Getting players hooked on a new title is easy enough, but with so many games available, keeping them interested once the novelty has worn off is slightly more difficult. Helen Fletcher spoke to some of the coin-op companies that have introduced initiatives to keep the players coming back and rewarding those who do...

Customer loyalty is crucial to any business whether it is in retail, hospitality, supplies or amusements and with so many companies offering so much choice, keeping customers coming back has never been more important.

This is where loyalty initiatives come in and you will find them in some form or another just about everywhere, from points schemes in supermarkets and petrol stations to discount cards in restaurants to air miles from credit cards to tournaments and bonus features in the amusement industry.

The gaming and amusement industry is one in particular that is constantly changing and with so many different games on offer for players, keeping them loyal to a particular brand or game can sometimes prove difficult and manufacturers cannot always rely on the game alone to draw customers in time and time again.

Giving the customer something back

Fatspanner, based in the UK, is one company that saw the need to give the player something back and with this in mind incorporated a unique My Games and a Similar Games feature into its most recent entertainment terminal, the Open.

Tony Broadwood, sales and marketing manager for Fatspanner, said: “If a player enjoys the experience of playing a machine it is likely that they will return and play again.

If we can help them to enjoy their experience and encourage them to come back and play again this can only benefit the coin-op industry.”

The My Games feature works by allowing players to create a user profile, which enables them to create their own account and a four-digit security code.

Once a player has enabled their profile they have the opportunity to save up to nine of their favourite games, allowing them quick and easy access to their favourite games.

With the Similar Games feature, the player has access to games similar to the one they have just played.

At the end of each game played, the Open looks at the game bank and shows nine games similar to the one just played.

“The feedback we have received so far has been extremely positive and has enabled us to review the current offerings as well as think of a whole host of ideas that can be carried forward to future products,” said Broadwood.

When asked if he thought more companies will begin to focus on player loyalty features, Broadwood said: “They will have to. As each market becomes more and more competitive each manufacturer has to look at offering players a cutting edge concept.”

Increasing competition

Video games have faced increased competition from home console based entertainment over the last few years.

However, the introduction of player loyalty systems over the last two or three years has helped rejuvenate income from this sector.

One of the companies that has been at the forefront of innovations in this area, overseeing the evolution of several mechanisms designed to maximise appeal and repeat plays, particularly among gaming enthusiasts, is Namco.

Tekkenites

An early example of this is when the company launched the fifth instalment of the Tekken combat video series in 2004.

Already performing well in arcades and in the home entertainment sector, with a strong following of ‘Tekkenites’ as they were commonly known, many of whom were worthy of semi-professional status, Tekken 5 added an out of home twist via an IC card, which allowed players to customise their chosen character.

John Brennan of Namco said: “The vended cards enabled players to store their character’s details and playing history as well as earn points to buy customised features such as individual clothing and combat weapons.

“The card could be used in any Tekken 5 machine and players could continue their progress through the ranks from the last point they reached, meaning they could prove their prowess and challenge fellow combatants at the highest levels of the game.”

In the early stages this customisation theme was adopted by US game developer Raw Thrills, whose 2004 debut driving game, The Fast and The Furious (F&F) incorporated a keypad into which players could enter their unique PIN for access to playing history, course statistics and so on.

“Depending on their level of achievement, players were also rewarded with varying degrees of vehicle customisations and enhancements to help improve their performance,” said Brennan.

“With game details stored on individual units or linked banks, players could now challenge each other even when their rivals were not present.”

The quality of the game and its ability to draw in repeat plays through player loyalty made F&F one of the highest grossing video drivers in markets across the globe for over two years and the same PIN system was incorporated into Raw Thrills’ follow-up game, Super Bikes, as well as in the latest driving simulator launched earlier this year, F&F Drift.

Namco has continued to integrate player loyalty systems into its games and introduced magnetic cards along with the 2004 launch of the Maximum Tune streetcar driver game, which were subsequently used in Mario Kart and Mario Kart 2 racing games.

“These paper cards are more cost effective and easier to vend than the plastic IC cards used with Tekken 5,” said Brennan.

“Maximum Tune 2 cards were also backwards compatible with version one, with the ability to store up to 50 games’ history.

Maximum Tune 3 also features a high level of backwards compatibility with Maximum Tune 2 and also features a number of game enhancements.

“Most notably players’ details, driving capabilities and styles are stored on the machine, enabling players to race head-to-head with rivals in their absence in Ghost Battle Mode.”

Online loyalty

Another company that has looked at ways to give both players and operators more for their money as well as making the arcade experience about more than just the game itself is Konami.

