Sonic The Adhog

[Tara]

I remember commercials for one of the games where a guy was telling an actual hedgehog to ball up and roll and it wouldn't. 

That would be one of the Sonic Adventure 2 Battle commercials.  Great advert. XD

 

[Person]

They made the inside of the Dreamcast look like an awesome place to be

The old Dreamcast commercials were great! they're some of my favorite commercials ever. It makes me wish there were still some like it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3k0yJB6IVE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSaXMIGaTaw

[Chaos Incarnate]

 

Poor image quality, but it was a Sonic energy drink I bought at Phoenix comic con 2013. Much to my surprise, it didn't do shit for me.

[Linkabel]

Talking about the Dreamcast, I found some cool stuff on Ebay. But first, let's take a trip back in time when Sega was preparing to launch the Dreamcast in the USA:

 

 

E3Expo/Sega Readies Marketing Allies for Largest Video Game Launch in History; Dreamcast Marketing Plan Already Underway; Sega Commits $100 Million To U.S. Launch Alone.

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 28, 1998--The recently announced Dreamcast super video game console from Sega® may still be more than a year away from launch in North America, but forces are already at work developing a marketing blitz the likes of which the video game industry has never seen.

Sega of America has enlisted some of the most prestigious industry heavy weights to build marketing muscle for Dreamcast. And Sega is putting its marketing money where its mouth is, dedicating $100 million solely for Dreamcast's launch in North America.

The Dreamcast introduction will touch all parts of the target consumer's life with unforgettable advertising, sales promotions, event marketing and retail merchandising. The campaign will explore new ways of reaching consumers and enhance their means of interacting with Sega and its products.

Sega's elite battalion of marketing, advertising and promotions companies include Foote, Cone & Belding -- San Francisco; Alcone Marketing Group; the Howard Marlboro Group (HMG) and The Catalyst Group. Their collective experience is evident through successful campaigns for companies such as Levi's, Burger King, MTV and Mazda.

"Sega's business plan mandates 'kick-ass marketing' to launch our new console," said Bernard Stolar, president and COO, Sega of America. "We can't wait to surprise the consumer with our definition of what that means."

 

FCB, the 1996 Ad Agency of the Year, was one of the first ad agencies ever to be nominated for an Emmy, television's highest honor.

 

FCB will give consumers a wake up call with campaigns showcasing Dreamcast and Sega. Some of FCB's current clients include Levi Strauss & Co., Coors, MTV, Keds, Fox Sports and Amazon.com.

Alcone Marketing Group

If you have eaten at Burger King and ordered a Kid's Club Meal, you have seen Alcone Marketing Group at work. The Irvine-based company is the leader in product promotions, creating promotional opportunities for consumer products by tying them to mass market vehicles. Alcone is already at work with Sega lining up large-scale consumer promotions by partnering Dreamcast with a host of products specifically targeted towards people in the mid-teen to mid-20s market. Alcone Marketing clients include Mazda and the California Lottery.

Howard Marlboro Group

HMG is one of the most respected consumer research and in-store marketing companies in the United States. HMG is already working on a revolutionary consumer retail program for Sega that will turn the industry on its ear with innovative in-store support programs, custom fixtures, interactive merchandising and ground-breaking POP materials. The company is conducting massive consumer research and will be tasked with developing an entirely new in-store presence for Sega. HMG currently works with industry giants such as Coca-Cola, Wal-Mart, Procter & Gamble, Motorola, Nestle, K-Mart, and others.

The Catalyst Group

The Catalyst Group (TCG) is one of Hollywood's most prolific entertainment marketing and product placement companies. Burbank-based TCG will be responsible for the placement of Dreamcast and the Sega name on the hottest shows, movies and music events. TCG currently works with such industry heavy weights at Tropicana, Yamaha, PowerBar, Spalding and Schwinn.

Sega of America is the arm of Tokyo, Japan-based Sega Enterprises, Ltd. responsible for the development, marketing and distribution of Sega videogame systems and videogames in the Americas. Sega Enterprises, Ltd. is a nearly $3.0 billion company recognized as the industry leader in interactive digital entertainment media, and is the only company that offers interactive entertainment experiences both inside and outside the home. Sega of America's World Wide Web site is located at (http://www.sega.com). -0-

Note to Editors: Dreamcast visuals and press materials available on BusinessWire and PhotoWire, Access Communications FTP site (ftp://ftp.accesspr.com), and the Sega website (http://www.sega.com).

