DICE: Behind That Call of Duty Ad
February 10, 2012
The ad campaign for Call of Duty: Black Ops went out of its way to show normal people playing the game, in order to reassure the public that it wasn't an experience filled with young, aggressive males. But the award-winning campaign used the "authentic" voice of gamers as an invitation to would-be noobs.
That was the message from Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg at his DICE speech today in Las Vegas. Before joining Activision 18 months ago, Hirshberg was an advertising executive of 20 years standing and creator of the Kevin Butler campaign.
He pointed out that Call of Duty had appeared in the top ten trending list of Facebook topics last year, between the death of Amy Winehouse and military operations in Libya. "Call of Duty was the only form of entertainment on the list. It was the only thing you could actually buy." He added,"I know Call of Duty isn't a game that other games companies root for, but this is a real achievement."
Speaking of the ad, which shows ordinary people engaging in combat and apparently enjoying themselves, he said, "Getting games companies out of their comfort zone of the games trailer isn't easy." The ad, 'There's a Soldier in All Of Us' shows no game footage. he added, "We had to have the guts to treat it as more than just a game, to take up a bigger role in popular culture.
"We don't have to speak in a language that only enthusiasts understand, but we didn't sacrifice authenticity to achieve a broader appeal. In fact, using the voice of the core is what gave us boar appeal."
He said that, in hindsight, many people see the campaign as "an obvious move" but added that,"it wasn't uncontroversial at the time." He said, "We we showing women, bald guys, fat guys playing the game. There was a lot of discussion about whether that was a good idea." Some within Activision we concerned that it might be a turn-off for the core game. But Hirshberg argued, "This was a good idea. It showed a truth about the franchise and that's why it works. It captures the appeal of the franchise."
That was the message from Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg at his DICE speech today in Las Vegas. Before joining Activision 18 months ago, Hirshberg was an advertising executive of 20 years standing and creator of the Kevin Butler campaign.
He pointed out that Call of Duty had appeared in the top ten trending list of Facebook topics last year, between the death of Amy Winehouse and military operations in Libya. "Call of Duty was the only form of entertainment on the list. It was the only thing you could actually buy." He added,"I know Call of Duty isn't a game that other games companies root for, but this is a real achievement."
Speaking of the ad, which shows ordinary people engaging in combat and apparently enjoying themselves, he said, "Getting games companies out of their comfort zone of the games trailer isn't easy." The ad, 'There's a Soldier in All Of Us' shows no game footage. he added, "We had to have the guts to treat it as more than just a game, to take up a bigger role in popular culture.
"We don't have to speak in a language that only enthusiasts understand, but we didn't sacrifice authenticity to achieve a broader appeal. In fact, using the voice of the core is what gave us boar appeal."
He said that, in hindsight, many people see the campaign as "an obvious move" but added that,"it wasn't uncontroversial at the time." He said, "We we showing women, bald guys, fat guys playing the game. There was a lot of discussion about whether that was a good idea." Some within Activision we concerned that it might be a turn-off for the core game. But Hirshberg argued, "This was a good idea. It showed a truth about the franchise and that's why it works. It captures the appeal of the franchise."
0 comments:
Post a Comment