Despite being one of the most important times of year in many Asian cultures, Lunar New Year isn't widely known in the U.S. And as an American Chinese restaurant always looking to bridge the cultural gap and foster appreciation of our heritage, Panda Express shares good fortune with their guests every year by distributing traditional lucky red envelopes and other engaging ways to introduce the cultural meaning behind their lucky dishes. But this year, Panda wanted to invite even more people to join the celebration.

The objective was to create a digital experience capable of educating an uninitiated American audience on the history and traditions of Lunar New Year while driving sales of Panda Express Family Meals. Our primary challenge was to strike the right balance of educating while still creating an engaging, authentic, & genuinely fun experience that could build love for the brand while driving online sales.

We created something authentic not only to Panda’s American Chinese heritage but also authentic to the one place capable of reaching everyone across the US: the internet. The Good Fortune Arcade was an 8-bit, web-based gaming experience that offered players the opportunity to have fun collecting lucky Lunar New Year foods while learning about the rich history and traditions of the holiday. Players would jump, dodge, and high score their way through four unique levels, each with its own distinct visual identity inspired by the holiday's origins. Throughout each level, players uncovered Easter eggs such as the Zodiac animals from which each new year takes meaning, all while chasing down Nian, the mythological monster woven throughout the traditional Lunar New Year story.

In-game digital fortune cards educated players on the meaning behind each lucky food while unlocking special discount codes for a delicious taste of the celebration.

We wanted to establish a sense of familiarity because we needed to reach and connect with an audience largely uninitiated about the holiday. So we harnessed the power of nostalgia with a simple yet captivating 8-bit game. This recognizable visual style kept gameplay intuitive and fun so players could spend their efforts learning about the Lunar New Year holiday. While traversing four unique levels and collecting lucky foods and digital fortune cards, players were simultaneously absorbing information through in-game easter eggs like 8-bit tigers, red envelopes, firecrackers, and more.

The Good Fortune Arcade ran on a simple webpage, playable on both desktop and mobile, that linked out directly to Panda’s online ordering portal where players could redeem the discount codes they’d unlocked in-game. We also activated by bringing our gaming experience in-store, partnering with influencers from across the foodie and gaming space on Instagram and Twitch, and even bringing the fun to an NBA game.

The campaign ran for roughly five weeks, going live in early January through the end of the 15-day Lunar New Year celebration in mid-February.

The Good Fortune Arcade not only educated players about Lunar New Year, but it also allowed them to unlock, save and redeem digital coupons in real-time, leading to:

- 400k players

- 3 minutes and 15 seconds average time spent playing

- 50 million overall impressions

- 500k coupons saved

- 26% lift in sales