Gaming doesn’t always get positive press. And for that reason some choose to hide their guilty pleasure and become a ‘Closet Gamer’. Daniel Craig, or 007 in his most famous guise, is reportedly one such case in point. Past comments from him have suggested gaming plays a big part in his life – to the point it’s caused friction in his relationship.
I’m happy to say that’s not the case for me. I’m very much out of the closet and willing to stand up and testify I love to game! I find it a great way to forget all about the other issues and ‘busyness’ in my life…just for a while.
Gaming is now a powerful marketing tool
But today, gaming is far more than sitting at a console for hours. Gamification, or Augmented Reality, plays a significant role in more areas of our life than we may at first think. For example, brand marketing. And, although it may seem like a gimmick, the more we start to understand it and the more we are aware of it in our lives, the more we will realise its full potential.
Extremely clever marketing campaigns that make use of AR have been with us a while. We see them on advertising billboards where passers-by can immerse themselves in the brand experience. These experiences are then shared on social media platforms – so their power to engage and reach an audience is high.
One of my favourites was implemented by the team at VISA a few years ago. They created the illusion of life-size pandas, penguins and giraffes roaming in and around the public!
Control and benefits in equal measure
So, although I do believe personal gaming is something that has to be kept under some control, we have to understand its broader impact. And that the youngsters who we may berate for spending too long on their consoles now could be the marketers of the future!
Although, one thing is for sure though…as a middle-aged man I will continue to stay well away from online games where you interact with other players. Those pesky youngsters (or budding marketers…) would no doubt end my gaming session within seconds!
