5/11/06

“CARD GAMING: INCREASED INVESTMENT! – PART 1.” (#516)

The deployment of Paper and Plastic Cards in Amusement gaming

Stinger REPORT Skinny!

(4/10/06) The FIRST part of a two part detailed HOT TOPIC feature on the state of the market, the Stinger looks at the application of card games in amusement with a detailed rundown of the leading providers and how this applies to the application of video amusement in the changing gaming scene. Exclusive interviews with Panini for the first time to discuss their strategy in the amusement sector with SEGA and beyond, looking in the first part at the Asian application of this technology.

Main REPORT:

The amusement scene has been saturated with arcade titles that combine a dispensed card system, or storage card system. This best outlined in a recent Stinger feature: ‘Carding The Player #337’. In unprecedented contact with the leading factories championing the technology, the Stinger Report has been able to gain important information on the facts concerning product penetration. The Stinger now covers the leading developments:

SEGA

The Card system was successfully deployed first by SEGA in the amusement scene; the popularity of the Derby Owners Club vended system based on the same magnetic card system that was fielded in the JOYPOLIS guest ticket system. The actual Memory Card Reader & Dispenser (MCRD) tickets are not paper and can be printed upon. This enabled the development of a single reusable card for Derby, and recently with the Initial D series using the repeat use card. During 2004 SEGA reported over 360,000 Initial D cards in circulation

The technology that offered reusable cards was superseded by new developments in SEGA development of their successful Satellite Terminal (ST) genre. In mixing the popular Paper Card collector card element with this game genre, the company also added new technology.

With an invisible barcode system (retaining 150 bits of data) imprinted on the reverse of the card that is recognized by the game-play camera shooting through the one-way glass top of the players’ terminal; the most recent system running this architecture being ‘SEGA World Club Champion Football European Club 2005-2006’ (Naomi 2).

The European leading collector’s card developer Panini agreed to support SEGA’s involvement in this sector. Panini sells millions of their conventional collector cards based on the football sector. Panini spoke exclusively to TSR on their business partnership with SEGA; 98 per cent of the WCCF cards are obtained from playing the game, SEGA having developed a unique dispenser of ‘Starter Pack’ 11 Player Cards and a Club Card (an IC card), 11 card sleeves, and a game play manual.

The unique Player Cards (with their reverse side invisible barcode) are exclusive to the game and are not sold through Panini’s conventional (and extensive) retail operation. The relationship with SEGA started some 4 years – the Serie A game was first launched in 2002. With the first WCCF and the systems operated in Italy in 2004 successfully, then in 2005 received full international deployment. The system offers a total of 400 cards to collect with 240 new players in the Club 2005-2006 edition.

The relationship has proven beneficial to SEGA, with Panini undertaking the licensing and update of the players and football team elements of WCCF and the new provisional releases. In particular, Panini has compiled the 150 pieces of player statistical data used in the cards and through the game. Panini works with consumer as well as amusement developers in utilizing their extensive licensing and data collection. The company claims to be the World’s largest producer and marketer of published collectables, with extensive product lines based on children’s and youth comics and magazines.

To place this into perspective, Panini released a billion card packs (excluding WCCF cards) just in the first quarter of the year, split between football and entertainment. But the development of the WCCF is not the only Panini interest. The vast collectable card operation viewing the MushiKing success with interest, the company using coin-operated vending to retail a number of their packs and seeing amusement as an up-and-coming sector for future investment.

Where Europe looks to WCCF as the main use of the card table system, in Japan, SEGA have expanded the concept across a number of game styles. Products such as ‘Sangokushi Taisen 2’ (Naomi 2) use the same card reading system.

Still with paper card systems and the phenomena that is Card Gaming or Kid Vending, observers can trace a route from collectable card packs, interactive barcode swipe games and toys…a route that leads finally to the million card selling MushiKing property from SEGA. Fundamentally the video equivalent of Rock-Paper-Scissors with a Barcode card recognition system, this product has become its own unique genre.

On information made available to TSR, it was revealed that SEGA's original MushiKing had a penetration in their market of 13,400 machines, and an estimated 360 million cards deployed -- all this supported with 56,400 events and tournaments (a vital component in establishing the brand and building loyalty).

