THE FINALISTS 2012 YOUR TEAM • YOUR GAMES • YOUR AWARDS
Previous Winners 10th Anniversary
This award is for any UK-based marketing team or specialist company that brought major products to market with impressive impact over the past 12 months
2008: Nintendo 2009: Nintendo 2010: Nintendo 2011: Nintendo
ACTIVISION
Described by the team as a “groundbreaking year”, 2011 saw Activisionʼs top marketers handling brands such as Moshi Monsters, Skylanders and Call of Duty. For the former, the team worked closely with Mind Candy to integrate promotions for DS game Moshling Zoo with those for the established online game. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 marketing ran from the reveal trailer in May during the Champions League final, to the mammoth November launch party, with a major surge around Call of Duty XP in September. Finally for Skylanders, an extensive TV campaign around launch and Nickelodeon Tour events kicked off a retail phenomenon.
BETHESDA
Bethesda reached out to consumers through both traditional and newer marketing channels, including print, TV, online and social media. The bulk of its marketing resources were dedicated to The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, which managed to hold its own in November against the likes of Call of Duty, Assassinʼs Creed, Battlefield and Uncharted. Prominent TV ads – including a live action short film – fuelled a surge in sales that eventually led to Skyrim bagging Bethesdaʼs first ever Christmas No.1.
ELECTRONIC ARTS EAʼs glut of big releases, from FIFA 12 and Battlefield 3 to Star Wars: The Old Republic and Portal 2, has benefitted from the marketing teamʼs combined decades of experiences. Beyond the mammoth campaigns for FIFA 12 and Battlefield 3, with ads across print, TV, online and outdoor, the publisher also organised a Christmas shopping centre tour that started at the new Westfield Stratford City and the EA Sports Dugout brought FIFA sampling opportunities to football clubs around the country.
MICROSOFT
The Microsoft team has dedicated its marketing muscles to one of the platform holderʼs biggest line-ups ever – ranging from Gears of War, Forza and Halo to Kinect Sports and Dance Central sequels – as well as the ever- expanding entertainment offering of Xbox 360. To further drive mainstream awareness, the team organised Xboxʼs biggest trial tour and announced new partnerships with Disney, BBC, LoveFilm, Netflix and more. Microsoft also sponsored popular TV programming such as A League of Their Own and Got To Dance, as well as the national Disney On Ice tour.