For the first time, you weren’t just watching U.S. Army Soldiers in a movie, TV show or video game. You were them. You saw what they saw. You lived their words and understood what it takes to be a Soldier in a way that was never possible before.

Movies, TV and video games can show you the intensity of battle, but they can’t tell you if you are ready to become a Soldier. Only by stepping onto the battlefield and walking towards a live bomb, stopping an enemy sniper, laying silent while enemies surround you, or charging into enemy territory, will you know if you have what it takes to be a Soldier.

This generation wants to make a difference in the world, but without a way to find out what it really takes to be a Soldier, they won’t make a four-year commitment to the U.S. Army.

We gave young Americans a way to find out if they have what it takes.

Don’t just show young Americans another action scene. Make them a part of it.

Using immersive, virtual reality storytelling, we turned young Americans into real U.S. Army Soldiers and dropped them into four high-stakes missions. They saw, heard and felt everything real soldiers feel: The fear, adrenaline and excitement of battle. Nothing was exaggerated or censored.

They stepped into the boots of Active Duty Soldiers to finally answer the question: Do I have what it takes to be a Soldier?

This generation isn’t just looking for jobs. They’re looking for purpose.

• 70% of Gen Z wants to contribute to society.

The U.S. Army is filled with jobs that let you make a difference in the world. But, young Americans don’t consider it because they don’t know if they have what it takes to be a Soldier.

• 50% of young Americans know little to nothing about the U.S. Army.

Young Americans learn by doing, so our message couldn’t be passive or static.

• 51% of Gen Z say they learn best by being hands-on.

INSIGHT: The best way for someone to learn if they have what it takes to be a soldier is by turning them into one.

We had to make every part of this experience feel like a real Army mission.

We began by interviewing Active Duty soldiers from Cyber Command to Special Operations to find compelling Stories about real missions. After selecting the best four, we worked alongside these same soldiers to script each mission for true to life realism.

Then, we only used real Soldiers, vehicles and combat equipment to film each mission. This required the coordination of 100 Soldiers, nine armored personnel carriers, a Chinook helicopter, and four M1 Abrams with 64 high-explosive rounds.

Everything was captured using a Yi HALO camera and custom-built multi-cameras for live 3D embodiment.

It was released on a dedicated landing page and custom-built app available in the App Store and on Google Play.

More than 500,000 customized cardboard headsets were mailed to high-quality prospects. Specialized inks and printing techniques made the headsets feel like real Army equipment.

By turning prospects into Soldiers, “In Our Boots” broke into an entirely untapped pool of prospects the U.S. Army had never reached before. We saw a 491% increase in first-time respondents. Overall, lead generation went up by 1,053% from previous campaigns. Young Americans now had the confidence to reach out and take that first step.

Within the first two weeks of launch, it exceeded every other Army recruiting campaign. Activations increased by 18X the Army’s average. It’s so successful that the Army is working to bring this experience and Oculus Go headsets into recruiting stations across the country.

At a moment in history when prospects don’t understand what it means to be a Soldier, an unprecedented amount wanted to find out.