When a celebrity struggles with a gaming addiction, they act strange. For example, Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds admitted that he enjoys playing Toon Blast and that he has a problem. He only recognized this only when his (inexistent) sister said so. Not the same can be said about Elijah Wood, who was recently spotted ruining a 7ft Orc’s day because of Lilith Games’s hit mobile role-playing game (RPG), AFK Arena. In the case of the American actor, best known for his portrayal of Frodo Baggins in the Lord of the Rings film trilogy, we are seeing a video game enthusiast powerless to resist AFK Arena’s plot. It is because of this new obsession that he ends up hiding and even hurting Uzgahk the Orc’s feelings, his old RPG, only to play the game.
Working behind the poor creature’s back is part of Lilith Games’ AFK Arena’s “Cheat on your RPG” TV campaign. Imagined by Wieden+Kennedy London, the campaign will run across a series of spots, which will be revealed in the upcoming weeks. The first chapter of the story, “Caught in the Act,” presents Wood the Gamer and his old RPG, the Orc. They both collaborated for many years, but life didn’t give the actor the chance to spend as much time with his former virtual buddy. The action of the video game fan to focus on something else apparently triggered some emotional response from Uzgahk the Horrid, which leaves the room in tears.
The second chapter, “Belinda Who?”, unfolds in a kitchen, where we see the Orc preparing a meal (probably for Wood). Things change as the monster hears his friend cheering for some “Belinda.” The creature immediately stops from whatever it is doing, asking who this Belinda is. The actor denies everything and not even the grilled Goblin head that the orc threw on the kitchen table won’t convince Wood to admit what this is about.
Speaking about the campaign, Elijah Wood commented: “Just when I thought I wouldn’t encounter another orc… here I am playing a version of myself that’s stuck in a love triangle between a needy orc and a casual mobile RPG game, AFK Arena. Surprisingly not the weirdest thing that’s happened this year.”
Anton Olshvang, Acquisition & Marketing Manager, Lilith Games, said: “It was an absolute pleasure working together with the Wieden+Kennedy team on AFK Arena’s first major TV and digital campaign for western players. Their creativity and passion for engaging storytelling helped bring the ‘Cheat on Your RPG’ concept to life and into the audience’s hearts. We’re excited to see AFK Arena’s core audience continuing to explode across the globe as more players cheat on their needy old RPGs.”
Hollie Walker and Cal Al-Jorani, Creative Directors, Wieden+Kennedy London, added: “The idea of cheating on your needy old RPG with something newer and y’know, more casual, felt like a very fun story to tell. I mean, who doesn’t want to see a lumbering Orc get his heart broken by Elijah Wood in favor of a shiny new mobile game?”
The premise of the campaign is that the actor is simply captured by AFK Arena’s unique vibrant world and idle style of gameplay. The films, directed by Nick Ball, produced by Blink, with VFX from Untold Studios and sound by 750MPH, will run across TV, online, and social. Over six million players have been enjoying AFK Arena up until now and its community continues to grow.
Credits:
Client: AFK Arena
Agency: Wieden+Kennedy London
Production Company: Blink