Bob the Builder

Building on the success of an already popular brand name is a corporate no-brainer when it comes to marketing to kids, and the Neil Morrissey-voiced Bob the Builder franchise is no exception.

To date it is responsible for flogging 27 million videos and DVDs, another 27 million books, shedloads of the obligatory toy and stationary box sets and an enormous selling, if spectacularly aggravating Comic Relief Christmas single to boot. Not to mention the cacophony of games titles it has spawned in the mean time.

Bob the Builder is based on the television spin off Project: Build-It, in which the plucky tradesman enters a contest to build a new community in a remote area just outside Bob’s hometown of, erm, Bobsville.

Created by kids’ game development outfit Atomic Planet, the game features ten mini building games for use with an EyeToy camera, with an emphasis on multiplayer gaming. It has two levels of difficulty, and a number of different game modes to try out.

Publisher Blast is working with licensor HIT Entertainment to promote the game with a TV advertising campaign, kids press advertising, and a PR campaign.

“Bob the Builder has proved to be extremely popular with pre-school children and the strength of the brand has an enormously broad appeal,” said Sean Brennan, CEO of Blast. “Blast and HIT Entertainment will be orchestrating a far reaching campaign to support the game’s launch.”