The Contribution of Branded Games for the LEGO Ninjago Brand Narrative

The study examines how branded video games contribute to brand narratives, arguing that prior research has treated such games mainly as vehicles for placement or persuasion while overlooking how game design itself embodies brand values. To address this gap, it proposes a three-layer framework, mechanical, semiotic, and referential, that extends Aarseth's mechanic-semiotic model by adding a referential layer linking in-game elements to wider campaigns, products, and brand values. A central concept within this framework is "additive comprehension," through which players build meaning across these layers.

The analysis applies this framework to The LEGO Ninjago Movie – The Videogame, focusing on the open-world segment available after all skills are unlocked. The brand narratives under examination are LEGO's emphasis on creative, open-ended building and the Ninjago sub-brand's combination of that creativity with developmental virtues such as courage, balance, and honesty, aimed at both children and parents. The method pairs a review of corporate communications with formal game analysis.

The findings indicate that the game operates as a standalone title grounded in the Ninjago narrative, yet its layers ultimately subsume it under the broader LEGO narrative of creative construction. Core mechanics such as fighting, jumping, building, and puzzle-solving, along with character-specific skills, convey Ninjago values, while exploration and collection extend a sense of freedom that echoes LEGO's play philosophy. At the referential level, the game's 101 unlockable characters, roughly half drawn from the television series, and polybag-style collectibles that mirror physical products connect the digital experience to wider brand content and to the player's material world.

The study is situated within game studies, advertising, and brand storytelling, drawing on corporate sources including LEGO's 2021 Annual Report and its financial reporting of £1.1bn in pandemic-era profits, alongside research on advergames, in-game advertising, and transmedia storytelling.