The Name Of The Game

These days, it seems that every toy manufacturer wants a Coke–that is, a name with universal recognition, and the board games sector is no exception. For classics such as Candyland, Clue, Trouble and Mousetrap, playing the name game means extending the brand to other products. The result is an expanded consumer reach and, in many cases, a retail presence beyond the toy arena.

Pawtucket, R.I.-based Hasbro has a licensing game plan that takes its brand names and breaks them out into categories across the board, says Bryony Bouyer, vice president, marketing, Hasbro Properties Group. This year, the company is licensing out a number of its family favorites to a vast array of partners in a host of product categories. Clue kids' chapter books join Monopoly, Scrabble and Operation greeting cards from Business Market Strategies, Tampa, Fla. Scrapbooking supplies from E.K. Success, of Clifton, N.J., for Candyland, Scrabble and Monopoly brands tackle a hot tween trend. On the gaming front are West Greenwich, R.I.'s GTech Monopoly lottery games, Battleship scratch tickets from Scientific Games, Alpharetta, Ga., and new platforms for Waukegan, Il.-based WMS Gaming's Monopoly slot machines. For apparel, Van Nuys, Calif.-based Wish gets comfy with Twister and Scrabble women's loungewear, while MJC, of San Francisco, offers Monopoly and Barrel of Monkeys men's sleepwear.

Instant recognition of the logos' colors and iconography and many character pieces puts Hasbro ahead of the game, Bouyer tells PLAYTHINGS. For a classic brand like Candyland, Hasbro has developed multiple storylines based on the playing pieces that will unfold as a direct-to-video release next spring, followed by publishing products that will move the plot lines forward.

Such broad brand awareness prompted Accessory Network, New York, to produce adult retro bags with Twister, Monopoly, Scrabble and Operation images and artwork sold in Mervyn's stores. Combining nostalgia and cutting edge style make for a hot commodity, according to Karyn Weiss, vice president, licensing, Accessory Network. "Vintage is big right now and a Monopoly bag is a retro fun item," she says. In addition, Scrabble and Monopoly hosiery with game tiles and playing pieces sewn on the back of slipper socks and leg warmers are making moves at Wal-Mart, Modell's Sporting Goods, Rainbow Shops and Shoe Show.

Weiss points to past success with retro Disney character art as the catalyst for doing board game logos for bags and accessories. As a Hasbro licensee, Accessory Network culled original game boards from Hasbro archives and from eBay to design its bags.

The advantage to expanding board game brands is that they are not locked into a specific demographic, says Southampton, Pa.-based Basic Fun president Alan Dorfman. Referring to the company's tremendous key chain series–representing virtually every Milton Bradley and Parker Brothers game title, along with Pictionary and classic checkers and chess games–he believes that everyone can be a player. Newer key chains that open to reveal original game board graphics and removable game pieces have raised the bar. Four different titles packaged in each assortment offer choice and encourage multiple purchases, says Dorfman.

That's the case at Game Towne, San Diego, Calif., where Basic Fun key chains sell alongside Hasbro games. Except for a short stint with some appliqué tee shirts, key chains are the extent of ancillary product. "It's not about being opposed to the idea," sales associate Robert Jones tells PLAYTHINGS, "but where to put it. Space is always a big concern and determines what merchandise we can carry."

Some retailers also make conscious efforts to stay away from merchandise that is gift oriented, like Reed Johnson, owner of Boon Companion, Claremont, Calif. Games chalk up a lot of dollars at his 2,000-sq.-ft. store.

Traditionally, licensing has catapulted from an entertainment property to licensed goods and not the other way around. Endless Games, New York, has What's My Line?, Password and The Price Is Right board games that began as television game shows. Similarly, Stargate started as a movie and morphed into the Stargate SG-1 syndicated TV series that has spawned a game from Fleet Games, Naples, Fla. an upcoming role-playing game and a future thrill ride at Six Flags theme parks, according to Anthony Listrom, president of Fleet Games.

Hasbro will also launch a broad-based licensing campaign for its new entertainment property, Duel Masters, based on the Japanese trading card game that recently debuted in the United States as a comic book and a Cartoon Network children's TV series. This will include a GameBoy Advance game from Atari and publishing initiatives from Scholastic Books, both of New York.

So, is extending the brand always the next move? Encinitas, Calif.-headquartered USAopoly has successfully melded the Monopoly concept with other unforgettable licenses. "The company focus is to take nostalgic and retro properties from sports, entertainment and American icons to the next level," says Maggie Matthews, vice president, marketing. "Monopoly is the ultimate brand name."

Monopoly: Mickey Mouse 75th Anniversary Collector's Edition joins Coca-Cola, Peanuts, Elvis, Garfield, Spider-Man, Scooby-Doo and the Mustang 40th Anniversary versions, just to name a few. Baseball and football teams are well represented in various MLB and NFL Monopoly versions. Gift and souvenir stores tout city-themed Monopoly games to the tourist trade.

University Games, San Francisco, has made licensing part of its overall strategy to promote core games, says president Bob Moog. In addition to travel and kid versions of 20 Questions and 30 Second Mysteries, Spinner Books, the company's in-house publishing arm, prints titles distributed to Borders and Barnes & Noble book outlets. Stamford, Conn.-based Mead and Workman Publishing, New York, produce calendars based on the brands and with the licensing rights in hand, Moog says 20 Questions for Kids and 30 Second Mysteries for Kids giftware, apparel and even wireless and DVD electronics products are just a matter of time.

"I would like to see other manufacturers get into this," he adds. "But ancillary products will not follow if the game is not a success itself. Secondly, the product has to make sense."

For New Brunswick, N.J.-located Pressman Toys, says David Shapiro, vice president, marketing, extending its Mastermind brand meant licensing it to other game-like categories. Hand-held electronic and CD-ROM versions of the plastic console game from Hasbro are no longer produced, but a wireless game version from Chasma, Nashua, N.H., will be available to cell phone providers later this year. "Obviously, the ability to play Mastermind with one or two players has enabled us to find other format-friendly applications to better exploit the game," Shapiro tells PLAYTHINGS.

Who wouldn't love to take a game title to the next level, asks Watertown, Mass.-based Gamewright game developer Jason Schneider. "There's a Moose in the House is a new game of ours with a narrative story that would be a natural in the publishing sector," he says. "We've created game characters that are opportune…but our titles have not yet gained the incredible cachet of Monopoly."