Jan/05
Nintendo DS Re-launch Demands Attention

In the rapidly evolving video game industry, success is a matter of endurance and innovation. For Nintendo Canada, innovation came most recently in the form of Nintendo DS - a portable, dual-screen gaming device that hit the markets in November 2004.

With leading competitors quick on their tail, Nintendo Canada turned to Fleming Design Group to create a bold and edgy re-launch campaign that would cement Nintendo's position as the leaders of portable gaming.

When Nintendo Canada initially launched their new gaming platform in the winter of 2004, they looked to their long-time partners at Fleming to produce a sleek and modern P.O.P. campaign. Focused on maintaining tradition while highlighting the evolution of the new gaming system, Fleming utilized Nintendo Canada's association with the colour red as a main branding tool - giving both power and strength to the new campaign. Exceeding both parties' expectations, Fleming's work helped to promote Nintendo DS as the must-have tech toy of the holiday season, with sales going through the roof.

In response to the popularity of Nintendo DS, Sony rapidly organized to launch their own portable gaming device. With Playstation Portable (PSP) set for release in March of 2005, the gaming pioneers at Nintendo Canada had but a few months to plan for their own re-launch.

Directed to create a bold campaign that would capture both heart and mind, the team at Fleming began to brainstorm a solution that would keep DS at the top of everyone's wish list. With the dual challenge of maintaining sales momentum in the face of both competition and post-holiday consumer lows, Fleming knew that Nintendo DS' re-launch would have to demand attention. To do so, Fleming devised a campaign that was original and edgy - a perfect fit for Nintendo's innovative product.

Highlighting the unique interactive features of Nintendo DS, Fleming created a series of daring designs that centred upon the element of touchability. Using the bold image of a menacing Red Diamondback Rattlesnake, Fleming's ads caught the attention of gamers and non-gamers alike. Associating the venomous snake with the gritty, scrawled directive, "Don't Touch," Fleming successfully aimed consumer attention towards the "Touch" screen of the innovative Nintendo DS unit. With an outstretched, gripping fist reaching across the page, the divide between the touchable and untouchable was established and consumers were boldly reintroduced to Nintendo DS, and the interactive feature that set it apart.

Infiltrating stores within days of Sony's PSP release, Nintendo DS' re-launch appeared with a bang. With all P.O.P. components maintaining the gritty feel of the "Touch" signage, Fleming's work signaled the evolution of Nintendo Canada's identity. More mature than previous campaigns, the re-launch of the DS platform marked a move beyond Nintendo's Game Boy consumer base. With nearly two million Nintendo DS units sold within North America by mid-April, Nintendo Canada secured their role as the leaders of the portable gaming market.

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