Welcome to “This Week in Playable Media”

A game trailer so significant, I had to start a newsletter about it!

Hello and thanks for finding the first edition of This Week in Playable Media, you new fallout shelter for the inevitable collapse of culture - film, TV, music, sports, and fashion - into the realms video games. We all tend to agree this is happening, so we might as well be aware of what’s going on around us.

Here’s what you need to know about this week:

• The “GTA VI” trailer. Epically hyped, then leaked, then dropped.

• LEGO is live on Fortnite. Why this matters.

• And, why “playable media”?

The “Grand Theft Auto VI” Trailer is out now

The hype surrounding the release of the "Grand Theft Auto VI" (GTA VI) trailer has been immense and has broken records in the gaming world. The first trailer for GTA VI set a new record for the most YouTube views within 24 hours for a non-music video, surpassing 85 million views. The trailer's release was highly anticipated, coming a decade after the release of GTA V, which is the second-best-selling video game of all time. (After Minecraft, more on that is a moment). It’s nearly all good news for Rockstar, although the release was leaked 14hrs early, marking a rocky start to the drop.

GTA VI is set in a fictional state called Leonida, featuring Vice City as its setting, reminiscent of Florida with its unique characters and wildlife. The game will introduce Lucia, the franchise's first female protagonist, marking a significant milestone in the series.

The game is expected to be a hit, given the fervent demand for even just the trailer, continuing the legacy of its predecessor, GTA V, which generated around $7.68 billion in sales since its launch in 2013. Although no exact release date has been confirmed, analysts anticipate that the game could surpass $1 billion in sales revenue within the first week of release and potentially reach $8 billion by 2025. This type of financial return seems necessary for Rockstar Games owner, Take-Two Interactive, after reports earlier this year suggested that the game would be "the most expensive entertainment property ever made." This comfortably exceeds the reported $540 million that Rockstar themselves spent on "Red Dead Redemption 2," or the $447 million that Disney spent on "Star Wars: The Force Awakens."

Why should you, and other non-gamers, care?

This game, is not just a game.

GTA VI will be an unfathomably deep multimedia experience. The core missions will be wilder an more compelling than the next Netflix docu-fad. There will be music streamed in the game, original scores and iconic classics, which become ear worms that shape listening taste. If the trailer is any indication, there may even be an in-game social networking tool for capturing your experience and sharing with others. GTA VI will claim hours of attention time, which is time they won’t be spending doing other things - potentially for the entirety of 2025 - so make sure you are prepared.

LEGO is on Fortnite

The excitement and hype surrounding the LEGO Fortnite experience, which launched this week, has been significant. This collaboration between LEGO and Epic Games, envisioned in April 2022, aimed to create a kid-friendly "metaverse," resulting in the LEGO Fortnite game. Here, since we’ve been on the topic of trailers.

It's designed to be accessible to a wide audience and is rated E10+, making it more family-friendly compared to Fortnite's base game, which is rated T for teens. The collaboration aims to empower young players to become creators in a safe and engaging digital environment.

In this survival crafting game, players can explore open worlds where LEGO and Fortnite elements intersect. The game incorporates unique game mechanics like mining, building, and health and energy systems (sound familiar, Minecraft fans?). Players can rejuvenate health and stamina by resting in beds and gathering materials through mining, offering a gameplay experience distinct from traditional Fortnite play.

Why should you, and other non-gamers, care?

Over 1 MILLION people have already watch Twitch streamer, Ninja play LEGO’s Fornite Experience. 

Brands - particularly consumer brands - that ignore this space (and others like it) will be left behind. The game also borrows a lot in terms of gameplay and style from Minecraft, the most successful game of all-time, so seems like a solid recipe to follow for Epic and Lego. Finally, the game’s intention to target a younger/ family friendly audience appears to be a create attempt grab some of the audience that is otherwise spending time in Roblox.

The speed of development one key to remember, Unreal Engine for Fornite (UE:FN) is making is easier (faster and cheaper) for IP owners to launch experiences which their brands can stand behind.

Why Playable Media?

I am proposing the adoption of new a term: “Playable Media” 

Many of you will immediately understand what I am getting at, but allow me to explain my proposal and let me know what you think in the comments. 

We increasingly talk about the role of “gaming” in sports, music, TV, film, advertising, and other bastions of culture more generally. References to “gaming” typically refer to “video games”, but the term “gaming” is also used when referring to “betting”.this can cause a bit of confusion - especially in a sector like sports where both betting and video games are on the rise.

Even talking about “video games” is a bit passé, as this segment is further split into console, PC, and mobile. And that is before we get into terms like “VR”, “AR”, “XR”, “the metaverse”, or even “Web3”. There is much talk about how brands are engaging in this space, and the way brand campaigns are described within "gaming" platforms sometimes adds to the confusion.

However, it is clear that much of what I see here on Linkedin and beyond through my media + tech + sports lens is about the increasing role of games and playable interaction. People are gravitating towards “Playable Media”.

As our means of content consumption has evolved at hyper speed, we have introduced terms that allow us to speak about the collective type of content we are discussing

Most obviously, the term “social media” is common in households around the world. If I said, “streaming services”, most people would immediately be able to call upon the businesses in this sector. So how about “Playable Media”!? 

“Playable Media” encompasses all things video games (as mentioned above), but also the emerging interactive media that lets non-gamers engage and play within new content experiences.