media Summit.

The game's adventure mode introduces other mechanics. Players move through successive levels, trying to initially knock down structures with as few throws as possible. But following levels give gamers unlimited baseballs to toss at a pack of bears, for example; these cranky creatures try to amble off with your gem blocks, and you have to knock them down. Another change on later levels forces you to protect an advancing group of sheep. Monkeys throw items from their own block-built castle, and you need to knock them all down before the sheep are wiped out.

Gallery: Boom Blox

EA twists the gameplay mechanics through the rest of the adventure. Sometimes, players need to slide blocks apart like a puzzle of dead-bolts, releasing a large platform from its obstructions. In other situations, players toss balls to clear the way for friendly, advancing creatures. The Wild West levels even include a shooting scenario.

Multiplayer games mostly have their own rules, too, like taking turns trying to knock blocks with the highest point value off a pedestal. But some remix the non-throwing game types from the adventure mode, or let gamers team up to attack the bears. Up to four players can compete with any number of Wii Remotes.

And the detailed Boom Blox level editor should let gamers find their own ways to play. EA demonstrated a few Rube Goldberg-like creations, with levers and other cascading ways to change the game's motion. 30 different block-like characters can twist these moments, since they have programmed behaviors. For example, chickens cluck around, laying explosive block eggs. Skeletons chase and kill chickens. Dogs throw baseballs at these attacking skeletons. Once a gamer creates or remixes a level, they can also share it with friends over Nintendo WiFi.

Boom Blox largely centers on tossing balls to knock down block structures. But the adventure mode, level editor, and multiplayer ways to play should make it last beyond the 400 levels included on the disc. Look for the Spielberg-executive-produced game May 6.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Head-tracking feature pulled from Boom Blox

Zack Stern — 2008-04-15T06:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Culture, Hacks, Nintendo Wii, Online, Puzzle, Casual

At the Nintendo Media Summit, Boom Blox senior producer Amir Rahimi confirmed that the final version of the game will lack the head-tracking mode. We understand that it was always an Easter egg, requiring gamers to set up Wii Remotes as cameras, and hacking together their own IR LED glasses. But you didn't have to go to TED to see the promise, and we're disappointed to see it removed.

EA wouldn't go on-record to say exactly why the mode was cut, only just confirming it again through public-relations channels. An email statement noted, "Head-tracking was something we considered including as an Easter egg in BOOM BLOX however, we did not end up including it in the final version of the game. ..."

Perhaps EA feared that we'd hack together a candelabra helmet as an IR emitter. They should have; we totally would.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Johnny Lee's Wii-nnovations blow TED's collective mind

Griffin McElroy — 2008-04-12T20:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Hacks, Nintendo Wii

We've all witnessed the incredible ways that technomancer Johnny Lee can put a Wiimote to good use, but apparently, attendees of the TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) conference were unaware of the handheld peripheral's vast potential. You can actually hear their minds crackle, then implode as Lee shows off two of his cost-efficient tech demos -- the multi-touch whiteboard, and 3-D head tracking (which was further confirmed to be in EA/Speilburg's Boom Blox as an easter egg). Like all Johnny Lee videos, we can guarantee this to be the coolest thing you've seen today -- unless, of course, you've just watched the entire "American Ninja" quintology.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Boom Blox dated May 6th

Christopher Grant — 2008-04-10T15:26:00+00:00

Filed under: Nintendo Wii

EA previously had the entire month of May blocked off for the release of its Steven Spielberg collaboration Boom Blox. They put a finer point on things during a presentation at Nintendo's Media Summit in San Francisco today, knocking 30 blocks off their May calendar, leaving a proud May 6th standing tall. We'll be checking out the game in, what we can only assume is, a near final state and have our impressions up as soon as we can, okay?

Gallery: Boom Blox

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Spielberg's name outshines EA on Boom Blox box art

Ross Miller — 2008-03-10T21:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Nintendo Wii, Puzzle, Casual

Electronic Arts has released the final box art for Stephen Spielberg's upcoming very first-party title Boom Blox. Take note at Spielberg's full name, more prominent than the behemoth publisher's abbreviated title. We're pretty sure the famous director is more recognizable to the mainstream crowd and wonder if the order will be swapped for the as-of-yet unknown Xbox 360 / PS3 Spielberg games. Boom Blox, with head tracking, is due out this May.

Gallery: Boom Blox

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

GDC08: Boom Blox to include head tracking. Seriously.

Ross Miller — 2008-02-21T20:15:00+00:00

Filed under: Nintendo Wii, Action, Puzzle, Casual

At the end of the "Creating Boom Blox" session at GDC, executive producer Lou Castle revealed that you can use two Wii remotes on your TV (and some form of do-it-yourself LED headset) to control the camera in Boom Blox with your head. Seriously.