When the company launched its first online games network e-Amusement six years ago in Japan, it helped rejuvenate what was a bit of a slow time for the market and the success of the online network encouraged others to follow.

James Thornby from Konami said: “The online e-Amusement service offers internet rankings, head-to-head real time battles and tournaments while developing online gaming communities and creating a social and competitive side to each title and the Konami brand as a whole. It offers exclusive features and has many loyalty bonus features for core players.”

All a player needs is an e-Amusement pass, which is essentially their loyalty card and can be used on any of Konami’s titles connected to the service.

It opens up an array of new features for the player designed to enhance game play and increase operators’ profits over a longer period of time.

“The card can also transfer saved data and unlocked content from previous games in the series to the latest version,” said Thornby.

“Players can go head-to-head against players in other locations in real time and in Japan this ‘online battles’ feature is particularly popular across the Winning Eleven title and the Bemani series.”

The service is also able to log which titles the player has played and when a player registers their card for e-Amusement online, they have to enter data such as their email address, which allows an opportunity to directly contact game players informing them of up-coming tournaments, products and events so they feel part of the Konami community.

Thornby added: “The online communities being developed are a great incentive for players as not only do they benefit from the technology and exclusive content offered to loyal players through the service, but through internet ranking, online head-to-head play and other bonus features, including being able to connect with similar players regionally, nationally and eventually globally.”

The aim of the online service is not only to act as a loyalty bonus for the player but also to encourage repeat play.

Data save and features such as un-lockable bonus content reward loyal players for playing more frequently by offering incentives for completing large sections of the game, therefore increasing profits for operators at the same time.

“The limits of e-Amusement in the Japanese market have not been defined as it continues to offer new game experiences,” said Thornby.

“One example of this is Konami’s most popular title in Japan, Mah Jong Fight Club, which offers real time play against professional Mah Jong players from Japan’s official league.”

According to Thornby, the limitless potential that e-Amusement can offer means that players will continue to get more from their arcade experience.

He said: “Loyalty features have become increasingly important as players need more value for money and a greater connection with brands in order to rejuvenate the market.”

A two-way street

For Electrocoin, based in the UK, player loyalty has become a two-way street with regards to Golden Tee from Incredible Technologies.

The video game was developed in the ’90s and has since become hugely successful, developing a worldwide following unmatched by any other game.

Kevin Weir of Electrocoin said: “Players who play Golden Tee Live in bars around the world firstly have a loyalty to the game and secondly to the location. If the machine breaks down they move onto another bar.

“However, once you have a group of players they will stay and play forever; as a result bar sales grow as players are genuine pub goes and consumption of food and drink is part of their experience.”

To reward the players’ loyalty to the game Incredible Technologies started to build in reward features, firstly based on the volume of games resulting in players of all ability benefiting and secondly based on performance level, giving a reward to the players who develop their expertise.

Weir said: “Tournament prizes have been paid out to thousands of players across the UK who use a Golden Tee Live player’s card.

“Where cash prize levels are not achieved, players are rewarded with free golf balls to use during their next game as well as awards within the game that will benefit their performance in future games.”

Other than direct cash rewards for each game played, golfers can qualify for free entry into live tournaments and events that take place in the UK and around the world.

By either playing a required number of games or achieving high scores, they are invited to enter qualifying tournaments to represent their country at events such as the Golden Tee World Championship.

“We are very conscious of the time and dedication that players put into the game in order to become successful,” said Weir.

“While the tournament structure has its own loyalty rewards built in, it has become important to recognise the loyalty of the players who wish to compete at these events with like-minded people.

“We have developed a huge club of loyal Golden Tee golfers and it is important to recognise players, participation and reward their efforts.”

Operator input

However, it is not just manufacturers that can reward loyal players and there are now opportunities for operators to encourage player loyalty to a number of machines rather than just one particular brand.

Teckpro, based in the UK, has designed a card membership system called Sentinal.

When players present their membership card to the gaming machine they are greeted with a personalised message and informed of any pending promotions.

The operator is able to define free play bonuses to encourage attendance as well as making them conditional on the amount spent.

Where cashless gaming is permitted customers can transfer machine payout to their membership card or a personal account maintained by the operator.

The account can then be integrated with online gaming sites that are operated by the business and as it is a cash-only account, credit and debit card fraud is eliminated.

So it would seem that whether you are a manufacturer, operator or player the benefits of player loyalty features are unquestionable.

When done well both the manufacturer and operator make more money from the repeat business and the player feels valued and that they are getting something back.

And as player habits change and markets develop and ultimately become more competitive, features and incentives to keep players coming back look set to become an integral part of coin-op machines.