Nintendo has just been in touch with a video of the extended version of the Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks commercial being run in the US currently, and it's certainly not your average Zelda commercial.
Staying away from the cutesy cartoon characters that typify the game itself, it takes place in a rather creepy train carriage and seems to have very little to do with the game, but look closer and you'll see all kinds of Zelda references. Take a look at the video below and see how many you can spot.
Yes, we know Rupees aren't really that shape, but run with it.
[source youtube.com]
Comments 39
Yeah, I saw it just today. Man was it creepy!
Awesome commercial. Marketing play towards the "hardcore demographic" methinks, to counter the "kiddy" animation style.
I saw this a few days ago. US Zelda Ads are pretty sweet
Wow, so many references to Zelda pop up for about a second then it's on to the next thing! I've seen the commercial before, but never scrutinized it. Anyone notice the "Subway Map" is actually a map from the game?
Wow, that's epic.
That's how to make an advert.
Still doesn't top this though, which is the best advert in the history of video games.
Hopefully we get the same ad here, but with an inserted shot of the train hitting Ant & Dec at the end.
I gotta agree with everybody else. This is why America is awesome.
Great ad!!! Only 1-2 days left...
MUCH better than most of Nintendo's recent TV ads, no question!
I would have to strongly disagree with Damo regarding the quality of the commercial he linked, though watching it did teach me one thing: The Achievement in Sega Superstars Tennis callled "To be this good takes AGES" is actually from an old advertising campaign of theirs! I didn't know that, but it sure is a cool reference when you do.
I think this is a pretty good commercial.
Imagination......what a wonderful thing.
It's definitely showing in the UK too, I saw it at some ridiculous hour the other night. Nearly fell off the sofa when I realised what it was. Fantastic ad!
btw, that silly sega ad is not the best ever, this is, of course. Rik Mayall ftw ;D
ah yes, AWESOME commercial didn't know theres an extended version
@Stuffgamer1 and @Machu - Of course that Cyber Razor Cut ad doesn't look like much today but you have to remember that when it was released it was nothing short of revolutionary.
Up until that point TV adverts for video games had been tiresomely predictably affairs with kids grinning at TV monitors in an attempt to prove to the viewer that "HEY THIS GAME IS REALLY RAD MAN!"
The Sega adverts were refreshingly different, with an edgy feel that arguably helped the company dominate the UK during the 8-bit and 16-bit eras. You might not be aware of this in the US, but the Genesis/Mega Drive sold more than the SNES over here.
The Rik Mayall advert is fantastic, although I prefer this one.
Well, while we're at it, here's Rik's Zelda ad, which was wonderfully cheesy also.
SEGA did indeed dominated the UK back then, which caused plenty of arguments when I was a kid. Nintendo v Sega. Atari ST vs Amiga. Wow, them where the days. <3
Personally, I never got the Sega thing, still don't. :/ sorry James
I don't remember the Cyber Razor Cut advert, but it's a classic and still gets me excited about Mega Drive games some twenty years on. Fast forward to Sega's advertisements for the Saturn and it was clear they'd really lost their way - check this one out, for example!
A Sphincter Says What? D:
that was a weird ad dude
Epic. And more innovative than the game itself, arguably...
I saw this the other day and I first thought it was going to be a ghost movie or something, until I noticed that the ghost was Zelda.
This is a better commercial than some of Nintendo's recent games. Compare this the the Bowser's Inside Story Commercial.
Here's the link. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FegbAM72Rc4&feature=related
BTW I just noticed that the Newspaper said Hyrule Weekly.
Didn't they do a commercial like this for a Link to the Past: Four Swords?
.... How do I remember that?
I still remember the commercial for the Zelda Collector's Edition for the Gamecube. I was excited and scared at the same time
Best. Advert. Ever.
Looks like Ninty's changing their advertising tactics again <3
Me being who I am, I would have preferred the "ohmygod trains i love trains choo choo" version, but I guess this one gets the job done as well. I do find the random CGI stuff interspersed within the ad somewhat disconcerting though...
This is a nice commercial but it is what you would expect from nintendo. It has a harry potter vibe to it. And harry potter is family friendly and has mass market appeal.
definitely in the right direction
Great commercial!
Spherical rupees looked cool, even though they aren't that shape.
Did you guys notice the song that the old dude was playing on the Spirit Pipes?
Stuff I noticed (asides the CGI Zelda/Phantom models and the whole train change/hyrule reveal at the end):
Heart on the right-hand side exit sign (0:05)
The obvious panpipes dude playing the Zelda theme
Triforce graffiti
'Hyrule Weekly' newspaper and 'Spirit Tracks Disappearing' headline
Map behind the main guy changes from normal to one of Hyrule at 0:19
Obvious rupees to the homeless guy
Plush carpet appears
Hyrule emblem on the handrail
Anyone spot anything else?
That pic I clicked on was very misleading...
Wow i went to play the video again to spot what Raylax said and the video said a error occurred.
I actually think this video falls in line with typical Zelda commercials here in the west. I remember how they sold Wind Waker to the masses; with a creepy, high-fantasy movie trailer where the narrator was describing Links quest to save her (and, of course, she spoke in a english accent). The Zelda GBC games got a sweet, high fantasy CG ad as well. And Majora's Mask had that awesome, atmospheric, "everyone staring at the moon as it crashes to Earth around the world" commercial.
Nintendo seems to be the only company still selling games to us like that, on the rare occasion they pony up for some ads (well, ones that don't involve Beyonce). I remember in the 80's when everything was presented as Hollywood style , high concept fantasy action. The cover for a copy of Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest featured realistic knights battling realistic dragons - little did we know that the creatures within were goofy looking Dragonball creatures (mainly because we didn't know who Akira Toriyama was at the time). Or hell, everyone is familiar with the infamous facades Capcom gave Mega Man back in the day, to try to make him appeal to westerners more, with their Tron-ripoff looking science fiction dudes.
It's actually kinda neat at how that idea evolved, and how NOA still uses it to great affect to paint Zelda as the series it really is. No matter how quaint and painterly the games get with thier presentation, they're .
I saw the Australian commercial today. I felt like killing something. Please, please, please Nintendo of Australia. Don't insult our intelligences anymore. How are games meant to be seen as a viable form of art like music and movies when you’re flinging poo like this at the public?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPpfINUi-f0&feature=related
I'd love to see a zelda game with that exact tone
This is the same commercial on Latin America
Commercial guy:
Mom, I'm gonna be really late for dinner.
wow just amazing...actually been seeing this commercial a lot here in Denver
Nintendo's having a renaissance in commercials I guess. This is how they were before those stupid ones with Beyonce playing Rhythm Heaven and crap like that.
lol that was a cool commercial, i wish i could go to hyrule . . .
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