viral-marketing
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Hitman Facebook promo killed; must have had 'small tits'
If you logged online early enough today, you could have sent death threats to your friends on Facebook, courtesy of Square Enix and Agent 47 with the "Hire Hitman" app. Not only were these death threats, but they were full-on hits, with the targeted Facebook friend going through a process that flashed pictures from their profiles in front of their eyes before they were killed. To top it off, the hits were identified by awkwardly specific reasons such as "her ginger hair, her muffin top, her hairy legs," or "her small tits."Yes, this was a real thing you could do this morning. Square Enix since removed the app, not long after launching it and just after Rock, Paper, Shotgun wrote about it. We can't imagine why, though Square sent over a statement that cleared it up nicely:"Earlier today we launched an app based around Hitman: Absolution that allowed you to place virtual hits on your Facebook friends. Those hits would only be viewable by the recipient and could only be sent to people who were confirmed friends. We were wide of the mark with the app and following feedback from the community we decided the best thing to do was remove it completely and quickly. This we've now done. We're sorry for any offence caused by this."This attempt at crude viral marketing is reminiscent of other hackneyed ads, such as Resident Evil 6's human butcher, Resident Evil 5's real-world severed-limb hunt, the brass knuckles EA sent us and quickly requested back for Godfather 2, or The Walking Dead FPS' necklace of human ears. Rockstar similarly caved under pressure with Bully in the UK, changing the name to Canis Canem Edit after a maelstrom of hyperbolic public attention labeled the game a "Columbine simulator."If you want to experience the Hire Hitman app – too bad, because it's gone. Take This Lollipop, however, is still live on Facebook and uses the same premise, though it doesn't allow users to engage in name-calling, bigotry, death threats or misogyny.
Cosmo For Guys viral marketing video is a head-turner (video)
We don't know iPad Head Girl's name, or what she really looks like under that clever environment-reflecting helmet. What we do know, however, is that our mama didn't raise us to go stroking people's faces in the street -- which is exactly what one unseemly chap eventually does in the viral marketing video after the break. Is he an actor on Hearst's payroll, remitted an hourly rate to feign fascination with their new Cosmo For Guys iPad magazine, which magically appears on the poor girl's face? By all means, analyze his forward behavior and make up your own mind. But if you're only into couture, darling, you'd better look away now.
FindMakarov.com is an unofficial Call of Duty film project
The countdown on FindMakarov.com has ended to reveal ... a fan film? Self-funded "for fun," according to creative director Jeff Chan, of Toronto-based viral marketing company We Can Pretend, this live-action trailer is meant as an example of how Activision's Call of Duty game franchise could be expanded to film. "We definitely wouldn't wanna just call ourselves fans," said Chan, who would not say whether the filmmakers had talked to Activision about their project yet. "We gave a statement on Friday," an Activision representative said in response to the trailer going live. "No further comment." The "Find Makarov" trailer, which Chan compared to the live-action ODST short in spirit, was scripted by We Can Pretend design director Patrick Lo, who also created the website. David Fradkin produced the film, and Nir Zahavi directed the extensive viral marketing campaign. Visual effects were handled by Junction VFX, also based out of Toronto. Chan declined to elaborate on the company's long-term intention. Watch the so-called "Live Action Modern Warfare" trailer after the break.
Deus Ex: Human Revolution's viral 'Sarif Industries' website discovered
What is an upcoming video game without a viral marketing website? Nothing, that's what. Enter the website for Sarif Industries, which appears to be nothing more than your average site for a cybernetic implant manufacturer (you know the type). After a few minutes of fooling around with the site, however, a hacking minigame begins, tasking users with avoiding security measures and retrieving data files. The reward: Images and information about the cybernetic augmentations available in Deus Ex: Human Revolution. As marketing sites go, it's pretty nifty. If you're in the market for some new robotic limbs, check it out.
