As the advertising creative community gears up for the 37th annual One Show and The One Club's 4th annual Creative Week, May 7-11 in New York City, they can get some of their anxieties out by playing "Kill for a Pencil," an 8-bit arcade-style game that brings new meaning to the words "killer creative." An agile team of creative technologists at Mullen partnered with the creative industry leaders at The One Club to put the game together.
In Kill for a Pencil, players help ad man "Jon Scraper" navigate the streets of "Madville," challenging famous advertising icons for the right to a coveted One Show Pencil. Players will recognize some familiar characters, from a lizard hawking car insurance to a well-constructed deodorant spokesman best known for his small white towel and massive pecs.
Built on HTML 5 Canvas for tablet, mobile and desktop, "Kill for a Pencil" is really simple to play (no plugins needed), and the rewards for winning include symbolic gold, silver and bronze pencils and a chance to score free tickets to One Show Interactive for those who can survive the hazards of the game course. There's even a green pencil for those who navigate the course without incurring harm on any of their opponents.
"We're hoping this crazy ad game becomes sticky," said Mark Wenneker, Chief Creative Officer at Mullen. "The One Show is a perfect place to see how people like it."
"Kill for a Pencil" is live as of today, and will be available for play for the industry professionals and guests gathering for all three One Show awards ceremonies.