What I mean is, GAF is raving over how amazing this commercial is. I'm not getting the sense that it's in a "This is a great commercial to show to other people who aren't as interested in games," but rather that people here think it's a great commercial for themselves.
Ah, I see.
7 months of data.
I think the mass appeal is exactly what makes it brilliant. Remember the way we all felt the way we watched Odyssey get revealed? This commercial sums that experience up in 90 seconds.
We get start with the odd mixture of real people in a very clearly cartoonish and hypercolor environment. It's familiar, yet clearly different. Jazz music starts, the dancing kicks in, and just as you think you might know what you're watching - Mario pops up.
Immediately, everything has shattered. We know Mario, we like Mario. But this is a whole new ballgame. Yet as this music blends the classic Mario mood with a sort of jazzy musical aesthetic, the pairing starts to make sense. It's Mario in the real world. We get a few glimpses of gameplay that show the cap tossing mechanic. We see the Switch. Mario's wearing a Sombrero, that's fun.
And just as you think you have a handle on what you're watching a commercial for, Mario possesses a human man against his will. Then a dog. Then a traffic cone. All of a sudden, Mario's in a candy colored food wonderland. He's taken the form of a Goomba, a Bullet Bill, several dinosaurs. His shirt's off, and he's playing with a dog wearing a fedora.
It's full of these short moments that take you by surprise, leaving you with a thrilling confusion. Short scenes that paste a grin on your face, one that you can't quite explain. It just looks fun, like the Mario you know so well. But loaded with new ideas.
