Sega is promoting the new MA 15+ rated game, Condemned 2, with an advertising campaign called Offset the Evil. The online campaign encourages players of the violent video game to offset their evil deeds by singing along with saccharin sweet cartoon songs or playing innocuous Flash-based online games such as Pony Heart Quest, Clown Flower Time and Lollipop Gift Parade. The viral ads intersperse innocent footage with half-second excerpts from the Condemned game.
The campaign has been slated by critics who point out that the cartoon-based ads and games are likely to draw young children into the nightmarish world of Condemned 2. Elizabeth Handsley of Young Media Australia told the Sydney Morning Herald, “I can see the humour and the irony of it but I am an adult and my adult sensibilities can determine that, but can a child? I can just see this sort of thing being downloaded to a computer by an older brother and then a child stumbling across the violent scenes.”
Sega plans to put the virals on TV within the next two months. The game’s classification means that ads cannot air before 9pm. Sega has defended the campaign, saying it was placed on hardcore gaming sites and not on mainstream websites that could be seen by children. A Sega spokesman, Vispi Bhopti, said there was “far more dangerous content (on the internet) than a clip that has some comedic crazy comments”.
Sega was confident that children would not stumble on the clips but if they did Mr Bhopti said it would be evident that the content was not for them. “We are not in the business of pushing it to the wrong audience. If you watch the [content] it is clear this is not something for a younger audience,” he added.
The clips are all available to view online at the Offset the Evil YouTube channel and can be viewed and downloaded at offsettheevil.com.
Pony Heart Quest
Players are invited to ride a pony to collect hearts.
The video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by Hasbro Inc.
You killed the hobo with an iron bar
Smashed his head through the window of a car
You get a bit down not feeling the best
Just play a little Pony Heart Quest
Smashing and bashing, killing dudes
Tends to have an effect on you
Stop dismembering body parts
Jump on a pony and collect some hearts
Pony Heart Quest
Get it off your chest
Acts of unholy and illegal
Play our game offset the evil
Clown Flower Time
The animated Clown Flower game involves watering plants which then produce colourful flowers.
Click on the image below to play the video.
You’ve been killing homeless guys
Now it’s time you listened to a nursery rhyme
So cleanse your tainted eyes
And play a bit of clown flower time
Forget about the slaughter
the violence and the gore
We think a break’s in order
before you play Condemned some more
Clown flower time
Clown flower time
Pay for your crime
Clown flower time
Acts of unholy and illegal
Play our game offset the evil
Lollipop Gift Parade
The game involves catching lollipops and handing them to black and white cartoon characters, filling them with colour.
Click on the image below to play the video.
You threw a bum into a dumpster
You killed him with a rusty blade
Give some thought to laws of karma
The Lollipop Gift Parade
Catch the lollipops in your hands
All the lollipops in the the land
4 sweets, 3 sweets, 2 sweets, 1
Fix the heinous things you’ve done
Acts of unholy and illegal
Play our game offset the evil
Offset the Evil Credits
The Offset the Evil campaign was developed at Clemenger BBDO, Sydney, by executive creative directror Richard Maddocks, creative director Guy Rooke, creatives Chris Berents and Michael Dawson, and agency producer Denise McKeon.
Animation was directed by Julian Stokoe at Yukfoo Animation with producer Glen Real. Editor was Joe Morris at Primecuts.
Sound was designed by Andrew Stevenson at Pitchfork. Music was composed at Liquid Studios, Auckland, by creative director Peter Van Der Fluit, composer/engineer Max Scott, and producer Dee Taylor.
There are concerns among child psychologists and the like that an advertising campaign like this one is likely to draw the attention of young children and make them interested in looking for the game. The idea of an advertising campaign is to sell a product. It is not an advertiser’s job to be responsible. That is the job of the parents. If an advertising campaign like this were to show some responsibility, they would be doing the parent’s job. A child, upon seeing the ad, will want to get their parents to buy them the game, but it is the job of the parent to make their child aware of why they can’t play the game.