PLAY NZ

Read the campaign story

Tourism New Zealand's PLAY NZ borrowed the presentation language of video games to introduce real landscapes during the disrupted travel conditions of 2020. TBWA's project account describes a collaboration with gaming creator Loserfruit and a walkthrough-style presentation aimed at Australian audiences. Contemporary games reporting explains that the central attraction was a produced video and associated online exploration, not the launch of a fully playable commercial video game.

That distinction is essential to the case. The campaign used familiar conventions such as an explorer's perspective, a sequence of activities and the tone of a game demonstration. Those conventions gave viewers a way to imagine moving through a destination while international travel was constrained. The format could make a tourism film feel native to a gaming audience without pretending that a polished game engine had been built around the entire country.

The strategic mechanism was translation between cultural formats. Tourism advertising often offers scenic montages and general invitations to escape. PLAY NZ organized scenery and activities through a grammar its chosen audience already understood. A creator familiar with that grammar helped the material feel like an encounter with a recognizable media form rather than a travel advertiser simply placing a logo in front of gamers.

A small destination or cultural venue could apply the principle through an honest guided walkthrough. A museum might present a sequence of optional discoveries, clearly identifying what is filmed, clickable or available in person. The creative format should help people understand the place, not obscure practical information. Accessibility, costs and real visitor conditions still belong in the journey, even when the initial invitation is playful.

The sources document the execution and its pandemic-era context, not a causal increase in visits or bookings. Historical border conditions should not be read as current travel advice. An adaptation should also avoid implying interactive functionality that does not exist. A useful evaluation would ask whether viewers can distinguish the entertainment format from the actual visitor offer, remember specific reasons to visit and find reliable information when they are ready to plan.

Borrow a grammar, not a label

Use the audience’s familiar storytelling conventions to organize useful information.

Describe functionality honestly

A walkthrough video should not be advertised as a fully playable game.

Connect play to planning

Provide accurate practical details after the imaginative introduction.

A small test for another brief

Make an honest discovery walkthrough for a local museum.

Measure exhibit recall and ability to find practical visit information.

Stop if the format implies nonexistent features or hides access restrictions.

• Choose three real exhibits and explain visitor access.
• Film a guided sequence using clearly labelled choices.
• Test whether viewers know what is interactive and what is video.