The marketing companies behind the Dreamcast launch campaign include the best in the industry: Foote, Cone & Belding -- San Francisco; Widely known for its award-winning Levi's and Dockers® ad campaigns, Foote, Cone & Belding -- San Francisco (FCB) is the clear leader in youth-targeted advertising.

   

 

Source

 

The reason why I highlighted the Alcone Marketing group part is because of this:

 

 

More photos here and auctions here. How cool are those?! Apparently they were supposed to launch in December 98, but didn't. Or maybe they did, but I never seem them anywhere and I really don't remember seeing them when I was younger.

 

[Cyrus]

Gotta love the charm of the off-model video game merchandise of the past.

[Amomynous]

Sonic what the hell did you do to that kid?

[Linkabel]

Gotta love the charm of the off-model video game merchandise of the past.

I know! I honestly would've liked to own that Tornado Tails and Gamman toys.

[Agie]

Sonic what the hell did you do to that kid?

That's just plain ridiculous...but it's pretty amusing, I admit.

[Milo]

I actually like commercials that gave Sonic a high-pitched voice, like the Indian commercial as well as the Sonic 3 Japanese commercial.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Btlv73erBrs

[Lady Soniko]

Not a promotion or an Ad for Sonic, but merely a cameo that was spotted out and about in the real world of 2014.

 

 

 

Sonic still lives, no matter the hate he gets this day in age.

[anna]

Well, this was before I was born, but I came across it on YouTube and felt that it needed to be shared.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=an8OHLDNHRg

 

And...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uC_a4kxL8NI

 

No idea what Pog is, but apparently somewhere these Sonic themed pogs were given out in pack of Kool-aid.

 

I think I found that bubblegum someone mentioned, but then again, I found quite a bit of bubblegum...

 

There's a whole lot of stuff on http://www.sonicgear.org/ holy crap

 

Here's a promotional car for Sonic Unleashed. Huh.

 

And lastly, here's some...Coca Cola Sonic promotional merch.

Edited April 24, 2014 by annaislame

[Tani Coyote]

Am I the only person who wouldn't mind owning a car like that?

I did need an excuse to learn to drive, anyway...

[Person]

Hope I'm not causing too much trouble for bumping such an old topic, but I just found a commercial that I've remembered for years, but never really found (15 second mark):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jg_sbow_xL8

 

So yeah. They made commercials for that Joyride Studios' figures, and Sonic just happens to be there. I've always remembered this ad, probably because it was the first time I saw Sonic on TV.

[-blank-]

Am I the only person who wouldn't mind owning a car like that?

I did need an excuse to learn to drive, anyway...

 

If the shape wasn't so ugly, that would be a damn cool car.

[Linkabel]

Hope I'm not causing too much trouble for bumping such an old topic, but I just found a commercial that I've remembered for years, but never really found (15 second mark):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jg_sbow_xL8

 

So yeah. They made commercials for that Joyride Studios' figures, and Sonic just happens to be there. I've always remembered this ad, probably because it was the first time I saw Sonic on TV.

This is actually pretty cool, I honestly don't remember seeing this commercial back in the day. Of all the Sonic figures who would've thought the Joyride ones would get one.

[-blank-]

Now that I think about, I remember that the Gamestop near one of the malls here has a large render of Sonic on the glass. If that counts.

[Detective Shadzter]

Just found this one uploaded a few days ago. 

 

Sonic gives the audience the fingers.

[Tara]

Just found this one uploaded a few days ago. 

 

Sonic gives the audience the fingers.

That was all kinds of messed up and I loved every minute of it.

[Ryannumber1gamer]

Here's some for the UK fans.

 

 

 

[King Rixy]

For those Talking about the TSB BANK UK CHARITY Poster above they are on ebay UK http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Extremely-Rare-SONIC-THE-HEDGEHOG-POSTER-UK-TSB-BANK-NSPCC-Promo-Vintage-SDCC-/332370954118?hash=item4d62da4786:g:j0AAAOSw~9BZr8Za