Joystiq is undecided about Wal-Mart's Modern Warfare 2 ad
by Richard Mitchell 
{ Oct 30th 2009 at 5:00PM } 
The company ran similar ads for Madden 09 and Madden 10, which certainly don't need in depth advertising to get people excited. Has Call of Duty reached Madden levels of recognition? Is the name the only marketing it needs at this point? Apparently, Wal-Mart thinks so. See the ad after the break.
[Via Destructoid]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
FJ 2036 @ Oct 30th 2009 5:04PM
I think this commercial is great, I actually laughed a couple times. Nice marketing Wal Mart
fundando @ Oct 30th 2009 5:16PM
The banter between those is great and a hilarious finish. I never thought I would like anything related to the big whizzle.
pete @ Oct 30th 2009 6:29PM
yea i thought it was really good!
Deegan @ Oct 30th 2009 7:00PM
Good writing from Wal-Mart? I feel dirty.
Fullmetal Salchemist @ Oct 30th 2009 7:33PM
It is funny, I loved the banter between the two, but it works as a short skit, not as a commercial. It's pretty awful as a commercial.
SimbaDogg @ Oct 30th 2009 11:21PM
a couple times? man i LOL quite a few. that was hilarious. i actually had to rewind it at one point because i missed a few lines because i was laughing
SeNiLe911 @ Oct 31st 2009 4:16PM
Whats not to figure out, that was CLASSIC!!!!
The best line, "don't worry about it, you will never get to this level".
LOllOLlolloLLoLOoLOOllOollol
Troy Powers (PSN: TroyPowers) @ Nov 2nd 2009 9:28AM
That entire dialog could have been lifted from conversations I've had with friends.
pee tee @ Nov 12th 2009 8:58PM
Yeah that ads was great but it seems one million Modern Warfare gamers are sad now.
Surprise Surprise, it seems One Million Players got their ass get banned by Microsoft
for using pirated copy of the game on their console.
so much for the "free-play": http://bit.ly/one-million-players-banned-on-playing-modern-warfare-2
sniff sniff
Bernie @ Oct 30th 2009 5:04PM
I liked the ad.
That's all I've got.
Anemos @ Oct 31st 2009 12:12AM
The music at the end reminded me of the theme for "Transformers".
kojo87 @ Oct 31st 2009 1:31AM
music reminded me a little of Kashmir by Led Zeppelin at first
Travis @ Oct 30th 2009 5:05PM
now hows about pulling the 39.99 card out for this title.
laser beams @ Oct 30th 2009 6:18PM
@ Travis: seriously. this game is gonna sell a lot, either way- but whichever retailer is the first to drop the price on it stands to see a TON of business flooding into their games department :)
when CoD4 came out 2 years ago- i waited until the first week of December to buy it when Best Buy offered it for $37.99. i have a feeling that somebody is going to offer a deal like that again- and when they do, i'm gonna jump on it!
Travis @ Oct 30th 2009 6:51PM
I just picture big box retailers like wal-mart/best buy/futureshop trying to kick gamestop in the head this christmas. And with Gamestop saying they aren't going to match lowered prices (at least in Canada), that'll be a bunch of cancelled pre-orders. Wal-mart has an obligation to serve the customer - Gamestop, while better selection needs to rethink its process.
Travis @ Oct 30th 2009 6:54PM
that said, I don't see this title going on sale. Guaranteed sellers don't need to be reduced. Titles that are projected to be "maybe buys" are the ones that are going to get reduced. L4D2, COD::MW2, AC2 - all likely to stay regular price.
Space @ Oct 31st 2009 12:17AM
amazon dude, you get a $20 gift card with it when you preorder.
Swagman @ Oct 31st 2009 7:27AM
@ Travis
Big box retailers do not reduce the price of media (games, DVD, CDs, etc.), because it makes them money directly.
