Don't see how the two go together, really, but hey, I'm not an advertising guru. Fosters - who here in Australia brew Stella Artois under license - have decided to form a sales team specifically geared at shifting more Stella. Which in a country where local beer is the breakfast of champions is a tough sell. So they figured they'd think outside the box, and give all fifty members of the team a limited edition Stella Artois PSP. It's got a Stella graphic on the back, came in a Stella pouch and has a Stella XMB theme. Looks nice! Won the acclaim of advertisers! Pity, then, that all it's going to do is make punters think the PSP tastes like diet cats piss as well.

PSPs replace paper for brand storytelling [Lowe + Rivet, thanks Chrisso!]

Possible Explanations for This Dumbass Sears Ad

Look closely (full size on the jump). Reader Ian S. found this back-to-college ad for Sears in his local paper. Looking at this guy's set up, I'm betting the propmaster for this ad shoot is someone so out of it he refers to consoles generically not as "Nintendo" but as "the Sega." Because that's Solid Snake on the screen, and a 360 controller in our hip gamer friend's hands. So here are my thoughts for what might be going on.

1) Newton's Dirty Little Secret: It's a Sixaxis.
2) Check Out This Rad PS3 Casemod for Your Xbox 360!
3)'Intense' Driving Motion Controls Introduced to Metal Gear Solid 4 Cutscenes
4) MGS4 Now Supports Guitar Hero: Aerosmith Peripherals (lower right)
4) Sony Confounded by Standard DVD Players Kept as Heirlooms (console, under the small speakers)

I'm sure you've got your own ideas. Put 'em in the comments.

Nintendo To Boost Latin American Presence, Advertising

Nintendo aren't happy! Sure, they're making buckets of money from the Wii and DS, but shit, they could be making more. So starting this Christmas, the company will begin targeting the Latin American market more aggressively, with a Spanish-language marketing campaign and an emphasis on what Nintendo feel are the region's genres of choice: sports and fitness games. Sadly, no mention of Paper Pancho Bigotes, though we're sure Reggie's cracking that particular whip as we speak.

Nintendo to boost drive in Latin American market [Reuters]

Kellogg's: Wii Makes Your Heart Stronger

First they slip their way into Tropic Thunder and now I stumble across this commercial for Kellogg's Smart Start. In it a soccer mom says she's trying something new to make her heart stronger... and it's Wii Sports. It's interesting to see that Nintendo continues to woo the casual market so fiercely even in the face of increasingly disenfranchised hard core gamers.

Update: Turns out that while Tropic Thunder was indeed product placement, this goofy cereal commercial was 100 percent Kellogg's.

New Zealand Army Needs Tetris Players On The Double

The Kiwis are looking for a few good men, hoping that they'll come in an I-shaped tetrimino, because it could really use one right about now. The New Zealand army is actively recruiting the Tetris player with a thirst for tight formations as part of a new campaign that uses the tagline "We're After Leaders" stamped upon a D-pad.

The official NZ Army officer recruitment site lists leadership, academic skills and fitness as "three key qualities essential to strong performance as an Officer", so we're not sure how Tetris skills fit in there. If they do, New Zealanders should fear Japan, as it has already perfected the super soldier formula.

New Zealand looking for a few good...Tetris players [Copyranter - thanks, Mark!]

Here's an interesting new way to cross promote. Apparently there's been a scavenger hunt injected into Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 since July 18th that urges players to seek out clues in the campaign regarding Paramount Picture's upcoming comedy Tropic Thunder, starring Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr., and Ben Stiller. Players who reach the end of the scavenger hunt will receive an invitation to join Ubisoft's VIP Club, a chance to download a free VIP map, and will be entered into a prize drawing for an Xbox 360 Elite system, complete with a one-year Live subscription and a collection of Ubisoft games.

“This is a new and highly innovative use of dynamic in-game advertising and really demonstrates the creativity and marketing power of this medium,” said Cory Van Arsdale, CEO of Massive.

He took the words right out of my mouth. Hit the jump for details on the hunt, which runs through August 25th.

