Microsoft explains Xbox One TV ad ‘glitch’

A glitch that had appeared in the UK TV ad for Xbox One at the end of last month has been revealed as a competition.

A one-second disruption was apparently inserted into the ‘Invitation’ TV short in January. That one second contained 25 frames, in which were hidden a series of coded clues.

The glitch ad first aired at midday and by the evening has already been mentioned several times on Twitter. It was solved just 36 hours later. The ultimate winner won a Day One Xbox One and various other goodies, including a trip to LA for the Titanfall launch party.

This campaign was designed with community engagement at its heart,” Microsoft’s Xbox EMEA social marketing manager Graeme Boyd said. [It] was built around our most popular Xbox games, encouraging gamers to work together, solve clues and ultimately discover big prizes.

With the excellent work from our agency partners, the Xbox Glitch has reinforced Xbox One as the home for gamers.”

Here’s a video outlining the shenanigans: