100°

In-game advertising really grinds my gears

15
Destructoids ~ The Daily Hotness Write: Expect to see things like the above image plastered all over PlayStation Home, as well as an increasing number of your favorite videogames in the near future.
At an upfront by Microsoft-owned ad firm Massive held in New York City on Wednesday, Activision Blizzard revealed numerous upcoming sequels to established franchises (including Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, one of the more uninspired videogame sequel titles in recent memory, and what's being called Guitar Hero 5 for now).

A devious and sickening example of in-game advertising came in a sample screenshot from GH 5. Of course, the Guitar Hero franchise is already infamous for its blatant and brazen advertising, like the Axe-branded guitar and the Pontiac Garage venue in Guitar Hero III. Apparently, a screenshot of GH 5 was shown; it featured a Burger King logo next to the note highway. Excuse me while I go vomit into a wastebasket.
Read Full Article >>   
destructoid.com
Fishy Fingers - contributor
Published: 391 days 1 hour ago | Article | PlayStation 3 | Xbox 360 | Gaming | Industry News
 
 

Showing: 1 - 14 of 14 Comments
Shut this user up Let user speak
Darkseider - 391 days 2 hours ago
PM
Track
Ignore
1 - And?
"The Daily Hotness Write: Expect to see things like the above image plastered all over PlayStation Home, as well as an increasing number of your favorite videogames in the near future."

OK first things first.. DUH! I would hope to see stuff like this all over Playstation Home. It's NOT a game, it is a social networking application based in a 3D world. I want to see ads, virtual stores, theaters, exclusive video game and non-video game related content. As for ads in games? I don't really mind at all. Hell in Burnout Paradise they are all over and just ads to the game itself. Granted a Pepsi ad in the middle of Ratchet and Clank or Banjo Kazooie would be lame but in games where it just ads to the environment I see no problem.
Agree(3) | Disagree(0) | Report | Reply
Shut this user up Let user speak
ChampIDC - 391 days ago
PM
Track
Ignore
1.1 -
Yeah, not only do ads add a slight sense of realism when properly placed, but they help fund the gaming industry. I can't complain when they're helping develop more games and not popping up right in my face and forcing me to look at them.
Agree(1) | Disagree(0) | Report
Shut this user up Let user speak
lokiroo420 - 391 days ago
PM
Track
Ignore
1.2 -
yeah champ it does make it more realistic having noticeable real adverts like in real life, the question is why did developers wait so long to cash in on this money machine a while ago?
Agree(0) | Disagree(0) | Report
Shut this user up Let user speak
IDemonstalkerXI - 390 days 23 hours ago
PM
Track
Ignore
1.3 -
Just got outa home, downloaded all the new things available and did'nt notice much ads....I wish they play something better then socom trailer at the theater though. If they inserted ads in between movies Im not gonna trip.
Agree(0) | Disagree(0) | Report
Shut this user up Let user speak
ginganinja - 391 days 1 hour ago
PM
Track
Ignore
2 - opinion pieces in a 'news' site really grinds my gears,,,
surely we should think about renaming this place, ads4bloggers or suchlike?
Agree(1) | Disagree(0) | Report | Reply
Shut this user up Let user speak
SL1M DADDY - 391 days 1 hour ago
PM
Track
Ignore
3 - Must be a slow day at Destructoid...
Good gravy that site is getting worse and worse every time I read another lame article from them. Was there a surge of high-school kids in need of work that are competent enough to submit an article on a web site and nothing else? Did this dribble actually require a degree of sorts in journalism? I'm leaning to "no" on the latter.
Agree(1) | Disagree(0) | Report | Reply
Shut this user up Let user speak
lokiroo420 - 391 days 1 hour ago
PM
Track
Ignore
4 -
You know what grinds my gears is using an old cliche to try and be funny and then complaining about something that benefits everyone. Advertising is a big reason why home is free, it also gives devs a little extra cash to put into their games, this guy is an ass.
Agree(6) | Disagree(0) | Report | Reply
Shut this user up Let user speak
Mikelarry - 391 days ago
PM
Track
Ignore
5 - i still dont
see why so many ppl hate ingame advertising.for me personally it does not hinder the game experience at the very least but i guess that just only me.
Agree(1) | Disagree(0) | Report | Reply
Shut this user up Let user speak
The_Firestarter - 391 days ago
PM
Track
Ignore
5.1 -
Don't worry, you're not alone. I agree 100%.
Agree(1) | Disagree(0) | Report
Shut this user up Let user speak
mrdxpr2 - 391 days ago
PM
Track
Ignore
6 -
in game advertisment is wahts paying for home hello...people walking and then out of nowhere they see a cool trailer and they lik it.. or a bk hamburger i would hate to se food adv in home cause then i would have to go get some of that cause i would get hungry :(
Agree(0) | Disagree(0) | Report | Reply
Shut this user up Let user speak
xxchicago33xx - 391 days ago
PM
Track
Ignore
7 - In Game Ads
Generally I don't post many comments but since I work for an Ad Agency I think this is appropriate. Any advertising that is tastefully done in a video game adds a great sense of realism to the atmosphere. For instance real products on billboards in Burnout.

