Tesla placement in Tencent game boosts real-life test drives

It is quite rare to see Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Tencent CEO Pony Ma liking the same video (on Twitter and WeChat, respectively) on the same day. So when both men endorsed the video below in late July, it immediately attracted attention.

The reason for the CEO attention was the launch of a tie-up that saw Tesla cars appearing in Tencent's most popular mobile game, Game for Peace (similar as PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds in an earlier version).

The game includes Tesla's Model 3 and Model X vehicles, its charging stations and even a Tesla experience centre. Players can drive Teslas in the game, and Tesla also made special-edition versions of the Model 3 and Model X—sporting the same colours as in the game—available for purchase in real life. Tesla showed one of these cars at the China Joy game exhibition in Shanghai last month, along with a giant real-life versoin of an airdrop box to recreate the game theme.

"The collaboration happened at the right time with the right people, and both sides hit it off real quick," a Tencent spokesperson told Campaign Asia-Pacific. "Through the linkage of Tencent and Tesla, we saw strong growth in both brands on operational data, market index, content distribution and commercialisation."

Tesla's test drive and orders have both increased after the launching of the campaign.

The game has become a major force for reaching young consumers. "Players want to explore more possibilities in the game, especially on vehicles," said Will, Game of Peace project developer. "We will cooperate with more brands in the future to satisfy players' need."

In fact, Tesla is not the first brand to cooperate with this popular game. Earlier this year, Game of Peace players had the chance to drive a Maserati in the game.

"It is an emotional connection to connect users and brands," said Joey, Game of Peace project developer.