In 2012, American Family Insurance placed its insurance decisions inside iAMFAM, a Sims-style social game. According to WildTangent’s campaign figures as reported by GeekWire, more than 586,000 people played it. The “boring” framing comes from the headline of GeekWire’s September 25, 2012 article by Taylor Soper, not from a quoted executive. iAMFAM is a historical campaign: the reporting describes it as about two years old when it was covered, and nothing in the material available establishes that it can still be played today.
What iAMFAM was
iAMFAM was a branded social life-simulation game made for American Family Insurance by Redmond-based WildTangent, working with Mindshare Entertainment. GeekWire described it as a Sims-like game on Facebook. Its reporter wrote from personal nostalgia for playing the original The Sims, which is why the genre comparison appears throughout the coverage.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
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The Sims Castaway Stories - PC | $55.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
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The Sims: Life Stories (PC DVD) | $79.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
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The Sims Life Stories - PC | $9.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 4 |
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The Sims Pet Stories DVD - PC | $30.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 5 |
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The Sims Medieval - PC/Mac | $58.99 | Buy on Amazon |
How the game worked
Players started a family, built a home, and managed unexpected events. Virtual families competed on three measures: health, happiness, and prosperity. Insurance was not a separate sales screen. It was part of ordinary play, so a player’s choices about protection affected how the virtual family fared.
Platforms during the campaign
GeekWire reported that iAMFAM was also available as iPhone and Android apps. A separate campaign account from the Mobile Marketing Association describes availability on the web, Facebook, Android, and iOS, and says players registered once and could play across platforms. Both accounts describe the 2012 campaign period. Neither establishes which platforms, if any, still host the game.
#1 Best Overall
- Play exciting new story adventures as a castaway on a desert island
- Create and customize Sims and play through 24 whole new dynamic chapters
- Meet the natives, discover the hidden mysteries of the island, befriend new animals, and unlock rewards
- 2 fun new ways to play--all-new directed Story mode and classic Free Play mode
- Create multiple profiles and tell a new, unique story every time
Where insurance sat inside the game
The insurance layer had three parts that the reporting describes directly:
- An agent character. Players worked with an agent character inside the game world.
- Coverage decisions. Players decided whether to hold car, life, boat, home, motorcycle, or umbrella insurance.
- Damage and deductibles. When a storm damaged a virtual roof, the player could pay a deductible rather than the full cost of the roof. This is how the game showed a deductible as a working concept: the amount you pay before coverage responds to a loss.
The game therefore taught the mechanics of protection through consequences that players experienced, rather than through a definition on a banner. The reporting does not describe the policy terms behind the virtual products, so the game should be read as an illustration of insurance concepts rather than a guide to a specific policy.
Campaign figures as reported in 2012
The table below lists every metric in the 2012 coverage. All of them are campaign-reported. None was described as independently audited or measured by a third party, and none reflects current results.
Rank #2
| Metric | Reported value | Who reported it | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|
| Players | More than 586,000 gamers | WildTangent campaign figures, reported by GeekWire, September 25, 2012 | Campaign-reported total for the campaign period |
| Average play session | 14 minutes, 30 seconds | WildTangent campaign figures, reported by GeekWire, September 25, 2012 | Average game play as reported; no method was described |
| Click-through rate | 5.5% to 15% | Carol Rogalski, WildTangent spokeswoman, as reported by GeekWire, 2012 | Range as stated by the spokeswoman |
| Click-through rate | 5.5% to 15.3% | Mobile Marketing Association campaign account, 2012 | Upper bound differs from the 15% in the GeekWire report; both are shown rather than merged |
The two click-through ranges disagree at the top end, 15% in one account and 15.3% in the other. The difference is small, but it is a reminder that campaign figures are reported by the parties who ran the campaign and by the trade body that documented it, not verified by a neutral party.
