It's been a big year for the Nintendo Switch, with major titles like Animal Crossing: New Horizons driving one of the most successful sales years yet for the company's hybrid console. Like many of its predecessors, the console has started to experience mainstream popularity, with celebrities and other personalities picking up the Switch to kick back and play some games. Now, some are even being featured in ads.
Brie Larson, who recently starred as Captain Marvel in Avengers: Endgame, is featured in a new ad for the Switch, enjoying Fortnite, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and even Ring Fit Adventure, which has been a breakout hit for Nintendo during the coronavirus pandemic. While just under a minute-and-a-half long, the ad packs in a dense amount of Switch gameplay and product imagery.
Bouncing between a call about a script, a workout session, and an evening of playing Animal Crossing, it's easy to see how the ad is meant to appeal to Nintendo's audience – or even those that don't typically pick up a controller. Of course, there's also a clear message about staying connected during the lockdown, as evidenced by the end of the ad, which features Brie Larson on a video call with her sister, Milaine Desaulniers, while the two play New Horizons.
All around, it's a wholesome video, and one that fits perfectly with Nintendo's image. Not to mention, it reinforces the Switch's appeal as a device to pass time while stuck at home, a fact that has fueled much of Nintendo's success this year. Increasingly, people are turning to video games to connect with friends they can't see, and Nintendo's broad roster of recognizable games has made it an appealing option for many players.
There's been an uptick of personalities in video games recently. Microsoft notoriously sent Snoop Dogg an Xbox Series X fridge, following a meme that emerged online shortly after the Xbox Series X's reveal, which compared the shape of the console to a refrigerator. Brie Larson isn't even the only personality to appear in a recent Nintendo ad, as Awkwafina also has one showing off the Switch.
Video games have become more mainstream in recent years, so it makes sense that celebrities are being featured in more ads with them. That trend might be here to stay, especially as the major players in the industry try to attract more users to their ecosystems, but it's hard to say what that will entail.