Panda Express Gets Playable: Hot Orange Chicken Meets Gaming

We've been cooking up (excuse the pun) some seriously spicy activations for Panda Express! To hype up the return of their fan favorite LTO — Hot Orange Chicken — we created a first-to-market in-game integration across major gaming titles.

Partnering with Super League, we launched the first rewarded cutscene campaign built natively into Fortnite Creative and Roblox. No banners, no interruptions — just immersive, cinematic storytelling embedded directly into gameplay. Players meet Pei Pei the Panda, an interactive NPC guiding them through the return of Hot Orange Chicken.

This activation is participation at its finest, players aren't just watching content, they're actively engaging with the brand story. We believe gaming presents an amazing opportunity for brands to connect authentically with audiences who are already choosing to spend their time in these spaces.

The results in just the first two weeks? 265K+ players watched the cutscene and unlocked Panda Express rewards, 185K+ direct engagements with Pei Pei, and 65+ days of total time spent across both platforms. Instead of skipping ads, players are staying engaged and actually having fun with the brand. This proves that playable media isn't just a format — it's a strategy that works.