Microsoft: HALO FOR HALO 4

Credits & Description:

Type of entry: Sectors & Services
Category: Technology and Manufacturing
Advertiser: MICROSOFT
Product/Service: X BOX
Agency: EDELMAN London, UNITED KINGDOM
Managing Director: Ruth Warder (Edelman Consumer)
Head of Strategy: Chris Wilcocks (Edelman Consumer)
Microsoft / Xbox Client Relationship Manager: Gavin Spicer (Edelman Consumer)
Account Director: Jonathan Halliwell (Edelman Consumer)
Account Manager: Sophie Rhatigan (Edelman Consumer)
Account Manager: Ryan Whelan (Edelman Consumer)
Account Executive: Charlie Mcwilliams (Edelman Consumer)
Senior Account Supervisor: Carey Spence (Edelman Seattle)
EMEA Marketing Director: Adrian Simons (X Box)
Head of EMEA Brand PR & Corporate Reputation: Michael Herrmann (X Box)
EMEA Head of Advertising: Michael Flatt (X Box)
EMEA Group Product Marketing Manager: James Houlton (X Box)
Senior Product Marketing Manager: Jennifer Yi (X Box)
Senior PR Manager: Rob Semsey (X Box)
International PR Strategy: Adrian Wainwright (X Box)
Franchise Development Director: Frank O'Connor (343 Industries)
Executive Producer: Kiki Wolfkill (343 Industries)
General Manager: Bonnie Ross (343 Industries)
Describe the campaign/entry
With millions of fans awaiting the highly anticipated return of their hero, the Master Chief, the launch of Halo 4 had to be a seminal, jaw-dropping moment.
The challenge: How could the Master Chief’s comeback harness the passion of fans and bring to life Halo’s unique world? How could Halo 4 grab headlines, feel like the biggest entertainment release of 2012 and capture the attention of millions who don’t even game?
Our response: Becoming the first brand to transform an entire country, giving fans the chance to experience the Halo universe for real. Instead of playing Halo 4, people would live and breathe the story. Up close and personal. For one night only.
Brokering a deal with Liechtenstein’s government, we transformed the nation into a replica of the Halo universe. Shrouded in secrecy, on 30 October, media and fans arrived in Switzerland, expecting a press junket. Instead they were ‘ambushed’ and taken on an adventure into a world they’d previously only seen on-screen as a production crew of 90+ re-imagined a medieval castle into a military fort; swathes of landscape into post-apocalyptic battlegrounds; and a mine and quarry into the scene of a rescue mission to save mankind from an unknown attack.
Content from Experience: Halo was shared by fans online - sparking a global conversation across social media. Headlines in 20 countries created a truly international entertainment story. Halo 4 took $220 million on launch day, surpassing records set by the year’s Hollywood blockbusters like The Avengers and Skyfall.
Describe the brief from the client
When Halo 3 launched in 2007, it broke the mold for video game launches - catapulting gaming into the pop cultural mainstream.
After a five year hiatus - and in a media and tech landscape that had changed beyond recognition - Xbox 360 wanted the sequel, Halo 4, to be the biggest gaming launch of 2012. An idea was needed which would not only inspire existing Halo fans and spark mass online conversation, but also dominate social media and grab international news headlines to mark the triumphant return of the Master Chief.

Results

• Halo 4 became the best-selling Halo title ever released on Xbox 360, surpassing all previous 60-day sales records.
• The response on social media led to a Twitter reach of 14+ million and 13,000+ Facebook likes (target 8,000)
• A key part of the campaign centered on allowing consumers to share video content online, the 500,000+ YouTube views achieved (five times the target) indicated its success in building a groundswell of buzz among fans that then broke out into the mainstream.
• Engagement by traditional media achieved 250+ stories (target 230) from 100+ consumer publications (target 80) and nine broadcast pieces (target seven) in 20 markets worldwide.
• The goal of becoming the biggest entertainment launch of 2012 was achieved: first-day sales of $220 million broke records set by the year’s biggest movie blockbuster The Avengers. It prompted Newsweek.com to describe Halo 4 as the “biggest entertainment launch ever”.

Execution

The story started online, unleashing the passion of fans to ignite social media buzz. We reached fans where they play - Xbox LIVE, Facebook and online media – offering them to be among the first to play Halo 4 as part of an event shrouded in secrecy.
Guests arrived into Switzerland on 30 October, expecting a regular press junket. They were wrong. Instead they were thrust into a two-hour high tech adventure amidst a world they’d previously only played on screen; followed by incredible gameplay using a sophisticated set-up of over 50 consoles networked inside a medieval castle.
Participants posted their experiences during the event, generating instant online conversation. Film crews captured footage that was seeded to broadcast news, print and online media and shared online by fans. As the event wrapped, the invasion of Liechtenstein was generating international news. Halo 4’s launch had trended across the globe.

The Situation

Halo is Xbox 360’s flagship title, having sold more than 50 million copies worldwide. First-day sales of Halo 3 broke all previous single day entertainment launch records – surpassing even the opening weekends of many Hollywood blockbusters. With millions of fans across the globe eagerly awaiting the return of their gaming hero, the Master Chief, the launch of Halo 4 had to be truly epic – exciting fans and grabbing international headlines.

The Strategy

We needed an idea to match the magnitude of Halo - one which could amaze a mass audience, whether they were gamers or not.
Fans often talk about their desire to be ‘inside’ the Halo universe, and our idea was to let them do exactly that. Instead of just playing Halo 4, we’d let them live it.
By creating enough noise among fans, we knew the idea would soon tip over in the mainstream to become world news.
So we created a launch moment on a scale which would cement Halo’s place in the pop cultural pantheon - an idea to make news and amaze consumers, whether they were gamers or not.
Xbox 360 became the first brand to transform an entire country. Brokering a deal with Liechtenstein’s government, we transformed the nation into a replica of the Halo universe, taking our guests on an awe-inspiring adventure.