Brief:

• Acura today released a video game based on its "Less Talk, More Drive" campaign that showcases the carmaker's focus on high performance, per an announcement shared with Mobile Marketer. "Beat That" challenges gamers to race on six different tracks, driving cars featured in its TV commercial.
• The game is available to play in desktop and mobile web versions, or on the Facebook Instant Games platform. Each track showcases a different era in gaming ranging from 8-bit style games of the 1980s and 90s to more photo-realistic environments. Gamers can challenge friends and followers on social media to play the game and beat their race times via dynamic share cards or sending a challenge via instant messaging.
• Acura also created "Beat That" GIFs that people can share through Giphy, the database of video and animated clips. Players also can use the GIFs to create a customized game in Giphy Arcade, the company's platform for mini web games that people can share online, per Acura's announcement.

Insight:

Acura in the past few years has made gaming a key part of its marketing efforts to reach younger audiences that are less likely to see advertising in other media channels. Gamified experiences help to extend brand exposure with consumers who have a wide selection of other entertainment choices, many of which are ad-free in the age of cord-cutting and streaming media. The heavy dose of social sharing in this latest effort could help Acura get its game in front of a wider audience of gamers. 

Racing is a popular genre for videogames, including best-selling titles like "Forza" and "Gran Turismo," but Acura can reach a broader audience of casual gamers who use their smartphones to play videogames while on-the-go. Mobile gaming makes up 45% of the estimated $152 billion global gaming market, per researcher Newzoo, largely because smartphones are more accessible to consumers who don't have a dedicated videogame console.

Acura's latest videogames follow its past gamified campaigns, such as the interactive experience it created on Facebook Instant Games last year. The "ILX Total Control" game responded to the motions of a smartphone, such as tilts and spins, through a 360-degree video. Acura also has developed social media campaigns with interactive elements, including a vehicle customizer on Instagram Stories, and an interactive Facebook Live race that included an augmented reality (AR) experience.