Speaking briefly to Joystiq after the session, Castle explained that it was more of an easter egg inclusion and they weren't planning to actively promote the feature. We'll have more from the Boom Blox session later this week. After the break, a video of do-it-yourself head tracking.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Joystiq impressions: Boom Blox ... a Steven Spielberg game

James Ransom-Wiley — 2008-02-13T22:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Nintendo Wii, Puzzle, Casual

"It's feels like a Miyamoto game," someone observes. "Yeah, it's very first-party," agrees another. Flying sheep-blocks and all, Boom Blox is destined to earn Spielberg some street cred (or whatever form of kudos it is that gamers bestow). Just what is Spielberg's involvement? It's his idea, EA insists.

An idea so simple, it's really only plausible for Wii. You just pitch a baseball at blocks -- that's it (well, sometimes it's a bowling ball, bomb, or shotty blast ... you get the idea). But where so many mindless motion farts dissipate into the foul heap of Wii "mini-game" crap, Boom Blox stands tall, as a tangible actualization of what Wii games ~~should~~, no, are supposed to be!

Gallery: Boom Blox

Boom Blox possesses that expansive, LBP-like potential; a game of infinite, user-generated possibilities. Of course, it's also crippled by Nintendo's 'over-protective' online community system (friggin' friend codes!), which means all of us may never be able to share the ultimate fun. EA knows it though, and is pursuing a sort of workaround; something like an 'EA friend' every Wii owner can have. A friend who receives, and carefully distributes the best Boom Blox levels the community has to offer.

But what is a Bloom Blox level? As the game's various 'pre-installed' instances attest, a level can be many things. Compact, but not necessarily simple. Levels are contained in a circular arena, with players always looking inward, circling and gauging the angle at which to bean the blocks (or in some cases, fire away). There are goals to meet, usually point totals scored or highlighted blocks busted in a certain number of throws. There are filler blocks, special blocks (explosive, disappearing, etc.), negative blocks, and even moving, "character" blocks, like a chicken who lays bombs and a dog whose got his own set of balls.

Imagine a bottomless bag of these pieces, a virtual world driven by 'real,' responsive physics (how hard you toss the ball actually matters), and the freedom to create; to set your own rules to the game. Not in a building mood? Boom Blox has plenty built for you: towering Jenga puzzles, shuffleboard matches, shooting galleries, domino chains ... a 'reunite momma gorilla with her babies' mission -- and on and on ... Dare we say: Boom Blox is kid tested, hardcore approved. This May, put down Brawl, pick up those blox.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

EA, Spielberg break out Boom Blox for Wii, mobile

Jason Dobson — 2008-02-06T10:15:00+00:00

Filed under: Nintendo Wii, Mobile, Casual

Electronic Arts has announced the initial details surrounding Boom Blox, the first collaboration between movie mogul Steven Spielberg and EA Los Angeles. Revealed last December, and expected to be featured during a panel at this month's annual Game Developer's Conference, the "high-energy" family-friendly puzzler is scheduled to debut this May for the Wii, with a version for mobile phones expected to drop sometime in the spring.

While details are light, EA notes that Boom Blox will boast more than 300 levels, a cast of more than 30 "wacky" characters, "full real-time physics model," and an in-game level editor that promises to let players "remix any level," which include Tiki, Haunted, Medieval, and Frontier, themed backdrops. EA also promises that once created, players will be able to share their masterpieces with their friends over the Wii's online service. While we may all have grown weary of the Wii's casual focus, it's hard not to get at least a little excited for this game given Spielberg's involvement. Then again, he did make A.I.

[Update: GameDaily has an interview up with the game's creator at EA, Louis Castle - along with the exclusive trailer embedded just after the break.]

Gallery: Boom Blox

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Spielberg's BOOM BLOX to be featured at GDC 2008

Scott Jon Siegel — 2007-12-12T15:25:00+00:00

Filed under: Nintendo Wii, Puzzle, GDC, Video

The official site for the 2008 Game Developers Conference has revealed that Steven Spielberg's first collaboration with EA Los Angeles with be the focus of a GDC session, revealing the creative process that turned a simple puzzle concept into a full-on Nintendo Wii title. The announcement also reveals the official name of Spielberg's Wii game: BOOM BLOX (that's right, with the caps-lock and everything).

The game will be discussed during "Creating Spielberg's BOOM BLOX", a session led by EALA's VP of Creative Development, Louis Castle. Sadly, it doesn't seem like Spielberg himself will be on-hand to discuss the physics-based puzzle game.

Check out some early footage of BOOM BLOX from E3 2007 after the break.

"BOOM BLOX", huh? Really? Yikes.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments