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creative approach
in the beginning… The greatest warriors from history do battle against a power-hungry warlord and an evil army in the vast Wildlands. Welcome to World of Warriors; Mind Candy’s newest family entertainment brand with a wide global reach. Inset: Mind Candy is ready to do battle with World of Warriors.
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gameplay while encompassing an orld of Warriors is the ever-expanding array of the brainchild of art director, greatest warriors in history, from Johnny Taylor, who Ninjas and Aztecs to Knights presented the concept at Mind and Vikings. Every warrior Candy’s annual conference, Candy comes with its own back Stock in 2012. His vision was of an epic story, special moves and game where warriors from throughout historical facts. The game history would meet to do battle in an takes place in the imaginary world. Johnny was inspired Wildlands, a land beyond by his young son Leon, who enjoyed Earth with players play fighting. “I started talking to Leon summoning their own about historical warriors, like Romans team of warriors to fight and Vikings, and he would ask me a power-hungry questions like ‘who would win out of a warlord and his Roman and a Viking?’ And that’s really evil Skull Army. how the idea of World of Taking Johnny’s Warriors all started,” initial concept and says Johnny. developing it into the After two years in mobile game was the development, and challenge Mind Candy’s remaining faithful to Brighton studio gladly Johnny’s original vision, took up. Mark Knowlesthe much anticipated Lee, studio head, says: World of Warriors mobile “World of Warriors was a game was released in step up in ambition for November 2014. In a Mind Candy. We heady mix, World of Above right: Comic book-inspired artwork. Above: Johnny Taylor presenting his idea wanted to deliver Warriors blends for World of Warriors at Candy Stock. Right: Some of the early warrior artwork. a big-buck, fighting and RPG
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cinematic feel on a mobile platform. The team has really focused on the art and animation of the game. The characters are at the heart of the brand; the game comes to life through them.” The mobile game has already proven to be a big hit with players, rating 4.5 out of 5 on iTunes and 4.4 out of 5 on Google Play. Mark puts this down to developing a great game that appeals to the audience: “Firstly, it looks good. We’ve delivered a console-gaming experience on a
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creative approach
… Inset: In the Brighton studio, 20 developers have already been working on World of Warriors for over two years. Below centre: A lot of research goes into ensuring the warriors are factually and historically correct. Bottom: Clean bold lines in the iconic design treatment.
summoning new warriors Adding new characters is a mammoth task, and accurate research is a vital part of the process. Very early on in developing the brand, just after the project was green-lit, the team spent some time at the British Museum in London, meeting with a group called ‘Hands on History’ and dressing as Romans and knights. “We were able to feel the weight of the weapons and armour, it was an incredibly immersive starting point,” says Johnny. We have over 200 warriors designed now, and finding reference material is becoming tough. We research the weapons they would have used, helmets, shields, clothing, even facial hair. The characters all share the same key starting point - the body shape and animation.
mobile platform; players appreciate that. But most importantly, it is a great game. There is a real depth to it, players need to create teams of warriors and build a strategy. We’re continually updating the game as well, introducing new features and events to keep it fresh.” The development team has spent a lot of time on the characters, focusing on facial expressions, cinematic qualities and personalities. The mobile game launched with 50 warriors and 50 enemy minions and there have already been a further 50 warriors added. The Brighton studio is committed to launching a further 10 characters every month. Having such a diverse range
of characters and strong vision has given the creative team a wealth of opportunities for developing brand style guides. Producing the style guides in-house is a bonus for Ant Gardner, art director of the central creative team: “We’ve got all the expertise in-house. We’ve got a great relationship with Johnny and the guys in the Brighton studio. We’re looking at data from the game all the time and can react really quickly to what the players like, and don’t like. Likewise, we work very closely
with the licensing team to make sure that licensees have all the assets they need.” The 2015 style guide focuses on six main warriors with three different design treatments. The core guide uses cinematic character art with fierce typography in a stunning graphic display. The graphic novel treatment gives warriors explosive poses while comic book inspired graphics add a dynamic edge. The iconic guide uses clean lines, bold typography and striking character art. “We’ve had a lot of positive feedback about the style guides so far,” says Ant. “It’s been great for us to see the way licensees have worked with the guides to bring the World of Warriors to life across such a diverse range of categories.” And there’s still so much more to come for the brand; “New characters, new battles, new stories; it’s such an exciting project to be involved in,” says Ant. “The next stage will be taking the brand into new global markets. We’ll be able to focus on different characters for these markets and that’s something that I’m really looking forward to.”
