We’ve seen many a marketing stunt in our time and, done well, they never get old.
After all, what’s more fun than getting a bunch of people to believe something that’s not actually true and then revealing it all? Especially when it involves a cute, ten-year-old girl who is a gaming prodigy. Or so everyone thought.
Earlier this month, GameStop, working with The Marketing Arm/TMA Entertainment, set up a stunt in a California store which pitted ten-year-old Karissa, who became known as #KarissaTheDestroyer, against some of the best gamers in the area.
Complete with age appropriate wise-assitude, Karissa took down one gamer after another as onlookers couldn’t believe what they were watching.
Of course, the whole thing was a stunt, and last Friday, a campaign video revealed the fact that pro gamer Liquid’KDJ was actually behind the controls. The reveal video is approaching 750,000 views.
Over the course of the stunt, many questioned the validity of Karissa’s game playing skills and Gawker’s gaming site, Kotaku, prior to the stunt being revealed, had this to say:
Some have taken to Reddit and Smash Boards to express their disbelief of her skills, saying that she may be some bizarre form of guerilla marketing. Commenters have noted that she takes her hand off the controller for a moment and yet her character keeps attacking. Others have pointed out that maybe the attack animation has already begun so there’s no reason to cry foul. The fact that she is also a small time actress has also pushed towards the “It’s all a stunt” theory.
And, of course, it was a stunt. But it sure had people going for a couple of weeks. And it seems Karissa herself — a budding actress — is also quite pleased with her work.
If you haven't already check out my video shoot on YouTube "Karissa the Destroyer" Super Smash Bros by GAMESTOPVIDEO pic.twitter.com/VT7Fs1IRLA — Karissa Bannister (@kkbannister) November 22, 2014
The stunt was MC’d by Smash Bros. gamer Apex D1 who kicked things off with this tweet:
Sitting at lunch in bewilderment. A random 10 year old girl was destroying everyone in Smash 4 at the Gamestop!!! BRUUUHHHHH!!!! — Apex | D1 (@xD1x) November 8, 2014
Apex D1 was not completely in on the stunt having been brought in only as an MC. Sadly, he received some heat from those who, shall we say, do not possess much of a sense of humor. He shot back:
If you truly hate me over a prank, you guys are the real bad people in the world. There's no reason to react in such a way over nothing. — Apex | D1 (@xD1x) November 10, 2014
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