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This fall Microsoft hopes to change the face of gaming and eventually everyday computing with the release of their newest technology for the Xbox 360; Kinect. Kinect is a specialized motion capture camera that recognizes people and body parts that will enable users to control and interact with the Xbox 360 without a controller using “natural user interface” like gestures and spoken commands. Users can play games by using themselves as the controller and their avatar in the game mimics their every move. This project was introduced to compete against other motion gaming systems like the Nintendo Wii, which has dominated the video game market with their specialty motion capture system for years, and Sony’s recently launched “Wii copy”; the Playstation Move. Microsoft is banking on their unique technology that does not require a controller to overcome its competitors and transfer the technology to different sectors other than gaming.  Although the Kinect doesn’t launch until early November, brands are already finding ways to utilize the new technology as an advertising medium.

So far, companies like Sprint, T-Mobile, and Chevrolet are using the technology to advertise to gamers in innovative new ways with campaigns centered around new games. Chevrolet has placed branded content in the Kinect launch title Joy Ride, a competitive racing game that requires players to make driving motions with their body. Chevrolet has paid for branded content where users can “test-drive” Chevy vehicles in the game and unlock special game content like playable Corvettes and Camaros to race by viewing in-dash video advertisements. Chevrolet has also created a “Kinect friendly” ad that will be part of their campaign for their electric car, Volt, where users can physically explore and interact with the vehicle using Kinect’s interface. Sprint has reportedly sponsored another launch title, Kinect Adventures, with a co-branded contest on Xbox Live. T-Mobile is also sponsoring Kinect Sports, holding various Xbox Live contests.
I am looking forward to experiencing these new ads that take advantage of the emerging technology. There is a lot of potential to create immersive, highly engaging ads on a growing medium that has already proven to be effective. As this technology expands we are likely to experience an advertising renaissance with creative advertisements that have an extreme amount of depth featuring fully interactive content. It will be very interesting to see how the technology is used and what directions it will take the advertising industry.

This January, to market their new game MLB 2K10, video game developer 2K Sports put up a $1 million prize for the first person to pitch a perfect game under specific conditions. The new game features all new pitching mechanics for improved gameplay and to advertise the improvements over last year’s MLB 2K9 they put up the money for the contest. They figured this new strategy would build hype for the game’s release, persuade more players to buy the game for full price on the day it is released, and invest more time playing the game. They originally estimated that it would take weeks for players to achieve the supposedly difficult feat but a mere 24 hours after the game was released they had a winner. After going through the rigorous confirmation tests to certify a legitimate perfect game, the winner was just recently announced.

Wade McGilberry, a 24 year-old Alabama resident won the cool million in just 90 minutes of playing the game on his Xbox360. McGilberry, playing as Atlanta Braves pitcher Kenshin Kawakami pulled through with a 27-up, 27-down contest relatively quickly. Although the contest succeeded in generating buzz and received positive response from fans, 2K Sports had to pay the $1 million lump sum out of pocket. Insurance companies couldn’t come up with the odds of throwing a perfect game so 2K Sports couldn’t take out insurance on the contest.

As the video game market continues to significantly increase, developers are constantly looking for unique and exciting ways to hype their new games. While some tactics have been quite successful (and others fail miserably) it will be interesting to see if contests become a new trend to increase release day customers.