To celebrate the release of A Minecraft Movie, Tourism New Zealand, in collaboration with eleven mana whenua groups, Warner Bros and Mojang Studios (the developers of Minecraft), has launched New Zealand as a fully playable destination in the Minecraft world.
The activity supports Tourism New Zealand’s four-year strategy by showcasing New Zealand as a year-round destination.
The player enters the game onto a marae and is welcomed by a mihi whakatau into a central hub, a wharenui. The wharenui was designed, named and gifted for the New Zealand Minecraft game by the carvers and designers at the New Zealand Māori Art and Crafts Institute at Te Puia.
The player enters the game onto a marae and is welcomed by a mihi whakatau into a central hub, a wharenui. The wharenui was designed, named and gifted for the New Zealand Minecraft game by the carvers and designers at the New Zealand Māori Art and Crafts Institute at Te Puia.
“This innovative approach to destination marketing offers millions of Minecraft fans the unique opportunity to virtually explore and create in a range of iconic New Zealand locations. Players can then bring their adventures to life by planning and booking their next holiday to Aotearoa,” Tourism New Zealand chief executive René de Monchy said.
“The opportunity for New Zealand is huge. By tapping into Minecraft’s immense fan base, we expect this activity to drive growth for New Zealand’s economy by attracting $50 million in visitor spend this year,” de Monchy added.
A Minecraft Movie’s filming in New Zealand was facilitated through the Screen Production Rebate. Warner Bros. accessed an additional incentive ‘uplift’ from the New Zealand Film Commission which enabled Tourism New Zealand to collaborate and support the creation of the Aotearoa New Zealand DLC.
“What we love about working with Tourism New Zealand is the sheer ambition of their team. They’ve managed to turn the world’s most popular video game into a call-to-action for prospective visitors: play our enchanting digital world before coming to play for real. We’re proud to have worked alongside them to produce an integrated earned-led campaign that will excite Minecraft fans, and the general public alike,” Kelly Grindle, managing director of Special PR said.
“The project creatively combines technology, gaming, culture, New Zealand’s otherworldly places, Māori culture, and people to present New Zealand to the vast Minecraft universe in an innovative way. This is something you haven’t seen from Tourism New Zealand before,” Grindle added.
“Tourism New Zealand will promote the collaboration in off-shore markets through travel agents and activations for consumers bespoke to each market. Specific Minecraft itineraries have been developed to help travel sellers sell holidays that allow visitors to experience the locations in person. In market activations will launch alongside A Minecraft Movie in April to harness the buzz created by the movie. We’ll be sharing more as the activations go live”.
“The game was developed in collaboration with tourism operators and mana whenua from the featured regions. It stands as the most recent and comprehensive example of Te Ao Māori being woven into a computer game, developed by Piki Studios with contributions from mana whenua, Te Puia, New Zealand’s Māori Arts and Crafts Institute, and New Zealand Māori Tourism,” Grindle said.
Tourism New Zealand worked with Piki Studios, an official Minecraft partner and Māori game design studio, to build the DLC. Chief business operator Whetu Paitai led the development, working with Tourism New Zealand, the wider tourism industry and mana whenua (local Māori) from the regions depicted to create an authentic and fun experience.
“Working with Mojang on such an iconic game has been an incredible experience, filled with both excitement and responsibility. Developing the first ever Minecraft game for a destination, especially a place as close to my heart as New Zealand, feels immensely rewarding. However, it also comes with its own set of unique challenges,” Paitai said.
“One of these was ensuring that the rich Whāraki (interconnected tapestry of stories, traditions, and cultural heritage) of our land and people was accurately and respectfully represented. We have been able to work with Mojang in a way that is very collaborative and respectful. Māori game development is growing, but our whanau (people) have to see models of that happening in front of them and this is what projects like this achieve,” Paitai added.
Each location offers activities such as paddling a waka in Abel Tasman or stargazing in Tekapo/Takapō which can also be experienced in real life.
Credits:
Aotearoa New Zealand DLC developer: Piki Studios
Creative agency – Special PR
Film production – The Beards
Production – The Supreme Group
Photographer – Brett Phibbs
