In order to celebrate Chinese New Year, Blizzard Entertainment gave one of its now popular Overwatch characters a festive new skin. Though the brand often gives 3 or 4 of its characters legendary new skins for different events, the attention was primarily paid to the game's only Chinese character, Mei, for the Lunar New Year.
In honor of the Year of the Rooster, Blizzard Entertainment made several different updates to its Overwatch game. Notably, the game included new skins featuring traditional Chinese garb for character such as Chinese hero Mei. The game update also included a new Capture the Flag-style mode as a Brawl aptly named 'Capture the Rooster.'
The festive update ultimately demonstrates that video game manufacturers are making a more overt effort to celebrate Asian cultures in their games.
Key Themes Behind This Trend
- Festive Video Game Skins
- Opportunity for game developers to create and market festive skins for various cultural celebrations.
Where This Applies
- Video Game Development
- Disruptive innovation opportunity to create culturally inclusive video games with festive skins.
- Entertainment
- Opportunity for entertainment companies to incorporate diverse cultural celebrations into their products.
- Marketing and Advertising
- Opportunity for marketers to create campaigns that promote and celebrate cultural diversity in video games.
