Emoji excitement grips the mall

Emoji fever is gripping the globe as children and adults alike exchange billions of smiley faces every day on their mobile messages, a movie based on the tiny yellow characters has been released in cinemas, and now one of the kingdom’s busiest malls is offering customers a game based on the smartphone sensation, writes Kristian Harrison.

City Centre Bahrain is creating great moments for customers with its first-ever `Emoji Drop’ game, providing fans with a chance to claim a package of prizes.

Emoji Drop is an interactive game featuring numerous Emoji icons. The mall’s Central Galleria has been transformed into what looks like a scene from the recently-released Emoji Movie, featuring numerous activities.

To participate in the game, customers spending BD40 or more simply have to show their receipt at the mall’s customer service desk to receive an Emoji Disc to drop in the giant counter collector.

The aim of the game is to drop the disc into a slot of your choice, and watch while it tumbles down the pegs and lands in one of a number of trays, similar to old-style penny arcades and the popular British TV game Tipping Point. These are labelled either as ‘Instant Prize’ or ‘Try Again’.

Instant prizes include mall gift cards ranging from BD5 to BD50, tickets to see The Emoji Movie, retailers’ vouchers and Emoji merchandise.
Members of the media were invited to an opening day of the activity on Sunday, including yours truly and my colleague, marketing manager Jalal Muradi, pictured top left.

Waiting patiently in line, I watched as lucky winner after lucky winner strolled up the steps and dropped their token and watched it tumble into the prize-filled trays.

I grabbed my favourite Emoji, the creepy smirk (anyone who has ever tried flirting over Whatsapp will know exactly which one this is), while Jalal opted for the mirror … er, I mean, the overly-happy grinning smiley!

I’d spent many an English tea-team watching the dross that is Tipping Point, and I thought I had my technique down to a tee. With the lucky charm of Jalal next to me, a man who some say has a secret warehouse somewhere in the kingdom to store all of his prizes, appliances and gifts he’s won from more than a decade of media ghabgas, I thought I couldn’t lose.

Well … scratch that, of course I could.

Trust me to find one of the few ‘bad luck, try again’ trays. A one-in-five chance, if that. All that boundless optimism and joyful glee punctured like a balloon as I watched my token bounce off the pegs, gravity pulling it to a bottom of doom.

As the lovely MC Yasmeen Al Seed declared me a loser, I celebrated like I’d scored the winner in the FA Cup Final anyway. If I can’t laugh, I’d cry. Especially as Jalal’s Tomahawk missile-esque, made a laser-sighted target right for the ‘Mall Gift Card’ slot.

Maybe he can buy himself a surround sound system to go with his fourth flat screen television, or perhaps a freezer to complement his high-tech fridge.

Still, almost out of pity rather than as a token of thanks, I was thrust with a goodie-bag containing a ‘kissing’ Emoji. It was almost a cruel, condescending stab in the back, but I took it anyway. That poor yellow cushion, which I am cuddling, top right, was my only solace that night as I decried my terrible fortune.

City Centre Bahrain has announced that customers spending BD40 or more at any of the mall’s children fashion retailers can double their chances to win, whilst anyone spending BD30 or more at any retail, dining or entertainment outlet can redeem their receipts, entering the draw to win the grand prize BD5,000 gift card.

Duaij Al Rumaihi, senior mall manager of City Centre Bahrain, said: “We are anticipating an exciting summer campaign this year, providing our customers with thrilling offers, promotions and prizes to win, as well as activities and Emoji-themed entertainment suitable for all ages.
“We look forward to creating great moments for everyone, every day with our specially outfitted Emoji entertainment.

“We have also pledged BD2,000 to the Bahrain Cancer Society, which will be contributed by the mall, through customers playing the game. Each time a customer’s disc falls on the designated charity slot, City Centre Bahrain will contribute BD1 to the charity on the customer’s behalf.”

There will also be a digital photo booth area that places Emoji filters onto shoppers’ faces, which can be printed and then placed in a frame to take home. A children’s area will let the little ones create their own Emoji masks with colours and crafts, with workshops planned too.

Emoji Drop will run until September 16, operating during regular hours from 10am-10pm on weekdays and from 10am-midnight on weekends.