I must admit that I’m not the avid videogamer I once was. I hung up my gaming cleats in my late teens (about five years ago) and have watched the new releases from afar, flexing my knuckles, trying to avoid a destiny of Carpal tunnel syndrome. Usually, videogame ads all look the same and sport some generic 9/10 rating. But occasionally, a commercial will stand out and make wonder whether I should play again. For those of us who are worried about falling off the wagon, a compelling game ad can be both exciting and scary.

The Bureau: XCOM Declassified trailer – created by Team One, which also handles Lexus of course – may be vague, but it is certainly not generic. The three-minute spot sells tone in a cinematic style, and according to Team One, contains 20 Easter eggs for future customers. The game is set in the Cold War and re-imagines a doomsday Cold War where aliens invade instead of Russians. You then have the fearless protagonist who will stop at no costs to complete his mission. The game will be out August 20, and the creators have promised more mysterious pieces of ad content leading up to the release date.

Credits after the jump.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Nearly three months after 72andSunny introduced us to “The Replacer”–aka Fargo baddie Peter Stormare–in its campaign for Activision’s Call of Duty: Black Ops II – Revolution trailer, the agency has brought back the character, now with sidekick JB Smoove in tow, for its Black Ops II – Uprising promo. Jesus, how many entries are in this franchise? Anyhow, the newly formed dynamic duo embarks on several replacing adventures from serving as weatherman to fixing cable, with Stormare being his usual, somewhat menacing self and Smoove giving us the fast-talking delivery that we first came to know and love in Curb Your Enthusiasm. 

We’re not sure what the budget is here, but as the Black Ops franchise expands, so do seem the timeframe and scope of the clips promoting it. But, if you have the patience for it (it is lunchtime on the East Coast, after all), don’t let us stop you from taking in this slightly entertaining, slightly grating clip. Credits after the jump.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

No, it’s not the ass-whooping you’re thinking of that he received back in the day. We can’t really expound, though, except to say the timing is perfect with this latest EA Sports spot from San Francisco-based Heat for the former’s Tiger Woods PGA Tour 14 installment. Woods, if you didn’t know, won his eighth Arnold Palmer Invitational title yesterday in his home turf of Orlando and reclaimed his throne as the top-ranked golfer in the world in the process. Not sure if he’s doing his own stunts or that his sports star acting skills are on par with his good pal, Roger Federer, but we’re sure those are Arnie’s knuckles cracking. Credits after the jump.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

And now, your time-killer for the morning. Nine months after winning the Planet Fitness biz, Philly-based Red Tettemer + Partners continues in its ongoing “Gymtimidation” campaign for the chain via a Facebook extension/game called “Clunk-a-Lunk,” which now lets you virtually hand the worst of gym rats a little beatdown and win a one-year free membership in the process.

If you care to meet the latest round of testosterone-fueled cliches (who still can’t top this guy that Mullen came up with a few years ago), look no further than the trailer above or clips like “Abroham” and “Earthquake” below and after the jump. Yep, during our infrequent trips to our gym, we see that these folks sadly exist.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Like a less-slick, self-assured version of Harvey Keitel‘s “The Wolf” from Pulp Fiction, actor Peter Stormare, who you might remember from playing Steve Buscemi‘s even sleazier partner-in-crime in Fargo or to a lesser extent, “Slippery Pete” on Seinfeld, stars as “The Replacer” in 72andSunny’s latest lengthy effort for Activision. This time, agency and client team up to promote the latter’s Call of Duty: Black Ops II – Revolution, which will come equipped with new multiplayer apps, a new weapon and even a zombie mode to play undead.

In the two-and-a-half minute clip above, we find that “The Replacer” is actually a way more charitable character than Wolf, lending his services to a variety of gamers, whether a frustrated, domesticated type, an expecting parent, a guy on a blind date, a landscaper or even a zoo cleaner. The intensity of previous Call of Duty clips has supplanted by comedy, and we kinda welcome the change of pace. And plus, we have a soft spot for Stormare, a man who’s played bit/supporting roles in more movies than we can count.  Credits after the jump.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

5. NBC has a little segment called “Ask Tina.” This week’s episode is about Twitter, and Fey opines that anyone who want so to use the service should have to get a license – and she’d like to be the commissioner. This is actually not a bad idea since, as she notes, Twitter is mostly boring as hell. With just 143k views, this one comes at number 5 for being worth a few yucks.

