Beijing 2008

As major sporting events go, there is something infinitely satisfying about the Olympics. As opposed to football tournaments, which are more important than life itself and therefore often lacking on the fun side as the nation either mourns an early exit (or as with this year, a failure to even qualify), the Olympics are all about fun and the unexpected win.

Watching some poor central African chap try and beat honed Australians at swimming in the first Olympic sized pool he’s ever seen is a hoot; the seriousness in the eyes of the triple jumper, the crazed celebrations of the shooting team, the all too brief excitement of the hundred metres – all sporting life is here, from the sublime to the ridiculous, and for the few short weeks it colonises the TV, the Olympics are rightly celebrated.

Amateur sport makes for great entertainment, not to mention a thousand pledges to take up some of those diverse sports like fencing, rowing or even curling.

Thankfully, rather than embarrassing encounters at local sporting organisations as blindly optimistic first timers try to get to grips with the intricacies of the modern sporting bow, we have the official game of the competition, Beijing 2008 from the wonderful people at Sega.

Brilliantly, Sega has previous in the Olympic game arena – who could forget trying to perfect the high dive in Olympic Summer Games ’92, for example? In fact, with this latest Olympic title, Sega digs into a much richer heritage than is exclusive to them – how many of the older guard, grown up on Daley Thomson’s Decathalon, will jump at the chance to get back to their peak gaming fitness? Lots of them, that’s how many.

The Beijing Olympics are an excuse for mass aggressive competitiveness and the endless search for the one sport you are better at than everyone else.  

That aspect, the ‘I’m better at the parallel bars on this game that anyone else can possibly be’ side of things, represents the greatest selling point of this title. It’s hugely inclusive, everyone can play and thanks to the sheer variety and number of sports included, there’s enough scope for everyone to find something to enjoy and waste their lives trying to break world records at, be that Judo or the 100m breaststroke, the Triple Jump or the Kayak.

The game itself features a huge number of sports, covering off six key categories: track, field, aquatics, gymnastics, shooting, and ‘other’ (featuring the weightlifting, cycling and table tennis side of things), the 38 official events will give players an awful lot of chances to finish in the medals.

In-depth career and competition modes allow players to customise their Olympic teams as they make their way through the game, whilst up to three players can compete in competition mode. As is to be expected, the controls vary massively from game to game, encompassing time-based play, rhythm games, timing and targeting systems, and everyone from China to Cuba is represented, making things just that little bit more entertaining – who could not love representing Finland, or the mighty Belgians as they tussle for eternal sporting glory?

In terms of realistic gameplay, Sega roped in decathlete Dean Macey (no Daley Thompson really, but times are different now, I suppose) and heptathlete Kelly Sutherland for the game’s motion capture, whilst the players’ kits are accurate to the reality of the games, with customisation available.

As for actually selling the game, you can’t ask for much more than a two-and-a-half week long, blanket covered tournament that has already dominated headlines months before it even begins (admittedly for reasons other than the games themselves, but no publicity is bad publicity and all that). That aside, there will be an extensive marketing plan in place for the title, as is befitting the first Olympic title on the current generation of consoles. Having launched on June 27th, the game will be backed initially by an extensive six-week TV campaign, with a mixture of ten and 20-second spots, with coverage also planned for during the games themselves. All the major channels are covered off, including Sky Sports and Setanta, ensuring the serious sporting crowd are in the know.

Online, the game will be supported by a campaign that will include site takeovers on Sky Sports and Nuts, with banners on The Sun Online and dedicated sports sites. Viral videos and trailers will also be distributed, and will feature on official Olympic partner sites and broadcasters, with ‘making of’ featurettes including interviews with Dean Macey and Kelly Sotherton amongst them.

The print campaign features adverts within the UK guide to the Olympics, as well as in the official guide to Beijing Olympics 2008. Men’s lifestyle press, such as FHM and Men’s Health will be targeted, whilst the nationals, broadcast TV and radio will all be included in the plans in place.

In-store, a campaign that will run for two weeks on release and again during the games will include window takeovers, security wraps, themed Olympic areas in-store, standees, stockees, cubes, A2 posters, dummy inlays and double-sided carrier bags.

In all, it’s an immense effort behind what is going to be a hugely popular game regardless. Positive games press interest has already helped raise awareness, so make the most of this opportunity to shift an awful lot of copies of Beijing Olympics – it’ll be another four years before you get a chance like this again.