Disturbing "disruptive" PS2 ad

by Christopher Grant { Feb 23rd 2006 at 1:00PM }

TBWA, one of the world's largest ad firms, is responsible for the ubiquitous neon iPod ads and the unfortunate PSP graffiti ads that have municipalities all riled up. They call their unique brand of advertising "disruptive." They break it down this way, "TBWA = Disruption." Alright, got it.

I suppose the above PS2 ad is disruptive then, if you accept that disturbing can be disruptive. Sure, the male/female electrical outlet faces are pretty creepy, but the shirtless dude "watching" them is what really pushes this one over the creepy cliff. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have an inexplicable desire to really play some PS2...

Tags: Ad, Advertising, iPod, Marketing, PS2, Sony Ads, SonyAds, TBWA

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

A @ Feb 23rd 2006 1:08PM

I'd love to see adbusters make fun of playstatin ads :)

PodMonkeys @ Feb 23rd 2006 1:12PM

That is really weird if thats an actual ad.

On the other hand, if it were a poster or painting, I would hang that on my wall. Its a very neat image. Just weird as a PS2 ad.

Brian B @ Feb 23rd 2006 1:13PM

Something about shirtless guy tells me an ac/dc powered ps2 is about to be announced.

eric @ Feb 23rd 2006 1:25PM

What about the dog behind the couch to the left? Thats what put this really over the top.

Felix @ Feb 23rd 2006 1:26PM

Something about the dog in the background just makes it that much stranger.

Rua @ Feb 23rd 2006 1:30PM

Obviously inspired by the worst movie ever; Plughead Rewired: Circuitry Man 2.

Linkage -

http://movies2.nytimes.com/gst/movies/movie.html?v_id=134269

pennywise969 @ Feb 23rd 2006 1:30PM

That ad scares me. It really freaks me out. I think I may have nightmares about it.

mandarin @ Feb 23rd 2006 1:45PM

Strike 2 Sony!

Todd @ Feb 23rd 2006 1:47PM

In my first job I had to do a little ad design every so often. I really don't care for this type of ad because it shows lack of creativity. Simply come up with something, anything that will get peoples attention. Then make it weird enough to stick with a person for awhile. Then put whatever brand name on it. It's the same thing as putting a man in a monkey suit and having him hold a sign for a restaurant. The 2 have nothing in common, but as long as it gets a person thinking about the restaurant (and remembering that poor guy in the suit) then it's served it's purpose. You could have put almost any brand on that picture and it would work. It may seem like a good idea, but the association between the ad and the brand doesn't last very long. While a person may remember the picture for years, they forget what it was advertising because there is no connection between the two.

Conn @ Feb 23rd 2006 1:56PM

It's a neat picture, but a horrible PS2 ad.

Sense @ Feb 23rd 2006 2:04PM

Yeah, it's creepy.

But even more disturbing is that the male/female plugs are wrong.

Males are all *ahem* prongs, females are all *ahem* holes. Frankly, that level of accuracy would make it even creepier.

pete @ Feb 23rd 2006 2:05PM

reminds me vaguely of Fuseli's "Nightmare"

http://www.artchive.com/artchive/f/fussli/fuseli_nightmare.jpg

SID SPACE @ Feb 23rd 2006 2:11PM

Sense, you stole my comment.

Also, why is it that when I press the "Add your comments" button, the "You did it" image does pop up sometimes, but not others? And for some reason the email to activate my comment sometimes takes multiple days, other times, mere seconds.

This never used to happen before Joystiq remodeled.

James @ Feb 23rd 2006 2:15PM

It doesn't strike me as creepy so much as dumb. It makes no sense as there is no connection to the PS2.

WedgeTalon @ Feb 23rd 2006 2:20PM

"3. Something about shirtless guy tells me an ac/dc powered ps2 is about to be announced."

