Old Spice Saved the World

4 1/2 Weeks later we are still here, and the world is saved thanks to the power of Old Spice Deodorant Sticks and Friendship.

The Marketing department for Old Spice Deodorant products have done a great job in the past in making some clever advertisements to catch consumers' attention, and this year when it was said that the world was going to end they did not hold back. Instead, Old Spice gave the people hope for the dawn of a new day in the form of a 16-bit flash game. It was a mission against the clock to carve more time into the Mayan calendar.

Instead of a traditional commercial, Old Spice made a flash game starring the retired basketball player Dikembe Mutombo with the responsibility of saving the world. Released in the middle of November of 2012, Dikembe Mutombo's 4 1/2 Weeks to Save the World provided players with a new level to play each week. Each level had its own game play and story providing as a social commentary on current trends in popular culture and despite the obvious pop culture references, Dikembe Mutombo's 4 1/2 Weeks to Save the World is actually a quite enjoyable video game. Although this game isn't highly polished or crafted like a major title, it is funny, the sprites are detailed beautifully, and the music is enjoyable.

The final level is designed like a level of the shooter game Raiden.

Every level is a separate game that makes remarks about trends that are popular right now; a Korean dance song is keeping citizens of the U.S. distracted from voting, the influx of vampire romance fiction in the entertainment industry is too high, and internet memes are rampaging out of control. In the end, we are saved, we are still alive, and all of the characters from the game come together to sing in one last song: a parody of We are the World.

This is basically what the game is about.

But there are also some positives...

If the game was played before December 21st of 2012, the total score a player earned every time they completed a level was added to a pool of points that every player earned collectively as the clock was ticking. These points were used to "carve additional time into the Mayan Calendar" to postpone the destruction of the world. December 21st already past and the game seemed to do its job at keeping us alive. Unfortunately, it only added 15 Months into the calendar. [If only we had played more and added more time.] The game can still be played but the scores are no longer being tracked and written down.

Isn't this around the time you'll have to start paying for the Mass Effect 3 Ending?

If only I could be so grossly incandescent.

And let us not forget one of the most heartfelt sacrifices ever made. May we continue to play and enjoy this game in memory of one of our fallen friends.

R.I.P. in Peace ;_;