Mindpong

Background

Brain tumours were the biggest cancer killer of children and adults under 40 and yet it was the least researched. The aim was to raise awareness of The Brain Tumour Charity by celebrating the power of the brain and get people to put their minds to beating brain cancer.

Idea

Mindpong was a 2-player game based on the 1970s classic Pong but with a twist – the game was controlled by thought alone.

Using headsets with electroencephalography (EEG) technology to read brainwaves, thoughts were turned into action. To move the bat up people had to concentrate and to move the bat down they had to relax.

The brain monitors were attached using Velcro headbands.

The game was played at the big digital outdoor screen at Westfield, Shepherds Bush for £1 a game, where volunteers from the charity were available to give more information about the charity and about brain tumours.

For one week before the event, billboards were placed around Westfield telling people about the event.

Results

Mindpong got an estimated reach of 17 million people from the event and online.

Our Thoughts

The near future of outdoor. Here it is.

This idea was the winner of a competition funded by Ocean Outdoor to encourage agencies to see the interactive possibilities of digital outdoor. Where posters used to be passive now they can reach out and talk to you, just as ‘Minority report’ predicted they would. More than that, outdoor is now an opportunity to get people to pause and engage. As more and more outdoor sites get digitised, this is an example of the sort of experience brands will be able to create, turning passers-by into players, shoppers into brand ambassadors.