Note to readers: WTFriday is a weekly feature where I find something stupid about video games and get you to laugh until it goes away. Please try to forget this is what I normally do every day of the week.
When you're advertising your game, you definitely want to buy some Internet ads. TV spots are a must if you've got a big budget. And if you really want to go all out, you should definitely create a narrative about two Brooklyn wiseguys/corporate representatives kidnapping a skydiver and a scientist. Makes sense, really. Also, don't forget to steal the eyeball-popping torture scene from Martin Scorsese's Casino!
This approach may seem insane, but back in 1997, the aforementioned madness is how Nintendo chose to promote one of the N64's best games, Star Fox 64. We've seen a few promo videos so far on WTFriday, but this may be the goofiest--even if its intentions are pure. I'm sure Nintendo would like to bury this infomercial along with the very idea of the Virtual Boy, but YouTube is a source of inescapable shame. Just watch:
My favorite moment out of all this mess comes at 5:44, when the dollar store version of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" kicks in. Did a lawsuit from the estate of Kurt Cobain prevent Nintendo from making further--possibly copyright infringing--promotional videos? Of course not. Jon Lovitz needed something to do after The Critic. I like to think of a hung over, out of work Jay Sherman narrating that one.
Read More...