Lost Planet beta codes frozen in blocks of ice
Viral marketing is a strange beast. Example: Over the weekend, Capcom delivered several blocks of ice to eight different US cities. The catch: Each block of ice contained Lost Planet 2 merchandise and a code to get into the online multiplayer beta. The event went down this Saturday, so we're guessing that all the blocks have been found or have melted by now. Thankfully, the internet, in its unrelenting vigilance, has chronicled the event for all time. After the break, witness a small child do his damnedest to release his prize from its icy prison. [Via That Girl's Site; Image: DJClicheDarknes]
New Zealand police respond to Splinter Cell stunt involving 'gun'
A Splinter Cell: Conviction marketing stunt went a bit too far in Auckland, New Zealand. According to the New Zealand Herald, a man with bandages on his hands pointed a fake gun at the patrons of a bar, who responded by diving under tables and calling the police. The money quote comes from Senior Sergeant Ben Offner, who said, "We consider these types of stunts to be very ill-advised and have real concerns a similar one may one day end in tragedy." Er, "ill-advised" would be putting it lightly. The company responsible for the stunt, The Monaco Corporation, claims it hired another marketing company to organize the promotion and didn't know a gun would be used. It apologized for the stunt, with a spokesperson stating it was "marketing gone wrong." So wrong, in fact, that the report refers to the game as "Splinter Cell: Evolution." The situation sounds a lot worse than it apparently was, as police only "cautioned" two men at the scene. [Via Kotaku]
Pre-order 'Mass: We Pray' for free Dante's Inferno trailer
We had an icky feeling when we first watched the Mass: We Pray teaser. Not because of the toll excessive devotional gameplay might take on our souls, but because we were pretty sure we were being virally marketed to in some way or another. It turns out, our unease (also felt by a few others, including The Escapist) was spot on, as We Pray has been revealed as the latest move in the Dante's Inferno marketing campaign's fight against good taste. Clicking to pre-order the game on the website or to get a better look at the controllers, now triggers a message about heresy, along with a trailer for Dante's Inferno and a link to the Facebook app, "Go to Hell." Sorry if you were looking forward to We Pray! [Thanks, Thomas]
Rumor: Kane & Lynch 2 teaser has duo dodging dogs
MTV Germany has posted a video that could be construed as a viral teaser for Kane & Lynch 2. The clip is mock "surveillance video" of two naked men desperately barging into a Chinese restaurant. The streakers are apparently on the run -- there's some gun fire aimed in their direction -- until one (possibly Lynch by the looks of his hairstyle) trips and falls over a table, only to be attacked a few seconds later by a dog. The other gentleman, perhaps Kane, successfully beats the dog off of his partner with what appears to be a tray, and then the two presumably escape. Could this be be a viral ad for Kane and Lynch in "Dog Days?" Your call. [Via Kotaku]
Comic-Con 2009: BioShock 2 gets real
Ever been to the mysterious BioShock 2 website, www.somethinginthesea.com? We first heard about it in March, and it is randomly updated from time to time with new bits of information from an obsessed searcher looking for clues about mysterious lights in the sea, and the disappearance of young girls from villages and cities near the ocean.2K Games decided to take things one step further by recreating the entire website in real life at Comic-Con by letting fans actually read the papers on the desk, follow the clues on the bulletin board, check out the mysterious glowing symbols inside the box on the desk, and rummage through the filing cabinet. It was incredibly detailed, right down to the roller skates.It was a bit hard to focus on details when you're getting jostled left and right by people dressed as Spider-man and Wonder Woman, but you can check out all the details in the gallery below.%Gallery-68768%
There's Something in the Sea and it's BioShock 2 info
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/xbox/There_s_Something_in_the_Sea_and_it_s_BioShock_2_info'; Details are (probably intentionally) slim on this mysterious site, www.somethinginthesea.com, discovered by a Joystiq tipster. At the moment, it's nothing but a picture of a map, with a marking labeled 2/20/67, and a few weathered documents in front of it. But it's totally marketing for BioShock 2: Sea of Dreams.One of the papers is the image seen above, which is a drawing of the same Big Daddy doll seen in the BioShock 2 trailer. One of the letters describes the doll a bit: "The head resembles a helmet, the feet could be heavy boots." The letter speculates that the doll "resembles particulars" of an "attacker" that carried out a recent kidnapping.We're presenting the trailer again after the break, in the hope that one of you BioShockologists will see some new connections between the material on the site and the trailer. Let us know in the comments![Thanks, Dominique!]
