Online marketing campaigns, for all their frightfully new-fangled knobbly novelty, actually use quite a lot of the same techniques that also powered more timeworn 'n' traditional publicity campaigns. For example, the chance to get something for nothing is always a powerful inducement. And the chance to get something really shiny and expensive for nothing is even more powerful. Hence the MINI Getaway game, which is due to land in Japan in the next few days.  

Having launched in Stockholm last year, MINI Getaway is a smartphone-based game that finds players trying to capture a virtual MINI car and then stay out of the orbit of other players, who are aiming to ‘steal’ the car off them. Whoever has the digital MINI at the end of the allotted game-time is then given a real one, absolutely free.  

A veritable online marketing hit first time out, MINI Getaway has been credited with doubling sales of said car in Sweden in the period since the game’s debut (from 3 to 6. Er, maybe). And the Tokyo game is set to be bigger and better (definitely the first one), taking in as it does a game area more than 32 times the size of the Stockholm field of play.

The action all kicks off from 3 December and runs for nine days, and the game is now open to Android as well as iPhone users (you need to download a special app). Take a look at the trailer below.

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