For this case research, we’re diving into the Merge Mansion phenomenon. You’ve certainly seen the video advertisements round, with a cryptic grandmother with hidden secrets and techniques, an enormous mysterious mansion. We’re looking at their video advertisements and visible belongings to see why they labored so properly!
About Merge Mansion
Merge Mansion is informal puzzle sport with a merge mechanic created by Metacore Video games, a Helsinki-based sport studio. It was launched in 2020 nevertheless the sport began to realize reputation in 2021. It has been downloaded over 9 million instances in whole.
As with each merge sport, the objective is to mix related objects to create an upgraded merchandise. This can permit the participant to redecorate a mansion and ahead the sport’s narrative meta-layer.
Merge Mansion’s meta layer is concentrated on uncovering the reality behind the secrets and techniques held by the primary character’s grandmother.
Though Maddie is the primary character of the sport, Merge Mansion’s storylines each within the sport and within the advertisements are centered across the grandma and all of the stunning secrets and techniques she’s hiding.
Their app shops visible belongings
Their App Retailer and Play Retailer visible belongings are similar, for each the screenshots and the preview video. Additionally they didn’t create device-specific designs, the units you’ll be able to see of their screenshots are impartial, they symbolize neither an Android telephone nor an iPhone.
They’ve additionally determined to alternate between two colours: blue and yellow, that are the colours of the garments of each major characters. It permits you to actually separate every screenshot from the opposite and the distinction between the 2 colours is robust sufficient to drive consideration.
The primary screenshot is a transparent name again to each the present icon and the well-known video advertisements, that body of the grandma contained in the police automotive has been talked about loads (particularly on social media). Will probably be reminder for customers that land on the itemizing web page by means of a UA marketing campaign.
Every screenshot focuses on a facet of the sport whereas including a little bit of the drama that works so properly within the video advertisements. However all of them contact down on the thriller side of the storyline, with what’s grandma hiding? or using phrases like unlock or reveal. All of them level in direction of fixing mysteries, and when the characters seem within the screenshots, they speak about secrets and techniques.
The precise gameplay takes a step again on these visuals, within the first 4 screenshots, the one which can be seen with out scrolling the gallery, you don’t see the merge mechanic of the sport.
The preview video, the identical for each app shops, is simply display recordings of precise gameplay (most definitely to adjust to the App Retailer pointers), the drama they infuse their UA campaigns with is absent, and the grandma makes a fast look, though it’s to share a reminiscence. No mentions of the deep secrets and techniques which have resulted in her being taken away in a police automotive in one of many video advertisements (and within the icon).
Final however not least, the sport’s icon is a reminder of Merge Mansion’s UA marketing campaign. Not like the screenshots and preview video, it actually performs on the drama that’s been proven within the video advertisements for the sport.
The mysteries surrounding the grandma are a very powerful a part of the video advertisements, she’s the one driving the installs so it is sensible to have her so outstanding within the icon.
Merge Mansion’s advertising thrives on chaos and grandma’s secrets and techniques
Merge Mansion’s advertising technique gave the sport a spot within the highlight. They went all in on the storytelling, solely taking part in on the meta layer of their sport, as a substitute of counting on gameplay. Fact be informed, it’s usually difficult to promote puzzle video games solely on gameplay, so it’s name to depend on a meta layer infused with storylines and characters.
The primary batch of video advertisements that encountered a sure success was a sequence of 3D advertisements centered round the primary character and her grandma. They had been loosely primarily based on the meta-layer of the sport. In Merge Mansion, Maddie inherits a mansion from her grandmother, one she has to renovate whereas uncovering some secrets and techniques from mentioned grandma, Ursula.
The video advertisements amp up the drama and the mysteries round Maddie and the grandma.
On this video, a really unhappy Maddie (as proven by the tear tracks from her operating mascara) has apparently been dumped on the altar. However the thriller solely grows larger after we discover out that earlier that day, the grandma introduced the groom with mysterious info that led to his disappearance (both from operating away or from the home hearth alluded to).
This video advert exhibits Maddie operating inside a home on hearth, presumably hers, solely to search out out her grandmother is recovering mysterious issues from a secure hidden behind a portray.
Some video advertisements present the grandma on the run from the police or being arrested, others are extra centered on uncovering secrets and techniques contained in the mansion.
The one widespread thread is that not one of the mysteries are ever solved. Viewers are left making an attempt to determine what truly occurred and sprouting theories and modifying movies one after the opposite to watch the whole lore of the sport.
However Metacore didn’t cease there, in addition they had a really profitable sequence of live-action video advertisements, with none apart from Kathy Bates to play the mysterious grandmother Ursula, which sprouted numerous reactions on Twitter.
And so they maintain asking for extra of it.
Enjoying up their neighborhood on social media
The sport’s advertising extends to social media, though the sport is usually current on Instagram there’s numerous speak about it on different platforms corresponding to Twitter or YouTube. Merge Mansion reached 71k followers on Instagram, a few hundred thousand behind different huge video games corresponding to Lily’s Backyard or Household Island, nonetheless, it’s fairly a feat.
Twitter is rising the sport’s visibility, with folks chatting in regards to the advertisements and speculating over the secrets and techniques. Folks have even began creating fan content material across the sport, proof of their funding within the product.
Folks have constructed the sport’s mansion in The Sims, and even the 2 major characters: Maddie and Ursula.
The concentrate on thriller was a profitable wager for Metacore, it retains folks guessing, and that retains them invested.
All of the plot twists within the video advertisements draw a really mysterious image, and the cliffhangers be certain that the viewers will come again. Even the CTA in video advertisements are centered on thriller fixing.
The sport’s video advertisements create conversations round its visible belongings, driving up the curiosity within the sport itself. Merge Mansion has even been become a meme, it’s a part of the web vernacular. Folks find out about it. In case you point out “the sport advert with the grandma”, folks will mechanically consider Merge Mansion.
All this discuss across the sport’s advertisements is nice for model recall, and this concentrate on storytelling is driving up conversions.
Why does it work so properly?
Folks at the moment are centered on the lore developed within the advertisements, they’re interested in the mysteries, they wish to clear up them and never having the answer retains them questioning. Every new advert, whether or not in 3D or live-action provides just a little little bit of thriller across the sport and retains folks guessing.
Regardless of no phrases being uttered within the 3D advertisements, folks keep riveted. Dialogues are minimal in live-action advertisements, the emphasis is usually on the dramatic reactions as a result of that is all in regards to the thriller, to make the viewers wish to clear up it.
The truth that all video advertisements are seemingly linked, makes it look like one distinctive huge storyline. One you might totally perceive in the event you watch all of the video content material.
Staging characters helps the viewers join with the content material, the drama makes the stakes excessive. In 15 or 30 seconds, Merge Mansion creates a number of cliffhangers and makes use of pressure as a storytelling software to maintain the viewer centered. Each new info proven on the display is uncovering a brand new twist or a brand new secret.
It drives dialog, which drives a way of neighborhood, folks work together and it retains them hooked on information of the sport. And clearly, it really works.
Storytelling is changing into larger and greater in cellular sport promoting, it provides extra freedom to entrepreneurs, and creates stimulating and attractive content material for customers. We could by no means discover out Ursula’s secret, however 9 million gamers had been able to attempt.
Marine Nozerand
Hello there, I am Marine (she/her), I am a Content material Supervisor at Apptamin. Apptamin is a inventive company specialised in app movies (video advertisements, app retailer movies, and so on.).
