Children of the ’90s, rejoice. According to a number of sources, a remastered “Spyro the Dragon” series could be on its way. In order to promote the video game’s upcoming release, it seems that Activision has delivered some deliciously cryptic marketing to several lucky journalists.
Writers for Forbes and Paste Magazine reported receiving mysterious packages at their front doors, which, when opened, revealed purple, metallic-scaled eggs nestled within some real-life, pungent hay. A note was also included, on purple paper of course, reading “Something ‘s about to hatch,” and attributed to some fellow named Falcon McBob.
Something’s about to hatch.
– @SpyroTheDragon. #Spyro20th🔥 pic.twitter.com/volH4nrzRL
— Spyro Universe 💎 (@SpyroUniverse) April 2, 2018
While both writers were surprised, reactions were decidedly mixed. Writing for Forbes, Mitch Wallace balanced his own excitement about the impending release of a remastered Spyro series with a genuine compulsion toward taking a hammer to the egg in order to see if any more surprises were hidden inside. As of yet, it’s unclear as to whether Wallace will pursue his proposed destructive act of discovery. We’ll keep an eye on the situation, and report any possible developments.
Holly Green from Paste Magazine was a bit more skeptical of the stunt, deeming it to be a rather clumsy attempt at garnering hype for the game. It certainly didn’t help that she seems to have had an allergic reaction to the hay. Tough luck, Activision. Then again, Green still wrote an article about it, so the promo kind of worked as intended.
While most marketing campaigns involving promotional products don’t tend to be so elaborate or mysterious, there are a few lessons to be learned here. While some people will appreciate a quirky promotion and a fun commemorative object such as the aforementioned egg, others may keep it only out of a sense of obligation but remain uninterested in the brand or its marketing scheme.
It’s tough to truly know an audience perfectly, but it helps to do some research before reaching out. With that in mind, the hay was maybe a bit ambitious. Perhaps some fake colored grass would have sufficed, but who’s to say after all? Activision went for gold with this one. Time will tell if the new Spyro games will live up to the hype.
