If modern consumerism has taught us anything it's that there's no better way of selling something that getting someone famous to have their photo taken whilst holding said product, or at least standing next to it. Nintendo is clearly aware of this golden rule and has turned to celebrities in order to spread the word about its forthcoming brawler Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.
The company recently held a Celebrity Smash Bros. tournament which included the likes of Robbie Amell, Luke Benward, Jennifer Stone and the one and only Zelda Williams — who is clearly a bit tasty at Smash as she managed to make it to the final four.
Elsewhere on the internet, High School Musical heartthrob Zac Efron has clearly gotten over the terrible digital representation of himself on the Wii and has posted a challenge to fellow actor Ryan Rottman:
Clearly not one to back down from a challenge, Rottman has accepted the invitation, just in case you're interested:
Efron has almost 10 million follows on Twitter, which just goes to show how powerful the support of such individuals can be when it comes to promoting a product. The jury is still out on the authenticity of that original tweet, however — it strikes us as little too perfect to have been penned without any kind of involvement from Nintendo itself.
We'll let you decide, but one thing is clear — celebs just love a bit of Smash.
Comments 35
Slow news day
@shaneoh And a slow comment day, too! What are the chances, eh?
this is better than the aaron paul/wii fit u thing, i suppose. I haven't seen any of zac efron's work though.
Well at least if celebrities do this it will defo increase the number of Wii U sold.
@shaneoh At least it's better then no news.
In the age we live in now this is a good tactic.
@shaneoh Nothing wrong with the piece.
Noticed in the Game Overview in the top right it says 4 Players. Shouldn't it say 1-8?
Will this be the next ice bucket challenge? I hope not, cause that was very annoying.
This is actually great advertising!!!
@HappyHappyist He's good at certain things just wish he'd find a genre that works best for him.
This is perfect advertising for Nintendo.
Any press is good press. Maybe a few more sales that wouldn't have otherwise been had can come from this.
No Miley Cyrus? I'm disappointed.
@the1andonlyIKY Well spotted! You win today.
@Damo with my first comment ever on this site! XD Booyah!
Sounds more like Nintendo paid this guy to say this. Lol. If he does actually have the game, hopefully he is actually good at it.
While it's clear that this was penned by Nintendo, I think this is great publicity. Anything that helps get the Wii U name out there is a good thing. It at least aims at a demographic that isn't all family friendly with the following he has along females and others thanks to the rowdy Neighbors movie.
I imagine him and Nintendo had talks, but it wouldn't surprise me if he was a fan.
Has he done much 'legit acting'? I'd feel bad for him if he never managed to progress his career out of Teen Choice movies...
I don't get it. All these "promotional events" and yet the best way to promote this game is with a demo! That way you get it into the hands of actual consumers who can show their friends and spread the word!
I love eating spinach artichoke dip while playing SMASH!!!
Just 8 more days before Smash releases, why can't time go faster? ;_;
@AJWolfTill Last year he was in Bad Neighbors with Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne. Wasn't the best movie in the world but it was good for a giggle. Oh and he also did one called "That Awkward Moment" which I thought was actually pretty good. Never had any time for the guy previously, but he's not all that bad now and he seems to be doing what he can to break away from his early career in a good way.
"Settle it in Smash" might be the best thing Ntinedo has done since Wii U came out. If they can keep #settleitinsmash going (does twitter care about capitalization b/c it's kind of annoying) - whether paid or not - it's just about the best marketing they can get.
Now about a SSBU and Wii U bundle...
#settleitinsmash is kind of lame imo. i dont see myself using or saying that. dont see others saying it either.
I've been issuing this ultimate challenge to plenty of people since the 3DS version launched. Good times, with plenty more coming!!!
Well we always need a handsome man to promote stuff and Smash has just gotten one.
@midnafanboy Should they team up with Playgirl to advertise Smash?
"The jury is still out on the authenticity of that original tweet." Indeed, it sounds like a PR guy wrote that tweet. But in any case, this is a good move for Nintendo.
So... Who won?
It may have been:
include this hash tag and this one and challenge this guy. Agreed? "Yes" And then he wrote it precisely as he was paid to do. I don't have much of a problem with this as long as he actually likes the game and is excited about it. It's still a bit deceptive because not every fan knows how advertising heavy some people's twitter posts are. :/
I love me some Zefron. Woof.
Disney stars and presidents advertising the WiiU, the next best thing
Again it isn't weird for celebrities to own a Wii U, Nintendo isn't paying them to do this they truthfully love the system like the rest of us
It's cool, if he actually enjoys the game, otherwise this is just advertising.
Eminem also bought a Wii U for Smash Bros... he said Destiny bored him lol..
I question if these people actually run their own twitter accounts or are they handled by PR teams? If I were Angelina Jolie I'd have an official account posting cool lies about what I wanted people to think of me, then I'd have an account under the pseudonym of Bernard Spunge which only my real friends would know about and could see the posts I make about what I had on toast that morning.
@MrGawain ok... Which celebrity are? c'mon now... Sounds like you may know too much...
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