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MavPR Partner Matt Frary Dishes PR Advice for Indie Devs at IndieCade East

vgpr for indies

“PR FOR INDIES” SESSION AT INDIECADE EAST 2015 DRAWS STANDING-ROOM-ONLY CROWD AND OFFERS INSIGHT INTO THE WORLD OF GAMES PR
That's some GOOD-lookin' PR!

That’s some GOOD-lookin’ PR!

Reaching your audience as an independent developer is difficult. Let’s face it, if you’re a small team working on your baby, you don’t have time, the expertise, or the patience to do what’s necessary to reach out to hundreds of media, be they bloggers, streamers, writers or something in between.

The cruel twist is that you could make an amazing game and it won’t ever take off because nobody knows about it. So how do you save yourself from this common game industry trap?

That was the crux of MavPR Partner Matt Frary’s presentation to indie developers at IndieCade East — Video Game Marketing and PR for Indie Devs. And no, the focus was not on “HIRE AN AGENCY” (although that is also a great idea!), but instead on what indie devs can do themselves, how they can think about PR more effectively, and tips for getting their foot in the door with an increasingly difficult enthusiast media group.

I’m not going to post the entire PPT here, because you should go to IndieCade and support the independent development scene, you know! But… what were some of the highlights? Read more

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NERD UNEMPLOYED Podcast Interviews MavPR Partner Matt Frary

topart_nerdunemployed2 copy

Recently, our good friend Johnny Fournier, who is hosting and producing a very interesting podcast called Nerd Unemployed (@NerdUnemployed), reached out to see if I’d like to come on to chat with him about the industry, how I got started, and… well a bunch of additional… stuff.

Basically he wanted to talk to me about ME. And… since that’s one of my favorite subjects, I absolutely said yes!

[Listen here:  NERD UNEMPLOYED SITE | ITUNES | STITCHER 

[note… it is labeled “EXPLICIT,” which brings me great joy]

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TheGameEffect Interviews MavPR Partner Matt Frary About PR, Video Games and More

World famous video game PR maestro (as well as Maverick PR Partner) Matt Frary was recently approached by up-and-coming video game site TheGameEffect to take part in their ongoing series, “Unsung Heroes.”

  • ED: if you missed the previous interview with Matt which ran on GamerFitNation, check it out here.

 

Unsung Heroes is a cool series wherein writers talk to some of the lesser known folks working behind-the-scenes to put video games on players’ proverbial tables.  You know… NOT the Cliff Bleszinskis or the David Jaffes… we’re talking the guys behind the guys behind the guy.  Between producers and marketers and PR folks and testers and art designers and level builders… there are a lot of people that help deliver the games we love to play.

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GamerFitNation Profiles MavPR’s Resident P90Xer

Matt mugs his best “STANDARD INTERNET DORK POSE” A Camera Angle Which Other MavPR Partners Find Decidedly LESS Funny Than Matt Does. Shame, Really. :-p

 

“I don’t mind dying, but I’ll be damned if I die early and miss out on time with my son simply because I couldn’t stop eating crappy food or because I was too lazy to get my ass off the couch.”
– MavPR Partner Matt Frary in GamerFitNation’s True Gamer of the Week Profile

One of your favorite young video game sites, GamerFitNation, has selected Maverick PR Partner Matt Frary as their “True Gamer of the Week” this week. This is a totally fitting title and the perfect site to profile Matt, because his nearly obsessive man-love of P90X has kept him neatly trim for more than 7 months now.  We’d post a picture of his rock-hard abs here, but it would be far too overpowering for teh Internets to handle.

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At MavPR… We Go The Extra Mile… for NIER!

Nothing Comes Between Us and Our Coverage

There is a good looking man in this photo. Unfortunately, he's the one IN the GAME.

So, we’ve been working with Square Enix on their upcoming Action-RPG NIER for quite a while now, releasing cool videos, feature assets packs and providing product demos.  Sure, we haven’t said SQUAT about the story details… but we’ve been setting the stage for some big reveals.

But you know what?  That wasn’t enough.  Oh, no, we had to go all the way, and put a public face on the game.  And that face?  None other than MavPR Partner, Matt Frary.

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The Big Huge Title List!

(Almost) All The Games We’ve Ever Worked On, In Reverse Chronological Order… Oh My.

