Stryking Entertainment is forging ahead in the publishing market by incorporating prominent brands as integral components in free-to-play games. The Berlin-based company, formed earlier this year by Frogster founder and ex COO Dirk Weyel, is already successfully working with the car and racing game platform Auto Club Revolution. As a co-publisher for British developer Eutechnyx, Stryking is responsible for marketing and distribution in the German-speaking territories, and now aims to also work with other publishers and developers to market their projects successfully.

"Stryking incorporates brands at the centre of the gaming experience, so the brand presence isn’t perceived as advertising, but rather as a natural part of the user experience." says Dirk Weyel, Stryking’s CEO. "We can therefore achieve some very positive effects in terms of user acquisition, and are convinced that sponsorships, product placements and advertising will represent a significant source of revenue for free-to-play games in the future," adds Weyel. Stryking will also expand the game experience with ‘real life’ links to create interactive entertainment worlds. To do this, the Berlin publisher includes news coverage, live streaming of real events, dedicated video content and competitions. They are also seeking to use celebrities from the relevant entertainment sectors. Stryking is looking for more partnerships, particularly games in the sport, music and lifestyle sectors.

The identification with specific brands is particularly high in these sectors and provides the perfect conditions in which to combine brands, stars and fans to create interactive community platforms. This was clearly demonstrated by the present experience with
Auto Club Revolution. Over 50 car manufacturers, such as BMW, Bugatti, Lotus, Jaguar, VW, Ford and Koenigsegg and 150 manufacturers of car accessories were included as brand and co-operation partners by today. Partnership opportunities with professional racing drivers are currently also being discussed.