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The UK No. 1 in Licensed Greetings t: +44 (0)1264 388400 e: enquiries@gemma-international.co.uk w: gemma-international.co.uk
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creative approach
meet the warriors The World of Warriors cast already totals over 100 characters. With so much depth, Mind Candy has decided to focus on six key warriors for the global launch campaign. Let’s meet them… gunnar the viking raider (798 AD) Summoned to the Wildlands from a frozen fjord in 798 AD shortly after looting three monasteries in two days. likes: Raiding and trading dislikes: Clergymen
zuma the jaguar warrior (1519 AD)
crixus the roman gladiator (112 AD) Summoned to the Wildlands from Rome in 112 AD while fleeing the Colosseum in a cart loaded with mangled corpses. likes: Thumbs up dislikes: Hecklers
kuro the midnight ninja (1579 AD) Summoned to the Wildlands from Azuchi Castle in 1579 AD while attempting to assassinate a notorious Japanese warlord. likes: Espionage dislikes: Loud noises
Summoned to the Wildlands from Mesoamerica in 1519 AD while chasing thieving Conquistadors escaping with a hoard of Aztec gold. likes: Human sacrifice dislikes: Conquistadors
brutus the roman soldier (79 AD) Summoned to the Wildlands from Pompeii in 79 AD while attempting to control a riot triggered by an escaped tiger. likes: Baked dormice dislikes: Bathing
lance the knight templar (1172 AD) Summoned to the Wildlands in 1177 AD while laying waste to Saladin’s dwindling troops during the epic Battle of Montgisard. likes: Spreading the word dislikes: Itchy chainmail
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consumer products
let battle commence! The first consumer products for World of Warriors hit the shelves in April, less than six months after the mobile game was launched. Magazines, publishing and toys will all follow over summer and into autumn. Coupled with a high-profile marketing campaign, Mind Candy’s latest IP is sure to walk away victorious.
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Inset: Mind Candy’s Darran Garnham. Above right: A sample back pack from Trade Mark Collections. Right: The official sticker book from Penguin Random House will be out in June.
ind Candy has spent considerable time and care in building a robust licensing programme, while at the same time building the World of Warriors brand. Darran Garnham, chief commercial officer explains that interest in the new IP from Mind Candy was incredible from licensees and retailers: “We’d built up a lot of trust from the success of Moshi Monsters. Many licensees and retailers have been on a journey with us through Moshi Monsters and have a lot of faith in what we’re doing. I think our partners could see the potential of World of Warriors right from the start; people are very comfortable with the characters and stories.” It is the depth of characters
and stories that are central to the brand. “If you asked what the Mind Candy ‘secret sauce’ is, it would be the ability to develop characters and content,” says Darran. “The World of Warriors mobile app is just the first touchpoint for the brand. There is short-form content coming over the summer, predominantly on YouTube, a PlayStation 4 game in spring 2016 and the ongoing development of the website. World of Warriors is not just a mobile game, it is an entertainment brand,” he stressed. The World of Warriors consumer products in 2015 will initially focus on the six lead
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consumer products characters: Gunnar the Viking Raider, Zuma the Jaguar Warrior, Brutus the Roman Soldier, Kuro the Midnight Ninja, Crixus the Roman Gladiator and Lance the Knight Templar. But with over 100 warriors in the mobile app, the scope for development is huge. And with warriors coming from all corners of the globe, the brand will appeal to UK and Europe. international audiences “It was great to get as well. these key players on Darran explains that board so soon,” as well as building says Darran. games that are fun “We’re very and challenging, excited, for the educational example, to be aspect of the working with brand is also Moose Toys. very important: “It’s Moose is a great Above: The first collectables from all about stealth GP Flair will launch in autumn. brand-builder. It really education. Johnny Taylor, the understands how to take a property brains behind World of Warriors, has from a toy format into other content, spent an inordinate amount of for example Trash Pack and Shopkins. time researching all the warriors Moose don’t often take on other and ensuring that they are licences, so it’s going to be great historically correct.” working with them.” In terms of building the consumer Part of the attraction of World of products programme, Mind Candy is Warriors is the collectable aspect of collaborating with a number of the characters. GP Flair will launch the specialists with a focus on the UK first collectables in autumn, with 120 for 2015, but at the same time working characters to collect. Topps launched with global partners to launch in 2016. Mind Candy is working with Penguin Random House on the publishing front, Egmont for magazines and Topps for trading cards. The key partners for toys are Moose Toys for the US and Australia and GP Flair for Above: Trading cards from Topps were launched in April.
