The DVC (digital video commercial) is not dead. But the celebrity-led branded game has proven itself to be a more potent engagement vehicle in almost every metric.
The Data from Reels vs Runs
Featuring Suresh Raina and Rakul Preet Singh for Bajaj Finserv IPL campaign: 2 lakh+ matches played. 3.8 minutes average session time. Compare that to the average DVC view time of under 8 seconds.
Why It Works
A DVC is passive. A game is active. When a fan plays as their favourite celebrity, they experience parasocial closeness. They're not watching Raina. They're playing with him. That emotional bond transfers to the brand.
The Mechanics That Perform
1Fan choice: pick your favourite celebrity, pick a side
2Competitive leaderboards: social proof and FOMO drive sharing
3Simple tap/swipe mechanics: accessible to all age groups
4Star-powered visuals: familiar faces drive click-through
Celebrity + AI = Scale
Our AI video work with Bhumi Pednekar showed that a single shoot can produce multilingual personalised interactions at scale. One celebrity, a thousand personalised touchpoints.
The Takeaway
If your brand already uses celebrity endorsement, a branded game with that celebrity will outperform another DVC. The mechanics are proven. The data is in.
