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WoW Archivist: WoW's craziest TV ads
WoW Archivist explores the secrets of World of Warcraft's past. What did the game look like years ago? Who is etched into WoW's history? What secrets does the game still hold? Nefarian swallows a truck. Two women duke it out in a supermarket. A trio of singers shouts, "No means no!" Mr. T introduces a new race and Chuck Norris roundhouse-kicks a kodo. Those responsible for advertising World of Warcraft have hit on some crazy ideas. This week, Blizzard debuted its first TV ads for Mists of Pandaria. As I'm writing this, I've just watched them air live on Monday Night Football. That's a big-time slot for a commercial here in the States and runs a cool $325,000 per nationally televised spot. The ads feature clips from the official trailer. If only the Bengals had put up as much of a fight as that panda. But not all of WoW's commercials through the years have been quite so ... straightforward. Let's take a look!
IGN discovers the Aubrey Plaza WoW commercial that never aired
Does anyone remember those World of Warcraft "What's your game?" commercials? They've been around for years, featuring celebrities like Mr. T, William Shatner, Verne Troyer, Ozzy Osbourne, and even a French commercial with Jean-Claude Van Damme. There were two that were introduced last year -- the infamous Chuck Norris commercial, and one done by Aubrey Plaza from Parks and Recreation. I remember liking the Chuck Norris commercial well enough, but the Aubrey Plaza commercial fell a little flat for me. Don't get me wrong, I love Parks and Recreation, but the commercial for WoW didn't seem particularly funny. Well IGN just uncovered an entirely different Aubrey Plaza commercial, one that never aired. Frankly, I think this version is quite a bit funnier than the one originally used, and I'm not sure why they didn't go with it. Perhaps it was just a tad too racy for television? Regardless, you can view the unaired commercial above and decide for yourself. Personally, I like the second version of Aubrey's commercial a lot better -- but then, I'm a fan of silly orc puns. What do you think?
WoW Moviewatch: Belated pimp parody of WoW commercials
Parodies of the WoW commercials featuring William Shatner, Mr. T, Jean Claude van Damme, Verne Troyer, and Willy Toledo are so last month. Apparently Ari Rosenberg didn't get the memo. Viewers be warned that this does contain some offensive language.It's true that you can be anyone you want to be on the internet. In Ari's world, he's a night elf pimp. I wonder if his mom knows he's slapping around his sister on YouTube?(Edit: Ari decided to add "What's your game?" to the ending, so he re-uploaded the video.)Previously on Moviewatch...
Verne Troyer is a Gnome Mage; no one is surprised
Back when Blizzard released the new World of Warcraft ads featuring Mr. T and William Shatner, it also announced that a Verne Troyer ad was forthcoming. It's finally here, and it turns out that, like Jean-Claude Van Damme, Mini-Me is a Mage!If you liked the first two English-language WoW TV spots, you'll like this one, though I don't think it's quite as exciting because we all knew what was coming; he's a Gnome. What a surprise! It's still awesome and you should all check it out. I don't need to tell you that, though, do I? I'm still holding out for The Hoff. What class would he be, I wonder? And if they could get Schwarzenegger, they'd have to create a Governator class. Hey, they already made a Mohawk class for Mr. T. Okay, this is getting silly and I'm getting carried away![Thanks, Chris!]
WoW commercials: Jean-Claude Van Damme and Willy Toledo editions
I have no shame reblogging the new WoW commercials. Van Damme apparently plays a well... He needs to reroll, what a noob."My name is Jean-Claude Van Damme... and I am a mage. Hand-to-hand combat for me: it's over! Now I can cast powerful spells! Just try messing with me... I'll turn you into a sheep. A sheep! Because we all are a bit like sheep, you know... I am Jean-Claude Van Damme, I am a mage. And you? What's your game?"Mages are nothing but vending machines and sheepish freaks. I was expecting some high roundhouse kicks in there -- at least he picked a Troll. Donjohn, commented at WoW Insider, providing some additional notes that pertain to the inside-jokes for zi'French. Van Damme frequently uses English words in his oft-butchered French sentences The line on everyone being like sheep might tie into numerous interviews with JCVD's rhapsodic views about the world [Willy Toledo and further comments after the break]
Mr. T and William Shatner appear in WoW commercials [Updated]
William Shatner and Mr. T are appearing in two new World of Warcraft TV commercials. All Blizzard needs is the Hoff and it'll have the holy trinity of cheese!This is without a doubt one of the most awesome things we've yet reported. Mr. T talks about his "Night Elf Mohawk." William Shatner players a Shaman and wears a goofy looking robe. It's exactly as funny as you'd expect, and it will be broadcast nationally soon. Blizzard announced that Verne Troyer -- aka "Minime" -- will be recording a commercial as well.World of Warcraft players have already been littering guild chat with "I pity the fool who specs survival on his Hunter!" and taking screenshots of their characters screaming "KHAAAAAAN!" at the sky. So it goes without saying that these commercials will probably go over quite well.[EDIT: We have the videos here for your viewing pleasure! Shatner is above, and Mr. T is just behind the jump.]
Klegg Mini: bigger size, same false advertising
Despite the fact that the folks over at Anything But iPod already broke out their considerable math skills to refute the Klegg Mini's claim of being the world's smallest color MP3 player, the device's manufacturer is nonetheless using the same angle to promote the Mini's recently-announced 1GB upgrade. Best known as the DAP of choice for that diminutive star of the Austin Powers movies, the Mini doesn't get any new features along with the capacity bump scheduled for this summer, but apparently that 1-inch screen, 26-hour battery life, and compact design have made this model popular enough to warrant continued sales. Oh, and Klegg, even if you still haven't heard of the MPIO ONE player that exposed the fallacy of your boasts, you're sure not gonna be able to miss the minuscule, color screen MobiBlu Cube 2 once it begins showing up in thousands of Wal-mart stores and on millions of ears nationwide. So, like, you might want to take this opportunity to call up your ad agency and give them a head start on working towards a more truthful slogan.