a collaborative approach Dave Tovey, licensing and retail manager, says: “We started talking to retailers about the brand just before Vegas last year, so they got to see it before anyone else. It was great, as we were working with a clean slate in terms of consumer products and we had a lot of feedback Above: Dave Tovey. from retailers about potential direction. So when we went to Vegas and BLE we had a clear idea what we wanted to focus on. The licensees we're working with are all best in their category and there's some strong products coming to market.”
Left: World of Warriors was featured twice in the iTunes store, first when it was launched and then again in March when it was updated.
platform relationships World of Warriors sky-rocketed in the Apple iTunes charts to the number one role-playing game in over 80 countries just days after it was released in November 2014. And it was selected as a ‘Best of 2014’ app in the Apple app store and was refeatured as editors’ choice in March when the game was updated. “Our relationships with the platforms have been key,” says Darran. “Apple, Google and Amazon have been amazing supporters of Mind Candy. As we move into new markets we will continue these partnerships and build with local platforms who reach millions of consumers. This is particularly important in Asia where the dominant player can change per market. We have spent the last 18 months working on these relationships to ensure success at a global and local level.”
the first series of trading cards in April and these have been a huge success with fans. Egmont’s first World of Warriors magazine comes out in May and will feature cover mounts and opportunities for key partners to advertise. The first books from Penguin Random House are due in June and include a sticker activity book and the official guide. Other licensees will be bringing out products across apparel, homeware, health and beauty, outdoor, stationery and party products. “There’s going to be a huge buzz around the brand this spring and summer,” says Darran. “The first consumer products are coming to the market, but also we’ll be in the middle of a big brand marketing campaign which includes adverts on TV, YouTube and cinemas. Consumers will see the brand everywhere: mobile, computer, TV, magazine stands and on the shop floor. It’s all happening!”
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licensee feedback
licensees
World of Warriors has really impressed licensees across a wide spectrum of categories and 2015 will see some truly innovative product launches. Mind Candy invests a lot of time and energy into its relationships with licensees; something they all appreciate.
paul solomon, chief executive officer, moose Toys
Inset: Battle playset.
“The basic concept of Warriors is simple and so classically appealing to boys. The broad content and unique brand identity lends itself perfectly to toys. It has been a really enjoyable experience bringing it to life with our line. Moose has developed the collectable toy range including over 120 characters, accessories and a playset. Just like the World of Warriors game, boys can gather their army, collecting warriors from all through the ages. They can also replicate their favourite battles with the accessories and playset.”
siobhan galvin, publishing director, egmont publishing “This is our first time working with Mind Candy. They are a really great team with tons of creativity and enthusiasm for the brand. Mind Candy is very collaborative in its approach and we’re working Above: Magazine closely with them on from Egmont. the development of the magazine. We are really excited about developing the story through our exclusive comic content as well as bringing historical characters to life through interactive puzzles, posters, factfiles and amazing free gifts. The magazine will be an integral way for fans to engage with the brand off-screen.”