Discounts like the one you were talking about, you do not give to games that no one has ever heard of. Discounts like that, you give to the games that are guaranteed to sell a ton of copies - like GTA or Halo or Call of Duty. After all, selling a game that just came out at a $20 or $30 discount, is selling that game at a loss. Marking an older game down that much is not bad, as older games are usually sold to retailers for less from the distributor with a new, lower MSRP from the publisher. So those discounts are passed on directly to the buyer. But brand new games? To sell them a those discounts is a loss leader. So you always mark down the most popular titles, as these are the ones that everyone is rushing to come to your store to get their hands on.
Best Buy, Walmart and other big box retailers discount media all the time, not to make more sells of that media than the next guy, but to draw more people in the door, who in turn are likely to buy other cool (more expensive) stuff once we have them in the shop - stuff like a new TV or new stereo, or whatever. In a lot of cases, stuff that would make the experience of playing that new media, a better experience for the user.
So in the example of Modern Warfare 2, maybe the TV you have at home is only 25" of crap, and you just picked up Modern Warfare from Best Buy, because they put it on sale at $20 off or something. As you are walking to the back off the store to grab your copy of the game, you may be tempted to pick up a 40" HDTV that Best Buy deliberately put on sale at the same time they put the Modern Warfare 2 on sale. And furthermore, thjey'll make it clear that if the customer takes advantage of their financing, you can walk out the door with the game you came for, and your new HDTV, at little, immediate, out of pocket cost. You know how it is, six months, no interest no payments, etc. With an incentive like that, you may be tempted to also pick up a couple more games and even a 7.1 surround sound home cinema system to replace the crappy, "I get my sound from the TV speakers," that may or may not be the current setup in your home. I think you get my point. With no interest and no payments until whenever, you walked in the door expecing to spend $40 for a single game, but instead walked out the door $2500 worth of video games and home theater appliances, and not paid a single dime out of pocket. Chances are when you get home, that $40 you were going to spend, will turn into the money you spend for pizza delivery, for your all-nighter you are about to pull with Modern Warfare 2 on your new home entertainment rig.
Believe me this works, and there is an entire set of equations that not only Best Buy, but Walmart, Target, and every big box retailer uses. And while not every customer who walks in the door looking for a game, DVD or CD on sale, will follow all the way through to buying something bigger, there is a certain percentage who do. And the percentages are large enough where it is makes the retailer in question boatloads of money.
Now this is a very different business model to a company like Gamestop. Gamestop sells only games, so they have to make a profit off every game they sell, as there is nothing else to make a profit from. They can't lower the price of their games and hope people rush in their stores and buy a TV while they are there. This is why Gamestop refuses to price match big box retailers, because if they did, they would lose hundreds of millions of dollars every year with no way to make any of it back.
Eh @ Oct 30th 2009 5:07PM
Is that supposed to be a commercial or just some online thing? Its way too long to be a commercial. Usually Walmart game commercials are so conservative and lame that they induce gag reflexes.
LegendaryRedass @ Oct 30th 2009 7:02PM
I think they're just trying to keep a family friendly image, I believe families trying to save money is their target demo.
Mike @ Oct 30th 2009 5:10PM
Thats pretty damn funny!
BacteriaEP @ Oct 30th 2009 5:07PM
Ad was pretty funny actually... Best Wal-Mart ad I've ever seen.
Kudos Wal-Mart.
Pszczola @ Oct 31st 2009 3:14PM
EVEN WITH CRUISE CONTROL, YOU STILL HAVE TO STEER!
Dustin @ Oct 30th 2009 5:07PM
Wal-mart advertising board room:
Boss: Ok guys, I wanna get outta here and go see my mistress so if you could, write down a generic diss, put it in the box, and were send it to the media production guys. Late
Employee 1: Ooo! I gotta good one! a height requirement rip! That'll make the kids laugh!
Employee 2: Wow! idk how I can top that! How about, baby jokes and old jokes!
Group: OOO yea!
Employee 3: Dang were good and this. Since Madden was so great, lets keep the same format and drag it on for 2 minutes!
SpyderTaco (PSN: Ar4chNova89) @ Oct 30th 2009 5:31PM
COOL STORY BRO
Darth Bradwart, Dark Lord of the Sith @ Oct 30th 2009 5:38PM
HEY SPIDER
IS YOUR CAPS LOCK BROKEN OR SOMETHING? YOU'RE ALWAYS SHOUTING.
