For the most part, I hate giveaways. You have to sign up somewhere, purchase something, or complete some task that earns you a 1% (or oftentimes much less) chance of winning something. I especially hate giveaways when the prize is something interesting. Microsoft recently unveiled their new promotional Xbox controller that is a collaboration with the upcoming Deadpool & Wolverine movie. By god, the design team didn't hold back as the back of the controller is literally shaped to be Deadpool's ass. Is it stupid? Yep. Is it functional? I'm honestly not sure. However, it definitely fits the character in a way that tons of collabs fail to do. Usually I'd expect something lazy like the Deadpool symbol replacing the power button on the controller or something. Here we have a customized mold... that a lucky person will win by sweepstake.
That's right, you can't even buy this if you wanted to. Listen I know customized products are harder to make and therefore produced in limited quantities, but couldn't Microsoft up the price on these and sell them for a month or two? I'm not a Deadpool fan nor do I own an Xbox so I wouldn't buy one, but it seems like such a waste for a team up that actually took effort to construct. I would imagine there'd be a ton of people who would pick it up during that limited time just for the laughs. I suppose I should mention that the first 1000 people who order one of the new shiny regular Xbox controllers they plan to release soon will receive a Deadpool controller holder... which is nice but doesn’t quite hit the same mark for me.
Oh well, I'm not the target audience anyway so that's enough for today. I've seen so many shitty attempts at brands working together though (just recently the lazy Jujutsu Kaisen x McDonald's partnership) that it pains my soul to see a thoughtful result be reduced to a sweepstake. Did you hear about this controller? Are you planning to watch Deadpool & Wolverine? Would you buy the controller outright if it was for sale? Sharpen your claws, grab some swords, and break the fourth wall in the comments below!
