Grey London

London

Robots were taking our jobs, so we took one of theirs.

The world’s first paid job in a video game.

The Pringles chip is perfectly designed for gaming. Less grease. Less mess. More game. Pringles wanted to get the attention of hard-to-impress-seen-it-all-before gamers and let them know that they are the chip that helps you stay in the game more than any other snack. When Pringles spoke to gamers, they were most excited by the crossing of real and virtual worlds. From real fashion brands producing virtual skins, to entire Minecraft landscapes based on real cities. Pringles needed to write the next chapter. And in a world where AI and machines are taking more and more ‘real’ human jobs, this was an opportunity for Pringles to strike back on behalf of humans and get gamers excited along the way.

“Welcome to the future…I guess” – Gaming Bible

Working with XBOX and the game Train Sim, Pringles offered humans the chance to get a job as a non-playable character in a video game. The position? Re-stocking Pringles vending machines in Train Sim railway stations, of course. The pay? $25,000. To find the ideal candidate, Pringles kicked off a recruitment campaign on social platforms, in OOH, and with virtual posters inside other video games, targeting gamers as they played.

One of the job requirements – that you had to be a human to apply – ‘annoyed’ existing NPCs. So, Pringles used their virtual rage to promote the job offer, sharing social films of the peeved video game characters venting their rage.

Ultimately, a successful candidate was selected, transformed into an NPC and transported into Train Sim live on Twitch.

And in the game he will stay. Indefinitely.

We have made incredible progress over the last few years to establish Pringles as the No 1 snack for gamers. Grey have been our key strategic partner in helping us on this journey and each year we set ourselves the ambition to raise the bar creatively. PRINGLES NPC is a great example of what we can do together and we are thrilled with the results.
Tracy Murphy, Senior Director, Salty Snacks

2.8 million: minutes watched on Twitch

+38%: increased brand awareness

1 human: getting paid to work in a video game

42 million: total impressions

The Pringles NPC

Robots were taking our jobs, so we took one of theirs! Working with XBOX and the game Train Sim, Pringles offered humans the chance to get a job as a non-playable character in a video game.