PlayStation wanted to launch a new and improved PlayStation Plus service - a subscription service hosting a vast library of games, packed full of new and classic titles.

Our objective was to encourage existing members to upgrade, acquire new ones, and excite our gaming audience. It was crucial that we targeted members who see game subscription services as a multiplayer tax, or risk of the best use of their time.

To do this, we needed an emotionally engaging campaign that shifted perceptions of the service from a functional cost, to an inspiring membership that delivered the thrill of new gaming discoveries.

Sony Interactive Entertainment’s new subscription service, PlayStation Plus, allows gamers to live hundreds of different lives as they play the multitude of games and experiences on offer. The launch film tells the story of Mr. Malcolm, an older gentleman who at first glance is any normal, unassuming man you see in the street. But, as we follow him through the city and back to his home, we begin to uncover the mysterious lives that he has lived, as we ask our audience: Why be one thing, when you can be anything?

The campaign invites gamers to discover thrilling adventures for themselves with PlayStation Plus.

Our strategy was to engage PlayStation Plus’ existing subscribers while simultaneously creating a campaign that would attract a new and wider audience.

We leveraged the unique selling point of the PlayStation Plus service - its capability to transport gamers from their daily lives and catapult into new experiences and exciting stories.

This insight was founded on the fact that each game included in the vast library represented a new life, story, and adventure that could be uncovered. We positioned PlayStation Plus as a hub which would allow gamers to access these stories, creating a campaign that asked the question “Why be one thing, when you can be anything?”

The casting process for this campaign began with one insight front of mind, that gaming commercials are commonly reserved for 20 - 30 year old talent. This truth informed our casting, as we ensured to break that mould. We needed someone who was believable when they promised that they’d seen things we’d never imagine, done things that we would never expect. Someone who has lived a thousand lives.

In addition to this, who we cast also needed to have layers, personalities that could be unveiled, and the ability to switch between friendly and mysterious. Our lead’s naturally friendly nature disarms the viewer, creating the perfect misdirect before his other side is unveiled.

Our objective was to emotionally engage players in order to shift perceptions of the service from an operative cost to a membership which would unlock the thrill of new gaming discoveries. It was therefore key for us to measure not just the transactional uplift in subscriptions, but also the perception people had of the service. In research following the campaign, we saw a statistically significant uplift across all key brand metrics in groups that were exposed to the work.