Barbara Lippert's Critique: The Play's The Thing

Released two weeks ago, the Xbox 360 is already sold out all over and reportedly going for more than $2,000 on eBay. (Microsoft didn't ship as many units as promised, but we'll get to that later.) For me, the weird thing is that the hype came mostly via free media—a pre-launch Time cover; an MTV show; print and TV coverage of the thousands of insiders who showed up for the "zero-hour" drop in the Mojave Desert; the always-colorful reports on gamer geeks who lined up their lawn chairs outside malls at midnight in the late-November cold to be the first buyers. In other words, it was easy to miss any of the actual Xbox 360 advertising. While I did notice some nice subway posters, the company hasn't exactly blanketed North America in its sleek, green glow. What's more, given that Microsoft's eventual goal is to have Mr. Gates' dream box control all home entertainment (movies, home movies, photos, music, etc.), the two new Xbox image spots are mystifyingly vague. There's an in-the-know, cooler-than-thou aspect to such nonspecificity in advertising. Microsoft wants to get away from image dweebdom, and these are cool. They'd also like to send the message that they play well with others. Indeed, the "Jump in" spots are all about diversity, community and inclusion (not just for hard-core gamers!). But ironically, as executed, the message will likely be lost on all those but the cognoscenti already on the lookout for any glimmer of Xbox firepower. And they probably want to see the actual bitchin' game-play graphics they've heard about (including the much-touted individual blades of grass), which are nowhere to be found here.Still, "Jump Rope" is hands-down one of the most artful spots ever made. With no special effects, just incredible casting and timing, it reveals a Double Dutch session taking place on NYC's Lower East Side. The ropes never stop, and the action is more than entertaining—it's hypnotic. It's a very literal way of showing "Jump in," but it is also dazzling in its simple humanity. Indeed, people of all sizes and colors do jump in: two heavy-set, middle-aged African American women (former champs), skinny little kids, a white dude on his BMX bike, a guy who does amazing double somersaults. At one point, the NBA player Ben Wallace just shows up and jumps in. The music is George Kranz's "Din Daa Daa," which is early German break-dancing stuff. (You can't get any cooler than beatboxy '80s German hip-hop, although it's scarier-sounding than our homegrown version.) It's luscious, but unfortunately, with no connection to this revolutionary new (get, it a full 360?) console save the tagline, the spot could easily be for Nike—they'd only have to add six letters, "st do it"; they already have the "Ju." (Another spot, "Standoff," shown at the zero-hour launch, had aspects of Nike's "Tag.") The second spot, "Water Balloons," is a different story. It opens on shadowy figures hunched and creeping around an urban streetscape. It turns out to be a group of kids and adults in a small South American city engaging in water warfare. Many people find this sort of aggressive sloshing and pelting to be loads of fun—and it's actually less violent than the videogames themselves. But I was one of those scaredy-cat girls who hid during dodgeball, so this doesn't really look amusing to me. Kids hit the windshields of moving cars, and an old Asian man runs in fear. A sleeping dog is hit and hops up. That's disturbing. Equally unsettling is the music—an old, creepy-sounding musical version of the children's fairy tale "The Teddy Bear's Picnic." Both "Water Balloons" and "Mountain," the spot for Xbox competitor PlayStation from TBWA London that won the Grand Prix in Cannes, were shot by Frank Budgen, and follow the same formula. Huge crowd of humanity? Check. Odd South American location? Check. (Mountain was shot in Brazil, this one in Argentina.) Unexpected juxtaposition of visuals with early-20th-century music? Check. (However, the song in "Mountain," "Get on Board," sung by Shirley Temple, was far more joyful, and changed the tenor of the spot.) Granted, U.S. audiences, didn't see "Mountain," but gamers usually post spots they like to Web sites. Plus, why even go there? A brand spot for Europe is easier to understand: A kid picks up a sword in the street, and hordes of Mongolian soldiers show up fighting. A big, mystical monster almost kills the kid with his breath. The kid roars back, and it hurts the monster's feelings. It's funny. To be fair, there will be a series of spots later on touting the Xbox's various Internet capabilities and showing game graphics. Still, there's a lot I just don't get about the launch and how the brand spots connect. Luckily, I'll have a couple of months to figure it out while I wait for the stores to restock.Xbox 360 "Water Balloons," "Jump Rope"Agencies McCann Erickson, S.F. 72 and Sunny, El Segundo, Calif. Creative directorsScott Duchon, Geoff Edwards, John Boiler, Glenn ColeArt directorsGeoff Edwards, Nate AbleCopywritersScott Duchon, Mat BunnellAgency producerDavid VerhoefDirectorFrank BudgenProduction co.Gorgeous Enterprises/Anonymous Content"Joy"Agency McCann Erickson, S.F. Executive creative directorsJeff Huggins, John McNeilCreative directorsScott Duchon, Geoff EdwardsCopywritersScott Duchon, Rick HerreraArt directorGeoff EdwardsAgency producerHannah MurrayDirectorRupert SandersProduction co. MJZ, Los Angeles

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Barbara Lippert's Critique: The Play's The Thing

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