EA Reveals Need for Speed The Running Shoes

EA and Adidas have come together for a “one-of-a-kind lifestyle and gaming partnership for Need for Speed The Run.”

Remember when we told you about the limited edition Call of Duty Jeep Wrangler, which just about all of you agreed was the stupidest cross-promotion ever? In the finest spirit of cynical one-upmanship, allow me to now direct your attention to something possibly even worse: the exclusive, limited-edition Need for Speed The Run Adidas-branded running shoes.

“Our goal with Need for Speed is to be more than just a videogame franchise, as we view ourselves as a leader in youth and automotive culture as well,” said EA Senior Marketing Director Kevin Maher.

50 pairs of the original Need for Speed The Run Top X shoes went on sale yesterday at the Adidas Originals store in Chicago, which is holding a promotional event on October 12 featuring DJ Neil Armstrong and Kids These Days as well as early access to the new Need for Speed game. 50 more pairs will be up for grabs on October 22 in San Francisco, followed by an event headlined by Mick Boogie on October 27. A third event will go down on November 15 in New York to mark the game’s release.

“Worse” is relative, of course, and gamers presumably won’t have to drop more than 30 large to pick up a pair of these things, which definitely weighs in their favor. But some of the quotes peppered through this press release are nothing short of amazing. If you thought “one-of-a-kind lifestyle and gaming partnership” and “a leader in youth and automotive culture” were awesome, get a load of what Simon Atkins, the Adidas “head of Sport Style Division,” had to say about it.

“When we heard about Need for Speed The Run, we felt like it was a great fit with our brand and our core consumer, as Need for Speed shares our same vision of striving to be the leading lifestyle brand in their respective industry,” he declared.

What?

Need for Speed The Run comes out on November 15 for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, 3DS and PC.