The lines between the gaming world and retail sales are blurring… in the most delightful way. IKEA, long known for their fantastically creative approach to their annual catalog, has partnered with the makers of Nintendo game Animal Crossing: New Horizons to produce a crossover catalog that is just delightful.
“Animal Crossing: New Horizons has now shifted more than 22 million units worldwide,” writes Liam Doolan in Nintendo Life. “All this success has resulted in a lot of companies using the game as a marketing tool of sorts to get a little extra publicity during these tough times.
“The latest brand to take advantage of the lifestyle sim’s popularity is the world’s largest furniture retailer, IKEA,” Doolan continues. “The Swedish company’s Taiwanese Facebook page recently revealed its 2021 catalogue and alongside this, it shared an Animal Crossing version – featuring fully-furnished IKEA-style houses.”
It’s a perfect blend of escapism and reality, merging the online and the physical worlds in the same way much of our own reality has blurred this year. While the retailer still shows plenty of goods for sale, they are presented in a way that makes shopping just another game … and that could indeed result in a nice uptick in sales.
And it’s a good partnership for Nintendo as well, as non-Nintendo players (I know, we do still exist out here) are introduced to the game in a way that’s familiar and fun. And don’t worry – if you want your IKEA catalog with a firm grip on reality, their regular catalog is on the way too.
