Burger King partners with Microsoft to launch futuristic games

Burger King is partnering with Microsoft to target children and offer a free toy in Kiddie Meals that will also act as a virtual toy within Xbox games. The physical toys will come with a tag, which is used to scan the toy into an Xbox Kinect game called Kinectimals.  The launch is expected before Christmas this year.

Burger King
Burger King

Speaking at the Cannes Lions Festival, Microsoft senior vice president Mich Mathews used the deal with Burger King to explain the branding opportunities made possible by Microsoft’s controller-free technology, Kinect. The Kinect technology will work by linking up a motion and voice sensitive camera to the Xbox 360. The Kinect add-on is already available for pre-order and will be officially released sometime in the autumn.

The Kinectimals game is targeted at children and allows players to bond with five different animals by teaching them new tricks, playing together and completing challenges. After the Burger King toy is scanned into the game, the virtual toy can be thrown around and the pet animal will fetch it and bring it back to the player.

Microsoft is set to further exploit the flexibility of its upcoming controller-free gaming and entertainment system by allowing other brands to place products into Xbox games.

Microsoft’s hands-free motion control system will include face and voice recognition and is designed to break down barriers and encourage the whole family to play the Xbox 360 console. Both Microsoft and Sony have been scrambling to catch up with Nintendo after the Nintendo Wii motion-sensitive games console enjoyed massive success after opening up video gaming to new demographics.

Mathews says the software will also open up new advertising platforms. She believes the “contextual relevance” of the software makes it a powerful advertising tool because “it understands what I’m doing or trying to do, it understands my voice, it responds to touch”.

This story first appeared on pitch