nic aldridge, marketing director, gp flair “World of Warriors is an incredibly innovative and cool boys’ property. The expansive, engaging and action-packed World of Warriors game combined with Mind Candy’s comprehensive content development and marketing support plans have set the stage for the launch of our toy line which we believe will be the desire of many boys. The collection boasts mini figure packs in 2s, 4s and 8s with over 120 figures to collect in Series One alone. There’s also a Battle Fortress playset, Deluxe Action Figures and a range of role-play accessories.” Right: Collectable figure from GP Flair.
chris rodman, vice president, topps europe “Topps have been a licensee for Mind Candy since the early days of Moshi Monsters. Our Moshi Mash Up Trading Card Game was one of the first licensed products to hit shelves back in 2010 and prompted the first wave of Moshi-mania at retail. World of Warriors has a tremendous range of characters, each with their own unique personality and skill set. To have such a wide range of amazing art to work with has been very exciting and as such we’ve been able to create an incredibly visual and compelling trading card game for this brand.” Above: Topps trading card.
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licensee feedback
charlie howarth, product manager, m.v sports & leisure “We are venturing on our first project with Mind Candy in the form of World of Warriors. With interest from retailers from the outset, this promises to be an exciting and sought after licensed range. The bold, graphic style suits our products perfectly and the relatable and recognisable characters bring fun and action-packed design options. Our key lines for this range will include an inline scooter, bike, skateboard and helmet.”
shahid ahmad, director, strategic content, Sony Computer entertainment Europe “The process of working with Mind Candy on World of Warriors has been one of synergy, mutual respect and a shared passion for the brand vision and the products that will emerge from it. We've particularly enjoyed the open and free-flowing communication across the board, encouraging us all to be innovative. We can't wait to see the game realised on PlayStation 4; we think World of Warriors as a PlayStation console game is going to appeal to a wide audience.”
annabel walwyn, senior editor, penguin random house “World of Warriors is truly epic in terms of its premise, its cast of the greatest warriors drawn from history, its filmic visuals and awesome battle brawls, and finally, in terms of Mind Candy’s global ambition for the brand. We are the exclusive global publishers on World of Warriors and we believe our innovative mixture of author-led fiction by Curtis Jobling and bestselling factual formats will capture the imagination of all 7-12 year old fans. We have a fantastic line-up of fiction and non-fiction in our 2015 publishing programme.”
Right: MV Sports skateboard.
james redfern, sales director, blueprint collections “What Mind Candy does brilliantly is capture the imagination of both buyers and consumers alike. World of Warriors is fun, diverse and educational – not to mention creative, inspiring and exciting. After the market success with Moshi we are proud to be teaming up with Mind Candy once again and bringing Warriors to the market. Like us, our buyers have been ‘grabbed’ by the adventures that Warriors offers.” Below: Embossed pencil tin.
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Above: World of Warriors Official Guide.
tim kilby, brand director, character world “World of Warriors appealed to us for two main reasons; firstly it looks stunning with a distinctive cartoon-like artwork style. And secondly as a mobile app, it has an incredible ability to reach out to a huge audience, which helps licensees to sell product. Mind Candy has a strong track record of innovation, plus a good presence at retail. Duvet sets are our key launch product and the incredible artwork created by Mind Candy will make this brand stand out from the crowd.”
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licensee feedback
jenni leprevost, marketing director, dnc uk “From the very first presentations we were excited by the opportunity World of Warriors represented; a really strong concept, compelling characters, addictive gaming, educational and fun. We are working with Mind Candy for the first time and it’s a pleasure to work with such a professional, responsive team who are committed to their brand and to working closely with their licensees. Our product lines will include 3D EVA character shaped lunch bags supported by innovative drinkware and snacking items.” Below: Range of products from DNC UK.
