A New '10 Cloverfield Lane' Game Tasks You With Surviving In An Underground Bunker
I have mixed feelings on viral marketing in general, mainly because I went in real deep with the Cloverfield online campaign back in 2007 and 2008, only to realize that all of those faux websites and fake news stories ultimately had little to do with the final film. And yet, I cannot deny that Bad Robot (and whoever they hire to help with the heavy lifting) does this kind of stuff better than anyone else. The viral marketing for 10 Cloverfield Lane has been ambitious and weird, providing all kinds of backstory for John Goodman's mysterious survivalist and hinting at what has trapped him and two strangers in an underground bunker. If you like to fall down rabbit holes, this is a rabbit hole worth tumbling into.
And it probably won't get better than this – a text-based video game has been discovered within the depths of the viral campaign's main hub website and it tasks you with surviving inside a bunker when the world above ground comes to an end.
The 10 Cloverfield Lane viral marketing campaign began early this month, with the discovery of a mysterious video, a strange email, and a fictional soda (because producer J.J. Abrams really loves his fictional drinks). Further updates revealed connections to the original Cloverfield, a whole bunch of crazy messages and drawings, and even some subliminal messages in the new trailer. There's a whole wealth of nutty stuff to search through if you want to distract yourself from work or avoid boring life commitments.
But here's what you need to know to dive into this new game. FunAndPrettyThings.com is a fake site that Howard Stambler (Goodman) has been using to communicate with his daughter, who he wants in his top secret underground bunker when civilization goes belly-up. Until then, he's gone above and beyond the call of duty, creating a fake game that can be accessed through the site that will train the user in managing supplies and keeping people alive in a bunker. Although he built the game so daughter can learn survival skills, it's purpose now is for you sit by and watch as the people under your watch die of starvation and thirst because you didn't pack enough supplies.
It's a simple game, but it's a good time, combining the morbid thrills of Oregon Trail ("Oh no, my best friend just died of dehydration!") with the crafty tactics of a business simulation game like Lemonade Stand. My group managed to last about 100 days before everyone perished because I forgot change the air filters. Whoops.
10 Cloverfield Lane opens on March 11, 2016 and is directed by Dan Trachtenberg. Naturally, you can use the comments below to swap survival tactics and brag about long you kept your group happy and breathing and well-fed.