Wendy’s, which in recent months has added fried chicken sandwiches and Pretzel Bacon Pub Cheeseburgers to its menu, has something else new in its lineup: celebrity gamers.
The fast food chain is partnering with Uber Eats to launch five new branded meals featuring Fortnite streamers such as Tfue and Myth, who have millions of followers on Amazon’s livestreaming service Twitch.
As part of the promotion, Wendy’s and Uber Eats will give away next-generation gaming consoles that are almost impossible to get from major retailers. Other prizes include Uber Eats gift cards and gaming merchandise. It starts on Tuesday, December 8, and goes until Saturday, December 12.
The deal comes just as gamers are looking everywhere to buy the recently released PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X, which are hard to come by. Supply of these new consoles couldn’t keep up with the large demand and may have hurt digital game sales, which declined 10% to $3.9 billion this year compared to last year, according to Nielsen’s video game arm SuperData.
Fans who order one of the new branded meals — such as the 10-piece chicken nuggets, small fries and lemonade in the Tfue meal — receive an Uber Eats Prize Pass with a PIN number and must head to a website to see what, if anything, they’ve won.
The companies are also giving fans another way to win — the five Twitch streamers will also be giving their viewers rewards throughout the week.
This is just one of many new initiatives Wendy’s has started this year, including a rewards program, adding a classic chicken sandwich to the menu and even betting big on breakfast.
The branded meals are based on what each Twitch streamer likes to order at Wendy’s. For Myth, who has 7 million followers on Twitch, that’s a classic chicken sandwich, small fries and a Coke.
This isn’t the first time gaming and food have intersected. Last year, Kentucky Fried Chicken launched a dating simulator game where players could pretend to date Colonel Sanders, and brands like Mountain Dew and Doritos have long targeted gamers in giveaways and promotions.
In September, McDonalds added rapper Travis Scott’s picks to its menu, with a branded meal that featured a Quarter Pounder. Shortly after it launched, the chain announced it was selling so quickly that it was experiencing ingredient shortages for the burger. Scott has also made deals with PlayStation and performed a concert inside the game Fortnite.
