An unexpected, but welcomed, collaboration is happening between developer Atlus and Moneygram Haas F1 Team for the upcoming Singapore Grand Prix this weekend on September 22. Atlus’ upcoming fantasy RPG Metaphor: ReFantazio will be featured on Haas’s Formula 1 car.
A logo of the game and an accompanying character image will adorn the front nose of the number 20 and 27 cars. The number 20 car driven by Kevin Magnussen will feature an image of the protagonist while the number 27 will feature party member Hulkenberg as piloted by Nico Hülkenberg.
Yes, they are putting Hulkenberg on Hülkenberg’s car. The two most famous Hulkenbergs according to Google Search will cross paths this weekend.
The plot of Metaphor: ReFantazio involves the protagonist, Hulkenberg and the rest of the team set of on an election race. So what better way to promote the game than to be part of a racing event.
“Overcoming fear and anxiety is a central theme in Metaphor: ReFantazio, and being featured on the racecars of Nico Hülkenberg and Kevin Magnussen-drivers known for defying the impossible-perfectly mirrors our game, where players beat the odds in their chase for the crown in the Royal Tournament,” said Irvin Ducournau, Director of Marketing at Atlus.
“This hotly anticipated game is visually spectacular and filled with all the speed, suspense and excitement you would expect from a Grand Prix weekend,” said Mark Morrell, MoneyGram Haas F1 Team’s Director of Marketing. “It’s our first partnership of this kind and we’re looking forward to sharing the exhilarating world of Metaphor: ReFantazio with racing fans.”
With Formula 1 becoming a mainstream sport these days, more and more marketing and partnerships have attracted different companies to collaboration and engage with fans. The Alpine F1 team and Xbox have previously given out Xbox Game Pass codes, and previously Garena partnered with McLaren when the F1 circus visited Singapore a few years ago.
Metaphor: ReFantazio is the upcoming new RPG by the leads behind Persona 3, 4 and 5. Recently, Atlus brought in Square Enix’s Yoko Taro to play a demo of the game and offer his thoughts, one includes “the UI is so stylish I almost soiled my pants“.
Metaphor: ReFantazio is releasing on October 11 for the PS4, PS5, PC (Steam, Microsoft Store) and Xbox Series X|S.