Topic: What on Gods earth is this maddness?

[Nile Boogie]

NO WAY

This is how they're going to market Nintendogs? Zelda delayed. GameBoy Micro outrageously priced. And now this God awful ad. If the Revolution wasen't coming this moday the 22nd I would fear for us Followers of the Shroomâ„¢ Such little hope do I have. It's almost as if Nintendo couldn't sell pussies to prisoners, let alone market a game. Maybe I just don't like being compared to a 13year old boy. "Play on Playaz".

/end rant.

[Bill Aurion]

First people complain that Ninty was too cutesy...Now they're too "gangsta"...Make up your bloody mind people...(Gimme my cutesy back)

[Invincible Donkey Kong]

Are you complaining about my marketing?

[Berto2K]

Hahah one of my captures ends up on their site again.  check here for a higher res one: I IWNS TEH EXCLUSIVE http://ds.advancedmn.com/media.php?gameid=2&medtype=2

[BlackNMild2k1]

I am left with not knowing what to think after watching that commercial.....

They should replace that boy with another little girl who was playing with her pup that then signaled her that her friends were near, which led her to getting excited and run to the door, let all her friends in and then have 'puppy time' in the living room, then goto close ups of gameplay and dogs interacting.

I would think that would be the better commercial and at least targeted at a demographic that exist.

Play on Playas!?!? the whole dialog of the commercial just seemed out of place and that last line just confirmed it....  

[IceCold]

Uhh, that's an ad for one of the biggest releases on a new handheld? Looks more like a junior high school movie project, edited using IMovie. "Off the hook"?? "Playas?? Why NOA why?? And the kid's acting makes it seem even more contrived.

What's the use of putting this on TV, anyway? To prove that the execs haven't gone through Marketing 101? I had such high hopes after the WiFi ad; something as clever and something that doesn't sound forced or as if it is trying it's best to be "cool". Something like that ad with more gameplay and more info on the game, and it would be perfect. But now we get this? Why is it that Nintendo's marketing so often belies the greatness of the game? Why? Why??  

[Ian Sane]

"First people complain that Ninty was too cutesy...Now they're too 'gangsta'...Make up your bloody mind people..."

Can't Nintendo just be, you know, not f*cking retarded?

Personally I don't know why the entire marketing department at NOA hasn't been fired considering NOA's complete and utter failure to create virtually any positive brand name with the Cube.  Perhaps they'll open their eyes if this, a HUGE game in Japan, bombs in North America.

[BlackNMild2k1]

Quote
Originally posted by: Ian Sane
"First people complain that Ninty was too cutesy...Now they're too 'gangsta'...Make up your bloody mind people..."

Can't Nintendo just be, you know, not f*cking retarded?

Personally I don't know why the entire marketing department at NOA hasn't been fired considering NOA's complete and utter failure to create virtually any positive brand name with the Cube.  Perhaps they'll open their eyes if this, a HUGE game in Japan, bombs in North America.

That would be oh so sad, and also just reacting way too late. This is a problem that shouldn't be carried over onto the DS.  They already buried the cube on the bottom shelf of the entertianment center in ther kids playroom, they don't need to do the same thing with the DS.

[thepoga]

Do you know what this commercial reminds me of?

So I'm at my house when my friend Mike calls. and he asks me what I'm eating for breakfast. I tell him Reese's and he says YOURE EATING CANDY FOR BREAKFAST?!?!?!

Not candy.

Reese's puff CEREAL. So I hand him a bowl...


Yeah... I really hate that kid's acting. Urg. Nintendo REALLY has to show more gameplay, and brag about critical acclaim or something like that. Brag that it got a perfect score from a magazine that has only given a perfect score to 4 other games in its whole history. That's what really gets people's attention. Nintendo PLEASE stop trying to be so "creative" with your commercials. URG I HATE THAT KID'S ACTING. It's so laaame. It seriously makes me cringe. Why'd they decide to show off the "barking" feature of Nintendogs? They left out the voice commands! How did this commercial get approved? It's commercials like these that help great games like Metroid Prime 2 not sell as well as it should. Urg that commercial wasn't as bad as this though. Terrible.  

[MrMojoRising]

This is going after the pedophile demographic...any 40 year old pervert who is looking for little girls is going to buy Nintendogs now.  I know I would...

Edit:  Who are the ad-wizzards that came up with this one?

[Bloodworth]

Nintendo apparently missed the fact that adults and girls are far more impressed with this game than whiny thirteen year old boys.  How does this appeal to that market?  Why aren't there cool Nintendogs ads all over Animal Planet?  Why the heck can't they just let the game's features speak for themselves.  It's a pet simulator, not Axe for kids.

[Pale]

You ever think that they have multiple ads ready?  And this particular one is designed to go in the Yu-Gi-Oh timeslot on Kids WB?  I guess we can chalk this up to another instance where every forum dork in the world is smarter than nintendo... eh?

[Infernal Monkey]

It's an ULTIMATE FLASHBACK to hilariously awful wonderful 80's advertising.

"Have you seen the latest angry rant at Nintendo non-games newsletter?"
"No! WHOA, nice graphics. I'd sure like to get my hands on that non-game!"
"YOU MEAN YOU HAVEN'T PLAYED IT YET? WE CAN PLAY IT ON MY NINTENDO DS ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM"

Those dogs from Nintendo are pretty bad, my voice will train them and I'll be rad. Wikky waaaaa
*Head bopping*

[Jonnyboy117]

Here's the correct way to market Nintendogs to young male teenagers:

The ad opens with a young boy seeing his sister playing the game.  He secretly wants his own Nintendog, but is embarrassed.  He sneaks into the game store and sheepishly buys his own copy when the store is nearly empty.  He trains the dog in the privacy of his room at home, but takes the DS with him all the time.  While he's in the school cafeteria, Bark Mode suddenly goes off...he didn't even mean to have it activated!  A cute little girl from across the room walks over and asks if their dogs can play together.  He bravely pulls out his DS in front of the whole room, and they trade gifts and have their dogs meet.  Cut to a later scene, as the boy and girl are behind the bleachers making out.

