• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Xbox launches "Nowstalgia" campaign to target Gen Z. Featuring a gamer making friends with a talking Xbox Series S plushy coming to life on his couch.

https://www.shots.net/news/view/xbox-launches-nowstalgia-campaign
Entering an established core community like Xbox can feel daunting, so to welcome new players to the Xbox Series S this holiday season, Xbox created a campaign all about the nostalgic memories Gen Z will create playing their favourite games on the console…before they’ve actually made them. They call it “Nowstalgia.”

To give us all “Nowstalgia,” Xbox created a series of ads that treat playing your favourite games on the Xbox Series S in the style of the classic toy ads from Gen Z’s childhood. To launch the campaign, Xbox created a custom Xbox Series S in the style of a classic talking Plushie toy to star in its own commercial. Of course, every talking Plushie needs a human best friend. And the Game With Me Series S found one in actor and comedian Jimmy O. Yang. In the film, Yang finds an unlikely friend in the talking plushie version of the Xbox Series S who comes to life on his couch with a very specific purpose.

Xbox also created a limited run of physical Game with Me Series S Plushies that will be sent out to a variety of gaming and pop culture influencers. Each Plushie comes in a collectable graphic box just like a real talking toy. When squeezed, each Plushie will come to life on its influencer’s channel by delivering a personalized message crafted for its chosen influencer.

In addition to the Game With Me hero film, Xbox is bringing the “Nowstalgic” feelings of playing Fall Guys and Overwatch 2 to fans in a series of short social videos, reminiscent of the toy commercials players saw in their youth. Each spot showcases the experience of playing games such as Fall Guys and Overwatch 2 on the Xbox Series S, built especially to give Gen Z the nostalgic feeling they love for a console that they haven’t even bought yet.

Xbox also partnered with social action figure photographer @PlasticAction, aka Jax Navarro, to create custom “Nowstalgia” hero stills for Falls Guys, Rocket League, Forza Horizon 5, Overwatch 2, and Minecraft. Each still brings the fun of the IP to life through crafted miniature sets, toy props, and cinematic photography. These stills will be featured on Jax’s own channels as well as Xbox’s owned and operated channels and across an OOH buy in Los Angeles.

Link to ad,
http://d1wg0t3wq54w1o.cloudfront.net/download/c9e74.mp4?Expires=1672561099&Signature=IhTgutTfrDo-eL~qNx9ceTWOAiqdVyhNadsTXIwXmNVq4O9YmaiS8WGvPeHupVYtAuLDdw1zAKF2DrOmS0DIkfzNc-~gI6FPn1cYqzctoeKXYCzlwt18otRbJmQ2-JhoFYhnQ~mUu4gbpR9pgYXs7yviU3W~x1VJ1DAVyDPimnI_&Key-Pair-Id=APKAIXFHSDM5XXLBZMWA

Update, Link dead here is the Youtube upload,





wow.

I'm not sure what Phil and Xbox are up to here, but a talking Series S plushy to sell consoles to Gen Z is definitely a unique strategy at least, maybe doesn't make much sense but unique.

Photos from ad, click link to view the commercial videos,

0JA1gdV.jpg

Rp7H2Dt.jpg

1671121133794.jpg

yOfcw0c.jpg

vqZFuZp.jpg

rnTTUIA.jpg


Might be the strangest modern gaming commercial I've ever seen.

Apparently Microsoft is going to give away plushies to influencers, but for some reason not for sales in the gear store, where they sell hoodies for your controller.

I don't quite understand the marketing strategy here but like I said it's unique, I'll give it that. Poor guy looks scared shitless when the Series S creepily comes toward him, lol.
 
Last edited:

Hip Hop

Member
Microsoft trying to outdo sonys early PS3 ads. During that time Microsoft were on fire with their marketing for 360 and their exclusive games. Even 3rd party wise they had ads for games like GTA IV and call of duty 4. I remember seeing 360 everywhere.
I want to go back to 2008 tbh.
 

Dis

Member
I heard that by the end of 20xx
Xx% of women will be single and childless

And so people are investing in wine, cats etc

Is this the same thing?
 
Top Bottom