Now, with the new variants of the genre appearing, we see a more universal and less territory-specific brand in the dinosaur battling ‘Dinosaur King’ (Aurora). The product has grown in penetration with initially 6,150 machines in circulation and over 35 million cards fielded. The brand however is being built with new card sets including new holographic cards, an idea from the Pokemon sector offering exclusive collectivity and so added value.

The most important diversification of the genre is the ability to be unisex, with certain titles appealing to the most crucial girl sector of the 5 to 15 age bracket. ‘Love & Berry’ (Aurora) has exploded onto the scene with 8,900 machines and 153 million cards deployed; all supported with 6,200 events appealing to girl players –  a machine that has made a new life for amusement in retail, with queues forming outside retailers that installed units.

The Integrated Chip (IC) Card, more commonly known as the Smart Card, is the obvious successor to the paper card as a player medium, but should not be seen as a replacement for the Kid Vending system, the dispensing of collectable cards a component of the genre’s success.

The Smart Card for SEGA fits into the complete package of connected gaming, with the Amusement Linkage Live Network (ALL.NET), supporting player IC Card data. It has to be remembered that WCCF may utilize the paper card system, but the actual players data stored on a separate IC Card.

All current SEGA developments that incorporate ALL.NET support include the card, with the most ubiquitous being the big fan-supported games such as ‘Virtua Fighter 5 REVISION 1’ (LindBergh) or ‘Quest of D: Ver. 3.0’ (Naomi 2). The Paper Card extravaganza of the MCRD based Initial D driver has migrated this year to a IC Card presentation launched at JAMMA - 'Initial D Arcade Stage 4'  (LindBergh) looking to be a white-hot title.

On the international scene, the deployment of ALL.NET is limited and IC Cards have been misunderstood. Famously, trade members in North America have shown a longstanding resistance to the IC Card system that made 'Ghost Squad' (CHIHRO) such a sleeper hit where deployed with card, and dead without it. Now the tide could turn, or at least SEGA is making an unprecedented effort to turn it.  2006 has seen ALL.NET and the card methodology embraced by the “new” SEGA Amusements USA, and strongly promoted. The system has initially been showcase mainly within SEGA-owned GameWorks venues. But as of this month, SEGA is aggressively beginning to offer ALL.NET tournament support for use in street locations that are not owned by SEGA as well. The new ‘Extreme Hunting: Tournament Edition’ (PC Hardware) the first of a slew of planned titles that adopt this environment for US deployment.

Taito

Another prominent amusement factory that has played heavily in the deployment of this technology. On the Paper Card side the company has been building on the market penetration already established with the ZOID’s based kid vending experience. The successful adoption has been with a licensed property. ‘Dino King Battle’ (TypeX) was originated by Korean developer D-Gate; but moving beyond the restrictions of the barcoded cards, D-Gate used magnetic strip variants with over 18-dinasours to choose from for players.

Taito’s development of the DinoKing concept has seen the new application of card-based technology. The ‘Colorcode’ is placed in the corner of a new series of cards. This two-dimensional barcode (original system developed by ColorZip of Japan) allows players with enabled WAP phones to jump to the statistic site, collecting more specialist cards and playing online via a variant of the companies tournament environment (NESYS). The new cards are being considered for international circulation.

It was revealed that SEGA had started legal action against Dino King in Japan, claiming infringement of their patent on the MushiKing concept. Further questioning regarding the status of this legal suit was avoided with Taito representatives not in a position to make any comment about the issue; the continuing successful sale of the D-Gate based system seeming to show their commitment to still be able to sell the product.

Beyond the kid vending Taito just started to venture into ST systems. Their first card recognition system, ‘Aquarian Age Alternative’ (TypeX2), offers the Satellite Terminal,

Card Reader system similar to the style seen with Quest for D and Monster Gate, but with the additional vending card collecting feature of the tabletop recognition system, all linked though support of Taito's NESYS network environment. Launched at JAMMA'06, the actual licensed hardware was not revealed, but marks a major development in product range.

As with all the other developers, Taito has their own Smart Card environment. Taito has championed the use of smart card technology through their Network Entry Systems (NESYS) service. The game ‘Battle Gear 4: Tuned’ (TypeX+) the latest example of the application of the Private Net Entry Key system that uses a IC equipped key that retains the players’ information. Taito state that several hundred keys have been sold. The new version of the game builds on the element of repeat play with the Battle Gear 4 Garage storing customized vehicles, and the use of WAP phone enabled ‘Qcode’ 2D barcodes (similar to the Colorcode) allowing players to evaluate their stored details online.

