The End Is Nigh: Dante's Inferno Super Bowl Ad

Greg Tito

PR for Dungeons & Dragons
Sep 29, 2005
12,070
0
0
The End Is Nigh: Dante's Inferno Super Bowl Ad



The Dante's Inferno [http://www.amazon.com/Dantes-Inferno-Divine-Playstation-3/dp/B001NX6GBK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=videogames&qid=1279312350&sr=1-1] marketing zeitgeist will culminate in Electronic Arts first Super Bowl advertisement, estimated to cost $3 million.

Electronic Arts announced that it will be telling watchers of the Super Bowl on Feb. 7th to "Go To Hell" with a 30-second spot for Dante's Inferno. EA has conducted an atypical campaign for the action adventure game loosely based on the epic poem by Dante Alighieri. The media stunts included a that fateful song [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/92210-Dantes-Inferno-Not-Really-Protested-at-E3] until he bashed it to smithereens. The blitz will hopefully come to end when the game is finally released on Feb. 9th, a mere two days after the Super Bowl ad, called "Hell Awaits," airs during the fourth quarter of the game.

EA is attempting to cash in on the popularity of football in America with the coveted 18-35 male demographic.

"Even within the spectrum of live sports events, the Super Bowl stands apart, almost as a national holiday," said EA president Frank Gibeau, in a release. "The Super Bowl is a bull's-eye in terms of cross-over to our core demographic and the reach is outstanding. Not only does it draw 100 million viewers, but most people watch the Super Bowl live, a rarity in the world of DVRs. We felt that advertising during the Super Bowl is an excellent way to introduce this new IP to a massive cross-section of people who are likely already familiar with the dark and twisted Divine Comedy."

I'm with you there all the way, Frank. The Super Bowl is the perfect place to grab people who know all about 14th century Italian literature.

Update: Apparently, EA was not allowed to use their tagline for the game, "Go To Hell," for the Super Bowl ad, as it was deemed too offensive for U.S. audiences.

"It was deemed too provocative," Paulo Ribeiro, account director for EA at the Wieden [http://www.wk.com/] ad agency. "The final verdict has yet to be rendered, but it is unlikely that we will get [it on the game.]"

You've got to love America. All it takes is a tit to fall out during the halftime show and the people running the Super Bowl spend the next ten years making sure that they don't offend anyone. Hell awaits, indeed.

Source: AdWeek [http://www.adweek.com/aw/content_display/custom-reports/superbowl/e3ia2f06c2856f58e40c380c1f8f8928a7f]

Permalink
 

Lvl 64 Klutz

Crowsplosion!
Apr 8, 2008
2,338
0
0
I am just pleading to the gods for this game to fail, since Visceral Games needs to learn about a little thing called tact.

However, EA has just thrown way too much money into the marketing machine for that to happen.
 

AkJay

New member
Feb 22, 2009
3,555
0
0
Lord_Panzer said:
AkJay said:
Why are they advertising this thing so much?
Because by advertising it, people will know about it and possibly buy it?
Well, what I mean is, EA has never had an Advertising campaign as aggressive as this, so why this of all choices?
 

devilmore

New member
Nov 18, 2009
65
0
0
Somehow i don't think people who read La Divina Comedia and people who'd play that kinda game are really the in the category - even if they both watch the superbowl...
 

HardRockSamurai

New member
May 28, 2008
3,122
0
0
AkJay said:
Why are they advertising this thing so much?
Because that's what Dante's Inferno does best, along with stirring up unintentional controversy and mocking the catholic church. Asking Dante's Inferno to stop advertising itself would be like asking a kitten to stop purring, or like asking a shoe to stop being a shoe.

Additionally, it's a game by EA. They spend more money on advertising than they do on food for their employees.
 

ProfessorLayton

Elite Member
Nov 6, 2008
7,452
0
41
Ok... this definitely settles it. I'm not getting this game. I thought it was an interesting idea when I first heard about it, but now the game just looks bad. It has nothing to do with Dante's Inferno and it looks like it's just trying to force controversy. It's like they saw Modern Warfare 2 and Mass Effect and all the free publicity Fox gave them so they're trying to get in on it. Also, there is no reason why they should need to spend this much on advertising this game unless it's just a bad game and advertisements are the only way you'll get anyone to buy it.
 

rokkolpo

New member
Aug 29, 2009
5,375
0
0
GeekFury said:
AkJay said:
Why are they advertising this thing so much?
Because this game will revolutionise the video game industry!!!

Plus it's got tities.
it's not god of war.....oh wait it is god of war, christian god of war.

which also had titties.
 

Sparrow

New member
Feb 22, 2009
6,848
0
0
AkJay said:
Lord_Panzer said:
AkJay said:
Why are they advertising this thing so much?
Because by advertising it, people will know about it and possibly buy it?
Well, what I mean is, EA has never had an Advertising campaign as aggressive as this, so why this of all choices?
Fairly certain they just got really bored.
 

CD-R

New member
Mar 1, 2009
1,355
0
0
ProfessorLayton said:
Ok... this definitely settles it. I'm not getting this game. I thought it was an interesting idea when I first heard about it, but now the game just looks bad. It has nothing to do with Dante's Inferno and it looks like it's just trying to force controversy. It's like they saw Modern Warfare 2 and Mass Effect and all the free publicity Fox gave them so they're trying to get in on it. Also, there is no reason why they should need to spend this much on advertising this game unless it's just a bad game and advertisements are the only way you'll get anyone to buy it.
And despite all those efforts there hasn't been any outrage by right wing pundits, Fox News, or any Christian groups. Hell even the Muslims aren't upset and in the demo you spend the first five minutes killing rioting Muslim prisoners with a halberd. I am a little curious as to why they are spending so much money on advertising for this. Maybe they're doing an experiment. There was an article here on the Escapist that said game compaanies need to advertise diffrently to reach people who don't go on game sites a lot. Maybe this is it.
 

tk1989

New member
May 20, 2008
865
0
0
ProfessorLayton said:
Also, there is no reason why they should need to spend this much on advertising this game unless it's just a bad game and advertisements are the only way you'll get anyone to buy it.
Or maybe because its a new IP, and in the past year or two EA has had a load of trouble selling new IPs?

Cmon guys, theyre trying a new marketing strategy in the hope that this game doesnt become another Mirror's Edge.
 

Vigilantis

New member
Jan 14, 2010
613
0
0
Sounds good to me but the game already had me with this trailer
These guys definitely want you to buy their game it seems, I sure hope it doesn't fail.
 

Wilbot666

New member
Aug 21, 2009
478
0
0
Greg Tito said:
The Super Bowl is the perfect place to grab people who know all about 14th century Italian literature.
Just...just perfect, words fail me for once!
I was initially curious about this game but now just can't be bothered hearing about it anymore.

I did think rick-rolling Yahtzee was pretty hilarious though so I'll give them points for that.
 

Lord_Panzer

Impractically practical
Feb 6, 2009
1,107
0
0
AkJay said:
Lord_Panzer said:
AkJay said:
Why are they advertising this thing so much?
Because by advertising it, people will know about it and possibly buy it?
Well, what I mean is, EA has never had an Advertising campaign as aggressive as this, so why this of all choices?
I'd put money on them trying to out-hype God of War.