How the world’s most famous trunk maker inspired an ‘epic’ video game

To celebrate 200 years since the birth of Louis Vuitton, the French luxury goods house has launched an ‘epic’ video game, Louis the Game. It features the brand’s trusty mascot, Vivienne, a playful flower-like character made from versions of the company’s iconic Monogram. Vivienne travels to a birthday destination while collecting candles, learning about the LVMH legacy and finding keys to progress to the next level.  

“[The] game involves a quest that nods to the unique journey of the brand’s founder, [Louis Vuitton], spanning fantasy locations, inspired by cities such as London, Beijing, Paris, Tokyo and New York,” says founder of in-game advertising specialist, Adverty, Niklas Bakos. 

According to the fashion house, the real life Louis Vuitton, who died in 1892 in Asnières-sur-Seine, a suburb just outside of Paris, walked from his hometown in the Jura region of France to the capital city at the age of 14. The trip is said to have taken him around two years. He later became the most sought-after trunk maker of his generation - and the rest, well the rest is history. 

But, this isn’t the first time Louis Vuitton has delved into the world of video games. In 2016, the label featured a Final Fantasy character in its spring/summer advertising campaign. In 2019, it collaborated with League of Legends to release a capsule collection that players could use to customise their avatars. That same year, it also launched Endless Runner, a retro-looking game inspired by Virgil Abloh’s fall/winter menswear collection.

What makes Louis the Game - which is free to play - stand out is that it can be downloaded onto a mobile phone as an app. (Endless Runner could only be played through the Louis Vuitton website). It’s an indication that the brand is becoming more serious about the medium of gaming. “Louis Vuitton knows that gaming [is the ultimate tool for] storytelling and creativity,” says Bakos. 

And it is not the only brand to notice this. Outfits by Marc Jacobs and Valentino can be found on the social simulation game Animal Crossing; Burberry’s in-house team developed its first game in 2019, B Bounce, and its first multiplayer game last year, B Surf; In 2018, Hermès released a branded mobile game called H-pitchhh; Gucci added arcade-style games to its app in 2019; and last year, Dior launched a mobile game to promote the opening of its flagship store in Shanghai. 

“Luxury brands are turning to games to engage [customers] in new and entertaining ways at a time when the value of the gaming audience is becoming better understood,” Bakos adds, noting that the gaming industry has three billion players globally.

“[Louis The Game] also includes 30 NFTs, or Non-Fungible Tokens, created by digital artists, including Mike ‘Beeple’ Winkelmann - who recently broke the record for the most expensive digital artwork – thereby keeping up with the latest trend to hit the art world, too.” 

It is indicative of a drive to engage with certain demographics that can be found online such as younger consumers and the Asian luxury goods market. “It's the best place to reach the next generation of consumers, both Gen Z and increasingly Gen Alpha,” says Christina Herbach, Executive Strategy Director at world-renowned brand agency, Landor & Fitch, who has worked with Ralph Lauren, Nike and Swarovski. 

“China, India and other markets with surging [high earning] populations are also places where a disproportionate number of young people play, and for a disproportionate number of hours.” Last year, China, Japan and Korea were in the top four countries in the world leading the gaming markets in terms of revenue - and the pandemic has only intensified this. “Successive lockdowns and quarantines have only led to people spending even more time exploring virtual worlds,” says Herbach. 

And, for the companies that decide to tinker with gaming (and manage to do it right), there are hard-currency rewards. “Gucci recently sold a digital-only bag for more than the value of the "real life" version and, in total, sold over $2.8m of digital fashion items during their recent Gucci Gardens campaign on [online gaming platform] Roblox,” says Ian Douthwaite, founder of digital consultancy, Dubit, which helps brands connect with customers through games. 

Louis Vuitton has been an effective digital adopter in China, says Rocky Chi, Head of Planning at Chinese planning and marketing consultancy, Emerging Communications. “And this has played a major part in it thriving,” she says. 

As with many similar games, in Louis the Game, the main character collects points along the way to the final destination and players’ achievements are recorded on a global leaderboard. The points can be spent on ‘skin changes’ and accessories for Vivienne available from virtual Louis Vuitton stores in the game. But, clearly, Louis the Game isn’t really just about gaming at all, it’s about luxury brands understanding the power of storytelling online. 

“Dior and Chanel are both examples of brands who are incredibly clever in the way they utilise social media platforms such as Instagram and YouTube. They don't always use social media to sell products, they use the platforms to tell stories about their brand so people understand them more and feel closer to them,” says Avi Grewal, Commissioning Director of Fashion and Culture at digital content agency Little Dot Studios.

Video games are just the latest platform luxury brands are using to engage with audiences on a new level. As the digital universe changes and develops, so will the way our favourite brands attempt to catch our attention and, for now, it seems to be working.

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