4. Here’s the SimCity Game Intro trailer you’ve been waiting for. The much anticipated game comes out March 5th and lets you build everything necessary for a city to flourish, including an electrical grid and asshole drivers. 150k views brings this piece in at number 4.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

As we were out early last week thanks to some holiday festivities, we sadly missed the thrilling conclusion to W+K and Old Spice’s “4 1/2 Weeks to Save the World” campaign, which called on the services of none other than old #55, Dikembe Mutombo. But, since we’re working in slow-motion this week, might as well try to play catch up and post the final clip. Since our planet did indeed survive 12/21/12, Dikembe and his odds and sods cast of 8-bit characters including the Cosby sweater-wearing “dear Science, the bear” accomplished their mission. So, what better way to celebrate averting the apocalypse than an epic ballad seemingly inspired by “We Are the World.”

Still, while we’re led to believe all is well with Mother Earth, apparently our shelf life has only been extended approximately 15 months according a reveal halfway through the clip above. What are W+K and Old Spice hinting at? Do we even care to find out? Whatever the case, this current events-inspired online gaming effort of sorts was mostly fun while it lasted.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

This comes from VML Australia. It is comforting to know that they celebrate the holidays in a country/continent that (I’ve learned, thanks to Reddit) is populated by the scariest bugs and weirdest animals in the entire world.

For those who need another reason to gamble and shake their phone really hard, this effort from the WPP digital agency’s Sydney office that’s being described as a “real-world interactive race between four of Santa’s reindeer”  might be the game for you. For the rest of you, I hope this can provide even the most fleeting smile on a really heartbreaking day.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

I’m not suggesting that grandparents can’t play video games; I’m sure some do, it just seems strange that a whole family would sit around a couch fully invested in watching Gramps play. It seems even stranger–and a little misguided–for 180 Amsterdam to include this scene in their new Playstation 3 commercial. But, since Grandpa shot up from his cushioned seat with such force, I’m just relieved he didn’t throw out his back.

The “Family Day Out” TV spot is the centerpiece of PS3′s Festival of Fun campaign, meant to highlight the versatile gaming options available for the console. The bulk of the commercial takes place at a circus-like setting where kids, parents, and even grandparents, can enjoy the metaphorical pleasures of motion-control video games.

The crux of the idea that video games can bring together a family means that instead of people actually going to circuses and fairs to spend time with each other, everyone can do it in a virtual ecosystem from a leather couch. That whole fresh-air, let’s-communicate-in-person thing is going the way of the CD player, but I suppose 180 Amsterdam is onto something here. If Mom and Dad squaring off in Sports Champions 2 leads to a healthier marriage, why not? Just make sure Grandpa takes frequent breaks to prevent carpal tunnel, stiff joints, worsening eyesight, and a rapid heartbeat. Credits after the jump.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

W+K’s ongoing work for Old Spice demanded one hell of a refresh and the agency thankfully obliges with this rather promising effort for the P&G brand, which stars beloved former NBA center, Dikembe Mutombo. Though long since retired, the man who could talk so much shit with just a wag of his finger is still very much involved in humanitarian causes, so who better to help avert the imminent apocalypse promised by the Mayan calendar than old #55.

Yes, this is the basis of a real-time, online 8-bit gaming experience from W+K for Old Spice dubbed “4 1/2 Weeks to Save the World,” which will have our hero embark on weekly globe-trotting missions based on current event and help prolong our lives on this planet. So far, from visiting the game play site alone, we gather that this week, Mutombo must stop Gangnam Style and encourage people to vote–might be a little late on that one–but hell, we’re 100 percent behind this mission. Along the way, we’ve met a Cosby sweater-adorning, intelligent talking bear and other odd characters all while trying to figure how the hell get out of level 1. We must say, though, that regardless of how odd and chaotic this whole campaign is, we’re quite enamored with it thus far and will take it over some of the recent Greg Jennings work any day. Give it a shot here. Credits after the jump.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Ah yes, boys and girls, nothing rings in the holidays quite like PNC’s Christmas Price Index, which has become an annual tradition like repeat airings of It’s a Wonderful Life, but is actually aimed at making economics somehow digestible for both kids and adults. I don’t know about you, but just watching Trading Places in our high-school economics class did the trick.