It's honest, innocent, and will appeal very strongly to a large portion of the young male teenager audience.

[Caliban]

Okkkkk....yeah sure...what was that? LOL. That was ridiculously retarded. That's all I have to say.

[Strell]

GOOD HOLY GOD NINTENDO.

I feel like I'm in a giant episode of hidden camera or something.

WHAT ZANY WACKY THING WILL THEY DO NEXT?  OH LOOK, DS HOT COFFEE MOD.  FEELING IS BETTER THAN TOUCHING!

It's like their ego is eating itself.

God.

[Artimus]

I usually like their ads but this is a new low. It's not even a well done ad, it's atrocious and confusing!

[Bloodworth]

Quote

It's like their ego is eating itself.

It's more like they're so self-conscious about the game, they can only talk about how cool it is to pick up chicks.

[Ian Sane]

One thing that is really odd about this is that Nintendo made a big deal about how they're going to target new demographics and get people who don't normally play games to play.  Yet here we have the ultimate non-game that's a huge success in Japan and who is the commercial aimed at?  Traditional gamers, in this case the young pre-teen/early teen male demographic which has been a strong gaming market from the very beginning.  You can't market a non-game to traditional gamers.  Traditional gamers are not going to be that interested in this.  The whole point of making games like this is attract non-gamers.  If they just wanted to target males then first person shooters, fighters, sports, and racing games will do the trick.

Maybe Nintendo's idea is that girls are going to buy this anyway so they might as well target boys in the ad to try to get both demographics buying the game.  The problem with that logic is that the general public doesn't look at release lists and know anything about a game until they see a commercial.  Much like how Nintendo's Cube ads often required the viewer to be familiar with the game to even know what the hell was going on, this ad requires people to know about Nintendogs ahead of time.  They don't.  If everyone already knew then they wouldn't have to advertise in the first place.  The target demographic is going to be completely unaware that a game designed for them has been released.

A good game ad should give an idea of what the game is about and tell the viewer why they should buy it.  Nintendo's commercials do neither.

[Artimus]

I agree with Ian. It makes no sense.

[trip1eX]

Quote
Originally posted by: Jonnyboy117
Here's the correct way to market Nintendogs to young male teenagers:

The ad opens with a young boy seeing his sister playing the game.  He secretly wants his own Nintendog, but is embarrassed.  He sneaks into the game store and sheepishly buys his own copy when the store is nearly empty.  He trains the dog in the privacy of his room at home, but takes the DS with him all the time.  While he's in the school cafeteria, Bark Mode suddenly goes off...he didn't even mean to have it activated!  A cute little girl from across the room walks over and asks if their dogs can play together.  He bravely pulls out his DS in front of the whole room, and they trade gifts and have their dogs meet.  Cut to a later scene, as the boy and girl are behind the bleachers making out.

It's honest, innocent, and will appeal very strongly to a large portion of the young male teenager audience.

good one!  That's how they need to do it.  hell they should do that for all the ages.  

[Hostile Creation]

Yeah, let's just try to manage that within what?  Thirty seconds or less?
Also, I see no reason to explain what a game is to somebody.  I've never seen a gaming commercial that does, Nintendo or otherwise.  They see the product, a video game.  That's as narrow as the category goes for non-gamers (the only ones who'd need to be explained to).  After they know it's a video game, all you have to do is make it seem as cool as possible.  This commercial does not do that, no, but your logic is flawed and would not only waste time, but bore people.
For example, the Zelda commercial could very easily just be a trailer of gameplay footage.  That wouldn't explain what it is by any means, but it would certainly intrigue plenty of people.

[couchmonkey]

Ian's right about Nintendo marketing this to the wrong group.  If traditional gamers are interested, they'll see other commercials and pick the game up.

Maybe the problem is that Nintendo of America is at odds with the Non-gamer plans of NCL?  I think the marketing GENIUSES at NOA have a pre-made excuse if this game fails, though: it's just not geared toward the North American market.  If Super Mario Bros came out and sold 2 million in Japan and then did terribly in North America, then Nintendo might finally get the message about the marketing.

Cutesy is better than this, at least that was honest.  What Nintendo really ought to try is plain.  Show us cute puppies!  Maybe show us real life cute puppies sniffing at DS's with puppies on them.  The game is about cute puppies!

[Renny]

Yes. I can't believe I had to get to the second page to see the most obvious suggestion: puppies!

Since the marketing graduates (read: college drunks) at Nintendo have failed at their fake career, here's the forula for advertising a game about puppies, God's most cutest invention like EVAR. PUPPIES!

Yes, puppies. And more puppies. Beagle puppies (so cute). Bull terrier puppies (so so cute). And some other puppies of varying breed. Mixed with shots of ingame puppies. Real puppies investigating the ingame puppies as a real puppy would. And throw in some more flagrantly unnecessary shots of puppiness. The inherent cuteness would be overwhelming. Everyone with a heart would immediately rush out to the stores to pick up the game.

And the commercial would be cheap. Forget all that crap about the difficulty of working with animals. These are puppies. Everything they do is both cute and valuable. And there would be no child actors. Come on. I'm sure there's an agency out there willing to film some damn puppies with their DSes.

[Artimus]

I'd like to see a version of the kirby ad only with a giant hand walking a puppy.