CANNES, FRANCE — The category of Entertainment Lions for Gaming at Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity awarded the creative work that connects people to brands through gameplay – a first in the prestigious show as an acknowledgement of the growing role video games play in today’s advertising space. In its inaugural year, the jury, spearheaded by 2023 Jury President and Riot Games Global Head of Marketing Francine Li, was already met with vibrant entries from the gaming world, a true testimony to the category’s ripeness and readiness for recognition.
Among its pioneering batch of winners is Leo Burnett Manila‘s “Unbranded Menu” for McDonald’s, which scored a Silver Lion for sub-category Influencer & Co-Creation and a Bronze Lion for Breakthrough on a Budget. These wins are the first to be announced among its shortlisted categories, with winners for Social & Influencer Lions and Direct Lions to be announced later this week at the festival.
“Unbranded Menu” is a game-changing piece of advertising work that doesn’t change the game at all. In fact, it makes do with assets that are already in place in some of the most popular games in the world: Grand Theft Auto V, The Sims, Resident Evil, Genshin Impact, Call of Duty, and so many more.
The big idea behind the campaign is that when gamers see a cheese burger, a sundae, or french fries in the middle of a game, the first thing they identify it as is a McDonald’s “food-alike” despite it being unbranded. Hence, Leo Burnett Manila and McDonald’s initiated an open challenge for gamers to share photos of unbranded in-game food items online with the #ThisIsMcDonalds tag in exchange for actual McDonald’s items, and even gaming credits, consoles, and other gaming merchandise. A truly winning idea that organically connected an iconic brand to one of the most active communities in entertainment.
Raoul Panes, Chief Creative Officer of Publicis Groupe Philippines and Leo Burnett Group Manila, commented on the win: “It’s been a little over two years since we started working on Unbranded Menu (UM). To get this far – at the world’s biggest stage for creativity – is truly fulfilling and exhilarating for the team! We were working mostly remotely on this project, doing a lot of research, iterations and negotiations. But the UM team was bonded by a passion for gaming and a desire to help McDonald’s connect with more gamers in a cost-efficient yet creative way.”
On what he hopes other agencies will take away from Unbranded Menu’s win, he said: “Gaming has been an integral part of marketing for some time already, so for Unbranded Menu to be among the first to be recognized for gaming in Cannes, gives credence and credibility to that tool. The Philippines is immersed in the gaming culture. And Asia too. You just have to look at that person playing a mobile game next to you. We are deep into it already so the challenge lies in mining powerful insights and ideas for our clients and convincing them that gaming is not just a niche activity for [so-called] ‘nerds.’ It’s recreation, release, relief, reward for the everyman. The same people who consume their products and services. McDonald’s shares that belief and that’s why UM has gotten this far.”
Oliver Rabatan, McDonald’s Philippines Chief Marketing Officer, shared his thoughts on the win from the client’s perspective: “McDonald’s lives by global creative excellence in how we do business. We are very happy that our Unbranded Menu campaign has gained recognition from the world’s premier creative show, no less. And winning it in a pioneer category affirms our goal in always aspiring to do ground-breaking marketing campaigns.”
He furthered, “Gaming is real. We were one of the first brands in the Philippines to get into it via sponsorships. But just like in games, one has to have the smarts to level up. Our partnership with Leo Burnett has always been about the constant search for innovative and fresh ideas. With Unbranded Menu, we found a way to engage the gaming community without breaking the bank. With agencies and marketers working in synch, the possibilities are endless for their business and creative goals.”
