Shift Control Media Dances 2 DC with New Casual Game for BarelyPolitical.com
Branded entertainment company brings humor and interactivity to 2008 Presidential race
Greenwich, CT – March 3, 2008 – Shift Control Media, a branded entertainment company specializing in original game development, has partnered with political humor website BarelyPolitical.com to create Dance 2 DC, a humorous take on the American political process.
Dance 2 DC is an online casual game that’s fun and easy to play. Players can assume the roles of candidates like Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John McCain, customize their wardrobes for each face-off, then set out on a cross-country dance-a-thon to raise approval ratings. Each level ends with a showdown between candidates, with the ultimate contest set in the oval office at the White House. The game can be found at www.barelypolitical.com.
“In an election year, when younger voters are having a greater impact than any time in recent history, we thought creating a viral game for BarelyPolitical.com would be a great way to motivate more young adults to get involved with the Presidential contest,” explains Tim Zuckert, president and CEO of Shift Control Media. In addition to hours of addictive game play, Dance 2 DC allows eligible adults to register directly from the game via technology provided by Rock the Vote.
“We turned to Shift Control because I was very familiar with their unique ability to capture the essence of brands in innovative and fun games,” says Barely Political founder Ben Relles. “Based on their recent work for Coke, NBC and Yahoo, I knew they’d bring the right mix of irreverence and entertainment value to Dance 2 DC.”
Frank Sanni, Shift Control’s director of strategic planning, notes that Dance 2 DC will make it fit in with current tastes in gaming. “Rhythm-based games like Guitar Hero are in the spotlight right now, and we used the simplicity behind that style of play to allow for a broad range of skills and appeal,” he says. “You don’t need to be a hardcore gamer, have a special controller or deal with a complex interface. Anyone can play and enjoy Dance 2 DC.”
“Barely Political has put a fresh face on political parody,” Zuckert sums up. “They’ve had enormous success on YouTube and in the blogosphere with the introduction of original videos and characters like ‘Obama Girl.’ Dance 2 DC provides the site with an entertaining way to extend their appeal and encourage a broader audience to spend more time with their unique style of entertainment.”
Dance 2 DC is free for the first level. The free version allows players to not only dress up their candidates, but also take video snapshots of their best dance sequences for easy upload to Facebook. An additional five levels of play can be purchased for $4.99. By offering the game at an accessible price point, Shift Control is also breaking the mold for casual games, which normally require purchase for $19.99 after one hour of free trial.
Dance2 DC is available at www.barelypolitical.com, and on Facebook profile pages everywhere.
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Posted on 03.04.08 to Game Development, Brandworthy, SCM news. Author: ted. Subscribe to follow comments on this post. No comments yet. Add your thoughts or trackback from your own site.
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