Puma invites city-goers to run through mythical world

Puma is inviting city goers to test out its latest running shoes via an interactive game in the middle of one of Shanghai's busiest squares.

The sports brand has teamed up with creative production house MediaMonks to develop a pop-up pavilion in the Chinese city to give the public a chance to test the new Hybrid Astro.

Different from traditional training routines, visitors will get the chance to run through a Puma-inspired mythical world in the form of a customised Puma avatar.

Moving away from leaderboards and power-ups, the experience takes runners through three imaginary virtual worlds — a city, a floating island and a dense forest.

By putting technology front-and-centre of the experience, Puma hopes it will remind consumers of the technologies used in the new shoes, while providing a distinctive and fun experience.

"Puma’s brief focused on the beauty and fun of ‘running your own way’, stripping away the competitive tone of most running campaigns. That freedom led to a truly engaging fantasy world for runners to just enjoy, channeling their run by becoming an ‘actual’ puma," said Sanne Drogtrop, executive producer and head of production at MediaMonks Shanghai.

"It’s been great to work with the Puma team on bringing this innovative trialing experience to fruition! A great example of how technology enhances creativity."

The pop-up experience forms part of Puma’s broader campaign for the new running shoes.