1. Maximum Effect 3

    by Justin Bourguignon



    There’s a video game coming out called Mass Effect 3. Have you ever heard of it? Ring any bells? Publisher Electronic Arts seems almost desperate to make sure you have, as they have been marketing the game all over the place. From a new trailer premiering during the ratings-mammoth AMC series The Walking Dead, to Facebook apps granting lucky players early access to the demo released over Xbox Live (the demo itself being another marketing device, obviously), it seems that they’ll leave no rock unturned as they prepare for the blockbuster release date. It may seem a little unusual, considering the Mass Effect games have been huge industry hits both critically and commercially, so you wouldn’t think anyone has to worry about Mass Effect 3 slipping under the radar, but, hey, I don’t crunch the numbers. 

    The latest, most surprising publicity stunt seems to be flying OVER the radar, in one sense. EA has announced they will be giving a few lucky, web-savvy fans a chance to own the game a week before anyone else. How, you ask? I’m GETTING to that, so shut it, already! Man.

    Six weather balloons will be launched into space. They will leave from San Francisco, New York, Las Vegas, Paris, London and Berlin. Attached to each balloon will be one copy of the game. That’s right. Six copies of the sci-fi action-RPG will, appropriately enough, be floating around in space. The balloons will have GPS trackers that fans can follow through the official website. There, they can try to track down the Identified Flying Objects and race to be the first ones to reach them as they touch down on Earth soil. First to get it, first to keep it. The race will be on.

    Fans will likely be rampantly checking the website through their mobile devices as they race to catch up to the balloons, while real-time coordinates are listed and the HD camera attached to the package snaps photos or video as it floats through the atmosphere. It’s a clever, relevant and ambitious attempt to stand out from the typical social media marketing strategies and try something new. As the writers of Trust Agents might say, it’s about “Making Your Own Game”, as no one else has done this before, and it’s only possible with today’s technology. Still, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a fist-fight or two break out though when two people lunge at a copy at the same time. Or to see a whale get conked on the head with a game it can’t play without a game console. Or, y’know, fingers.

    The first balloon launches on Thursday from San Francisco. Game protagonist Commander Shepard would be proud. Maybe a little confused.

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