With less than two weeks to go before the PS5 launches in the US, it’s only natural that Sony would release a horde of ads for it. This new one is just the latest one.
Unfortunately, like most of their recent ads, this PS5 launch ad shows no gameplay footage at all. Instead, this ad uses a combination of live-action and CGI clips in order to highlight a general theme of discovery and journeying into the unknown.
I feel at this point, an obligatory reference to Frozen 2 that is completely unrelated to this PS5 launch ad would be fitting. Instead, I’ll do one better. Enjoy:
Into the PS5’s Gameplay-less Unknown
To be honest, I’m a bit disappointed by this global launch ad for the PS5. I feel like it’s something of a failure as far as ads are concerned. I consider an ad to be successful if it’s entertaining enough to get people to watch it. This is not that. All you get is a bunch of bland footage of astronauts, pilots, and mountain climbers doing astronaut, pilot, and mountain climbing things. There’s some actual footage mixed in, but that only makes the ad feel cheaper.
Worse, you don’t even realize that this launch ad is for the PS5 until the very end. Even those brief images of the suspiciously PlayStation controller button-shaped artifacts would likely slip past most everyone. I feel like the vast majority of the audiences watching this are going to be thinking: “Just how is this supposed to be an ad for the PS5?”. And I wouldn’t blame them.
Conclusion
Sony has just launched a new global launch ad for the PS5, but it’s a bit of a disappointment. There are other factors, but the complete lack of gameplay footage is the biggest issue for me. Sony, if you’re reading this, perhaps you could actually put some gameplay in your game console ad before the PS5 launches in the US on November 12, 2020; or even before it launches globally on November 19, 2020? That would be fantastic.
Source: YouTube
