Mini Case Study #1: Williams Gaming

Hiya F1 friends!

Today is the first post in my new series of mini-case studies, where I’m going to power through a lot of content between now and the end of the season. Or at least that’s my current plan!

We’re kicking off with a look at the new gamified offerings from Williams Racing: Circuit Breaker and Tyre or Lower.

Table of Contents

• Circuit Breaker

  • What is it?

  • Why is it effective?

• Tyre or Lower

  • What is it?

  • Why is it effective?

• Takeaways

Circuit Breaker

What is it?

Circuit Breaker is a brand new racing game in the Williams App. The aim is to survive driving three laps of a circuit and to ultimately set the fastest possible time.

It sounds simple enough, but it turns out it’s pretty easy to crash…and ultimately DNF. I don’t think I’ll be getting a call-up to the Williams Racing Academy any time soon!

However, after a few wobbly laps (if you’re me, at least!), it is quite easy to get the hang of dodging the many obstacles (falling trees! Tornadoes! Wind Turbines! It’s a dangerous world in Circuit Breaker!) and thankfully, you get to make a pit stop at the end of each lap and can swap out your tyres (aka your game health).

There are currently two circuits available to play - Williams HQ and Lonestar (launched for the recent Austin Grand Prix). These are not actual replicas of Formula 1 circuits, but rather are inspired by the locations. So, you’re not driving around COTA, but are driving through a Western-inspired Texas landscape. This allows Williams to avoid dealing with pesky rights and permissions, while being able to develop a creative theme.

The Lonestar track is definitely the harder of the two, but both are lots of fun to play.

It seems the intention is for new circuits to be added to the game as time goes on, so I’m looking forward to seeing what location they tackle next!

Why is it effective?

So, the game exists. Cool. But is it effective fan engagement?

It definitely is.

Because Williams are the best in the field, a lot of thought has been put into making the game something fans want to keep returning to. This has been mastered through a number of features, which I dive into below.

Badge System

One of the best fan engagement touchpoints offered by Williams is their badge collection, with fans encouraged to log in each week to collect race badges (as well as those on offer for other special occasions).

They’ve cleverly connected Circuit Breaker to this existing system, with fans able to unlock badges for reaching certain in-game achievements.

Trophies

Williams aren’t just relying on badges, and have also built in an in-game trophy cabinet for an extra sense of achievement.

So far, I’ve only unlocked the two trophies available for completing the circuit for the first time, but I’m not sure if that’s because they’re the only two that currently exist or if I’m just so bad at the game I’m not eligible for any others, ha!

Prizes

One thing I have definitely made sure I was eligible for, however, was the in-game prize system.

The prize system is an excellent way to keep fans playing, as you get ten points for every successfully completed round, and every twenty points unlocks a new prize to collect. These prizes allow you to change your driver suit, helmet and car livery in-game.

I won’t share many screenshots to keep it a surprise for those yet to play, but the options are a fun mix of historical references (see below) and specially designed skins for the game.

The trickling of prizes definitely kept me engaged, as I would think to myself “oh, I have one more round until I can unlock something new, I may as well keep playing!”.

It’s also great to have a reward system that’s not based on skill or competition so that fans stay motivated and encouraged, rather than feeling as though they’re not good enough.

Tyre or Lower

When Williams decided it was time to launch new games, they decided to go all in with Tyre or Lower launching at the same time as Circuit Breaker.

What is it?

Tyre or Lower is quite similar to their existing (and hilariously abbreviated) guessing game “Pit Wall Predictions”.

Basically, every week they release a set of predictions for the upcoming race and you need to choose whether you think the answer will be “higher”, “lower”, or “exactly right”.

Why is it effective?

Tyre or Lower works because it’s simple. While you can make educated guesses, ultimately, a lot of answers are up to luck, so everyone who plays is in with a shot. The Boost function (where you can get bonus points for locking in a particular answer) is a fun addition for times you may be feeling super confident, and the weekly rounds encourage fans to come return to the app/website each week to play.

While knowledge is a key way fans gain status within fandom communities, it’s also a huge barrier for newer fans. Focusing on light-hearted predictions rather than ranking fans based on facts is a much more inclusive way to approach engagement, and it’s great to see Williams recognising that.

Takeaways

To wrap us up for the week, here are my three key takeaways about the use of games in a fan engagement strategy, as demonstrated by Williams: