DEWmocracy
- Main Entry: de·moc·ra·cy
- Pronunciation: \di-ˈmä-krə-sē\
- Function: noun
- Inflected Form(s): pluralde·moc·ra·cies
- Etymology:Middle French democratie, from Late Latin democratia, from Greek dēmokratia, from dēmos + -kratia-cracy
- Date: 1576
1 a: government by the people; especially : rule of the majority b: a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections2: a political unit that has a democratic government3capitalized : the principles and policies of the Democratic party in the United States Democracy— C. M. Roberts>4: the common people especially when constituting the source of political authority5: the absence of hereditary or arbitrary class distinctions or privileges
- Based off the definition of democracy, I think that Mountain Dew’s new campaign is aptly named. They’ve created a contest where the consumers are in charge. The company has given them the opportunity to create a new Dew. Initially, I thought, “Don’t change it!” but further reading shows that it’s only a new line, much like Code Red now. It doesn’t mean that the original Mountain Dew is disappearing, it just means that something new will be in shelves along side it.
I think it’s a neat idea. Interactivity and having say in what I spend my money on is always good. It’s a good marketing scheme—give the people what they want and get more money for it. Win-win, if you ask me. Well, at least for one lucky group. Cause after all, it’s a democracy and it’s majority rule.
This particular campaign seems to target the online community, especially gamers. It has a sci-fi/fantasy feel to it. It starts out with a story that society has fallen under strict corporate rule and creativity of any sort is not only frowned upon, but punished. So in this cold world of grey, you get to play the role of the “Seeker” who finds this magical glass bottle that has the power to free your people from this tyranny. (Can I just say, though, that the random Native American guy in a white and purple tux and his magical elevator is really strange? lol) So now, armed with this relic and the thirst for freedom, you travel into a mythical world to create the drink of choice.
There are seven levels, or chambers. At the start of each, the resident guardian asks you to choose the qualities of your drink, such as taste, color, etc. Then you proceed into the chamber to complete several quests, and finally you meet the inhabitant spirit, each who has his or her own story to tell.
In terms of plot, it’s a little corny, but it’s captivating enough to draw you in. Graphics wise, it’s okay. There’s a certain rough, 3D quality to it that I’m not sure if I like or not. In terms of gameplay, the puzzles are cool, but any game that asks you to move quickly sucks. Maybe it’s just my machine reacting slowly (though I doubt it since I haven’t done anything to mess it up just yet…) but there seems to be a lag between the time you hit the arrow keys and the time your character actually moves on screen. And, of course, by the time “Nobody” reacts, you’ve been hit by the nymph’s moving gaze, been bounced off the walls and into your opponents 3 times in a row, taking out the 3 HP you actually have. Wonderful. (Note: The suitor game is a pain in the ass…) But, what quality can you expect from something like this, that isn’t built to last?
A nice feature, though, is the repeatability of the quests. You can continue to do each game until you’ve reached the max points. So by the end of the River Chamber (that’s the second one, it’s all they’ve released so far) you should have 4200 points. Depending on your time, you can make it onto the scoreboard. Oh, I forgot to mention that you can reset your times to try to finish each game faster. So actual skill doesn’t matter that much. If you memorize what to do and do it quickly the second time around you can get it. I’m lazy, though, so I’m content with being 658th. Besides, I think I’m the only one who’d go for Berry Pomegranate Raspberry Mountain Dew with none of that taurine/enhancement bullcrap you find in energy drinks cause those taste funky.
