This summer, Leo UK and McDonald’s are celebrating the joy of a side mission to McDonald’s with an integrated campaign that gamifies the brand experience across every touchpoint. Included in the mix is this hero spot directed by Elliot Power via production company Love Song. The :60 playfully celebrates the many reasons we make side missions to McDonald’s. Set to the high-energy track “Twilight Zone” by 2Unlimited, the film combines cinematic storytelling with nostalgic, gamified visual overlays. Scenes of families embarking on relatable side missions are reimagined with classic gaming references, even featuring gamified characters making their own detour to McDonald’s and a cameo from AngryGinge.
“McDonald’s Side Missions” is inspired by the universal fan truth that McDonald’s is life’s side mission. Whether that’s stopping for a Big Mac during a long journey or a McMuffin before work, a trip to McDonald’s is always a welcome detour and often more fun than the main mission. To bring this to life, the brand has tapped into the origins of the phrase “side mission,” meeting fans at the intersection of gaming culture to create a unique experience that turns everything fans love about McDonald’s into playable side missions that they can complete to earn badges and legendary prizes like ‘Maxed Out (99,999)’ Reward Points.
Just like in gaming, McDonald’s Side Missions come in different shapes, sizes, lengths and difficulties. From the “Big Mac of Destiny” that invites fans to claim a £1.99 Big Mac to the “Fries Speedrun” that rewards fans for laying out their fries in size order in record time.
Fans can participate by accessing a Side Missions in the MyMcDonald’s app, designed and developed by tms. The app features an interactive screen with daily Side Missions that unlock delicious food offers throughout the week and “loot” in the form of instant prizes on weekends.
CRM, managed by TMW, will reward participating fans with fun digital badges for every mission they complete, whilst also tempting them away from life’s main mission with behavioral triggers, like “The Rise and Grind Side Mission” which encourages fans to order a McCafé coffee at the break of dawn.
McDonald’s has even teamed up with some of the nation’s most popular gamers to co-create a series of legendary Side Missions such as ordering the perfect £13.37 “LEET” meal. Launching with Angry Ginge, the first of these Side Missions will see fans attempt to eat McDonald’s on ‘Hard Mode’, where they need to post a video of themselves eating at a McDonald’s under the toughest conditions for a chance to win maxed out rewards points. This will also be supported by McDonald’s first-ever TikTok Branded ‘mission’, encouraging users to co-create, with standout videos boosted via paid support.
Finally, the campaign will be accompanied by its own ‘Side Missions’ menu, which launches on July 30. The returning Spicy McNuggets are the ultimate Side Mission, positioned as the final-boss, and the Jaffa Cakes McFlurry is introduced as a brand-new unlocked flavor–making every Side Mission to McDonald’s even more delicious.
In a joint statement, Leo UK executive creative directors James Millers and Andrew Long shared, “Side Missions is our love letter to every spontaneous Maccies run that somehow feels more exciting than whatever you were meant to be doing. We tapped into the language of gaming to reframe these everyday pitstops as playable moments – turning cravings into quests, fans into players, and McDonald’s into the most fun side mission on the map.”
