Publisher Electronic Arts is about to bombard television and the Web with the message that you should buy Titanfall.
After months of anticipation, EA will finally release developer Respawn’s sci-fi military shooter for Xbox One and PC on March 11 (and an Xbox 360 version on March 25). Through events like the big Electronic Entertainment Expo trade show in June, Titanfall has built up a lot of hype. Many fans now share that excitement following a five-day beta test that gave more than 2 million players the chance to try a limited version of the game in mid-February. Now, EA and Microsoft, which both have a lot riding on the success of mech-based multiplayer title, are revving up the marketing machine to get fans hyped for one of the biggest releases of 2014.
Titanfall is only coming to Microsoft consoles and PC, and the manufacturer is positioning the game as the first big exclusive of the year for either the Xbox One or PlayStation 4. That shows in the ads, which all end with an Xbox One stinger, despite the PC release coming the same day. Microsoft and Sony both launched their latest consoles in November, but the PS4 has established an early lead. Microsoft expects Titanfall will help the Xbox One catch up. For a limited time starting on March 11, anyone who buys an Xbox One will get Titanfall for free, which should help retailers move the $500 machine off of shelves.
Likewise, EA is looking for a shooter franchise that can compete with the dominant Call of Duty from publisher Activision. It has Battlefield, but it took developer DICE two years to make Battlefield 4. EA is hoping that Titanfall can fill in the schedule until the next Battlefield.
With all that at stake, EA and Microsoft just need to get the word out. Respawn released a gameplay launch trailer for Titanfall earlier today. It reveals more of the multiplayer campaign than we’ve ever seen to date. It also highlights the wall-running and double-jumping abilities of the pilot characters as well as the destructive capabilities of the giant walking robot suits that gamers can control during battle.
Check it out:
Of course, Titanfall is playing in the same arena as the blockbuster Call of Duty franchise, so it shouldn’t surprise anyone that EA is also running a 30-second live-action TV spot that’s reminiscent of some of the biggest Call of Duty commercials over the last few years. It has a man walking around a city while his friendly mech follows him like a faithful puppy. All the while, the Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. standard “Me and My Shadow” plays over the soundtrack. If that sounds familiar, that’s probably because Activision used Sinatra’s “I’m Gonna Live Till I Die” in the live-action commercial for its latest Call of Duty release.
Check out Titanfall’s live-action trailer:
It’s possible some might see that and confuse it for an offshoot of the Call of Duty franchise, which I’m sure EA wouldn’t mind.
Finally, one of the most important pieces in the Titanfall marketing plan is you. The game goes live on Xbox One on the same day that Microsoft enables gamers to broadcast gameplay to the livestreaming website Twitch. If the commercials and trailers don’t convince people to pick up the game, maybe something like this awesome montage of amazing kills will:
That’s four minutes of a player doing amazing things in the public beta test, and I find it more compelling than any commercial. It makes me want to jump in and try to replicate what I just saw. Microsoft knows the power that real gameplay has on people, which is why it’s timing Twitch streaming with Titanfall’s release. It’s free publicity.
When players aren’t streaming, they can always use Xbox One’s GameDVR to capture amazing moments that they can share with their friends and social networks. Like this time I took out the enemy rescue ship with a Titan fall, for example:
Yeah, I’m pretty great, and EA and Microsoft are both hoping that real gamers sharing videos like that will help sell millions of copies of Titanfall.