Big Ambitions - PR & Organic Influencer Marketing

The Challenge

ICO was tasked with promoting the game's Early Access debut on Steam in March 2023. Developed by Hovgaard Games, headed by Jonas Hovgaard, Big Ambitions is an entrepreneur sim that offers a unique and complex business sandbox experience set in New York. Despite being relatively under the radar, the game quickly gained popularity due to its depth and creativity, and garnered overwhelmingly positive reviews from players on Steam.

The Solution

To create buzz and generate interest among potential players, ICO focused on a combined PR and organic influencer marketing campaign.

We pitched Big Ambitions as a combination of "Grand Theft Auto meets Cities Skylines" and "House Flipper meets Two-Point Hospital" to content creators, offering them a unique and creative open-world sandbox experience.

We distributed nearly 200 keys to a diverse range of influencers, from big to small, including those who had played Hovgaard Games' previous hit, Startup Company, and other simulation games. This allowed us to tap into a wide audience across multiple genres and games, maximizing the game's exposure to potential players.

The Results

The influencer-driven marketing strategy proved to be highly successful for Big Ambitions. The game received significant coverage from influencers on platforms such as YouTube and Twitch, resulting in impressive average/median play times. The game sold over 150,000 copies in less than 2 weeks.

The early streamer coverage helped generate a hockey-sticking effect on the game's wishlists, with the number of wishlists increasing from 67,000 to 93,000 in just one month prior to the Early Access release. This highlights the power of influencer marketing in driving awareness and interest in the game among potential players.

Big Ambitions also saw success in specific regions, particularly in Europe. Similar to the response to Startup Company, the game performed exceptionally well among German and French players, which was expected by the development team. The regional split for the Top 3 countries in terms of player engagement was evenly distributed at 16% each for Germany, France, and the U.S. Other countries such as China, the UK, Canada, and Korea also showed significant interest in the game.