Coming off of 2018’s critically-acclaimed God of War, the video game world was nervously awaiting to see if PlayStation and Santa Monica Studios could pull off another masterpiece.

Our research revealed a surprising shift in tone for the franchise after the introduction of Kratos’ son, Atreus. From a violent God to a struggling father, the internet suddenly saw Kratos in a different light, and gave us a surprising way in with humor.

One of the many things we know about parents is they stick together. The proliferation of parent influencers and resources across the internet coupled with the countless in-person meetups and support groups prove it.

And within all those groups are people who believe in a wide range of parenting styles and preach the benefits to others. So we asked ourselves: why not someone who resonates so deeply with Kratos as a father that they want to share that way of parenting with others?

Between the campaign’s debut during the World Series, an exclusive extended cut on Entertainment Weekly, and the massive exposure of our follow-up interview spots customized for each celebrity’s social channel, we instantly grabbed the attention of an entirely new audience for the game.

God of War: Ragnarök became the fastest selling first-party launch game in PlayStation history, selling 5.1 million copies in the first 5 days. That beat 2018’s franchise record of 5 million units in a month in less than a week.

The record-setting pace didn’t stop there: in the 3 months since it’s release, God of War: Ragnarök topped 11 million in sales, while 2018 took over a year to break 10 million.

We took a big moment in gaming and made it a big moment in entertainment at large: tens of millions of views and 92% positive sentiment from both old and new fans of the franchise, with many saying it reminded them of the good old days of gaming commercials.

Oh, and tons of ‘Le(Insert Word)’ comments on everything LeBron posted for weeks.

Digiday Video & TV Awards
Best Ad
Best Multi-Platform Video Campaign

The One Show
Influencer Marketing | Finalist

American Advertising Awards
Best In Show | Los Angeles
Internet Commercial Campaign | Gold, Los Angeles
National TV Commercial | Gold, Los Angeles
Internet Commercial Campaign | Gold, District
National TV Commercial | Gold, District
Internet Commercial Campaign | Gold, National

ANA Reggie Awards
Influencer Marketing | Gold

Shorty Awards
Gaming | Gold

The Drum | Chip Shop Awards
Best Use Of Celebrity | Finalist

Clio Entertainment
Best Live-Action Game Spot | Bronze
Best Live-Action Game Campaign | Bronze