Overview: The launch of the original BioShock in 2007 set the bar high: it was a deeply textured niche game with a rich narrative that enabled Access to exploit many unique storylines, music elements and characters to catch gamers and a wider audienceby surprise. With the reveal of the third game in the series, BioShock Infinite, media and consumers alike were expecting producer Irrational Games to produce another extraordinary artistic hit.

The Challenge: Because public-company guidelines restricting the release of any details prior to the public reveal of the title posed a significant PR challenge. The Access team would need to persuade editors to commit to coverage without complete knowledge or details of the game. The alternative – waiting until background materials could be released – would forfeit any long lead coverage: PR suicide in the gaming world.

The Plan: Access turned the need for ultimate secrecy into a weapon, giving the game a code name – “Project Icarus” – and openly talking it up to the press without sharing details. Given Irrational’s credibility in the industry, this played well and helped fuel enormous hype. Access used this to its advantage, pitching and selling in Game Informer, among the most influential gaming publications, on a three-part “exclusive”cover story, offering artwork and special behind-the-scenes information to the magazine to create front and back cover images circa 1912 (evocative of the era in which the story takes place). Editors were even able to get special permission from the publisher to change the newsstand price to five cents, or what it would have cost in 1912.

Access planned and Irrational hosted a global reveal event at The Plaza Hotel in New York City, staging an actual demo of the game to stir excitement for short lead enthusiast and consumer media and spur advance coverage.

Results: Access garnered unprecedented media exposure that drove strong sales and created a sizeable fan following. Not only did Irrational Games land a cover story in its top priority publication, but the idea for Game Informer’s complete magazine redesign was a huge success for the publication itself – the BioShock Infinite cover is now the most popular Game Informer cover to date, and the magazine has sold many poster sized versions to its readers. In addition, the event drove over 350 stories with 550 million media impressions, earning it the top trending story on Twitter for the day. Pre-release, Irrational is set up for a powerful 2012 launch that is sure to drive revenue.