The games kids play

There's a secret to developing video games for kids—use the characters they love, and use them well. John Ardell, global brand manager for THQ, Calabasas, Calif., says that one key to getting kids' games right is carefully determining to what extent a licensed game should mirror its source film or animated series.

“Oftentimes when you look at a TV- or movie-based production, it's a struggle to make a good game with dialogue and humor,” Ardell says. “When you hear the Cars property, it's racing, which is a popular genre with kids and older, so it's a natural fit with the product, unlike other licensed properties. We created a product that not only will be accessible to the kid audience through the license, but also is a solid racing title that can stand on its own two legs with or without a license.”

THQ will launch the Cars game this fall following the release of the Pixar-animated feature of the same name for Nintendo DS, Xbox, PC/Mac, GameCube, PSP and Game Boy Advance. Players, ages 6 to 12, race as their favorite car and help Lightening McQueen capture the Piston Cup Championship. Games for upcoming film Monster House as well as Nickelodeon's Barnyard will also be available in July.

THQ is working with both mass and smaller, mall-based specialty stores to cross-promote products from the THQ titles with other related product. For example, THQ is working with Mattel for Cars, plus using other Pixar titles like the The Incredibles in the promotional mix for the movie's summer release as well as its DVD release this fall. Ardell says they also want retailers to give consumers a hands-on experience with the new games.

“In retail, a lot of the focus is to get the product from behind glass,” Ardell says. “Most retailers [keep the product locked up] to prevent theft, so the goal is to get the product out there, even with dummy boxes. When mom and grandma are shopping in malls, and they normally do not go to a specialty store, we want to lure them in.”

Additional E-rated titles from Capcom, Sunnyvale, Calif., include Mega Man Battle Network 6 (two versions: Cybeast Falzar and Cybeast Gregar), scheduled for release late summer for Game Boy Advance, along with Puzzle World and Power Stone Collection. Namco, Santa Clara, Calif., will release Pac-Man World Rally, a multi-player kart racing game, this July for PSP/PS2, PC, GameCube and Xbox.

Midway, San Diego, will release Ant Bully, based on August's Warner Bros. animated feature release. The Brabrand, Denmark-based Game Factory brings children's book favorite Babar the Elephant, first launched in 1931, to gaming in Babar to the Rescue for Nintendo's GameBoy Advance.

The next generation of children will likely use next-gen consoles. New to the Xbox 360 market is Viva Piñata, created in conjunction with the upcoming 4kids Entertainment Saturday morning 3-D animated television series of the same name. The game, targeted for ages 6 to 11, is an exclusive for 360 and lets players create and customize piñata-filled adventures. It will be released this November with related licensed product to follow throughout 2007.

Al Kahn, 4Kids Entertainment president, tells Playthings that the game is one of the first for younger kids for the 360 system. “This game is trying to get the younger audience to participate in Xbox 360,” he says. “That's the real desire of Microsoft. Right now [360] is for [older] gamers, so they wanted to make a game that's more family oriented. Obviously, one thing they have to do is appeal to is children.”

More girls are gamers, so THQ is developing more female-friendly titles like Bratz Diamonds and a new SpongeBob SquarePants game to be out later this year. “The girls market has picked up in the last few years,” he says. “Action works for girls, and a big entertainment property works. In the past, there weren't any key directed girl-only titles. Now, it's recognized that the girls market is there.”