McDonald’s enters the PC gaming scene: could the KFConsole have competition?
Solid state drive-thru
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Could we have a new entry to ourbest gaming chairrankings? McDonald’s – of all places – has revealed a new throne for PC gamers to promote the launch of its new McCrispy burger in the UK.
In a post on theMcDonald’s UK Facebook page, the fast-food giant revealed the chair, and I have to be frank: this is perhaps the ugliest gaming chair ever seen by human eyes. The race car-inspired main body is a ghastly yellow plastered with the word ‘McCrispy’ over and over, while the detachable head cushion bears the iconic golden arches of the McDonald’s logo.
Naturally, this being acomfortable gaming chairdesigned to celebrate the arrival of a sub-par chicken burger – which McD’s describes as ‘game-changing’, a tenuous link if I’ve ever seen one – the ‘McCrispy Ultimate Gaming Chair’ comes with a few helpful (read: stupid) features.
These include a fry holder, slots for pots of dip, a stain-proof finish to protect the material from greasy fingers, and a small hot box ‘to keep your McCrispy warm during game-play’. Yes, they hyphenated the word ‘gameplay’. I am literally begging companies to consult with some actual games industry peeps before embarking on these schemes.
Analysis: More clownery than Ronald usually gets up to
This is just the latest effort from fast-food chains to appeal to the ever-growing ‘gamer market’, and I’m not lovin’ it.Gaming is a hobby of such broad scopethat it encompasses all types of people, and it might sound cynical of me, but it’s not as simple a marketing avenue as many big non-gaming brands seem to think.
Some have fared better than others, mind you. Many companies try to use games as a nice easy angle for advertising – take Monster Energy plastering Wraith fromApex Legendsall over cans of Monster Ultra, for example – but there does seem to be a trick toactuallygetting good publicity out of a gaming-related marketing campaign.
The answer: don’t take yourself too seriously, because gamers certainly don’t. KFC is inarguably the champ here: back in 2020, the fried chicken titan revealed theKFConsole, a gaming PC with a built-in chamber to keep your wings warm. This came shortly after the release of ‘I Love You, Colonel Sanders!’, a comedy dating sim starring the Colonel himself reimagined as a dreamy anime boy. It’sfree on Steam,by the way.
Get the best Black Friday deals direct to your inbox, plus news, reviews, and more.
Sign up to be the first to know about unmissable Black Friday deals on top tech, plus get all your favorite TechRadar content.
Mercifully, the McCrispy Ultimate Gaming Chair (bleurgh) is purely a publicity stunt: only one of the chairs will be available, with a prize draw on the company’s UK Facebook page determining who gets it. The eagle-eyed folks over atTheGamernoticed that three more were produced and given to streamers as part of the promotion, so there are at least four of these monstrosities out there in the wild. The competition closes at midnight GMT on November 13.
So, where next for McDonald’s? Can we expect to see a Hamburglar-themedgaming PCarrive at some point? Perhapsgraphics cardswith yellow ‘M’s on the fans? I certainly hope not. Stick to fries, Ronald.
Christian is TechRadar’s UK-based Computing Editor. He came to us from Maximum PC magazine, where he fell in love with computer hardware and building PCs. He was a regular fixture amongst our freelance review team before making the jump to TechRadar, and can usually be found drooling over the latest high-end graphics card or gaming laptop before looking at his bank account balance and crying.
Christian is a keen campaigner for LGBTQ+ rights and the owner of a charming rescue dog named Lucy, having adopted her after he beat cancer in 2021. She keeps him fit and healthy through a combination of face-licking and long walks, and only occasionally barks at him to demand treats when he’s trying to work from home.
Move over Steam Deck and forget the Switch 2 - the next-generation of handheld gaming PCs is almost here
This Cooler Master shark-shaped gaming PC case is the coolest thing we’ve seen all week, but it’ll cost you
OLED vs Mini-LED: which TV type is best?
