Vancouver Made XBOX 720 Trailer: The Art of Gaming Seduction

In anticipation of the much-rumoured new Microsoft gaming system, local Vancouver film student Anthony Bortolussi has released a faux commercial for the speculated “Xbox 720” as his final undergraduate assignment — and it’s blowing up on YouTube. It has guns, hot girls and bombs. Just another typical day in the life of a gamer.

“I think the new Xbox system will allow for deeper immersion in the virtual experience, improving on Kinect and other technology,” says Bortolussi, who completed his studies in film production at Capilano University this month. “So instead of waiting for Microsoft to launch it, I used my final project to show what I think the experience could be.”

The Xbox 720 Live Action Announcement Trailer, which was released on YouTube last week, takes a comedic twist on the trope of the typical gamer guy — treating him as if he were indeed immersed in a fresh Xbox experience by having him run, Bond-like, through a series of thugs and villains on a mission to save the world and get the girl.

The project has garnered attention on YouTube (where views leapt to nearly 50,000 within days of launch) and in forums, where curious gamers have taken notice: “So far the reception from many forum users on Gamespot and others has been quite good.” Bortolussi shot the “filmmercial” with a mostly-volunteer cast and crew over two days, using his film background to create a minute-and-a-half short of Microsoft-worthy quality, though he notes that “Microsoft has no idea we’ve done this, and no one has contacted me.”

While Microsoft has yet to officially confirm the details of a next generation gaming system, the company has not released a new system since the launch of the Xbox 360 in 2005, and Bortolussi insists that clues hinting at a new console are everywhere: “I know that the codename for the project is Durango. I also know that Microsoft placed an XBOX 720 logo inside a stadium in the movie ‘Real Steel.’”

“I love the Xbox brand, and I love creative commercials. Why make the stale commercial when you could craft one with action, adventure and romance?”