Marvel's Avengers
Client
Virgin Media
Industry
Telco
Category
Sponsorship, campaign, social
Summary
Virgin Media have had a long history partnering with video game companies as part of their overall sponsorship proposition, with companies such as Activision and Mediatonic. But in 2019, their biggest gaming partnership was launched with Marvel, Crystal Dynamics and Square Enix for the launch of Marvel's Avengers - an original video game based on comic book property.
To build equity with both gamers and Marvel fans (of both the films and comic books), we developed a strategy to fuel fandom, working in a multi-agency set up to deliver fan experiences through access.
Beginning at Gamescom in 2019 and right up until the game's release in September 2020, we gave Virgin Media customer unprecedented access to the developers and gaming assets. Content we produced included quick-fire questions to answer all the internet's burning questions about the game, a 19-minute developer commentary that previewed the game's first level (content so good, it was ripped dozens of time by other channels) and in-depth video character profiles for fans to get to know the six main Avenger characters within the game.
To maximise the limited access we had, we filmed all the content during a single interview at EGX. We were then able to create a full content series based on their answers to the different formats we intended to produce. This both maximised the talent time (they had other commitments at EGX with journalists and other outlets) as well as the client's budget.
The response to the content was overwhelmingly positive, and the editorial approach we took to the content helped show off Virgin Media's credibility and expertise within gaming.
