- “We began contemplating the creation of a new mid-core project and decided to venture into a niche with low competition but high demand”
- “Almost all hypotheses were confirmed allowing us to occupy a niche that would be difficult to re-enter”
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From hypercasual to hybridcasual to mid-core, the gaming market is constantly seeking new spaces to explore. Each game aims to fill a unique niche with specific audience needs. Understanding these needs is crucial for engaging with players effectively.
In this guest post, Azur Games producer Tatiana Vinogradova shares insights on approaching pre-production for a mid-core audience and finding the niche within your player base.
A couple of years ago, we embarked on creating a new mid-core project, targeting a niche with high demand but low competition.
Our main objective was to meet the audience’s expectations and needs to establish a strong foothold in this niche. Extensive focus on pre-production was key. We conducted thorough audience analysis, formulated hypotheses, and validated them through various methods such as surveys and CustDev interviews.
Almost all hypotheses were confirmed, allowing us to occupy a niche that would be difficult to re-enter.
Choosing a niche and creating an audience profile
In our market analysis, we identified potential niches catering to hobbies of predominantly male audiences aged 35+, such as hunting, fishing, and simulators. Each niche had a dominant leader with significant monthly revenue.
After evaluating various themes, we settled on a railroad setting for two main reasons:
- A game focusing on management mechanics could attract a broader audience interested in other genres like simulation and strategy.
- Railroad modeling is an expensive hobby, indicating a dedicated audience willing to invest in related products.
After selecting the niche, we conducted in-depth audience analysis to understand their demographics, behaviors, and specific needs. We also identified common features that resonated with all players in this niche.
After selecting the niche we conducted a deeper analysis of our target audience.
The decision to base our game on US railroad history was driven by historical significance and the resonance it holds with American players. The authenticity and relevance of the setting were crucial for engaging our target audience.
Hypotheses and tests
With audience profiles established, we outlined core principles for our project, focusing on realism, logical mechanics, and historical accuracy.
With audience profiles in hand, we established several principles that laid a foundation for our project.
- The visual style should be realistic with industrial elements, avoiding stylization or cartoonish elements.
- The game mechanics should be coherent and logical to ensure player understanding and engagement.
- Historical accuracy is essential to meet the expectations of our knowledgeable audience.
We validated our hypotheses through surveys and CustDev interviews, confirming audience preferences for realism and specific locomotive eras.
Surveys
Online surveys helped validate audience profiles and visual preferences, guiding our game’s visual direction and era choices.
Online surveys helped us verify audience profiles, visual preferences, and locomotive era preferences.
Our realism hypothesis was confirmed, influencing the visual style of our game. Player preferences for modern and art deco locomotives also informed our design choices.
CustDev
CustDev interviews provided deeper insights into player needs and preferences. We overcame challenges in recruiting participants by focusing on targeted outreach strategies.
The effectiveness of CustDev interviews hinges on how well the questions are formulated.
Formulating open-ended questions ensured authentic responses, confirming demand in our niche and guiding our game development decisions.