Anyhow, this marks the third CPI that Deutsch New York has created for PNC and in case you didn’t know what it actually is, it’s a 29-year-old annual tradition that shows the current cost of one set of each of the gifts given in the holiday tune, “The Twelve Days of Christmas.” According to the campaign site, yes, the Christmas price tag has once again gone up as PNC’s CPI has risen four percent from last year to $25,431.18 (in fact, the last shift downward was in 2002).

In this year’s installment, the parties involved (along with B-Reel) have created an interactive gaming experience where visitors can find missing gifts across 12 locations from NYC to Paris to even Shirakawa-go, Japan using Google Streetview. Don’t worry, “Twelve Days” purists, characters from the Xmas carol are all included in the mix. Now, off on your animated, street-viewing, globe-trotting adventure you go. Select stills and credits after the jump.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Bond is back as most of you know and to promote the latest installment in the ever-lasting franchise, Skyfall, W+K Portland has unveiled a global campaign that ties in the film with Sony products, the latter of which have their eye on Bond himself in a new spot called “Mouse and Cat” (above). The spot is high-tech, fine and dandy and all, but the more intriguing component of the campaign is the online “British Intelligence Officers Exam,” a gaming experience which was initially covered last week on Co.Create and has now finally been unlocked.

The “Exam,” which features a text-based interface, lets you simulate conversation and assist MI6 agents, who are soldiering through their assignments by using, what else, various Sony products including the Xperia (which we now know can be used as a torch). The old-school setup of the game takes us back, though we’re not sure if we have what it takes to measure up as an MI6 agent. But hey, don’t let us stop you from killing your lunch break.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

This week, some interesting swag landed on our desk, namely the Nerf “N-Strike” (what, no Crotch Bat?) that you see above. While we initially thought Christmas came early, the note attached filled us in that it’s all part of promoting a little “tweet to shoot” experiment from Neiman Labs, the in-house R&D team at Philly-based agency Neiman.

While we’ve seen shoot-from-my-computer efforts before, and on a much more epic scale (remember Deutsch LA’s Twisted Metal promotion from earlier this year?), Neiman Labs at least rekindles our nostalgia by letting users play the classic game Duck Hunt just by tweeting. Between now and 5pm EST today and tomorrow, those who feel like kicking it old-school can use the hashtag #TweettoShoot and fire off a Twitter-powered Nerf gun that Neiman Labs set up in its office. Let the  R&D team break down the process of its experiment: “We rigged the gun to a 12-volt power supply and an Arduino Uno micro-controller. We combed the Twitter API for mentions of a specific hashtag. We rebuilt the classic Duck Hunt interface. We took over a room and streamed it live.” The stream itself is a little lagged and the gun we were sent actually has nothing to do with the effort, but we appreciate the gift and the chance once again to see that annoying dog. Check out a teaser video for the Neiman Labs project below.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Video Games: They’re quickly becoming more and more like movies. Or, are movies quickly becoming more and more like video game? “Could it be both?” you wonder. You don’t know. All you know is that thinking about it makes you confused and being confused makes you angry and your misplaced anger makes you revert back to adolescent behavior by locking yourself in your bedroom, turning up Nine Inch Nails’ 1994 album The Downward Spiral on your stereo, and refusing to come down for dinner because no one understands you and nothing makes sense anymore and the only people you can talk to are other online gamers who will play Call of Duty with you until you fall asleep crying into your pillow.

Lucky for you, here’s a video of Nine Inch Nails founder Trent Reznor, who won an Oscar for Best Original Score with his work on 2010′s The Social Network, discussing his work on the video game, Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 (try not to think about it too much). Joining him is David S. Goyer, a writer whose extensive resume includes such films as The Dark Knight, Blade and Kickboxer 2: The Road Back.

Join them and COD: BO2 creators Mark Lamia and Dave Anthony as they discuss the mixed up relationship between these different (but similar!) entertainment mediums. And rejoice that when Call of Duty: The Musical hits Broadway, Trent Reznor will be one step closer to EGOT-ing.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Following the reveal trailer that aired during last night’s NBA playoffs and showed actual game play, Activision has now unveiled the full-length, two-minute documentary for Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 which was created by The Ant Farm and 72andSunny. Shot in Washington D.C. and featuring an appearance from none other than good ol’ Ollie North, the online film dramatically details the weapons of the future and looks realistic and grim enough to have us believe we’ll be wandering the desolate road with Viggo Mortensen and his son in the coming years. Check out credits if so inclined after the jump.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.