Dive Brief:

• Philadelphia Cream Cheese today is launching a holiday-themed campaign that pokes fun at brands of video game consoles. As home bakers prepare to make cheesecakes for their holiday feasts, the Kraft Heinz brand introduced The Philly Series 5, which is described as a "stunning advancement in cheesecake technology," per an announcement emailed to Marketing Dive.
• The Philly Series 5 kit includes a special spring-form pan that contains the key ingredients to make a cheesecake, such as "five cream cheese bricks of power, ultra HD white chocolate and the latest 3D cookie crumb technology." The brand showcased those features in a spoof video that also touts The Philly Series 5's "dual egg processor."
• Debuting a week after the much-hyped launches of the Sony PlayStation 5 and Microsoft Xbox's Series S and Series X consoles, the Philly Series 5 is priced at $4.99 and will be available for preorder at noon today on a special microsite while supplies last. Philadelphia Cream Cheese worked with creative agency Gut on developing the mock gift and accompanying campaign, Adweek reported.

Dive Insight:

Philadelphia Cream Cheese's holiday effort pokes fun at the hyped-up campaigns for video game consoles as Sony PlayStation and Microsoft Xbox introduce the first updates to their gaming platforms in years. The Philly Series 5, with its spring-form pan between a sheet of white chocolate and a baking sheet, is made to resemble Sony's new PS5, whose black case is sandwiched between two white blades.

The brand's spoof commercial has all the hallmarks of ads targeting gamers in touting its latest technological advancements. However, shoppers can get their hands on a Philly Series 5 for the more modest price of $4.99 as a humorous gag gift instead of forking out hundreds of dollars for a PS5 or an Xbox Series X or Series S. The real consoles are expected to be in limited supply until next year as Sony and Microsoft cope with shortages on electronics components during the pandemic.

Philadelphia Cream Cheese's spoof campaign suggest consumers are ready for lighthearted holiday campaigns at the end of a tough year. That tone contrasts with the more serious mood seen in campaigns last spring, when fears about the pandemic and its economic consequences weighed on consumer sentiment.

The brand's latest campaign is more consistent with its past holiday efforts. Last year, Philadelphia Cream Cheese's true crime-style campaign poked fun at conspiracy theorists with a 90-second mockumentary titled "Wait, is that a cheesecake?" The campaign featured a fictional group called the Cheesecakers Society, which sought to prove that pilgrims ate cheesecake at the first Thanksgiving by citing clues in documents and real historical paintings. Before that holiday campaign, the brand created a novelty device called the "Bagel That," claiming the gadget could turn anything into a bagel by punching a hole in it.