This is a tricky platform to place and is very new to most large companies. And most Media Managers that pull the triggers on these spots have no idea about gamers or gaming in general. My fear is that they are going to start treating this like online advertising...for instance the Burger King logo next to the note chart. This is just an example of a lazy creative team putting up a simple banner ad similar to what is found on any webpage with a decent traffic count. If in-game ads go this direction I agree it will become a turn-off for most consumers. However, if they use product integration it can enhance the perception of the brand. For instance, you're playing Madden and key stadium sponsors have their actual signage in stadium that is panned to during breaks...timeouts etc. That adds realism to those fans of that team who may have been in the stadium.

Who knows the added realism could help offset development costs that may be passed along to the gamers in a sense of cheaper costs. To answer the question of why this took so long....it's because not until this generation has console gaming been so tied to the internet. This allows ad agencies to update the creative used in game which increases revenues because they can sell the space to a new company every month or so....anyways sorry for the long post hope that makes sense.
Agree(0) | Disagree(0) | Report | Reply
Shut this user up Let user speak
DaSaintFan - 390 days 23 hours ago
PM
Track
Ignore
7.1 - This is the ONE thing I've always complimented the "evil" EA empire about..
It's the one thing they've always seemed to know how to do, and that's go with the in-game advertisements in their sports / racing games. (although I will never buy another Gillette Razor due to certain vans in B:PC)

Heck, if the guy hates advertisements like that, I assume he's never been a Gran Turismo fan? That game is one giant advertisement for anything automotive.
Agree(0) | Disagree(0) | Report
Shut this user up Let user speak
FantasyStar - 390 days 18 hours ago
PM
Track
Ignore
8 -
When it comes to sports games and Home, I can allow ads if done tastefully. However if I see a Burger King ad in KZ2, then we're going to have a problem. A HUGE one at that.
Agree(1) | Disagree(0) | Report | Reply
Shut this user up Let user speak
xxchicago33xx - 390 days 18 hours ago
PM
Track
Ignore
8.1 - Agreed
Ha I completely agree
Agree(0) | Disagree(0) | Report
Add Comment (Gamer Zone)
Gamer Zone Posting Guidelines
The Gamer Zone is for members who want a more friendly and civilized discussion. This section is heavily moderated by the N4G staff, so leave your fanboyism at the door please. Members who are unable to behave in a mature and respectful manner will be temporarily or permanently restricted from posting in the Gamer Zone. Using words such as Xbots and Sony droids, or other words from the console war vocabulary, is strictly prohibited in this Zone.
Read More...
 
 
You must log in to post comments.
Username:  
Password:  
 
 
About N4G
N4G is a social game news site that covers the game industry 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
More Info... | Submit News