What the sponsors and partners said
Carol Rogalski, WildTangent spokeswoman
Rogalski said: “The game is actually driving consumers to ask for quotes from this insurance company.” That is the campaign’s own account of what the game was doing. The reporting does not include a measurement of quote requests that would confirm it, so treat it as a claim about the campaign rather than a proven result.
Rank #3
- From the first date to their first job, right up to the moment when your Sim finds Mr or Mrs right with whom they build a family life together
- Build your dream houses, to fulfill their hopes and dreams and give them better lives
- Laptop-friendly gameplay design, with easy shortcuts and a brand new Auto Pause Feature -- stopping the game each time you close your laptop
- Contact Sims 2 players or real-life friends via IM, chat or e-mail - while playing Life Stories
Michele Wingate, American Family social media manager
Wingate said: “iAMFAM is a family-friendly game that teaches people about life and insurance.” She added: “We’re focused on protecting families and their dreams, and this is a fun way to draw attention to that.” The statement shows the company’s stated goal: education and brand attention, with insurance as the subject rather than a side message.
Ken Simon, vice president of WildTangent Media
Simon said the game remained popular into its third year because players enjoyed simulating real life through game characters and decisions. His comment explains the product’s appeal in the vendor’s terms, and like the other figures, it was not independently verified.
Rank #4
- Play through a directed storyline in Story Mode. or go your own way in Classic Mode
- Use your own IM amd e-mail while playing the game in its own window
- Laptop-friendly design - play even when you're on the go!
How it compared with a 30-second TV spot
The coverage sets a branded game against a conventional 30-second television advertisement. The table compares the two on the axes the reporting supports. Where the reporting is silent, the cell says so.
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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →| Axis | Branded social game (iAMFAM) | Conventional 30-second TV ad |
|---|---|---|
| Time with the brand | Average session of 14 minutes, 30 seconds (campaign figure, GeekWire, 2012) | Length of the spot is 30 seconds; time-with-brand figure not stated in the reporting |
| Product education | Deductibles, agent interaction, and coverage choices built into play (GeekWire, 2012) | Not stated in the reporting |
| Route toward a quote | Vendor claim that the game drove quote requests; no independent measure reported (GeekWire, 2012) | Not stated in the reporting |
| Quality of evidence | Campaign-reported figures from WildTangent and the MMA account, 2012 | Not stated in the reporting |
The suggestion that the game could work better than a TV spot is an inference drawn from these axes. No head-to-head test of the two formats was reported, so the comparison shows what each format offered, not which one performed better.
Best Value
- A living world of Sims in an age of adventure, drama, and romance
- Enhanced graphics, lighting, animations, and more lifelike Sims
- Create heroes, build up their skills and send them on epic quests
- Quests drive your kingdom's story - Good or evil, cruel or kind, romantic or warlike
- Build a Kingdom - Start with an empty field and build up your kingdom, deciding its ultimate ambition and working to achieve its destiny
Is iAMFAM still playable?
The material available does not establish that iAMFAM can be played today, and this article does not link to a live version. Everything about the game, including its platforms and partners, describes the 2012 campaign period.
American Family’s current website, as checked in October 2026, says that products, pricing, and availability vary by purchase method, state, property, policy form, and underwriting company. A product that appeared in a 2012 campaign therefore does not map directly to what is sold now, and readers should check current offerings with the company or a licensed agent in their state.
How to read a campaign like this one
Whether the story is about a game or a commercial, the same checks apply before you treat its claims as evidence:
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- Check the date. The figures here come from September 2012 and describe that campaign period, not current play or sales.
- Identify who measured it. Every number in this article came from the campaign’s operators or its trade body. None was independently audited.
- Look for ranges and definitions. A click-through range such as 5.5% to 15% says little about the typical result unless the report explains the distribution.
- Separate the lesson from the sales claim. The game’s explanation of deductibles is a useful way to learn a concept. A claim that it drove quotes is a separate, unverified statement.
- Confirm current terms. Coverage, pricing, and availability depend on your state and the policy form, so a demonstration of coverage is not a description of what you can buy.
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
