In Honor of Kings’ first co-creation with a luxury brand, Burberry’s Chief Creative Officer Riccardo Tisci has exclusively designed two skins for the mobile game’s popular heroine, Yao.
Burberry launched its own first game, B Bounce, in October 2019. In December 2019, it announced its second game, Ratberry, in celebration of its 2020 Lunar New Year campaign. Burberry introduced its first multi-player game, B Surf, in July 2020 in tandem with its Thomas Burberry Summer Monogram campaign.
In July 2020, still as part of Burberry and Tencent’s partnership, the brand pioneered a new concept that redefined expectations of luxury retail. Burberry’s social retail store in Shenzhen is a place of discovery that connects and rewards customers as they explore online and in store. It marked a shift in how Burberry engages with customers and connects with its community.
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Centred around the theme of the ‘Spirit of Nature’, this collaboration draws upon Burberry’s longstanding exploration of the relationship between humans and nature. The fashion house’s affinity to the outdoors links harmoniously with Honor of King’s character Yao, who embodies the spirit of nature and is able to take the form of a deer – also an expression of the Burberry animal kingdom house code. In keeping with the fashion house’s signature gabardine, pioneered by founder Thomas Burberry and designed to protect its wearer against the elements, Yao plays the role of a protector for her fellow gamers within Honor of Kings.
Yao’s two exclusive skins have been inspired by Burberry house codes as reinterpreted by Riccardo. Seamlessly blending the physical and digital worlds, Yao’s ‘Spirit of Nature’ new skin draws upon Burberry’s rich heritage and includes references to the iconic House check, the trench coat and the Thomas Burberry Monogram. This skin draws upon the classicism of these Burberry hallmarks and reinvents them into a modern look for Yao to reflect her strong, dynamic and adventurous character. Yao’s ‘Spirit of Nature’ deer takes a mirrored form, drawing upon Riccardo’s fascination with the concept of duality and the creativity found in two perspectives.
In Honor of King’s first collaboration with a brand on its ‘Legend’ skin offering, Burberry has co-created a ‘Spirit of the Forest and Ocean’ Legend skin for Yao using one of the runway looks from the house’s Spring/ Summer 2021 collection ‘In Bloom’ – a collection inspired by thoughts of regeneration, dynamic youth and reconnecting with nature. Yao’s look draws upon the collection’s mythical marine references and features a statement warm royal blue collarless trench coat and a crystal-embroidered vest.
Mirroring the essence of the look, the ‘Spirit of the Forest and Ocean’ Legend deer pulsates blue light through its crystal body. Building upon the existing partnership between the luxury fashion house and Tencent, this collaboration continues to reflect Burberry’s ambitions to push boundaries through innovation and creativity, enabling the Burberry community to explore the digital realm of Honor of Kings in an exciting new concept.
The exclusive Burberry skins will be available to purchase for all Honor of Kings players in mainland China. The skins will then remain part of the players’ permanent collection. Click here for images and videos.
“I am excited to see how technology has found a way to build and nurture the core human needs of personal and emotional connections. Honor of Kings has created an incredible digital world where we can find a new way to dream with our Burberry community. The power of creativity is that it can open spaces and push boundaries, and I am so excited to have designed exclusive skins that will bring Burberry house codes into this immersive universe,” said Riccardo Tisci, Chief Creative Officer at Burberry.
“The story of the heroine Yao represents Honor of Kings’ eastern reflections on the symbiotic relationship between humans and nature, which also coincides harmoniously with Burberry’s exploration of that relationship. The combination of the eastern and western creative concepts is an important cornerstone of this collaboration. Looking forward, we hope our co-created works can bring more users surprise and delight,” said Colin Yao, Vice President of Tencent and President of TiMi Studios.
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“Burberry has always had a spirit of adventure. Partnering with Honor of Kings feels like a natural step up for our move into gaming, going beyond our in-house games by bringing the Burberry universe into an established environment. By allowing our Chinese customers to explore virtual products through the medium of online games, we can connect with our communities in a way that really resonates with them. It has been fantastic to work so closely with Tencent to bring this new customer experience to life,” said Josie Zhang, President of Burberry China.
Burberry has been a pioneer in digital marketing, so we are looking forward to see how its relationship with gaming will evolve.