Mysterious messages found in Home, part of viral campaign?
Have you stopped by PlayStation Home lately? There's something mysterious going on. Check the "News" section on your in-Home PDA and you'll see this rather strange message. From the way this is written, it's clear that the text is very intentionally crafted. (This is far from a real error message.)The text reminds us a lot of Dead Space and the fall of the USS Ishimura, but it's unlikely Home will be starting a new campaign related to the 2008 game. For now, we're thinking this is the start of a new viral campaign, most likely promoting a new game or Home space.
'Commander' viral campaign continues blockily
Click for larger We just received a totally mysterious comment on our first post about the "Who is the Commander" viral marketing campaign, which is purportedly linked to some upcoming Wii game. The comment, from "CommanderVideo," read:"00DATACOMPILED1111DATAUPLOADCOMPLETE1--WWW1COMMANDERVIDEO1C"Yay! We've been made complicit in one of those ARG things! Or, at least, some PR person noticed we exist. The new data on commandervideo.com seems to consist only of the above image, "hidden" behind a tiny pink hyperlink. The image doesn't really give us much information that we can use, nor does its filename, J_BN_POMZ_B_NBO.jpg (which, as commenter Aaron points out, is "I AM ONLY A MAN" with all the letters shifted). The image does kind of look like it could relate to an abstract shooting game, we suppose, with a weird cubey ship flying over a weird cubey landscape.We feel a bit like chumps for furthering this marketing campaign, but if there is a Wii game behind all this nonsense, we want to know about it, and the best way for that to happen is to review, and share, all the material we're given!
Who and what is the Commander?
Oh, look, it's one of those viral-marketing videos designed to build so much hype about an unknown project that thousands of people will be thrilled by whatever it turns out to be! We'll go ahead and contribute to the hype, because why not. Maybe one of you will figure something out!IGN claims this video relates to a Wii-exclusive game coming in 2009, but really, it could be anything. It was posted on Vimeo by a user named CommanderVideo with no history at all, and it's also available on a website, commandervideo.com, whose WHOIS information is masked. As for the video itself, we see a grid sequence made to look sort of like an arcade game startup screen, and what looks like several seconds of an abstract top-down shooter. And a bunch of nonsense. But hey, we like abstract shooters!
Resident Evil 5 site is (Umbrella) viral
We know a lot of you like nothing more than digging through an intentionally inscrutable website for marketing material, so consider this a public service: Capcom has launched an new viral site for Resident Evil 5 for you to explore at your leisure.Word of the site was passed around through creepy emails that featured only the web address and the message "It came from Kijuju." about 100 times. Happy hunting, and let us know what you find. Oh, and after the jump, you'll find a really well-produced, live-action clip that's somehow tied to the campaign.[Via Gamer 2.0]
Star Wars: The Old Republic goes Web 2.0
It's never been easier for an MMO to promote itself with the growing prevalence of social networking plaforms. Star Wars: The Old Republic, only officially announced this week, has already established a following on Facebook. It's also on the usual suspect MySpace, and you can follow BioWare's frequent Twitter updates on the game. Star Wars: The Old Republic also has a Flickr photostream up and running. BioWare has stated that even more is on the way, with plans for a YouTube Channel as well as Digg and Delicious integration. It seems that most in-development MMOs are seizing onto the fact that Web 2.0 and all that it brings are crucial to making gamers aware of what they're doing. Is it overkill? You decide. But it should be interesting to see how MMOs leverage social networks as time goes on. A good example of what's possible may very well be what's happening right now in Superstruct, a multiplayer game played out almost entirely over social networks and the web. Interesting times. BioWare has finally unveiled Star Wars: The Old Republic, their new MMO! Massively's got you covered on all the details -- from liveblogging the announcement to screenshot galleries and more. Join us in the Galaxy far, far away!
