ACTIVISION | SCRATCHBOARDS | 2022
A skateboard that gets luckier the more you scratch it / ACTIVISION "SCRATCHBOARDS"
A skateboard deck that turns into a scratch-off lottery ticket—the more you grind it down, the better your odds of winning. Scratching up your board is normally a skater's worst nightmare, but this idea flips that exact thing into a reward.
The problem
The "Tony Hawk's Pro Skater" game series, known for spreading real-world skateboarding culture, had just hit its 20th anniversary since launch. For that milestone, the series needed a way to promote a remastered version of the games.
The insight
The more you skate a board, the more its surface gets scratched and worn down. David Madrid connected this everyday wear and tear—something every skater knows all too well—with the mechanics of a scratch-off lottery card. The invention was realizing that the scratches themselves could become a reward built right into the game.
The idea
The team teamed up with Birdhouse, Tony Hawk's own skateboard brand, to create a limited-edition deck called "Scratchboards," designed to look just like a lottery ticket. The surface was coated with layers of special paint, so that as skaters rode and scratched the board, in-game reward codes would appear underneath. Right down to the metallic colors and lucky symbols, it faithfully recreated the look of a real scratch card.
What happened
The campaign launched with an online video featuring Tony Hawk himself, and pro skaters and influencers who received the boards early helped spread the word. At Cannes Lions 2022, it won Gold in Outdoor, Silver in Direct, and Bronze in Brand Experience & Activation, making DAVID Madrid the agency with the most Lions won in Spain that year.
Afterthought
Instead of treating scratches on a board as something to avoid, this idea turns the scratching itself into the reward. Taking what looks like a product's flaw and flipping it into the whole core of the campaign feels like genuine invention. And the fact that it's made with Tony Hawk's real brand makes it land even harder—nothing fake about it.
Awards
- Cannes Lions Gold 2022