hannah miles, head of design, smith and brooks “We have worked with Mind Candy for some years now and have a great working relationship and are proud to partner with them. We have listings in all major retailers on daywear and the product is looking slick. We have cool considered designs in store for launch that really reflect the spirit of the brand. Using different print effects, and some metallic inks, the bold crops of graphics, with stitch detail and fabric interest ensure the garment is on-trend and on-brand.” Below: T-shirt design from Smith and Brooks.
caroline weaver, head of product and marketing, gemma international “The quality of the game itself is fantastic and the artwork is so appealing with a great variety of characters to work with. There is also a large bank of assets with comprehensive style guide which will give us a lot of scope when creating the range. The team at Mind Candy are a joy to work with, they are extremely passionate about their brands and how they are represented in the marketplace, their creativity and enthusiasm is infectious.”
sion aykroyd, sales and licensing executive, aykroyd & sons “World of Warriors is our first venture with Mind Candy and having been involved from the very first introduction presentation I must say that working with Mind Candy has been a breath of fresh air. The style guides and the creative assets available really excite our designers; the creative opportunities are endless. Pyjamas are our key product line and we offer exceptional one-off and innovative designs with the very newest and exclusive print techniques on the planet.”
laura sumner, commercial director, vmc accessories ltd “World of Warriors is a unique and appealing property which is also educational. We enjoyed much success with Moshi Monsters and love working with Mind Candy as they are a dynamic business who make things happen. We’re working on an allround fashion accessories for World of Warriors including hats, scarves, gloves and sunglasses. We’re also really excited to be working on a range of tech accessories such as phone cases, tablet cases and laptop covers.” Above: Beanie from VMC Accessories.
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licensee feedback
rob broadhurst, account manager, roy lowe “Having been an early adopter of Mind Candy’s previous smash hit Moshi Monsters, once we heard there was another release in the pipeline, we were obviously very keen to get involved and are enormously excited to be working with Mind Candy on World of Warriors. Mind Candy’s uniquely immersive gaming platforms and innovative marketing programmes make this an ideal brand for us to partner with on our sock designs.”
mark hillson, director, trade mark collections “World of Warriors is so visually strong with such beautiful 3D graphics that it attracted us as soon as we saw it. We love the real-life historical references and it just felt right for us. We love working with Mind Candy – they are always full of ideas and, most important of all to us, they are simply nice people. We will have a full range of bags available for the start of 2016 with a couple of exclusive releases available in late 2015.” Right: Trade Mark Collections backpack.
Below: Roy Lowe’s socks.
max arguile, licensing manager, gb eye “We were one of the first to sign up with Moshi Monsters and we had great success with the brand; it brought us new customers and it was fantastic to be involved with it. We’re anticipating similar success with World of Warriors, Mind Candy definitely know what they are doing. Our type of product – posters, prints, badges – sells well if the game is popular. And World of Warriors is setting up to be a great game.” Right: World of Warriors poster.
tim dawson, chief executive, tdp textiles “World of Warriors is a very innovative brand and we had no hesitation in pitching for the licence. It’s the first time we’ve worked with Mind Candy. The team is very creative and passionate and have a huge amount of knowledge about the market. Our key product lines are children’s underwear, nightwear, dressing gowns and onesies. We’ve had a very positive response from everyone we’ve shown our range to and have already taken our first order from a major retailer.” Left: Trunks from TDP Textiles.
john harris, sales director and partner, kokomo studio “We’re very excited to be working with Mind Candy for the first time. We’ve found them to be very pro-active, a bit quirky and just good fun to work with. They really ‘get it’; they know how to strategically take a brand to market, they totally understand retail. Kokomo prides itself on its unique approach to NPD, so World of Warriors gives us the opportunity to launch some great products to an audience that will appreciate it.” Right: Battle Bath and Shower Gel.
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retail reaction
talking shop World of Warriors is one of the most anticipated toy retail launches of 2015, with a strategic roll-out of consumer product starting in the spring; with toys – the major tentpole – coming in autumn. Mind Candy has been engaging with retailers to ensure that World of Warriors is everything that consumers would want, and more. Below: Samuel Ferguson.
