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[Patrick Klepek]

"The interesting thing for us is to figure out if there's a market for advertising in video games," Viacom CFO Richard Bressler said. -- http://www.gamespot.com/news/2004/06/17/news_6100900.html

what do you guys make of this? i'm investigating this story for Computer Gaming World, and am interested to hear what some of the forum's thoughts on the subject are.

personally, as long as it stays out of gameplay's way, i don't have any real problems with it. however, it they start become as intrusive as internet pop-up ads or interrupting the gameplay entirely -- i.e. something akin to commercial breaks -- that's where i'd draw the line. product placement (pick up 10 Pepsi (tm) cans in order to complete the objective!) might piss me off a bit, but i doubt it's anything i couldn't get over. it feels like a natural evolution for video games.

plus, if there are any sneaky forum developers interested in talking about the subject for the story, drop me a PM.

 

[Eggo]

I think tactful use of in-game advertising would be good. It adds realism to the gaming world and helps out the developer/publisher. Examples of this would be a billboard in a city that advertises a real product. This is unobtrusive and doesn't break the atmosphere the game is trying to create. Of course, the advertising better hit the right demographic...

 

[Grizzlyjin]

As long as it doesn't mess up the gameplay or slow down the game. Lets take Spider-Man 2 as an example. Now if the developers added in Dr. Pepper billboards and stuff like that, the experience would still be intact. If anything that would make the game more realistic, but if Peter had to drink a Dr. Pepper to regain health, I would start having problems. There is a line that just shouldn't be crossed...

Some games shouldn't have advertising at all though. Usually games that don't take place in the present of future have no need for advertising, that would mess up the flow of the experience for me. I think the major advertising should stay with games based off licensed material.

 

[The Faceless Master]

sounds good if the ads make the games cheaper...

i'd drink a dr. pepper if the game was $40 instead of $50

 

[siamesedreamer]

Anything that helps the industry is a plus. As long as they don't resort to things like "Coca-Cola's Need for Speed: Underground 5" on the box art, then I think ads are fine.

 

[The Faceless Master]

Anything that helps the industry is a plus. As long as they don't resort to things like "Coca-Cola's Need for Speed: Underground 5" on the box art, then I think ads are fine.

you mean like "Road & Track Presents: The Need For Speed"

 

[jett]

Namco has the best in-game advertisment EVAR: In Xenosaga you get an e-mail letting you know that Ace Combat 4 is out. I thought it was pretty clever.

 

[brandonnn]

Edge's June issue (E137) did a write up on this, specifically about Hive Partners and their brokering of deals between advertisers and developers Rebellion and Team 17.

if Peter had to drink a Dr. Pepper to regain health, I would start having problems. There is a line that just shouldn't be crossed...

This specifically was Team 17's deal -- there's a Red Bull powerup in Worms 3d, so consider your line both drawn and crossed, for better or worse.

 

[DCharlie]

in the days of internet connectivity, i'm surprised the sports games creators haven't come up with the idea of having automatically downloaded ads. that change periodically.

Think about it - whilst the game is loading , play a short video ad. If done a la "TV style" it could even add to the imersion.

Todays game is brought to you buy.... GO OUT AND BUY THE NEW ZINGY CHICKEN!

Several advantages for everyone
1. games cost less - and it's occuring incidentally (on signs around stadium that woudl be there anyways) or during dead time (game loads)
2. For the advertiser, the ad. is current ! You could advertise blitz gamers to buy a NEW product, or offer time specific deals.
3. Brings in more money for the games producer as they could sell chunks of advert time at a much higher rate than usual. During the football season, more people will play Madden for instance, so you can justify a higher rate etc etc...

Actually, you could even break it down to be area specific. Or run one nation wide advert then 2 local... the possibilities are infinite.

EA - can you please hire me and i'll help you out with this

 

[NotMSRP]

The Pizza Hut ad blended fine in TMNT. I'm fine with anything that isn't in the annoying style of IGN. In exchange for placing in ads, I expect lower price tags and more cool promotions.

 

[ChrisReid]

There are tons of ads in the real word.. so as far as ads in games help make them more "realistic," then that's great. I think to a certain degree it helps in the game's immersion. Obviously super blatant advertising that gets in the way is a bad thing.

 

[pilonv1]

This specifically was Team 17's deal -- there's a Red Bull powerup in Worms 3d, so consider your line both drawn and crossed, for better or worse.

It was a good article too, and it mentioned Judge Dredd having Red Bull advertising aswell. If it's not obtrusive and helps smaller developers out then I'm all for it.