The Power Of Video Game Suggestion - Mmmm, Eggs

Since playing through Metal Gear Solid IV, I've gone through a dozen eggs a week. I never used to eat this many eggs, but there I am, nearly every morning, cracking open fresh ones into a hot frying pan, pausing to watch the egg white turn from translucent to opaque, humming a little song to myself. Hell, I never really ate eggs sunny side up before the damn game came out. I was a scramblin' man. Quick, easy, no fuss. What has this stupid game done to me?

Is this an isolated case, or have you folks ever found yourself eating, drinking, or doing things a certain way after seeing it in a game? I'm not talking purchasing large baskets of Axe deodorant due to an in-game ad here - we've all done that. I'm talking more subtle things here. Going on a fresh fruit kick after a Pac-Man marathon, or getting really into curry after watching the marathon curry cutscene in Xenosaga II? How much power do video games have over our daily habits? If only we had a comments section in which to discuss such things.

SCEA: "PS3 Is Open For the Ad Business"

Sony Computer Entertainment of America and Europe announced a partnership with in-game ad company Double Fusion today, saying that the Playstation 3 is open for the ad business.

Weird, I thought they were open for the ad business last month when they announced their deal with Double Fusion rival IGA.

Either way, I don't see adding in-game ads as something they or any company should be bragging about. Until I see a dip in game prices or service costs, it doesn't give me anything but an opportunity to help an international company rake in more dough.

IGA Study Finds People Don't Mind In-Game Ads

A landmark study conducted by Nielsen BASES and Nielsen Games on behalf of in-game advertising giant IGA Worldwide has found that not only is in-game advertising super-effective, most people don't seem to mind it. The study, titled Consumers’ Experience with In-Game Content & Brand Impact of In-Game Advertising Study, found that 82% of consumers exposed to in-game ads felt that the games were just as enjoyable with ads as they were without.

“The growth of in-game advertising, both current and projected, makes it an attractive medium for brands looking to reach hard-to-reach consumers,” said Elizabeth Harz, EA’s Senior Vice President of Global Media Sales. “This study solidifies what many in the industry have known for a long time: in-game ads are effective and well-received by the gaming community.”

Hooray! We're only alienating 18% of the gaming public! Hit the jump for the rest of the numbers, most of which seem to be aimed more at attracting advertisers rather than assuaging consumer concerns.

Battlefield: Bad Company Mocks Metal Gear

Nintendo Denies Connection to Wii Fit Ass Vid

Finally, a legitimate reason to post this video.

The Daily Mail reports that the this video, entitled "Why every guy should buy their girlfriend Wii Fit", has been watched more than 2 million times. They also say that despite the fact that the couple who star in it are both in marketing, it's not a viral ad.

Gaming company Nintendo has also denied it is behind the video.

A Nintendo spokesman said: "This has and is absolutely 100 per cent nothing to do with Nintendo.

"Nintendo did not create it and were not aware of it until it was brought it to our attention."

Wii Advertising Wins Advertising Award

What are the odds! One minute, someone pokes fun at Wii advertising (and the Wii itself), the next minute, said advertising goes and wins a prestigious international advertising award. Ad agency Leo Burnett, who were behind Nintendo's "Wii Would Like To Play" campaign, picked up the top prize at the 40th Annual Effie Awards, held in NYC on Wednesday. In explaining away the decision, the Effie's organisers said:

The 'Wii Would Like to Play' campaign chose not to embrace an obvious strategy, namely fawning over the prized teenage male gamer. Instead, Wii targeted his mom, dad and grandmother. While the competition catered to a narrow audience, Wii invited everyone to play. As a result, the Wii has been sold out nationwide since the launch and ignited a cultural phenomenon in how people experience video games.

They can thank targeting all they want, I'm sticking to my theory that it was commercial's music that got inside your head more than those two Japanese blokes turning up on your doorstep.

'Wii Would Like to Play' Wins Grand Effie Marketing Award [GameDaily.biz]

IGA Snags Exclusive Rights To EA's In-Game PS3 Ads

In-game advertising masters IGA are really loving the PlayStation 3 right now. Not only ave they signed an exclusive deal to become Sony's first advertising partner for the console, they've also just announced a two-year agreement with Electronic Arts to become their exclusive dynamic in-game ad partner for everything the company puts out on the PS3.

