An estimated 30 percent of the world population are gamers, and video games are increasingly viewed as a viable way for people or companies to promote their causes to a large audience. In the month before the 2020 US presidential election, Democratic candidate Joe Biden created his own island in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and four yard signs were made available to download for free. Now luxury fashion label Balenciaga is hoping to capture the attention, and wallets, of gamers as well.
The Spanish fashion house, well known for its footwear whose prices often reach three or even four digits, will be debuting its latest clothing collection by designer Demna Gvasalia in a video game called Afterworld: The Age of Tomorrow, which launches on December 6. The released trailer reveals almost nothing about the game and, maintaining the air of mystery, Balenciaga’s statement about Afterworld: The Age of Tomorrow doesn’t help clarify things much.
Set in the year 2031, Afterworld: The Age of Tomorrow is an “allegorical adventure” in which a “hero avatar advances throughout distinct zones, motivated by tasks and interactions. The narrative of Afterworld is anchored to mythological pasts and projected futures with timeless archetypes and speculative imagery.”
The new Balenciaga 2021 collection was inspired in part by trying to imagine what fashion may be like in 10 years, and the underlying theme of the new line is human destiny. Although the world of Afterworld: The Age of Tomorrow might seem to be decaying at first, it is in fact not depicting a dystopia but rather the development of a growing balance between nature and industry. The game is “a real-life breathing exercise set in a virtual utopia,” and players who reach the end will “finally become…a ‘Master of Two Worlds.’”
Balenciaga’s foray into video games is of course not the first time the material world of product placement has intersected with the digital world of entertainment. For Mario’s 35th anniversary, Nintendo has collaborated with Puma for the Puma x Mario collection whose shoes feature nostalgic throwbacks to Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, Super Mario Galaxy, and even the classic NES.
Back in September, Portland Trail Blazers professional basketball player Damian Lilliard debuted his new signature shoe, the Dame 7, by wearing them in NBA 2K21. Then in October, Ubisoft joined up with Reebok to release the Capsule Collection, which contains three unique shoe designs inspired by Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, as well as a hat, hoody, and a pair of socks, all sporting the Valhalla logo.
And the video game tie-ins aren’t limited to just shoes and clothing. CD Projekt Red and Porsche got together to make a real-life version of the Porsche 911 Turbo driven by Johnny Silverhand in Cyberpunk 2077, the long-awaited dystopian action RPG due to release on December 10.
Afterworld: The Age of Tomorrow launches on December 6.
Source: WWD