I don’t care what you say, Microsoft made the best Super Bowl ad this year

The Super Bowl might not mean much to us Malaysians who play proper ehem “football” but even if we don’t really care much about American football, there is a great deal for us to care about in this beautiful Super Bowl ad from Microsoft.

Ok, let’s address the obvious. This is an ad. It exists to sell something to the viewer. It exists to put the brand – Microsoft – on a pedestal. To make it look good. That might be the intent, but the commercial achieved an outcome that is so much more.

Essentially the 2-minute spot is an ad for the Xbox Adaptive Controller. The Controller was developed by Microsoft to cater for a segment of the gaming market that is effectively ignored by the industry – limited mobility people.

To a lot of people video games are more than just a game. Video games are a form of escape of experiencing more than what you can in the real world. To those of limited mobility, I can only imagine how this escape must feel. But even then, they are hindered with conventional controllers.

That’s where the Xbox Adaptive controller comes in. It’s a controller designed with direct input from limited mobility people to work with those who were born with disabilities or have lost an arm.

Much detail went into the design of the controller, even the design of the box was taken into consideration to make it easier for the intended user to open.

To these people, Microsoft has made life just that little bit more enjoyable.

Back to the commercial. I think it is amazing because it’s uncomplicated, pure, genuine and it makes you feel something to a point that you forget what the ad wanted to sell you in the first place. It transcends from mere marketing spiel to something more significant. It moves you. Its memorable. And that’s what all great ads can only dream of becoming.

Thank you, Microsoft, for making this ad. Thank you for making all the tech to make the Adaptive Controller possible. This is amazing.