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AmEx Launches AR Treasure Hunt With Real Prizes

American Express turned to German artist Andy Gellenberg to create giant murals embedded with QR codes.

American Express is launching an AR game in partnership with Yahoo called American Express Summer Drop that will give you a sweet little taste of what it means to be an AmEx card holder.

The AR game will take you on a citywide treasure hunt in search of virtual “drops” that unlock real-world rewards. You can win things such as tickets to BST (British Summer Time) Hyde Park Music Festival, Wimbledon, Wilderness Festival, and other major American Express events. You can also pick up smaller prizes such as vouchers for Harvey Nichols and Bloom & Wild and free coffee at any Caffè Nero location.

To help promote their American Express Summer Drop AR game, American Express turned to German artist Andy Gellenberg who designed massive murals that will be used to market American Express’s AR game at launch.

The gameplay is simple. You use your smartphone to access a game map at amexsummerdrop.co.uk that will lead you to a nearby prize box. Once you are at the location, you can then launch the game in AR mode and scan the area to find a virtual prize box.

There are also ‘American Express Summer Drop’ pop-up events spread out through Central London. Here you can find one of Gellenberg’s murals and scan the QR code to launch the game.

In an official press release, Nikki Edelman, Vice President, Head of UK Brand at American Express, said, “We know that many people are looking forward to a summer of new experiences and, through our new brand-led ‘Member When’ activity, we hope to establish an emotional connection with a new audience to show them how Amex Card Membership offers them the exciting opportunities to make memories with the people, passions, and places they love.”

“We’re especially excited about working with Yahoo to bring to life the American Express Experiences programme as an interactive experience that offers people a taste of what it’s like to be with Amex and make this summer one to remember.”

For Yahoo, this is a unique opportunity to create a fun and interesting campaign with American Express and SmartMedia Labs, the team responsible for creating all of the AR assets used in the game. “Bringing creativity and technology together to deliver exciting, interactive projects like this is what we thrive on at Yahoo,” said Josh Partridge, Head of EMEA at Yahoo.

“Formats like augmented reality can really bring experiences to life and ad platforms can ensure they reach audiences at scale so more people can join the fun to find those ‘summer drops’ and win these great prizes.”

American Express has already launched a few of the pop-up events starting back in June, but you can still catch one before summer ends. The next event is scheduled at South Bank Observation Point on July 16th. So if you happen to be in London, just head on over for the chance to win a few prizes.

Image Credit: Yahoo

About the Scout

Bobby Carlton

Hello, my name is Bobby Carlton. When I'm not exploring the world of immersive technology, I'm writing rock songs about lost love. I'd also like to mention that I can do 25 push-ups in a row.

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