Recently we were able to discuss new trends in gaming and how one company was attempting to focus on a very unappreciated market -- games for girls.  Patricia Flanigan, Director of Marketing for American Laser Games' Games For Her division, gave us a few insights on how important this new area was and how ALG is focusing on the market.

3: What is the name of your new program?

Flanigan: It's Games for Her.

3: Is this an offshoot of American Laser Games?

F: It's a division of the company.  We are still American Laser Games.  This is a new division to design, manufacture, publish and market games for girls.

3: Currently, we have an 8 billion dollar market in video games.  Are you saying there could be a 50-75% increase if there were more games for girls?

F: The percentages are uncertain, but there is a market in games for girls.  This market is untapped, and we feel that there are huge numbers of girls that would play or interact more with their computers if there were more titles that were entertaining for them.

3: We've heard of other attempts to attack this market in the past.  When you look at game for girls, what avenues are you looking at producing?

F: We actually have four separate categories that we're going after.  I'm not prepared to release them at this time, but there are four separate kinds of games we feel girls would like, based on our research.
        Most of us know girls love puzzle games, i.e. Tetris and Myst.  I think we're taking it a bit further in terms of actually making games for girls.  If boys like to play them that's okay, but our target is simply to keep the female in mind and to produce games for her without particularly trying to get both markets.
        American Laser Games has been a trailblazer in motion picture action.  We want to use our expertise in the way we film things to engage the player.  We believe that this expertise will help us break into the female market.

3: Well, it's more problem solving and social oriented, is that correct?
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F: Very much so.  The game deal with things which are closer to girls, like interaction with their family and friends and career aspirations -- as opposed to fighting and shooting.

3: Your first title is called Madison High, is that correct?  Is that based on a high school situation?

F: It is what we call a social adventure.  It is interacting with friends in high school, juggling school work and home responsibilities -- basically dealing with the everyday life of an adolescent girl.

3: Sort of a Melrose Place with taste?

F: (Laughter) I would say much younger than Melrose Place.

3: I'm sorry, I meant 90210.

F: Well, we're actually younger than that.  I think that is a bit heavy for where we're going.  We're not quite there.

3: What is the group that you are aiming for?

F: We see the major market being from 9 to 15.

3: So these are more like high school wannabes.

F: Exactly, junior high school, early high school.

3: You're not ready to release the categories of your other titles.

F: Not at this time.  It won't be long.  We're working on the production of the other titles and when we get further along in the production we will release further information about them.  We are very excited about them, they are very different from Madison High.

3: So, we're working here more with social games and social orientation.  This a change from what programmers and game designer are looking to do.  In your new division, are you using more women in the game designing process and game programming process?

F: We're aggressively recruiting women to work with us in the programming capacity.  We have gathered a group of developers and programmers who are passionate about this genre.  I think that you have to be, working in a new area like this.  I think that is very important. 
        And we're talking about writers as well as technicians.  We're looking for everyone from graphics people, to programmers, to script writers, to dialogue writers.  We already have many talented people working on this project.  We're very enthused about it.

3: It sounds as if you are.

F: I move in that enthused mode.

3: You have to be, you have to carry a lot of energy when you do this.

F: We're pioneering new territory here, and I think it does take a lot of energy.  But we have it, we're ready and we're excited.

3: I know this is an aggressive program -- you are going to introduce how many games in this genre this year?

F: We plan to have two titles out this year and next year we are looking at between four and six.  It is very aggressive, but we need to build shelf space for girls.
        Our goal in this division is for girls to be as comfortable with their computer as they are with their telephone.  I feel that if there is a title which will truly engage them and approach them on a level that they want to play, they will.
        Girls are very social, they like to hang out and chat, watch movies together and there is no reason why they wouldn't want to play computer games together.

3: That is going to cause quite a problem.  It's not just reprogramming or rethinking the way you do a program, you're introducing, in an interactive mode, some difficult problems.  It's okay to talk about an object that has to be shot, and collision control, making sure it gets hit and so forth, but it is much more difficult to come up with the ideas, the interactivity, or the subtleties of a social situation.

F: There's no question about that.  We look at that everyday.  Every time we do a rewrite on a particular story board or a script, we ask ourselves if this is really doing what we need it to do, is it really engaging the player, have we touched on this area in a way that is appealing, does it give you goosebumps, does it cause you to want to get to the next section?
        It is very challenging and maybe that is why it hasn't been approached because it is very difficult.  We can't say that we have the magic formula, but based on hundreds and hundreds of hours of focus groups with these girls, we at least have a very good place to begin.  We are jumping in with both feet.

3: Jumping in with both feet, working with social interactivity and so forth, you run that fine narrow line of offending people and going over the line of political correctness.  How do you approach that?