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aining retail support for World of Warriors, even before the mobile app was launched, has been an important part of the brand strategy for Mind Candy. Retailers were some of the first to see the brand and getting their engagement and feedback has helped shape the consumer products programme according to Samuel Ferguson, head of licensing and retail. “Expectations were high around our new IP after the success of Moshi Monsters and the feedback from retailers has been amazing. We have been working very closely with retailers and listening to their needs to make sure we really understand their customers, with the goal to deliver something exclusive and on-brand for them.” Retailers are particularly excited about the collectable
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nature of the brand and the educational aspect. “Stealth education is very important to Mind Candy,” says Sam. “Kids didn’t realise it, but Moshi
Above: Education is important to Mind Candy, and kids learn about history as they play the game.
rebecca rees, head of marketing and licensing, the entertainer: “World of Warriors has amazing depth of content; I particularly like the historic accuracy and how it relates to the curriculum. This huge amount of character content creates a great foundation for a collectable. Mind Candy has listened to our feedback and the team there has really engaged with us on the brand. This is one of our key launches for 2015 and we are working with Mind Candy and Flair on the joint marketing plans. We will supporting the range from the moment it’s available and are working closely with Mind Candy to ensure we list any further categories when they are available. You will definitely see a World of Warriors ‘take over’ with windows, competitions and plenty of online elements to engage with the kids.” Left: World of Warriors is one of the key launches for 2015 for The Entertainer.
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consumer products
Monsters was educational, with kids learning about geography and mathematics to earn social currency. The warriors in World of Warriors are all factually and historically correct. This “The World of Warriors property looks comes through in the mobile really strong, I love brands that can bring app, but we’ll also bring this education to life through great content. educational aspect to The team at Mind Candy have been a off-line content, like magazines, pleasure to work with. They are a forwardbooks and toy packaging.” thinking company with bucket loads of experience in the One of the biggest collectables market. The app has received great feedback throughout the industry and we tentpoles for 2015 is the UK are looking forward to seeing the range toy launch in autumn. “Toys land in store. will be the biggest consumer We will be looking to launch toys in line product category for the with the market in August. Other categories Above: Asda will support brand,” says Sam. “We’re World of Warriors across currently looking to support this brand will be multiple categories in store. working with best-in-category clothing, cards, books, magazines, trading cards partners: Flair, Giocho Preziosi and areas within Home. Outside of our range space we have some exciting off-shelf and Moose Toys on delivering plans to activate World of Warriors in store which looks to challenge the way customers immerse themselves with the brand.” something exceptional for consumers. Retailers loved our approach is really refreshing. we believe we can unlock the what we achieved on Moshi with our Retailers feel ownership of brand and potential of the world using fiction. toy partners and they can all see the they’ve seen World of Warriors grow Penguin Random House is publishing potential for World of Warriors.” with us. It’s great to see people outside a range of non-fiction guides and Publishing is another key category for of Mind Candy as excited about World annuals, but excitingly is also working the brand according to Sam. “We’ve of Warriors as we all are.” with author, Curtis Jobling on a range been working closely with Penguin of fiction titles.” Random House on a multi-layered Bringing World of Warriors to life publishing programme, which includes through consumer products has a traditional licensing book been a truly collaborative affair programme, series fiction and between Mind Candy and retailers. collectable non-fiction titles. The brand “The feedback from retailers is that lends itself nicely to story-telling and
ruth golightly, head of buying, george childrenswear and licence richard wall, buying manager of toys, asda:
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anita serradimigni, licensing manager, tesco:
Above: Tesco is excited about bringing
World of Warriors to customers in “We are really excited about World of categories across the store. Warriors and are looking forward to bringing this hot licence to our customers later this year. The technological innovation and programme content is fantastic and I can’t wait to see this licence come to life on consumer products as well as on digital platforms. It’s fun working with a company who is able to push the norms; Mind Candy’s collaboration and innovation means together we can land something exciting for kids! Mind Candy are able to engage with their users in a unique way because they understand them so well, they ooze trust in everything they do. Toys will be the landing bed in store and will be the key to the cross-category offering. Excitingly World of Warriors will make a cameo appearance in our Back to School offering. We have some exciting plans in place. What Tesco is able to land - like no other retailer - is our store estate and online opportunities. The reach for World of Warriors will be immense.”
