Get Gen Z gamers who are new to Xbox excited about the “Gilded Hunter Bundle,” a limited-time promotion that includes an Xbox Series S console plus three games. Gen Z is allergic to advertising. So, our primary goal was to find a way to entertain and stand out in a sea of non-ad content while ensuring our message broke through.

Comedian Jimmy O. Yang is surprised to find himself in a commercial when an anthropomorphized brand mascot gains self-awareness with the single purpose to tell Jimmy all about Xbox’s Gilded Hunter Bundle—whether he wants it to or not. What follows is self-aware, fourth-wall-breaking banter between Jimmy and the talking plushie who delivers product heavy messaged between sassy remarks. The self-aware video has everything from a surprise body double, magically golden grapes to a blossoming friendship between a comedian and the sorta-self-aware plushie brand mascot with loosely-defined rules.

The tone and approach of our work both appealed to Gen Z’s deep feelings of nostalgia, but also to their current sensibilities of what they find funny, engaging, and worth spending time watching.

Gen Z is the youngest but also the most nostalgic generation. So, to invite Gen Z into next-gen gaming on Xbox, we created the Game With Me Series S, an homage to talking toys from their youth to tell them the Series S is “Simply the most fun you haven’t had yet.”

Our film is part toy commercial, part sitcom, and part meta internet video. Jimmy’s delivery is the foil for a Series S that comes to life just to tell him about the offer. Jimmy reacts to it the same way Gen Z reacts to advertising: with skepticism. We delivered product-heavy messages while feeling more like longform comedy than advertising. The self-awareness allowed Xbox to show up as a brand that “gets it.”

The Game With Me Series S plushie was packaged in a die-cut, collectible box designed to whet the appetites of our Gen Z audience, who are drawn to limited runs and exclusive edition products. The plushie was created as a throwback to the stuffed toys of Gen Z’s youth, and was designed to fit right in with the other stuffies. The packaging featured a custom-designed mascot character that might have been featured in a toy ad, but with a self-aware twist.

Our launch video was part toy spot, part sitcom, and part meta internet video. As the foil for the product-heavy message of the talking console, Jimmy O Yang reacts to it the same way Gen Z reacts to advertising: with skepticism. We delivered product-heavy messages while feeling more like longform comedy than advertising. The self-awareness allowed Xbox to show up as a brand that “gets it.”

From the moment our launch video went live, people started obsessing over the Game With Me Series S plushie. Across Xbox’s channels, hundreds of comments poured in asking where the plushie could be purchased. This little plushie was a huge success. The campaign led to $10M in direct console sales, generated 84M paid + organic impressions, and our launch video earned 12M complete views.