 

[etiolate]

It feels dangerous, but theres billboards and ads in extreme sports videogames and its fun. Just as long as I'm not traversing a dark dungeon with my crafty rogue and run into a Budweiser bar.

 

[Defensor]

Wip3out XL's loading screens told me to buy Red Bull.

 

[SolidSnakex]

As far as non sports games go, i'd say Shenmue's done the best with ingame advertising. So as long as its done right I don't really mind it. Although I don't want to see that stuff popping up in fantasy type games like RPG's that aren't based in modern types. I don't want to see Vaan opening a can a pepsi in FFXII for example.

 

[Mairu]

I think tactful use of in-game advertising would be good. It adds realism to the gaming world and helps out the developer/publisher. Examples of this would be a billboard in a city that advertises a real product. This is unobtrusive and doesn't break the atmosphere the game is trying to create. Of course, the advertising better hit the right demographic...

I agree with this completely. I was actually disappointed that the Spider-Man 2 game didn't feature actual advertisements where you'd think they would be. It seems like there were many opportunities for them to create deals with companies for advertising in the game (where actual advertising would be in areas of New York) and it would have made the city feel more like New York. I assume every advertisement either a generic picture of a soda or something or an advertisment for Activision.

Maybe if they had got more money for the game from in-game advertising they could have made the character models other than Spider-Man not suck so much

 

[WasabiKing]

I've never had a problem with it, and I've noticed it since Gran Turismo. As long as it's non-obtrusive, in the background (billboards a la SSX 3, banners a la Gran Turismo Series), I'm fine. Even better if those advertisers help cut the price down. Of course there's a way to do a great tie-in and be able determine if customers are buying their product because of a game, but I will also be happy to offer my marketing experience to a video game company.

Now, the minute pop-ups start showing up in my games is the minute I get angry.

 

[FitzOfRage]

I agree with this completely. I was actually disappointed that the Spider-Man 2 game didn't feature actual advertisements where you'd think they would be. It seems like there were many opportunities for them to create deals with companies for advertising in the game (where actual advertising would be in areas of New York) and it would have made the city feel more like New York. I assume every advertisement either a generic picture of a soda or something or an advertisment for Activision.

Maybe if they had got more money for the game from in-game advertising they could have made the character models other than Spider-Man not suck so much

Well probably with a property like Spider-Man, anything would have to go through Sony Pictures or Marvel. I don't think Activision is free to cut deals to include whomever they want. For example, Burger King spent over $40 million to promote Spider-Man 2, so I don't think Activision is free to cut a deal with McDonald's for in game advertising.

 

[IgeL]

The problem with in-game advertising is that it doesn't help independent developers that much, at least not until small non-gaming companies (i.e. the product makers, the advertisers) see the value of in-game advertising. It would be cool for an independent developer to have in-game adverts of a less-known product - it would probably be the most beneficial to all. Sadly I don't see that happening for a while.

 

[aoi tsuki]

Wip3out XL's loading screens told me to buy Red Bull.

Same here. i actually found out about RB through XL and eventually became a distributor before they had a national presence here.

The only ad i never wanna see in-game is for McDonalds. Their colors are gaudy anyways, but i was scarred for life the day IGN got McOwned.

Still makes me shudder.

 

[Jim Bowie]

If I saw an advertisement for McGriddles in any video game, I would probably laugh until my stomach knotted up.

On that note, I'd only get really, REALLY mad if ClearChannel sponsored stuff in a game.

 

[Keio]

I'm pretty ambivalent, but slightly in the NO camp on this subject (having written and researched a 4 page feature about this for a foreign gaming mag).

A few points and cases:

1) In Sims Online, you can buy a generic pc, which allows your character to improve your skills. BUT if you REALLY want to improve, you buy an Intel Pentium IV, complete with the companys jingle playing every time you use it.

And you can have your own McDonalds - and toil away making breakfast sandwiches. Maybe in the future McDonalds doesn't have to train kids for McJobs, they do it by themselves.

2) How much control do advertisers want over the game content? There have already been cases where games have been changed (such as BT and Getaway) because of corporate sensitivities. Will increasing in-game advertising force games into even more generic and conformist molds? I have always loved the parody ads in Robocop - would we see these things anymore?

3) Where the ads fit, where they don't. I'm all for soccer games having proper sponsors in the stadiums and on the shirts. That is increased realism. But in fictional settings it really depends on how subtle the ad is. Having a whole city plastered with ads of one company just doesn't work. F. ex. the Wipeout Fusion Kappa deal was wrong: with only one sponsor, it's McGriddles all over again.