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marketing overview
you’ve been summoned Right: Fans get a first look at the Topps trading cards at a ‘swap and play’ event at St James Park in Newcastle in April. Left: Lauren Delord, head of marketing. Below: World of Warriors website is localised in six languages and is first port of call for everything happening around the brand.
From animated YouTube videos to in-store meet and greets, this year there’ll be no escaping World of Warriors. High-profile marketing campaigns aim to raise awareness of the brand, building demand for when consumer products hit the shelves. he key focus of the World of Warriors’ marketing strategy is to promote awareness of the brand among boys aged six to 12 years old. Mind Candy is investing heavily in developing rich content to create a fully immersive brand experience as head of marketing, Lauren Delord explains: “The unique back story combined with historically accurate character biographies are so important in setting World of Warriors apart from anything else on the market. We have this amazing fictional world which gives us so many possibilities to create really engaging content for the fans.” Mind Candy is creating bespoke shortform animation for adverts on TV, cinema and YouTube, not just using game footage. This is an opportunity to show the complexity and sophistication of the brand. Adverts will air over 7,000 times during the campaign across key channels. Cinema advertising will hit 700 screens in the UK from the end of June starting with the Minions movie. And YouTube pre-roll ads will achieve over 2 million impressions on targeted channels for boys and gamers. The World of Warriors website is another important piece in the marketing
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mix. “The website is the digital destination for consumers to engage with the brand,” says Lauren. “For the fans, it’s the first port of call for everything happening in the World of Warriors – whether that’s in the game itself, or activity around consumer products. There’s a character gallery, competitions and activity sheets, mini games and more videos being uploaded every week. The fully localised global website will also support licensees and retailers as they come on board, providing a space to promote new products and run competitions.” Some of the warriors will be brought to life through costume characters from
Rainbow Productions for in-store meet and greets. Other live events will include Topps ‘swap and play’ tours. “We’re also planning other immersive activities for in-store to support the toy launch in the UK. World of Warriors is a fun, exciting brand, and we want to make sure we bring this to life for consumers,” says Lauren. It’s a very exciting time ahead for everyone involved with World of Warriors, from licensees and retailers through to consumers. Innovative marketing initiatives will ensure that World of Warriors will be in the forefront of everyone’s mind this year in the UK and next year across the globe.
GETTING SOCIAL Olivia Burns, marketing executive says: "Social media plays an important role in reaching out to consumers, with Mind Candy’s PopJam a particularly useful platform for targeting young fans. There are over 50,000 followers on the World of Warriors channel on PopJam, who can access exclusive content and share gaming tips with each other in a fun, creative and safe environment. Facebook and Twitter are hugely important for targeting older gamers and parents."
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global perspective
worldly warriors The World of Warriors mobile game has already been downloaded over 6 million times all around the globe, and the rest of the world won’t need to wait long to see World of Warriors consumer products hitting the shelves too.
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ind Candy has been thinking globally right from the conception of World of Warriors. Not only does the game itself have an international flavour – the warriors hail from all four corners of the globe – but the mobile app was launched in six languages from day one. Plans for bringing the digital and consumer products to a global audience have been integrated in the brand strategy right from the beginning. “It’s a very different approach than we took with Moshi Monsters,” explains Darran Garnham, chief commercial officer of Mind Candy. “Moshi was huge in the UK, but it has taken some time to replicate that success overseas. With World of Warriors, right from the start we were thinking about international audiences. And although we are focusing on the UK in 2015, we’ve already got agents in place in North America, Canada and Australia, ready to roll out consumer and digital products in those markets in 2016.” North America is a big area for growth for the brand. Mind Candy has
appointed CPLG as the licensing agent for continental Europe and the US, who will oversee licensing for all categories, support the global partners and source new opportunities in these territories. “North America is such a big market for World of Warriors,” says Darran. “It’s the biggest market for the mobile app to date, so we really are expecting great things when the consumer products programme rolls out.” Elsewhere, Mind Candy is working with Haven Licensing in Australasia and Segal Licensing in Canada as well. Inset: Warriors from throughout history and all over the world join together to do battle, including Manawa the Maori Warrior (above), Jin the Ming Warrior (above top), Aka the Zande Warrior (below) and Zengis the Mongol Warrior (below right).
