Immersive gaming

Immersive games, also called Alternate Reality Games (ARGs) take place in the real world using everyday life as a gaming platform. Players work together to solve a puzzle or challenge with the adventure lying in the sense that the game's events could be real. From a marketing perspecitve, it's a great example of social media integration with offline marketing.

The first true ARG was created by Microsoft in 2001 to market the film A.I.: Artificial Intelligence. The game, 'The Beast', seeded a trail of clues across various media channels over 3 months, which players followed to reveal a secret related narrative. With the mantra “this is not a game”, The Beast achieved over 3 million active participants and an online community that was still active for years after the game had ended.

Immersive games can also be simple treasure hunts or day-long action games. Some FMCG brands are creating campaigns that involve aspects of immersive gaming; for example the M&Ms Find Red campaign in Canada that has just finished hid in three Toronto locations and challenged consumers to find him by following clues and using Google Maps Street View.

However, the risk with immersive games is that the brand message can get lost and the narrative take over. Opportunities for branding can be easily missed - for example the M&Ms treasure hunt could have included sampling. Immersive games offer unparalleled interaction for consumers to experience the product or brand essence but it’s of paramount importance that both brand and the consumer are immersed in the game.

Other examples of branded immersive games:

Jimmy Choo Foursquare treasure hunt,
QR Quest for MTS, Russian mobile provider
Nike scavenger hunt in NYC,
Jay-Z 'Decoded' scavenger hunt

ARG groups in the UK:
A door in a wall - Murder mystery treasure hunts
Fire Hazard Games - real world adventures like Heist - plan & execute a 'robbery'.
London Text Hunt - see hidden London following text message clues. Pay per game.
Chromaroma - compete with other players online by travelling around London with your Oystercard