Terminator 'MMO' comes to iPhone
Sci-fi fans of the revamped Terminator IP may have something else to be happy about: a Terminator iPhone MMO called "Ambush." Based off Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Ambush is a game played either online or through an iPhone. Gameplay is centered on predicting the movement of enemies through a virtual city, setting traps to eliminate the opposing side while evading their attempts to find you. iPhone 3G users can use their device's GPS to avoid such traps while racking up points. The game was developed by 65 Media, a marketing firm known for its past work on interactive and alternate reality games (ARGs). Ambush may not be a true MMO in the client/leveling/loot sense, but has a system of points gained through employing traps and counter-traps. It's perhaps more akin to Aurora Feint's debatable label as an MMO title, which has already proven to be very popular. Such titles are the earliest forays into that grey area of 'MMOs' for the iPhone, and more are certainly on the way. Ambush is free-to-play and available for iPhones with the 2.0 Software Update, downloadable at the Apple App Store. More information about the game, and how to play it on both the iPhone and online, can be found in the Ambush FAQ. [Via Spoiler TV]
Sony Ericsson goes viral with Xperia X1 marketing
Sony Ericsson is taking the viral route on marketing with its forthcoming Xperia X1, launching a new "alternative reality thriller" centered around a mysterious character named Johnny X. There's not much meat in the video the company is desperately trying to sneak into your daily YouTube diet, but at least we get to see action-packed chases, Memento-stealing plot points of the highest order, and one weird, seemingly backmasked utterance of "Johneeeeeeeeeee... X!" Hit the read link for the full clip, and check out another video after the break which helps to unravel the mystery.[Via Pocket-lint]
End War & Splinter Cell sites redirect to Ghost Recon, countdown to April 2 appears [Update]
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Viral_marketing_points_to_possible_Ghost_Recon_announcement'; Update: At the time of this story the Rainbow Six website wasn't acting properly, however it has been reported that it too is pointing to the Ghost Recon website via a similar overlay. This story has been updated to include the Rainbow Six site.In the early hours of the day this morning one of our readers helped us spot a strange overlay on the official Ghost Recon website. Visitors of the site were treated to a smoking dossier (which might be a black box after all) but nothing could be done other than close off the overlay and scratch your head.Today, both the End War, Splinter Cell and Rainbow Six sites have received similar flash-based marketing treatments. Each site includes an overlay of smoking items that appear to be from a wreckage which, when clicked, redirects visitors to the official Ghost Recon website -- home of the original mystery.While it could all end there, today the Ghost Recon site updated with new information and a mysterious countdown timer.
GTAIV viral marketing: wanted posters
Now that Grand Theft Auto IV has an official release date, it's time to let the viral marketing begin. Enter this scarily realistic wanted poster uploaded by Flickr user freshyill. Honestly, is that the kind of face you'd want to see at your car window late at night? The answer to that question is an emphatic no. Actually, we're a little curious to see if these posters raise any stink, because they could be mistaken as real posters by those who aren't in the know. Let's just hope the folks behind the viral marketing don't take it too far and actually rob a bank.
A viral marketing tool to try in SL?
Anyone who has watched the various attempts by big businesses to come into Second Life knows that some of the succeed, some fail. The ones that succeed tend to try things that are a little bit different, building a corporate headquarters and expecting the people to come to you doesn't work. Creating things that mimic your RL clothes lines fall even flatter.But this week I came across a tool for RL marketing a new product that would, and indeed does, work a treat in Second Life. The premise is simple - try our software on a 15 day fully functional trial and then pay to register it. Don't fancy paying? Write a good blog review, send your link and get a free license key. Does this work in SL too? You bet: how many people that are in any way associated with the SLogosphere don't know about CSI:NY coming into SL and the tie to the OnRez viewer? The trick, of course, is working out how to get talked about - look at how quiet we all were about The Office in SL -but free products is always a good notion as long as you have something that will get the good reviews, no?
