LO1: Task 4 Cross-Media Product Case Study
How has the Cyberpunk Franchise been cross-promoted across different platforms?
Cyberpunk Edgerunners is an animated series produced by Studio Trigger which is an adaptation of the video game developed & published by CD Project Red, Cyberpunk 2077 (which is also based on the tabletop series of the same name by Mike Pondsmith). This series was created to increase interest in the video game and this was done through distributing Edgerunners onto Netflix to reach an audience of digital natives within the same target demographics as the game (men & women between 17-30) . This spurred a significant increase in the game's player base and therefore, highly increased profits toward CDPR as a media conglomerate, with an increase of 'one million active players following the Netflix anime'. A Netflix series also meant that audiences could access and watch the series at any time, anywhere (provided with an internet connection) via the Netflix app on blackbox devices. This was a direct benefit of cross-promotion and adaptation as CD Project Red utilised horizontal integration to distribute one of their products onto an audio visual platform to increase audience engagement.
How has the Cyberpunk brand been distributed & advertised?
To further promote the franchise and appeal to the digital native audience, CDPR created official 'Cyberpunk' social media accounts on sites like YouTube and Netflix. This allowed them to post trailers and screenshots for the upcoming production and any subsequent updates/merchandise (for additional profit) for both Cyberpunk 2077 and Edgerunners. The effect this had creates instant advertising/viral marketing, meaning interested audiences would be automatically shown the post via Instagram and YouTube's algorithms & hashtags. These posts/videos could then be immediately shared to a friend or commented on (giving feedback or conveying audience engagement/social interaction as gratifications of Web 2.0. This method of above the line advertising would therefore, inform audiences what platforms the products would be distributed on whilst building intrigue. Cyberpunk 2077 releasing on PlayStation and X-Box 7th & 8th gen consoles as well as PC; likewise Edgerunners would debut on Netflix.
Cyberpunk Edgerunners is targeted toward an ABC1 demographic of men and women aged between 17-30; the reason for this is a requirement of disposable income to afford a Netflix subscription and the prevalence of mature themes throughout the series such as graphic violence and political commentary. Furthermore, key representations within the show are between ages 17 to late 30's; particularly the protagonists David and Lucy who can act as ideal selves (Carl Rogers 1980) for the male and female sides of the target demographic. Likewise, Cyberpunk 2077 is targeted towards the same audience but with a further emphasis on an ABC1 audience who require the disposable income to not only afford the game but also a platform to play it on. Furthermore, recognisable actors: Keanu Reeves and Idris Elba both play main characters within the game's story; the characters designed to look like them (much like a movie) which furthers audience engagement by creating a secondary audience of fans of their films/series, likely men aged above 30. CDPR uses them to give audiences an understanding to what they can expect through the kind of people involved with the product (Branston & Stafford 1999). Furthermore, ideal selves are made even more abundant in the custom character creation which allows audiences to immerse themselves in the world through their own character that represents them.
How can audiences access the Cyberpunk franchise following Web 2.0?
Web 2.0 has significantly broadened the access of content, as exemplified by Cyberpunk, to consumers and has subsequently made the gap in that accessibility between an ABC1 and C2DE audience more benign. Anyone with a blackbox device can pay a monthly £4.99 fee (or £10 with adverts) to stream Cyberpunk Edgerunners and then access it on any other (blackbox) device at anytime, anywhere. The benefit of this is evident in the uses and gratifications (Blumler & Katz 1972) this series provides. One such gratification which is emphasised by Web 2.0 is social interaction and the ease at which social media provides it. Cyberpunk, both as an animated series and game, provides societal commentary which parallels and is influenced by real world events or structures. Characters in Edgerunners like Faraday exemplify a corrupt, capitalist centred, but ultimately, corporate slave who entirely juxtaposes the protagonist, David Martinez, who comes from an impoverished background and is forced into a criminal lifestyle. These would therefore reflect the difference in class and what opportunities people have available to them by birth right in a form of the gratification, surveillance. After watching an episode from their blackbox device, an active audience member can go into online
Was the adaptation of Cyberpunk successful?
Cyberpunk Edgerunners was a pivotal point in the sales career of Cyberpunk as a franchise due to the immense precedent it set for
video game A/V adaptations; later inspiring other animated series like Dead Cells & The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep, also produced by CD Project Red. Cyberpunk 2077 also struggled with a poor reputation due to its unfinished state during exhibition however, Edgerunners assisted by shining a positive light on the franchise and increasing the game's player base dramatically therefore, allowing CDPR to gain the additional funding to update the game further and create another animated series for Cyberpunk which they teased on YouTube during a Netflix presentation. Furthermore, the social media presence which Edgerunners has made created an entire community of its own as one of the best animated series to release in the last decade. This is with thousands of likes on each post from CDPR related to Cyberpunk; with almost 200k followers on the Edgerunners Instagram account and millions of views on the official Cyberpunk Edgerunners (YouTube) videos (e.g. the opening credits). Prosumers have also created many pieces of fan content from art to short animations featuring the characters from the series, furthering social interaction (Blumler & Katz 1972).
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