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.

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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.

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Hey, look! It’s that dude who was on 30 Rock for a few seasons before they realized his character was totally worthless. This guy. Man, has that dude fallen on hard times or what? Let’s all hope he gets back on his feet before things get worse.

Anyway, the above 90-second spot from 72andSunny takes place in the fictional video game development studio of “Unicorn Apocalypse,” a fake game no doubt inspired by Adult Swim’s online “Robot Unicorn Attacks,” but about zombies because 20-something nerds sure love those. If you think 90-seconds sounds like a long time to watch hipster nerds talk about zombie unicorns and play around with their phones, you’d be right.

I’ve been a little back and forth about Samsung’s recent iPhone-bashing campaign. Perhaps it’s because I think it’s a really great idea, but the execution just misses the mark for some reason. Perhaps that reason, as most blatantly exhibited by the spot above, is because Samsung is targeting pretentious millennials who look down about those with different tastes. It makes sense to label iPhone buyers sheep, but there has to be a more subtle way to do it. Also, here’s a newsflash: pretentious people don’t think they’re pretentious. They just think that they’re right. So, portraying an over the top version of the demo (however accurate), will undoubtedly turn off the very consumer you most want.

As the current top comment on YouTube asks, “Why does Samsung insist on making everyone with their phone act like a 20-something douchebag?” Good question. Credits after the jump.

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New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

It’s coming up on two years since VW and Deutsch LA’s beloved “The Force” aka “Little Darth” spot captured the hearts of America during Super Bowl XLV. While most agree that “Little Darth” was worthy of the acclaim and awards bestowed upon it, the VW/Duetsch duo has had a difficult time following it up. Last year’s “The Dog Strikes Back” fell well short of its predecessor, and perhaps this is due to an erroneous insight into what the public loved about “Little Darth.”

Yes, the Star Wars tie-in to “Little Darth” was great, but it wasn’t the reason the spot became one of the web’s biggest hits. “The Dog Strikes Back” also had a pretty blatant nod to Star Wars as well, but the spirit of “Little Darth” was lost, and the spot became more of a sequel than a standalone ad. The real reason the public loved “Little Darth” so much was because it was just so damn adorable, and judging by the above new spot for the VW Passat, this insight is now crystal clear.

What we have here is a great (and simple) slice-o-life spot, with an absolutely perfectly timed punchline that will make you giggle and then give a long “awwww.” It’s a bit surprising that VW didn’t hold the spot until this year’s Super Bowl, but I’m quite excited for what Deutsch has planned next. Credits after the jump.

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As Samsung’s patent war with Apple rages on, the former has wasted no time in busting the latter’s balls–well, at least those of its devotees–in a new spot that launched not so coincidentally around the time the iPhone 5 hits shelves. Once again, 72andSunny takes square aim at the fanboys and girls anxiously waiting for hours in line for Apple’s next great product (even a huge storm couldn’t drive away the hordes we saw standing outside a Best Buy in Union Square on Tuesday), which according to Samsung boasts many of the same features that are already found in the Galaxy S III. The ultimate kicker, though, is that with a barrel full of snark in tow, Samsung and 72 convey the message here that the iPhone is now better suited for moms and dads. Zing! Credits after the jump.

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In a bizarro world concocted by the minds at San Francisco shop Heat, Baltimore Ravens defensive powerhouse Ray Lewis and Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers star Paul Rudd have known each other all their lives. So tis the premise for the latest TV/campaign dubbed “Madden Forever,” which as you can probably gather, is promoting EA Sports’ latest Madden installment, Madden NFL 13.

As you’ll see above, Lewis & Rudd (makes for a decent band name) not only love the lucrative Madden franchise, but grew up as “young thespians” and it was Rudd in fact who taught Lewis how to do his famous “squirrel dance.” The “Interview” web video is just one of several clips from the campaign along with the “Old Rivals” TV spot below (the full series can be viewed here).

While Heat has tried the rivalry concept out for other EA Sports franchises before (remember Steve Nash vs. Hope Solo?),  we have to say the agency has honed the humor angle quite a bit. Thus, the winning streak for EA campaigns continues. Credits after the jump.

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During last night’s broadcast of AMC’s The Walking Dead, Electronic Arts debuted the above spot from DraftFCB SF for the new title coming to stores March 6, Mass Effect 3. Before you fret, realize that the spot aired after the Academy Awards ended, and many who felt like remaining on the couch (me included) flipped over just in time to see it.

Since debuting yesterday, the emotional spot depicting the end of the world, an alien invasion, and the battle for humanity’s survival has already chalked up more than 75,000 views on YouTube. Filmed over six days in Prague, “Fight for Everything” is, in a word, cinematic, so much so that it’s initially quite difficult to tell what exactly the spot is advertising. But it succeeds where it aims to, making ME:3 look enticing to gamers and non-gamers alike. Sure, it’s a little bit Halo and a little bit Star Wars, but that doesn’t make images of people running for their lives any less moving.

Also, since the Vancouver hockey riots of 2011, it’s hard to imagine a scene of mass chaos that doesn’t include two young people making out. Maybe that’s the “better with Kinect” feature Electronic Arts is hinting at. Credits after the jump.

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Yes, that does appear to be the guy who gets dissed in that Michael Jordan Hanes ad from last year, but now he’s the star of this latest Carl’s Jr. effort from David&Goliath that promotes the chain’s “Made from Scratch” biscuits. The mustachioed stranger in the ad above emerges from the sand and interrupts some SoCal beach revelry with his over-exaggerated drawl and basketful of buttery treats. We guess his intrusion, though, is not as egregious as Carl’s Jr. actually trying to convince people that they make biscuits like those scrumptious ones from the south. Could we just bring back Olivia Munn already? Credits after the jump.

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New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.