Aries Driving Game
Read the story- Brand
- Gorillaz
- Year
- 2020
- Objective
- Engagement
- Industry
- Entertainment
- Mechanic
- Racing & Sports
- Platform
- Web
- Agency
- Warner Records
Objective
Gorillaz used the launch of the "Aries" lyric video to turn a routine single release into an interactive moment, aiming to drive acquisitions and stream counts for the track. The game also marked the band's return to browser-based mini-games after roughly a decade away from the format, giving fans between-album content to engage with during the Song Machine rollout.
Solution
From the Gorillaz site, a single "START THE RACE!" button drops the player straight into a browser race, no download required. Steering Noodle's buggy from behind, the player races down the same Moroccan desert road seen in the "Aries" video, using the keyboard or on-screen gas, brake, and turn buttons on mobile, competing against the rest of the band to cross the finish line first. The run ends on a win or lose screen that invites another lap or a share of the result on social media.
- 1
The player lands on the game's page on the Gorillaz site, sees a start screen styled around the "Aries" artwork with a single "START THE RACE!" button and a mute toggle, then a loader brings in the track while the music (credited to FatCat) starts.
- 2
The race begins in a third-person view behind Noodle's buggy, which drives forward automatically along a Moroccan-styled road; on desktop the player steers and accelerates with W/A/D or the arrow keys, while on phones the same actions are handled with on-screen gas, brake, left and right buttons, and the page recommends holding the device in a set orientation.
- 3
A persistent HUD shows current speed in miles per hour, an elapsed-time timer, and the last and best lap times.
- 4
The track's layout shifts over the course of the run, moving from straight sections into turns and climbs and descents on the way to a final stretch.
- 5
The player has to avoid hitting the other cars or running off the edge of the road, since any collision cuts speed and knocks the buggy back in the standings.
- 6
The other racers are the rest of the band — 2D, Murdoc and Russel — and the goal of the run is to cross the finish line ahead of them.
- 7
Finishing behind the others ends the run on a "GAME OVER" screen reading "Looks like 2D & Murdoc pipped you to the post! Better luck next time…" with a "Try Again" button, while finishing first shows a "WINNER!" screen reading "Ok, you won. Think you can do it again?" with a "play again now!" button.
- 8
From either result screen, the player can share the game through a "Share:" block linking out to the band's social channels.