NitroMikeo @ Oct 30th 2009 5:45PM
I DON'T KNOW WHAT WE'RE YELLING ABOUT!
Darth Bradwart, Dark Lord of the Sith @ Oct 30th 2009 5:47PM
"ALRIGHT! I'M SHOUTING! I'M SHOUTING I'M SHOUTING I'M SHO---"
uncle jesse @ Oct 30th 2009 5:47PM
LOUD NOISES!!
Ballistic H @ Oct 30th 2009 5:48PM
Gotta agree with Dustin.
bongoes Sector 2814 @ Oct 30th 2009 6:17PM
HEY BALLISTIC H, WHY AREN'T YOU SPEAKING IN CAPS?
vidGuy @ Oct 30th 2009 6:21PM
YOU AIN'T COOL UNLESS YOU PEE YOUR PANTS.
vidGuy @ Oct 30th 2009 6:21PM
I MEAN SPEAK IN CAPS!
SpyderTaco (PSN: Ar4chNova89) @ Oct 30th 2009 6:28PM
IMMA LET YOU FINISH
Sandmonkey @ Oct 30th 2009 6:52PM
I AM DOING IT TOO AM I ACCEPTED?!
sonicspike41 @ Oct 30th 2009 8:01PM
SO, IT'S A SHOUTING MATCH YOU WANT EH? WELL GAME ON JOYSTIQ! AHHH, AHHH, AHHH!
SpyderTaco (PSN: Ar4chNova89) @ Oct 30th 2009 8:14PM
I LIKE TO QUOTE TV SHOWS, TOO!
DOH'
OH MY GOD, THEY KILLED KENNY!
DON'T YOU JUST LOVE HOW CREATIVE I AM?
Hydrophobicfish (PSN: HydrophobicFish) @ Oct 30th 2009 9:11PM
IF PEEING YOUR PANTS MAKES YOU COOL, THEN I'M MILES DAVIS.
Darth Bradwart, Dark Lord of the Sith @ Oct 30th 2009 10:49PM
NO ONE CAUGHT MY CLUE REFERENCE. YOU ALL CAN GO TO HELL!
Omega2k3 @ Oct 30th 2009 11:18PM
CAPS LOCK IS CRUISE CONTROL FOR COOL!
Bagels (@AlsoBagels) @ Oct 30th 2009 11:45PM
I'M BATMAN!
freaparn @ Oct 31st 2009 2:02AM
WHERE IS SHE?!
Chairman Hurf [Planeteer | Power of Politically Correct Comedic Relief] @ Oct 31st 2009 8:17AM
YOU ARE NOT AKIM, A HA!
XBL: xGeneral DEATHx PSN: Deeth82 [Planeteer | Power of General Hostility and Angst] @ Oct 31st 2009 8:48AM
UNLEASH THE FURY!!!!1!!!!ONE!!!
Jimbotron @ Oct 31st 2009 9:48AM
@Darth Bradwart: Coke outsells Pepsi in the US and most other places in the world. And with that new logo Pepsi got, i'll drink it even less than before. it's too dainty looking. I'll leave Pepsi for the broads and stick with Coke.
xtremeholymuffin @ Oct 31st 2009 12:06PM
(combo breaker)
Snap Count @ Oct 31st 2009 3:39PM
AM I TOO LATE FOR THE THREE FULL HEARTS ACTION
SeNiLe911 @ Oct 31st 2009 5:19PM
IT LOOKS THAT WAY Snap Count
Samuel Vimes @ Oct 30th 2009 5:09PM
At work so can't watch the ad, but CoD really only needs it's name for advertising now. Similar to how Pepsi is ceasing advertisement on their products. It's gotten to the point where everyone knows or will know what it is, and still buy it, without advertisements swaying them.
uncle jesse @ Oct 30th 2009 5:14PM
Coke advertises all the time and, I'm not positive on this, but doesn't Coke outsell Pepsi?
You can never be 'above' advertising.