Christmas has become a battle of the heart-warming ads - even Pornhub is in on it
It's time to snuggle up, turn down the lights and prepare your Kleenex.
With Christmas just weeks away, 'tis the season where retailers are dishing out their festive marketing campaigns.
These adverts these days bound to tug at your heartstrings if not hit you right in the feels.
The yuletide ads of old that pitched products bedecked with tinsel or being hawked by Santa Claus are old hat.
Now, huge production values are employed to bring a minute-long drama or animation that tells a story to warm the cockles rather than directly shift units.
In 2011, Christmas adverts took a new twist when UK departmental store giant John Lewis decided to do away with the usual in-your-face product selling.
Instead, the retailer released a more personal, family oriented commercial that succeeded in making viewers go "awwww".
In this advert a little boy is shown impatiently counting down to Christmas.
According to the description, it was meant to bring "to life the feeling of excitement and anticipation you get when you have found that perfect gift for someone and cannot wait for Christmas day to arrive".
In 2012, the store came out with The Journey, where a snowman goes on an epic journey to find a Christmas gift for his snowwoman.
Then in 2013 the year's festive production caught the attention of netizens.
The Bear and The Hare became viral with its simple yet emotional story of a bear that never gets to celebrate Christmas because of hibernation.
The video became viral on social media sites and received over 16 million views on YouTube.
With that, the season of goodwill became a war for the heartstrings of the world. The race was on to produce the most heart-wrenching, tear-jerking, high-budget Christmas commercial.
Supermarket Sainsbury produced one inspired by the "extraordinary story of 1914 Christmas truce" during the World War I, which some took offence to.
But it was no match for John Lewis' #MontyThePenguin for that same year, which now has 26 million views.
This year, John Lewis partnered with Age UK to help raise awareness of what the season is like for lonely older people.
But in terms of going viral, Germany's supermarket chain Edeka — known for its quirky YouTube adverts — has blown much of the competition away.
It tells a story of an elderly man who fakes his death because it is the only way he can guarantee getting his family to gather in one place.
Since its upload on Nov 28, the video already has gone viral and has over 40 million views.
And then there is pornography sharing website, Pornhub.
This cheeky ad is surprisingly very SFW (Safe for Work) and may well raise a smile or two.
To all that is too touchy feely, check out UK's Currys PC World's #SparetheAct campaign, featuring Jurassic Park's Jeff Goldblum.
In these he teaches people how to accept presents they do not like in order not to ruin the festive mood.
The cynicism is a refreshing break from niceness.
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