Situation Analysis
MängudeÖÖ is Estonia’s largest video game festival, which took place for the fourth time in 2024 at Ülemiste Centre. While the event is well known and highly anticipated among gaming enthusiasts, the key communication challenge was reaching a broader and new audience.
As a recurring annual event, it is often difficult to find fresh and newsworthy angles that would generate interest beyond the gaming community, especially in traditional media. At the same time, the Estonian game development sector has made significant progress in recent years, yet its achievements, potential and economic impact remain largely underrepresented to the wider public.
In addition, the gaming community is becoming an increasingly important social environment, offering young people a sense of belonging, shared interests and opportunities for self expression. Therefore, the campaign aimed not only to attract visitors to the festival, but also to highlight the broader cultural significance of gaming and increase the visibility of the gaming community in Estonian society.
Objectives
- Introduce the event to a broader audience, especially those who are not regularly engaged with video games.
- Generate interest in MängudeÖÖ among journalists who do not عادة cover the gaming industry, by showcasing the international competitiveness and success of Estonian gamers, developers and esports players.
- Improve the perception of video games and the Estonian gaming industry among the wider public by presenting their opportunities and achievements within a cultural and economic context.
- Highlight the social value of the gaming community, showing how it provides young people with a safe environment and a sense of belonging.
- Increase the number of media mentions compared to previous years, including a stronger presence in audiovisual media.
Messaging and Communication Strategy
- The communication strategy was built on three key pillars: introducing the gaming world and the event to a broader audience, highlighting local game developers, and positioning esports as a serious competitive sport.
- We focused on identifying and presenting newsworthy content, as the main challenge was how to differentiate an event that takes place every year.
- A strong emphasis was placed on successful esports players and game developers, highlighting the opportunity to meet them at the event. We also highlighted that the "Estonian Game of the Year 2024" was awarded for the first time. This demonstrated the maturity of the Estonian gaming industry, as dozens of local video games are now released each year, making it possible to create a meaningful ranking.
- Channel selection followed a clear principle: national media was used to communicate key messages to a broad audience, while niche channels such as sports and technology portals provided more detailed and specialised content for enthusiasts.
Results
- MängudeÖÖ, held on 19 October 2024, attracted 1,000 gaming enthusiasts on site.
- Although the economic downturn affected physical attendance, the event’s live stream reached 11,500 viewers, compared to 8,500 in 2023.
- The Estonian Game of the Year, "Bootstrap Island" received significant media attention, and the number of new players and followers increased by more than 350.
- Media interest, particularly from television and radio, grew notably: around 35 media mentions were recorded in 2024 compared to approximately 25 in 2023.
- The gaming community expanded, attracting new audiences who discovered the field through media coverage.
- Coverage of the video game industry in the media became more in depth and substantive.