CS - Primary research

Here i have interviewed some of my housemates that are non gamers and i have shown them these videos followed by some questions:

Skylanders advert
A talk about the mechanic
Talk about the costs

I showed them the first two videos and asked them of what they thought about the mechanic.

"It's clever, cool and you get a toy as well as a game"
"Not seen anything like it before!
"Makes it unique"
"Better to play with figures and expand imagination"
"It's social, able to take the figures with you to your friends house"

I then went and showed them the third video and told them the full cost of getting all 32 toys.

"Ridiculous money"
"Rip off - you have already payed for the game and you have to keep buying add-ons"
"Parents are not prepared to spend that much money are they?"
"It's a disappointment for kids whos parents can't afford to keep buying them all"
"It's a good way to make money"
"Won't kids get bored of it after a while?"

I asked them a few questions to conclude:

"Overall, what do you think about this idea?"
"It's a cool idea just costs a lot"
"Do you think that something like this has potential to grow to a grander scale in the future? Buying physical things that you can use in games?"
"Yes"
"Do you think that people are more likely to buy something if something physical comes with it?"
"Yes"
"Why?"
"Feels like you get more for your money"
"Do you think that this is a way of manipulating children?"
"No - I don't know"
"Why?"
"Because parents are the ones who have to buy it"
"Would you buy this for your kids?"
"No"
"Why?"
"Because of the cost of it all"
"Do you think that this is another form of collecting - like Pokemon cards?"
"Yes"
"Do you think its a good for bad thing?"
"No i think its a good thing"
"You say its a good thing, but you wouldn't buy it for your own kids"
"Yeah, but it just costs a lot"



I then did the same thing for gamers, people on my course.  This is what they said after watching the first two videos:

"It's a good mechanic and seems to have good replay ability. It's different"
"It has a novelty approach to gaming"
"It has an increased market ability as its appealing to collectors and to people who like figurines/statues."

This is what they had to say after the third video:

"They are making a DLC into a physical thing"
"It must be expensive, if its for kids the price of things always bump up"

I then asked them some questions:

"Is it a form of collecting?"
"Yes"
"Would you buy this for your children or younger siblings or relatives?"
"Yes"
"Do you think that this is a successful game?"
"Yes"
"Why?"
"It's easily accessible and seems to have a high replay ability"
"Do you think its exposing/manipulating children?"
"Yeah but only by the same amount as other game/toy companies.  They are marrying two things together, physical collectibles with digital gaming.  It's clever marketing."
"Do you think that mixing physical things and digital things will grow in games?"
"Yes"
"Do you think we are more inclined to but things that come with something physical?"
"Yes"
"Why?"
"Because you feel like you're getting extra and its a physical thing; Its a mentality.  Children like to have something to physically touch and play with too"


I then did the same thing to my mother, showing her the videos and asking her questions.  This is what she said after watching the first two videos:

"It's very attractive"
"If i were a child id like it"
"There's a lot to like about"
"The platform portal thing is amazing! It's really clever!"

I then showed her the third video.

"It is unforgivable and wring the prices"
"Puts you off the game"
"I feel blackmailed"

I then went on to ask her some questions:

"Do you think this game is successful?"
"I guess i would buy it for my child because it would make them happy but no i don't think so."
"Why?"
"Because of the price"
"Do you think that this is another form of collecting?"
"yes"
"Why?"
"It's a normal and natural thing to do."
"Is this manipulating children?"
"Yes"
"why?"
"There's so many of them and they encourage children to collect"
"Do you think there will be more physical and digital cross overs in the future?"
"Yes, i like the idea of a physical and digital crossover."
"Are you more inclined to buy a game that has something physical with it?"
"Yes, it anchors the digital game to the real world."