Cross-promotion is not a novel concept these days. Companies give shout outs to one another throughout various products to help promote one another, and the result is usually beneficial to both parties.
However, the idea of doing this in the world of video games – where companies are heavily competing with one another to ensure continued financial stability – is indeed something to talk about.
Recently, BioWare and 38 Studios have taken this concept to a new level. Downloading the demo to 38 Studios’ Kingdoms of Amalur unlocks a unique set of armor and a weapon for Commander Shepherd in the release copy of Mass Effect 3. Likewise, downloading the Mass Effect 3 demo when it launches in the next few weeks will unlock a very cool set of N7 armor for your character in the finished Kingdoms of Amalur release.
Now, to be fair, both of these games are being published by Electronics Arts, so it’s not two companies that have no connection to each other that are doing this. However, for the items to look as good as they do across both games, it’s clear that both developers were enthused about the idea of giving each other a little push.
In a world where every game could be a developer’s last (if it fails to sell well), it’s nice to see a little teamwork like this every now and again.