One of the most anticipated videogames of the year, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow will make its big-screen debut tonight, in the first-ever coast-to-coast videogame tournament that will connect participants playing the game in New York and Los Angeles. The world-premiere event will take place at the Loews Cinemas movie theaters as hundreds of fans watch gamers battle it out on the big screen in the Spies vs. Mercenaries online tournament.
This promotional event is only one of the myriad of events which Ubisoft has planned for the game. It seems that Pandora Tomorrow's publisher believes that the game has the potential to sell quite a bit since such a full media onslaught is not the usual approach in gaming. Ubisoft however, is spending big bucks on it and hope the title's online options will make the game hard to resist.
The marketing of Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow started some months ago but will reach its peak in a few days, in anticipation of Pandora Tomorrow's launch. You can find out extensive details on Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow by reading the Megagames Preview.
The full promotional event list is as follows:
- Sundance Film Festival: In January, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow made videogame history when it was featured at a special event coinciding with the 2004 Sundance Film Festival. The game was unveiled at the Motorola Lodge in an after-hours event attended by celebrities, filmmakers, entertainment executives, musicians and industry influencers. Courtesy of Ubisoft and Xbox Live, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow's appearance at Sundance marked the first time a videogame has debuted in or around a film festival.
- National TV Advertising: The highlight of the Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow marketing blitz is the multimillion-dollar television advertising campaign that begins March 20. The powerful 15 and 30 second spots will air nationally throughout March and April, and will be seen on such networks as NBC, CBS, FOX-TV, TNT, MTV, MTV2, UBS, USA Network and Spike TV, during NBA, NHL and NCAA basketball programming; plus, hit shows as The Simpsons, Saturday Night Live, Late Night with Conan O'Brien and The Bernie Mac Show to name a few.
- National Print Campaign: Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow print advertising will appear in Stuff Magazine, Electronic Gaming Monthly, Game Informer, Game Pro, GMR, Xbox Nation, Official Xbox Magazine, PC Gamer and Computer Gaming World.
- Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications In-Game Branding: One of the most unique in-game product placements in videogame history will put the new P900 smart phone and the T637 camera phone in the hands of operative Sam Fisher, as he wages a one-man war against terrorism. Instead of being merely an advertisement within the game, the products are integrated throughout the entire experience, and the player cannot move forward without using both camera phones to complete the missions. Sony Ericsson will support promotions and marketing events for Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow through a worldwide online photo contest, tonight's Loews Theaters world premiere event, a consumer email campaign, the availability of downloadable demos of the game on the Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications website and a promotional program making the mobile phone and the PC game bundles available to consumers.
- National Retail Support: High visibility at all major retailers includes: hanging banners, custom shopping bags and in-store advertising on TV monitors throughout the stores.
- Grass-Roots Marketing: A college tour featuring Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow is scheduled to hit the road this spring, allowing gamers to sample Ubisoft games throughout the U.S. in April and May. The college tour will be supported with radio promotion and advertising in campus newspapers and on relevant websites.
- Clancy Truck National Tour: A decked-out eighteen-wheeler big rig wrapped in images from the Clancy franchise will be touring the country from coast-to-coast throughout 2004. Consumers across the country will get a chance to demo Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow, as well as other games in the Clancy franchise, at large music and arts festivals, state fairs, sporting events and various retail locations including: Coachella, Summerfest, New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Musikfest, Taste of Chicago, Times Square Fair, Best Buy stores and others.
- In-Pack Instant Win: Everyone who purchases a Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow game will have a chance to win a two-month trial subscription to Xbox Live, a full 12-month Xbox Live subscription or the Ultimate Home Theater System.
- Loews Theaters Spies vs. Mercenaries, set for tonight, is open to all gamers who'd like to attend, and attendees will receive prizes and giveaways. This event was advertised through radio promotion in 10 Markets, various street teams, posters in NYC and LA, and direct email through GameStop, Xbox, and ubi.com. Additional sponsors include Xbox, Cingular Wireless, Kenwood, Stuff Magazine, Game Informer magazine, NVIDIA and Creative Labs.
