Ankama, a French company, has attracted and held the attention of millions of children and young gamers thanks to its online game Dofus and its television series Wakfu, based on the game’s universe. In addition, Ankama offers a range of spin-off products to satisfy its fans. In 2010, the company recorded sales of €40 million.
Blizzard, the company behind World of Warcraft (WoW), a popular massively multiplayer online game (MMORPG), is celebrating its 20th anniversary. However, let’s talk about another anniversary, that of Ankama, the French studio behind the MMORPG Dofus, which has managed to overtake WoW in France. With a different business model and game system, Ankama has expanded in many directions by exploiting the universe of its flagship game, offering numerous spin-offs and adaptations in other media. The second season of the cartoon based on this universe, Wakfu, began airing on France 3 on February 26.
From web agency to the first French MMORPG
Dofus was the first massively multiplayer online game (MMORPG) launched in France in 2004, three years after Ankama was founded. At the beginning, Ankama was an interactive communication agency and the game was just a side project. However, Dofus quickly became a public and critical success (450,000 players in 2005), which led Ankama to devote itself exclusively to this project. Not only did they develop the game itself, but they also created a fantastic medieval universe that was designed from the outset to inspire all kinds of fiction. Thus, the founders imagined a world similar to Tolkien’s, with detailed cartography and documentation, so that they could draw on this universe to create future stories.
Ankama currently employs 460 people, 400 of whom work in Roubaix, in a former textile factory. Over the past four years, the company has increased its workforce and quadrupled its revenues.
Dofus is an online game with 2 million active French-speaking players per month, of whom some 500,000 are paying subscribers. Ankama, the company responsible for the game, claims it is the most popular online game in France. Including versions available in a dozen languages, the game has 3 million active players worldwide. Spain and Latin America are Dofus’ largest markets.
By comparison, World of Warcraft, launched in 2004, has attracted 12 million players worldwide (Blizzard does not provide statistics by country). All WoW players are paid subscribers. The classic version of WoW costs €15 and Cataclysm costs €35, and the monthly subscription is around €12. This is the first difference with Dofus, as it is possible to play for free, although the free version does not give access to all locations, objects and enemies in the game. To enjoy certain advantages, such as priority access to servers, technical support and guild membership, you can subscribe to Dofus (5 euros per month, 48 euros per year). Unlike WoW, Dofus extensions are free of charge.
Dofus is not aimed at the same audience as WoW. With its colorful and cute manga-style graphics, Dofus appeals more to girls (around 20% of players) and to an audience between 12 and 25 years old, with a core age range between 15 and 17 years old. The game is very popular with children, which makes it a prime target for TV series and spin-off products that help to maintain the buzz.
Finally, the Dofus game system differs from that of WoW. Dofus is a turn-based game, while WoW is played in real time. This difference makes Dofus more accessible to beginners.
Dofus ahead of World of Warcraft
Dofus has 2 million active French-speaking players (who log on every month), with about 500,000 paying subscribers. Ankama claims to be the most played online game in France. If we add the versions in a dozen other languages, the game has 3 million active players worldwide. Spain and Latin America are its second largest market.
By comparison, World of Warcraft, launched in 2004, has attracted 12 million players worldwide (Blizzard does not provide statistics by country), all of them paying. The classic version ofWow costs €15 and Cataclysm €35, with subscriptions costing about €12 per month. This is the first difference with Dofus, which can be played for free, although the free version does not offer access to all locations, objects and enemies. The subscription (€5 per month, €48 per year) also gives priority access to servers, technical support and guilds. Its expansions are free, unlike Wow.
Dofus is also not aimed at the same audience. With its colorful and cute manga graphics, it appeals more to girls (around 20% of players) and young people aged between 12 and 25, with the main audience being between 15 and 17. The game is very popular with children, making it a prime target for TV series and spin-off products, which keep the fervor around the game alive.
Finally, the game system is not exactly the same. Dofus is played by turns, and not in real time like Wow, which makes it more accessible for beginners.
Diversification, one of the keys to success
Ankama, which specializes in video games, derives most of its revenues from its video game business, which generated sales of €40 million in 2010. In addition to Dofus, Ankama publishes other games such as Dofus Arena (a turn-based strategy game), a free online game called Wakfu Les Gardiens, and plans to launch its first console game, Islands of Wakfu, on Xbox Live Arcade at the end of March. A mobile game is also planned before the summer, as well as a second MMORPG, Wakfu, in the spring. Although set in the same universe, Wakfu takes place 1,000 years after Dofus.
In addition to its activities in the video game sector, Ankama has diversified into several areas. They have an animation studio that produces different types of animation, from traditional animation to computer-assisted animation and stop motion. They are also involved in press and publishing, with magazines such as Dofus Mag and IG Magazine, art books, comics (Mutafukaz) and manga (the 15 volumes of the Dofus manga have sold 1 million copies). They also have an events division with the Ankama Convention, a music division with record labels, a media division that includes a web TV and the distribution of video-on-demand series, as well as spin-off products such as figurines, T-shirts and toys. Finally, two film trilogies based on Dofus and Wakfu are in the works. The first two animated films will be released in 2013 and 2014. They will compete with Sam Raimi’s Warcraft, whose release date has not yet been announced.
Wakfu TV series, the driving force behind Ankama’s other activities
Ankama’s animation division is responsible for the creation of the television series Wakfu, aimed at children aged 8 to 12. It is one of the company’s biggest successes, employing 110 people. Since 2008, the series has been broadcast on France Télévisions, which is also a co-producer, and has been sold in several European countries. According to Médiamétrie’s figures, the series is very popular with children aged 4 to 14, attracting an average of more than one million viewers.
Building on this success, the second season of Wakfu will be accompanied by an ambitious transmedia project. It all started in the February 12 issue of Dofus Mag, where the story began. Readers were then invited to visit maxi-mini.fr to discover additional content. From February 26, new episodes will continue to air on television, with bonus content available on maxi-mini.fr and monludo.fr, France Télévisions’ children’s website. New online mini-games will also be posted on Wakfu.fr after every two episodes. Finally, to extend the experience, fans will be able to attend the Ankama convention on March 5 and 6, meet the authors and participate in an in-person, real-world quest. All these interactions will allow die-hard fans to discover parallel stories, better understand the past of certain characters and gain access to exclusive quests.
And that’s not all, as France Télévisions has decided to fully capitalize on this success: the group will also release DVDs of the series and broadcast two or three 52-minute episodes starting in April. It has also just signed up for a new series, Dofus, on which production will begin in 2012, according to Voyelle Acker, Director of New Media and New Formats at France Télévisions.
