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To some, the online video game community represents the essential, yet uncontrollable masses who create drama over every nuance of every title. Curse believes community represents a safe haven for some of the best, brightest, and passionate fans in the gaming industry. This wasn’t an overnight revelation, but instead resulted from a decade of listening to, interacting with, and a commitment to understanding the needs of the gaming community. In 2004, Hubert Thieblot, Curse founder and CEO, began playing Blizzard Entertainment’s World of Warcraft. The game ignited a passion that took him
MEDIA & MARKETING
COMMUNITY AS A SOURCE FOR INNOVATION
from casual player to guild leader of Curse, then the largest WoW guild in France with over 2,000 members. “For me, it was all about passion,” Thieblot explains. “The game was so deep, so expansive, and so much fun that I was obsessed. I wanted to do few other things than play and improve. Passionate gamers who strived to be the best in WoW had to have add-ons,” says Thieblot. “No one could get them easily, so I found a way to put them all in one place for everyone.” And that he did. In 2005 Thieblot launched Curse. com, which became the largest add-on repository on the internet. His passion project grew quickly as he raised $11m in venture capital, allowing him to acquire other WoW gaming community oriented websites including
arenajunkies.com,
wowace.com and
worldofraids.com. “WoW was the first for me,” Thieblot said. “ But it was just one of many great games out there. I wanted to help the entire gaming community.” This philosophy inspired Curse to quickly expand into other titles including Minecraft, League of Legends, Call of Duty, Pokemon and FIFA. The audiences may be different, but the ethos is the same: “We’re here to help gamers Enjoy the Game,” Thieblot says. “Gamers determine the market; we need to listen to them as equals and be the destination worthy of their time.”
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