I know AC/DC had some powerful tunes, but isn't that a bit ridiculous?

ngS @ Feb 23rd 2006 2:27PM

I wish the guy who did this is sodomized in hell... .. .. . it's just that creepy...

now, if you'll excuse me, I have an inexplicable desire to really destroy my PS2 or anything related to it

Gonzo @ Feb 23rd 2006 3:03PM

That one's good and not too bad.
There were even more "disruptive" (is that the latest euphamism? Why can't these anal-retentive morons use the correct words?) ads from London. One in particular shows a husband walking in on his wife who's in bed with a sweaty & fleshy (complete with pubes) X, O, Square, & Triangle.

CoffeeJedi @ Feb 23rd 2006 3:32PM

Gonzo, that sound positively creepy as hell; sick, twisted, disturbing and perhaps nauseating.

got a link?

Pravus @ Feb 23rd 2006 3:42PM

I guess im the only one who thinks that cool as hell. I want a big ass version for my room.

nailerr @ Feb 23rd 2006 3:46PM

Google image search will yeild more god damn odd, and if I might add rather good images.

http://www.epica-awards.org/assets/epica/2004/winners/print/images/14049a%20%20%20POTATOHEAD_PS_press.jpg

jdm123 @ Feb 23rd 2006 3:47PM

Pretty obvious isn't it...?

PS2 - InterFace...

Creepy? Very. Interesting? Yes. Relevant to item being marketed? uuhh, yea... All in all, this is a pretty cool add... Clearly it worked since we are all talking about it.

Ryan de michigan @ Feb 23rd 2006 3:58PM

http://www.aef.com/exhibits/awards/clio_awards/2005/02

Here is the link for this ad, and the others in the campaign. Actually this campaign won awards all over the ad-world. It's called "disruptive" because its untraditional, and gets your attention. I'm not saying that its an amazing ad, but it did catch my attention. Its just creating a little more buzz about the brand, not trying to convince you to buy a playstation.

Gonzo @ Feb 23rd 2006 4:19PM

Yea CJ and I can't believe I was able to find it without paying for it:
http://wrongcrowd.com/article.php?story=20051114011608640
All those things and more eh?
Check out these other naughty ps2 ads.
Here's a great tvc to check out: http://www.visit4info.com/details.cfm?adid=18349
http://www.askmen.com/video/2005_sep/sep02_ps2_ad.html
Enjoy.

Gonzo @ Feb 23rd 2006 4:49PM

Now here's a much better link. You can actually zoom in on this version without it getting completely blocky.
http://www.pdnonline.com/pdn/newswire/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000935955

Todd @ Feb 23rd 2006 5:07PM

I'm not saying that I don't like it or that it's not a cool picture, but that it's not creative as an ad. You could put the brand name of almost any electrical appliance, power company, extension cord maker, match-making service, etc. in the corner and it works the same. I just don't think it's creative to make a picture that makes people go "woah, that's freaky" and then slap a brand name on it. To me a good ad should work with the brand it's made for or at least contain elements of the brand. Even the one with the husband coming home is able to do this where this one doesn't.

mrk @ Feb 23rd 2006 5:38PM

Anybody notice the '2' in the ad is not in the correct font?

timothy @ Feb 23rd 2006 5:57PM

@mrk

Actually It's the exact same font. Trust me, an agency isn't putting an ad out with the logo in the wrong font. On an account that large, you don't make mistakes like that.

OhJustSomeRandomGuy @ Feb 23rd 2006 6:14PM

So, I hear Sisqo's working on the music for the TV version of the ad.

I think he's calling it the Prong Song:

"Let me see that prong!
That Prong PR-Prong Prong PRONG."

Anyone notice the dog over to the left that wants in on the action?

designerwhite @ Feb 23rd 2006 6:50PM

A picture of dogs playing poker would have been just as effective. - Not playing video games... dogs playing poker.

also - The ads feature people who aren't going to be using the products. We all know that video gaming is way more emo than straight punk. Put some horn-rimmed glasses on those two. Put the dude in a really tight sweater and throw a messenger bag and tons of pins on him. Replace the third guy with a webcam and the dog with a Chinchilla.