So, we here at Maverick PR have been reflecting a bit on the many, many games that we have promoted, supported, shipped and what not over the course of almost 30 years combined in the business.

All this reviewing of our old work, well… it got us thinking.  Thinking that it just might be kinda hilarious and/or totally awesome to have each and every one of those old game boxes piled up in one spot to gawk at in wonder and sheer terror.

Ya, that’s right.  We’d be talking about a bunch of those gigantic old-school PC boxes – big enough to shove a DVD player in today – that kind of big, man, sharing space with Genesis games and pushing aside the meek little GB carts.  PS1 jewelcases would battle it out with Dreamcast discs until PS2 smacks ’em both down.  All of these little buggers in one place.  Coolness.

Hey Look! It's "Feedin' Chloe!"

However, since there’s no way I’m searching bargain bins and basements for copies of G-Nome and Powerslave, I went ahead and did the next best thing — made a fancy list on a web page with box art from all (almost all – some are still incoming) of the games that Brandon and I have worked on.  Not only is this hilarious to us – and maybe you – but it also gives a good look at the depth of experience we have here at MavPR.

So from Monty Python and the Quest for the Holy Grail to Wanted: Weapons of Fate, enjoy your trip down MavPR memory lane…

[The MavPR Big Huge Title List]

-PR_Flak

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Matt Becomes A Contributor to “Evolution of PR”

MavPR’s old friend, Tom Ohle, who we knew first at BioWare during our work on the Neverwinter Nights franchise and then later when he was running Evolve PR, has launched a new blogging site for marketing and PR professionals called “Evolution of PR.”  Essentially it’s a place where we can gather, post thoughts and discuss theory amongst marketing, PR and media professionals, focusing quite a bit on the video game industry.

Tom asked me to participate, and really, I’m more than happy to.  Of course, it will be only from time-to-time so I can still share thoughts both on this site and on PR_Flak’s Flak Attak, but it’s a great idea and we’re really excited to support it.

The first post on EoPR is a reminder to aspiring VG PR professionals that working in this industry is about being a great PR person first, and a lover of video games second.  If you don’t have a love of PR and a desire to learn more all the time, you’ll never make it, no matter how many times you’ve finished Halo 3 on the hardest difficulty setting.

Check out the post here.  Hope you enjoy it.

– PR_Flak

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The New Economy and Emerging Business Models

Yes, I could have made that headline more appealing, but I’m not trying to hook new readers here, right?

We’re really excited that the “mainstream” is starting to pick up on the business trend that started emerging last year — namely that companies are looking for innovative ways to cut costs while improving results and freelancers and “micro-boutiques” are emerging as the answer.

Luckily for us – we’re right in the middle of it!  Maverick PR’s philosophy is and has always been “Less Overhead, More In The Head” — meaning that we can deliver better results for less money due to our innovative business model and years of experience. Read more

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MavPR Update: Universal and Wanted

We’re really excited and proud to say that we enter the new year working closely with Universal Pictures Digital Platforms Group on their video game initiative and specifically on their upcoming game Wanted: Weapons of Fate.

We originally paired with Uni right before E3 last year to give Wanted: Weapons of Fate a proper announcement and first showing.  In only a week of work managed to secure a full slate of meetings, solid  first-look coverage and big, coordinated exclusives with both IGN and Game Informer.

Since E3, we’ve continued to work alongside Universal in a new role – overseeing the publisher’s PR work from a licensor perspective.  This is a true role reversal for us as we are used to being in-house and working to meet the expectations of our licensors.

MavPR has a history with Universal going back to Matt’s days at Sierra launching Scarface: The World is Yours — a successful pairing which turned out to produce the biggest launch in the company’s history, with the game selling nearly 4 million units worldwide.

It’s especially rewarding for us to be able to continue our working relationships across projects. We always strive to build long-lasting partnerships with our clients, and Universal has been exceptional to work with.

– PR_Flak

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Maverick, Matt Hazard & Gamespot

Our shenanigans for D3’s upcoming shooter Eat Lead: The Adventures of Matt Hazard were exposed earlier this Fall by the fine folks over at Gamespot.

Once outed we fessed up and waxed poetic about the trials and tribulations of video game marketing in the “Gaming Age.”  Read the interview with Matt, myself and our fine D3 compatriot Sam Guilloud over at Gamespot: Q&A: Making up Matt Hazard.

-Grok

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