I see Let's Plays as the new shareware, and it could be a very good thing for the developer if approached correctly.
The game industry has long struggled with the chicken-egg problem of getting a gamer to make a purchasing decision without actually giving them the whole game to try first. Demo systems like shareware and freemium are some of the more successful solutions to this problem. At the beginning of these models, there was tension because people were getting something for free and might not ever pay for the full game. The counter-argument is that gamers that don't buy the full game after playing the demo were unlikely to have purchased the full game anyhow.
Development studios should be looking at Let's Plays like demos, and it sounds like the author is doing that. The problem his team faces is that their game is highly narrative in nature, and once the Let's Play is finished, the viewer of the Let's Play attains the narrative satisfaction and thus has no reason to purchase the game.
There's a few ways I can think to combat this, without falling back on copyright laws:
For this game:
Sell merchandise alongside your game, and buy advertising on the Let's Plays. Furthermore, send free merch to the more popular creators of the Let's Plays, creating more brand awareness and street cred. A good narrative will create bonds between the characters/story and the viewer - find ways to monetize those bonds for those who don't buy the game.
For the Let's Players that do interviews, go on their shows and do interviews, or bring them onto your own show and do an interview. Sell merch, sell advertising, and make the same pitch you made in this article for tips.
On the next game:
Create a demo anyway, and send exclusive, pre-release copies of the demo to the more popular Let's Play creators. Then sell pre-orders of the game, so those who are anxious to experience the full narrative will buy the game.
Do your own Let's Plays. In fact, do your own Let's Develop and Play - making realtime changes to the game that users can watch you experience. This will give you a competitive advantage over other Let's Players while also allowing you to vertically integrate the entire revenue stream - game sales, merch sales, and advertising.
I think it's clear from the popularity of the Let's Plays that they've created a hit, but a hit that's doesn't have an obvious monetization strategy for a game developer. I say, steer into the skid and find more non-traditional means to monetize.
The game industry has long struggled with the chicken-egg problem of getting a gamer to make a purchasing decision without actually giving them the whole game to try first. Demo systems like shareware and freemium are some of the more successful solutions to this problem. At the beginning of these models, there was tension because people were getting something for free and might not ever pay for the full game. The counter-argument is that gamers that don't buy the full game after playing the demo were unlikely to have purchased the full game anyhow.
Development studios should be looking at Let's Plays like demos, and it sounds like the author is doing that. The problem his team faces is that their game is highly narrative in nature, and once the Let's Play is finished, the viewer of the Let's Play attains the narrative satisfaction and thus has no reason to purchase the game.
There's a few ways I can think to combat this, without falling back on copyright laws:
For this game:
Sell merchandise alongside your game, and buy advertising on the Let's Plays. Furthermore, send free merch to the more popular creators of the Let's Plays, creating more brand awareness and street cred. A good narrative will create bonds between the characters/story and the viewer - find ways to monetize those bonds for those who don't buy the game.
For the Let's Players that do interviews, go on their shows and do interviews, or bring them onto your own show and do an interview. Sell merch, sell advertising, and make the same pitch you made in this article for tips.
On the next game:
Create a demo anyway, and send exclusive, pre-release copies of the demo to the more popular Let's Play creators. Then sell pre-orders of the game, so those who are anxious to experience the full narrative will buy the game.
Do your own Let's Plays. In fact, do your own Let's Develop and Play - making realtime changes to the game that users can watch you experience. This will give you a competitive advantage over other Let's Players while also allowing you to vertically integrate the entire revenue stream - game sales, merch sales, and advertising.
I think it's clear from the popularity of the Let's Plays that they've created a hit, but a hit that's doesn't have an obvious monetization strategy for a game developer. I say, steer into the skid and find more non-traditional means to monetize.