Digi International
February 10, 2015
One of the most
buzzworthy commercials of Super Bowl XLIX was Bud Lights Real Life Pac-Man spot for the #UpForWhatever campaign. The advertisement features a life-sized Pac-Man game where a seemingly unaware contender, Riley Smith, is challenged to munch pellets while being chased by ghosts Blinky, Pinky, Inky and Clyde.
Heres the commercial in case you missed it:
VIDEO
The Twitterverse thought that it was awesome and most people wanted to try the game out for themselves.
"Real life Pac-Man! A million high fives to the first bar to make that a regular thing in their establishment ." -@mattlindner
"Can real life Pac-Man be a thing with permanent game sets around the world ?" -@DishNation
"New life goal: be in real life Pac-Man ." -@NatalieAlynLind
"We have failed as a society if human Pac-Man isnt a real thing in the next 2-3 years " -@fsmikey
Then, there were others who were too skeptical to fully enjoy the spot:
"Hey ad agencies, stop pretending its real. Anyway, sick ad. Bud Light " -@MathieuLcz
So, how real was real life Pac-Man? Is it be a game that you could really try in the future? Bud Light states that Smiths participation was 100% organic. They say it was a live event, a real person, a real game board, all captured in real time. While well leave Smiths participation and the authenticity of the event up for debate, we can tell you that the game board itself was
absolutely real. Bud Light and partners utilized Internet of Things technology to bridge digital and physical worlds and bring the Pac-Man game we all know and love to life.
Heres How
Rick Galinson and
Legacy Effects of Los Angeles, the same shop that provided Jurassic Park, Iron Man and Terminator effects designed the ghosts for the interactive game board.
Each roller-skating ghost costume is lit with about
4,000 LEDs , animated by a tiny open-source computer, the
Parallax Propeller QuickStart Board , that communicates using Digi Internationals tiny radio module, an
XBee-PRO 802.15.4 . The remote operator uses a laptop and another
XBee module to send commands for the ghosts flashing sequences.
"With the pressure of over 100 million viewers and a multi-million dollar campaign resting on these electronics, the Propeller chip from Parallax coupled with an XBEE PRO from Digi was an easy choice," Galinson, SPFX Designer, said. "They performed flawlessly, are easy to implement and will remain my controller and communication products of choice for years to come."
The technical details of the project had to be as straightforward as possible given short deadlines. Rob Faludi, Digi Internationals Chief Innovator and author of
Building Wireless Sensor Networks explains, "XBee radios are popular with artists and industrialists alike. They simplify radio communications between devices and the Internet, so critical projects can meet their deadlines without requiring extensive engineering efforts. Theres certainly no postponing the Super Bowl, so XBees were a great choice to ensure this project came off without a hitch."
A total of five ghost costumes were produced with one serving as a backup. It took about twelve people to assemble the costumes in time for the commercial. Be sure to get a close look at their eyes, which exhibit the original video game character and move with the roller-skating ghosts movement. Jon McPhalens Spin/ASM WS2812 driver figured prominently as a key source code object for this project.
Heres a behind the scenes look at the game and event coming together:
VIDEO
"Its now easier than ever with IoT technology to create mesmerizing digital experiences in the physical world. Were not only seeing this in entertainment with Bud Lights Pac-Man game, but also commercially with connected solutions for energy systems, transportation monitoring, medical care and even municipal street lighting, Faludi said. "XBees can be a power-up for almost any connected device project."
So, to answer a question that may be burning in many fans minds: yes, its totally possible that you too could be running from Blinky the ghost in real life (IRL). Maybe coming to a bar near you? Were not sure. But one thing were positive about is our digital and physical worlds will continue to come together to create these incredible dream-like experiences; both for fun and entertainment and for solving real-world problems.