4) Different forms of promotion. There are opportunities for either licensing, crosspromotion or advertising in gaming. I'll use the GT series as an example. I mean the licensed cars from Gran Turismo have become famous (loads of ppl wanting to buy the Skyline in the UK), thus car companies have started to want to show their cars in car shows using the game (cross promotion). Now the next step might be Nissan paying Polyphony to make their car the winning car in the game. How far should we go here?

 

[Red Dolphin]

I was just playing Rush 2 on N64 recently and I forgot about the insane amount of advertising in that game for Mountain Dew, Electronic Gaming Monthly and others. I actually found them a little distracting.

 

[TekunoRobby]

If advertising in games makes them cheaper then I support it (especially Clear Channel ). If not then the companies can go fuck themselves, I don't want to be paying for an advertisement.

 

[Hellraizah]

I like advertising in games. And I think, to a degree, it works very well.

I want to eat Pringles whenever I play Beach Spikers.

 

[Patrick Klepek]

what about this idea -- part of the reason there are so many advertisements on television is to reduce the costs of the station, so that it can continue providing what is pretty much a free service to you (speaking in non-cable terms, that is).

if advertisements in video games were to become more accepted, should publishers use the money to reduce the cost of purchasing games for gamers?

 

[Alcibiades]

If they are brands I like (or have no distaste for) I'm all for cross-promotion...

In The Day After Tomorrow, it was fun to see Fox News, Sky News, and Wendys...

In Antz, I love that Pepsi bottle (by favorite soda)...

moving into games, I'd think that would be cool..

 

[Littleberu]

I liked the idea in Pikmin 2 too.

 

[NotMSRP]

Can "piracy" be justifed with in-game advertising?

 

[Culex]

I'm hungry for some McGriddles now.

 

[dskillzhtown]

I don't mind it at all. EA's NHL series has been using it for years on the ice. And it makes sense and none obtrusive. I would hate advertising to be used in a loading screen or title screen though. If it is used in the background in games or in everyday locations, then I see no issue.

 

[Deg]

At the moment its hard to measure the effectiveness of ads in games.

 

[Eggo]

In-game advertising should be effective. If some company had the foresight to buy a billboard in a game like Grand Theft Auto 3, do you realize how many people will have seen that billboard on a daily basis? Teens spend a lot of time playing video games, and that is a demographic that a lot of advertisers want to reach, but don't know how.

 

[Deg]

In-game advertising should be effective. If some company had the foresight to buy a billboard in a game like Grand Theft Auto 3, do you realize how many people will have seen that billboard on a daily basis? Teens spend a lot of time playing video games, and that is a demographic that a lot of advertisers want to reach, but don't know how.

I dont think it will be that different movies.

 

[SolidSnakex]

"If some company had the foresight to buy a billboard in a game like Grand Theft Auto 3, do you realize how many people will have seen that billboard on a daily basis?"

I think alot of people are worried about advertising in a GTA due to the games content. But yah if there was one game you'd want to advertise in, GTA would be it just because of all the people that'd see it.

 

[Deku Tree]

I don't like it.
The spam in Xenosaga really bothered me alot.

 

[tedtropy]

Suddenly I have the urge for a hunger-busting Snickers!

 

[bishoptl]

If the publishers would reduce the costs of their games accordingly, I'd be all for it. But they won't, so fuck 'em - I'm not paying so you can advertise to me for free.

 

[Kon Tiki]

I am ok with game makers adversting for other products (which they make/made) within games. I have no love for product placement that has nothing to do with the game. Feel the same for movies, and sports.

 

[Jumpman Jr.]

Thought the real-world locations were fun in Crazy Taxi.

"Driver, take me to KFC!"

 

[FightyF]

I brought it up on GA long ago...back in '99. I was thinking that extra revenue could be made by putting ads on loading screens. Ads related to the game would be appropriate (ie. Bauer skate ads for NHL 2000's loading screens).

But loading is no longer an issue ('cept for the PS2).

I agree with the sentiment that advertising that would make the game seem more immersive/realistic (ie. real billboards in a virtual city, real locations like the KFC in Crazy Taxi).

My suggestion that I posted long ago had to do with more blatant and shameless forms of advertising, but it would be appropriate and would target the right audience. (Having a McDonald's ad for a sport game loading screen would not be appropriate).

 

[skip]

If the publishers would reduce the costs of their games accordingly, I'd be all for it. But they won't, so fuck 'em - I'm not paying so you can advertise to me for free.

right. putting ads before movies in theaters didn't lower my ticket prices one damn cent. I'm still pissed off about this.