The ’spot the difference’ concept owns a pervasive stronghold on American pop-culture. From coloring books to bar-top MegaTouch machines, Americans young and old enjoy this challenging skill based entertainment. So when the folks at Busch Entertainment returned to partner with us to conceive of a fun, social application that could live on Facebook, the iPhone, and a Worlds of Discovery microsite, we jumped at the chance to show our social media expertise.
We’ve made a splash before with Facebook app-vertisements for Busch Entertainment properties (Sea World Splash Blast, Aquatica Motu’s Island Hop, and Busch Gardens Escape the Twins), but our latest work for the brand is a tidal wave of social media innovation. Worlds of Discovery Photo Adventure is a cross-platform social application that leverages a tried and true game concept to promote all of the theme parks that fall under the Worlds of Discovery umbrella. The app brings you so close to the thrills available at all the parks, that you’ll be sure to need that umbrella to protect yourself from the wet and wild action depicted in the game’s collection of photos.
Can you spot the differences?
In short, Photo Adventure application users are tasked with spotting the five differences between near-identical photos taken at Busch Entertainment theme parks. Busch Entertainment supplied all of the photos, so the application is filled with whimsical shots of celebrities like Justin Timberlake and Rod Stewart interacting with the menagerie of animals that live in all of the parks. The functionality of all three apps is consistent and the game play is engaging and addictive. But the real ‘Wow’ moment comes when you realize that players on all three applications have their high scores listed on a single cross-platform leaderboard – you can compete against friends while at the parks or from the comfort of your living room. This was accomplished with a Facebook Connect implementation that ensured that the experience would allow users to move seamlessly from social network to open web to mobile device.
We launched the Busch microsite and Facebook application together, with a roll-out of the iPhone app coming within the next several days. So toss on your wet suit, grab your snorkle and fins, and dive into Worlds of Discovery Photo Adventure.