“We are thrilled at this opportunity to expand our strong relationship with EA and are pleased to have been selected to support EA and Sony on this new venture,” said Justin Townsend, CEO of IGA Worldwide. “It’s exciting that the PS3 has opened up and marketers will now have access to the platform, as this represents a tremendous opportunity for brands targeting a valuable and hard-to-reach audience, plus it sends a clear message that dynamic in-game advertising has arrived as a compelling medium for marketers.”

So what do these agreements mean to you? Having an in-game advertising partner in place means that the advertisements will be easier to implement as well as being less obtrusive, with appropriate ad placement that doesn't detract from the enjoyment of the game.

I've been a bit down on in-game advertising in the past, but let's face it...this is the future of gaming. Increased production costs have to be offset somehow, and ideally agreements like this should keep game prices at respectable levels. *fingers crossed*

You're looking at a pic of Star Junction — I mean, Times Square. One thing you might not realize if you've never visited New York City is the just-a-little-off-kilter accuracy of the geography in Grand Theft Auto IV. For example, the Yahoo! ad you see here is located in the same spot as GTA IV's "EyeFind" search engine billboard, and it blinks and flashes just as bright.

I headed down there on Sunday so that I could pick up a Darkrai for my Pokemon game at Toys R Us (did you guys get one?), and since I live further uptown, I hadn't been there in a while - like since picking up and getting into GTA IV

I wasn't expecting it to be such a strange moment. Bright lights scrolling by, taxis everywhere, flashy cars to steal — I mean, admire. I've been floored by the grandeur of Times Square, tourist crowds and all, ever since I moved to New York City back in 2002, but this was the first time I got a little rush of surreal giddiness as if I'd walked into a video game.

And then, just when things couldn't get any weirder, I saw this:

The Worst, Most NSFW PlayStation Ad Ever

We're not sure who advertising agency TBWA is appealing to here with this PlayStation 3 ad. Sure, the abs are washboard-like and the pecs appear to be rippling, but the tiny phallus safely hidden behind a Kotaku NSFW Fish isn't going to go over well with anybody but the most specific of fetishists—say men who dream of fucking a DualShock. Maybe there's some cross-cultural misunderstanding here—I'll admit to not being brushed up on my Austrian marketing—but if I were to wake up with a wee penis-digit, I'd be concerned less with draping my shirt over my perfect physique and buying PlayStation 3 games than I would be with sticking my head in the oven.

The full ad, hosted at the link below (alternately viewable in big, uncensored size right here) is definitely not safe for work unless your employer is cool with you checking out expertly groomed pubic hair and Photoshopped schlongs. You've been warned!

Sony PlayStation 3: Thumb [Ads of the World via Gawker]

EA's Simpsons Win Golden Trailer Award

With Halo 3's "Believe" ad campaign winning advertising awards left and right, it's time for EA to step up to the award podium, or at least EA's trailer producers, Hammer Creative. They've just been awarded the "Best Video Game Trailer" award at the 9th Annual Golden Trailer Awards for their The Simpsons Game: Medal of Homer trailer. A spoof of EA's own Medal of Honor series, the ad features Bart and Homer invading Franchise, belching, and scratching their asses...truly the hallmarks of a truly great trailer, ever since Humphrey Bogart garlic-burped in Ingrid Bergman's face in the classic Casablanca teaser. Hammer Creative is no stranger to the Golden Trailer Awards, having won last year for the trailer to Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Double Agent and the year before for The Godfather: The Game. Hit the jump to see the award-winning clip in all its pristine glory.

"The 'Believe' campaign catapulted Halo 3 from an ordinary video game into a worldwide cultural phenomenon due to its ability to build an emotional rapport with the audience," said Mary Warlick, CEO of The One Club. "The innovative stream of interactive TV, Web and cinema advertisements was an inspired approach that successfully attracted an audience beyond the typical gamer."

Cheap Rock Band Tracks Are For PS3 Owners As Well