10 Insane Video Game Marketing Campaigns That Actually Happened

10. Skyrim - Name Your Baby 'Dovahkiin'

When Skyrim was announced, it had everything going for it even without a massive marketing campaign: good developer goodwill, previous games in the franchise were fantastic, and good communication between the game developers and the gamers.

But when the marketing roll-out finally came, it did nearly everything just right, bar one odd little stunt, proving that even Skyrim isn't immune to the occasional marketing faux pas.

Bethesda offered a nifty prize to parents who were willing to name their baby 'Dovahkiin' if it was born on Skyrim's release date of 11/11/11. Asking parents to name their kid in a fictional dragon language was quite the ask but the prize offered was incredibly tempting to all every gaming parent out there: free access to every Bethesda game - past, present, and future. 

Amazingly, people did take up Bethesda's offer and now their kids will forever wear the name 'Dovahkiin', or 'Dovah' for short, whilst their parents gleefully wait for their free copies of the upcoming Fallout 4 and Doom.

Whilst a bit ridiculous (not to mention quite amusing), this little stunt barely made a mark on Skyrim's momentum as the game debuted to massive sales, overwhelming critical acclaim, and a small collection of kids who will probably be forever ridiculed by having random dragon shouts yelled at them during school.