Where the Battle Gear key found popularity, Taito have reverted to a more familiar IC Card configuration in their other NESYS enabled applications. The game 'Half-Life 2: Survivor' (TypeX+) uses a IC card to store player customization and weapon selection. Building on the popularity of the Half Life PC first-person-shooter (fps) the elements for constant character customization has been built into the game. A similar application was achieved by Namco when they used the other popular Valve fps content (‘Counter Strike Neo’ (N2)). More IC Card deployment expected with TypeX hardware development at the companies new cadent hardware.

Capcom

The embracing of new genre and technology has proven a climb for many factories. Capcom has been able to use its consumer development prowess to grow with the new concepts. Having established considerable toy branding the kids vending element has not been a difficult transition.

Not all the investment has been in Paper Card systems but most recently ‘Won Tertainment Music Channel’ (PC Hardware) offers a conventional barcode card system based on dog dress-up game in the mould of ‘Love and Berry’ and reminiscent of the Konami ‘Dog Station’ concept.

The close proximity between amusement and toy / vending is seen with the new developments in the kid vending card battle machines. With ‘Rockman EXE: Battlechip Stadium’ (System 246) Capcom partnered with Takara (newly named Takaratomy) using their MegaMan license. Moving from the paper card element of card battle gaming the company’s jointly developed the Navi Link System (NLS). Deploying plastic wafer utilizing smart card technology for three-platform crossover so a player’s character can be used on a console, handle and arcade platform.

These new plastic wafers with their built-in memory chips are being applied in the toy sector, and it offers a logical delivery platform for the new kid vending machines. The amusement industry should be ready to see a lot more of the wafers – though if they will fully replace the deployment of paper cards is in more doubt; though if Capcom does agree to a partnership with another amusement factory, the application of Navi Link could grow.

Continuing the investment into the kid vending sector Capcom announced at JAMMA’06 that they would release ‘Chokosoku Card Racer’ (System 246) – the development of a card based game that builds customised vehicles to race against other players. A development of the card competition methodology that will aim for a older market demographic. The migration from paper to a Smart Card system has been slower to establish, with the planned launch of  ‘War of the Grail’ (TypeX+) suspended till development is completed -- meaning we will have to wait.

Namco Bandai Games (NBG)

The company has borrowed much of it methodology of being close to others development such as SEGA; the 'Wangdon Midnight' (Maximum Tuned) driver using the licensed SEGA MCRD system as well as licensed SEGA graphics hardware.

The use of Paper Card systems continued with ‘Mario Kart: Arcade GP’ (TriForce) that was a cartoon presentation of the Maximum Tuned package. Beyond the driving genera and paper cards have been used in ‘Druaga Online: The Story of Aon’ (CHIHIRO); and the unusual sleeper success of ‘The Idol M@ster’ (System 246), the MCRD pop idol creation game find a strong following that will see a porting to the Xbox 360 console platform with a special card reader peripheral.

Continuing what was achieved with The Idol M@ster, NBG has created 'Minnade Kitaeru Zennou Training' (System 246), a simple mind-testing game, reminiscent of the Nintendo DS game phenomena, but with the Namco variant using the company’s ST system, the player is given a paper card that stores his progression through the game – thus adding a card element to this product, and promoting repeat visitation.

Again Namco's Smart Card investment has been based on the proven development by SEGA. The 'Tekken 5' IC card success was supported internationally - where VF5 stayed in Japan Tekken made the move supported by a unique IC card dispensing capability in the fielded cabinets. The element of encouraging rather than abandoning a aspect of NBG thinking.

As previously mentioned the Valve arcade conversion by Namco ‘Counter Strike Neo’ (N2) used a IC Card for both play – but also offered the ability of e-payment via a version of the EDY system (Stinger #430). It is the application of the smart card’s migration to a method of payment (possibly linked directly with the player’s mobile phone) that has focused a number of minds.

For NBG the move towards IC Cards has seen the next Maximum Tuned looking at this hardware. What other smart card games are scheduled though stays a NBG secret attempting to find independence from being seen as a SEGA follower.

The next part of this detailed HOT TOPIC feature in the coming days.