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Why a Donald Duck CCG might be a big hit in Scandinavia
Key insights
6 takeaways- 01Sanoma Media Finland and Disney are leveraging a print franchise history dating back to 1952 to launch 'The Duckforce Rises,' a mobile card-battling game.
- 02The game is positioned as a mid-core free-to-play title with RPG elements, intentionally moving away from the casual puzzle genre typically associated with Disney mobile games.
- 03The project targets a specific regional market where Donald Duck holds deep cultural significance, particularly in Scandinavia, Germany, and Italy, with a Finnish print readership reaching one million people.
- 04The developers are banking on the local Finnish audience's emotional connection to the characters, framing Donald Duck’s personality as a relatable archetype that resonates with the local temperament.
- 05Development strategy focuses on differentiating the title from saturated casual markets by adopting complex gameplay loops inspired by titles like Hearthstone and Angry Birds Epic.
- 06The project navigates strict IP licensing constraints by prioritizing refined card-battling mechanics over generic brand adaptation.
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Transcript
okay so we're here at Pocket Gamer connects in Helsinki and who are you where you from what do you do hi my name is Cynthia Swann Corsica and from Sonoma finish media company and you've got a new game in soft launch at the moments going to be released in the next month or so and what is it so it's called the duck water rises quite battle game based on Disney duck bro characters and we're watching it next month in Europe okay fantastic so it's a how would you describe it I suppose it's there's bits of card battling in it bits of RPG elements in there that's right it's a free-to-play card battle game with your favorite adduct about characters so let's talk a little bit about how the disney thing came about how did you end up working with a massive company like
disney son of us been working with disney since nineteen fifty two with print and we published the finished version of donald duck that has 1 million readers so it was quite the natural stuff because all the kids are playing so why not extend experience too come on by gaming as well so you obviously have access to the Duckburg license which as viewers will clearly no I is Scrooge McDuck and launch pad macquack I think his name is and obviously Doran danta which is a classic Disney franchise and we see that there is a massive appetite for that brand not Disney but specifically the Ducks within disney in Finland Germany that kind of area that's true it's scary Naevia Italy and Germany the duck duck prejudice is really quite big but it's it's much bigger than elsewhere like so I was
saying that in the UK for example you you get your angry birds and you get your Mickey Mouse's and you get your you know so forth and yet over here it's the Ducks what is it about what is it about Scandinavia and ducks I think it's a character and it's the original angry bird really yeah it's really got a temper things don't really go that well for him eventually everything turns out well there's something that's really resonates with the fins especially it's really a big part of finnish pop culture we have expressions about if you're lucky you're you're refer to the characters or from conduct Berg okay so let's talk a little bit about how that brand works with a card battler I when only think disney games i think puzzle games i think i guess i think more some casual focus games but your audience is a bit more mid-core I suppose exactly this a mid core game we got inspiration
from wheeler from hearthstone an angry birds epic and we toss spot there between so introducing something new new is something we do that we wanted to do is it is it important to distinguish yourself when you're using a big brand that's kind of had lots and lots of different titles is it important to distinguish yourself and go ahead and make a slightly different left of field kind of again absolutely I think so and really the team is always the most important so you don't want to do something to attract the best team you really like to do something something new not just copying what's out there already so what is the process of creating a title that has this big cachet this big brands what is the process in terms of thinking about the the quality of the brand thinking about the how you can use the brand and how
you can't are there things that you can and cannot do with that license of course there's limitations and just the process we really gone through a lot of different features and obviously the first game quite a lot of things that you want to make and eventually we just scale down on a number of features and I'm focusing really on the car battle element
Summary
The Duckforce Rises represents a strategic expansion of the long-standing partnership between Sanoma Media Finland and Disney, transitioning a legacy print franchise into the mobile gaming sector. While Disney properties are globally ubiquitous, the Donald Duck and Duckburg characters hold a unique, deep-seated cultural significance in Scandinavia, Germany, and Italy that exceeds their popularity in other regions. In Finland specifically, the brand is deeply embedded in pop culture, with the characters serving as archetypes for local expressions and daily life. This regional affinity, supported by a print publication history dating back to 1952 and reaching one million readers, provides a robust foundation for a digital gaming experience.
The game itself is positioned as a mid-core free-to-play card battler, incorporating RPG elements to differentiate itself from the casual puzzle games typically associated with the Disney brand. By drawing inspiration from titles like Hearthstone and Angry Birds Epic, the development team aims to occupy a specific niche in the market. This approach reflects a conscious effort to avoid the saturation of casual Disney titles, opting instead for a more complex gameplay loop that appeals to a dedicated audience while maintaining the integrity of the licensed characters.
Development of the title involved navigating the inherent constraints of a major intellectual property license. The process required balancing creative ambition with the limitations imposed by the licensor, ultimately leading to a focus on refining the core card-battling mechanics. By prioritizing a distinct gameplay experience over a generic brand adaptation, the project seeks to leverage the enduring emotional connection local audiences have with the characters, framing Donald Duck as an original, relatable figure whose temper and resilience resonate strongly with the Finnish temperament.