F: Well, we approach it very carefully.  It is pretty interesting that no one is ever concerned about the political correctness of boys' games.  Have you ever noticed that?  They can fight, they can shoot, they can tear out hearts, they can do everything, but no one seems concerned about the political correctness of those boys' games.  It is almost a double standard.  You start talking about girls' games and everyone starts jumping on the band wagon of making sure it is politically correct.  Our goal is to produce titles that appeal to real girls in real life situations.  We want to convey the message that you don't have to be like a Barbie doll character to make it in life. 
        We have to focus on our goal of producing titles which will appeal to the girls playing the game.  If we get bogged down with all the criticism that may come from both sides of the politically correct coin, we might miss the boat on what is really fun for a girl.
        It is tough and we understand that, but we very much want to create products which are real, wholesome and healthy, and fun.  It's a very narrow, very fresh trail that we are navigating.  We've got to appeal to a girl's intelligence, but we also recognize that there are lighter sides to girl's life that are part of her identity as a girl -- things that she just loves to do, like interact with her friends, dream about what could be in her life, solve problems, etc.

3: I think the problem is that you have stated that you are going after the female market, therefore you are almost set up for a question of political correctness.

F: Absolutely.

3: The thing is that some things that are politically correct in some parts of the country or in some cultures, are not going to be acceptable in others.  Politically correct can often be defined by your immediate surroundings.  some things that we could do here in New England or you can do in Albuquerque or someone could do in California could not be done elsewhere.

F: I agree, but don't you think it is like that in all the game business, don't you think its like that in the boys' games?  There are some parts of the world that don't like our shooting games.

3: I agree.

F: To think that we could produce a product that is absolutely perfect for each and every demographic is impossible.  Our approach is to do different types of products for different types of girls, in different walks of life -- all who have an interest in using their computer for gaming.  That's why we are doing this.
        Going into the boys' section at a software store, you certainly see hundreds and hundreds of varieties of boys' products appealing to different boys, their different values, their different regions' values as well as different likes and dislikes.  I would hope that we could do that in the girls' market as well.
        Like in a bookstore where you can find something for every taste.  To think that with one title we could hit everybody's likes would be ridiculous.  That is why we are looking at very varied tastes in styles of games, and varied subject matters in styles of games from social to educational and adventure.  I think this is like any other consumer product where you have to appeal to different tastes.

3: What can someone expect to see when they are looking at Madison High:  Did you show a vision of this at CES?

F: No we didn't.  We will be bringing it out a E3.  We will have a demo at that time.

3: Can you, without giving away the game and so forth, give me some examples, something about the opening screen that someone might see.  I understand that you will be using the film genre, as ALG has been using, actually pioneered for game technology.  So, what will someone be actually seeing?

F: The player will see teenagers interacting at high school who, in turn, will interact with the player.  The player will be drawn into the world of Madison High as if she was a part of it.

3: So it will be a first person point of view?

F: Yes.

3: The camera is the player's viewpoint?

F:Yes.

3: You're not taking on a character within the story?

F: There are some places in which you do because we needed a visualization of a particular part of the game.  So you select one of the characters that you would like to play through the game.
        Most of the time you do not see yourself after the initial introduction.  You are playing in first person, but there are a few times when it crosses over the line just a bit which makes it pretty interesting.
        Which also makes us very careful in designing the kinds of choices the player has to make within the context of the game.  There are a lot of social challenges that individual girls are going to respond to differently -- and there isn't always a right and wrong.  We as working women with children are very sensitive to these challenges.  Our games will be feeling these challenges and making them fun.  It's a fine line, a fine line.

3: It is.  Any time you work with social situations, it is hard to keep social pressures out of it?

F: Absolutely.  We have to look at it in terms of entertainment too.  If we get too heavy into the social issues we will lose entertainment value and we cannot do that.  If it's not entertaining, why would they buy it?

3:Exactly.

F: There is a fine line, and we feel it and are aware of it every day.  We are very careful and hope that we get the right target.  We are taking on the social adventure as the first title when we could have easily put out an adventure game first.  We know that it is our greatest challenge and that is why we would like to attack it first.

3: With your focus groups and so forth, you are doing a lot of research on what girls are looking for, what your age group and target group are, what they're interested in.  Have you established some idea of a follow up?  Are you going to take feedback from parents after this?

F: Absolutely, we've established a parents' group, and we're taking segments of the game back to the focus group for input as the game is being developed.  In other words, we meet with focus groups to see what they would like, then we create what we think they would like, then we call them back in and ask them if this title is on target.   All along the process, we are interacting not only with the girls but parents and educators as well.

3: You're doing these for how many different platforms?

F: For PC, 3DO, Mac, Sony Playstation and perhaps Sega.

3: When can we expect to see Madison High in the marketplace?

F:  You'll see Madison High on the PC between August and September, 3DO shortly following, as we are in a parallel development on 3DO and PC.  We are looking at the 3DO version before Christmas, we hope.  Others will follow soon.

3: You're really changing the complexion of the gaming industry with this whole aspect.  I think its exciting.  It's almost like someone sitting down and looking at an entirely new industry and picking and choosing what you have to do within that industry.

F: Yes, that's exactly what we're doing.  We are saying that this is a new business and you just have to wash out everything in the brain and ask how would we approach this as a new business, as if we were starting it without any proper knowledge of the game business, if you will.  I think the approach is different and is unique and certainly not without its risks.  But we're ready for it and we feel very comfortable and very excited about it.

3: Thank you. This is exciting and I'm very impressed.

F: We are happy to tell you and your readers about it.

