The largest pizza company in the world, which got its start thanks to a Volkswagen, is welcoming back its biggest nemesis: the Noid. The antihero has been a part of Domino’s advertising campaigns, comically working to prevent pizza delivery since 1986.
The Noid has been silent for a while, but now is part of a new marketing campaign featuring Nuro’s R2 robot, the autonomous vehicle that is conducting driverless pizza deliveries in Houston, Texas. The delivery system recently went live and is part of a larger autonomous vehicle trial operation. You can find out which self-driving vehicles are being tested in your neck of the woods by clicking here.
“The Noid is Domino’s oldest and most famous villain, and the pizza delivery testing we’re doing with Nuro’s autonomous vehicle is exactly the kind of technology innovation that could provoke the Noid to return,” said Kate Trumbull, Domino’s vice president of advertising. “However, after 35 years of practice in avoiding the Noid, we’re pretty confident we know how to defeat it.”
In addition to television commercials, the Noid will return to \screens in the new installment of the Crash Bandicoot gaming series, “Crash Bandicoot: On the Run!”. For a limited time, the Noid will be featured as one of the game’s mini bosses, pitting players against the Noid as Crash progresses through the story. Players will have the opportunity to access exclusive Domino’s pizza-themed player skins.
“We’re excited to launch our first in-game collaboration for ‘Crash Bandicoot: On the Run!’ with Domino’s,” said Richard Hocking, head of marketing at King, the game’s developer. “With the Noid making its big return this year and the Crash Bandicoot franchise celebrating its 25th anniversary, it was the perfect opportunity to have players take on the Domino’s antihero alongside other nostalgic Crash bosses in this brand-new mobile adventure.”
The Noid can also be found on GIPHY by searching “The Noid” in GIF and sticker search engines on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok.
There’s a charitable element to the campaign as well. For a limited time, “Hanging in There” and “Avoice the Noid” t-shirts and tumblers are available on Amazon. All profits from the merchandise will go to the Domino’s Partners Foundation, an independent internal nonprofit organization that provides financial assistance to Domino’s franchise and corporate team members in need.