The company also has its sights set on Asia and will have localised the mobile app into three Asian territories by the end of 2015 and is talking to companies in China, Japan and Korea about building platforms in these territories. “Bringing brands from the West to East is notoriously difficult,” accepts Darran. “But with World of Warriors, we already have the characters in the game from this part of the world. That is the beauty of the depth of characters we have with World of Warriors. No matter where in the world you are, there is a warrior you can identify with.”
a united nations of warriors World of Warriors is perfectly placed to penetrate global markets as it stands. Unlike many other brands which need to add new characters to appeal to an international audience, World of Warriors already has the characters in the game. “The lead characters we use in our branding can be easily changed depending on the market,” explains Darran. “So for the Australasian market we may lead with Doongara the Australian Aborigine and Manawa the Maori Warrior, but in Asia we can lead with Sakuma the Lone Samurai and Ping the Tang Dynasty Princess.”
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looking ahead
Inset: Characters from the mobile app will be brought to life on other platforms including short-form animation and a PlayStation 4 game.
watch this space W
Mind Candy has big plans for World of Warriors across a variety of media platforms, over the next 12 to 18 months expect to see some great short-form animation, a PlayStation 4 game and another mobile app.
orld of Warriors has been brought to life as a mobile app, but this is just the first touchpoint in a strategy spanning online and offline platforms. And although the brand is predominantly targeted at boys aged six to 12 years, Mind Candy Mind Candy is working on developing anticipates that the mixture of battling, a second mobile app that will be crafting and strategy will appeal to completely free to play. The existing older mid-core gamers as well – World of Warriors mobile app is creating a true family a freemium title; entertainment brand. it’s free to play, “The mobile but players can app has been use in-app phenomenally purchases of successful, and we’re virtual currency continually layering in (wildstones) new characters, new to enhance battles and new ways Above: Continual updates to the mobile the game. to play,” says Darran app keeps the gameplay exciting. “The mobile apps are only one of the Garnham, chief commercial officer. “It’s touchpoints,” says Darran. “We’re so important to keep the game relevant. particularly excited about short-form We listen to the animation and have released a number players and take on board feedback.
the story continues For fans who just can’t get enough of World of Warriors, Penguin Random House will be bringing out a series of fictional stories by Wereworld author, Curtis Jobling. Curtis says: “I couldn't resist the opportunity to write these combative characters that span history and cross cultures. Each tale will feature a desperate, diverse and deadly gang of battling warriors as they embark upon an incredible quest – the biggest challenge will be getting them to work Above: Curtis Jobling. together and not bash lumps out of one another!”
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of videos on our YouTube channel. The brand lends itself to animation; it’s a way that the players can engage with the brand away from the game.” A deal with Sony PlayStation will see World of Warriors coming out as a PlayStation 4 game in spring 2016. Darran explains how this will allow players to fully immerse themselves in the Wildlands: “The PlayStation 4 game is incredibly exciting. Obviously with a mobile game you are restricted with what you can achieve in terms of gameplay. But a console-based game will really allow players to explore the full depth of the game. We’ll be able to deepen the historical aspect of the brand; we’re even thinking about introducing animals into battles.” And that’s just the digital product. Mind Candy’s robust marketing and licensing programme will see the brand coming to life across multiple product categories, including hardlines, softlines and publishing; both in the UK and overseas territories. As the warriors themselves cry: ‘Let Battle Commence!’
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