Advertising To Become Staple In FPS Gaming? |
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For the past year, we've been hearing horror stories of how advertisements have pestered gamers right smack in the middle of a game, from advertisements popping out in the middle of questing, to product logos plastered all over the environment, to NPCs telling you to buy the expansion pack of the MMORPG you're playing. There have been mixed reactions with this trend, but apparently, this may become a normal sight in games soon enough. After all, it now has a name: "Advergames".Vancouver developers Threewave Software, best known for their capture the flag gameplay mod for Quake back in 1996, have recently revealed in an interview with Gamasutra that they will be embracing new ways to fund, and distribute games. They also plan to start implementing new development practices, which will center on integrating sponsored advertisements in the content of multiplayer FPS games.
According to Threewave CEO Dan Irish, they are looking for ways to include ads in games without being obtrusive to the player the way that pop-ups are. They are considering providing sponsored content that also supports the brand of the FPS, and instead of just having a brand logo stuck in some brick wall in the game it will actually become a part of the game this time around, such as "Maybe in a Jeep-Chrysler level youÂ’ll be able to drive their vehicles. Maybe a Pepsi-branded level where you jump through a Pepsi logo to materialise somewhere else."
Irish notes that by having sponsors, the industry and the developers will definitely benefit from the deals that can be struck with other companies. However, they are also aware of the thin line that they walk and know that if they are not careful with how this issue with ads is handled, there will be a massive backlash from gaming communities everywhere.
And so, the whole thing becomes a balancing act between keeping the sponsors happy, keeping the gamers happy, and keeping the FPS brand happy. Irish has noted that they have recently struck deals with unidentified companies for games that are to be announced, and that the deals included a condition that the FPS game maintains its identity and that the product companies cannot dictate how gameplay will go just for the sake of getting as much exposure for their product as possible.
Though many will wince at the prospect of seeing Coca-Cola logos in their next round of Counterstrike, the benefits that this will do for the gaming industry is undeniable. But one can't help but wonder if this method can also be prone to abuse or perhaps overuse. In the meantime, while this concept is yet to become widely-accepted, developers must tread carefully on the eggshells that they are walking on.
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Comments [refresh]
As long as the ad fits the setting.
I better not see Mcdonald's ads in games like Halo 3 and resistance
Well it seems that they have finally done it. No avoiding it now. But they better do a good job of putting their fowl adds in the game!
I could see it in Halo 3 (though probably not cause microsoft will pay out the wazoo to fund that game) since it is a future in our universe/dimension whatever, but yeah as long as it fits the setting. I mean jumping through Pepsi portals? Holy crap thats dumb, it should be like in a game where you eat to regain health, well a pepsi can retro/contemporary/futuristic or bottle could be one of the items that replenishes your health. The subway one in CS:S doesn't look too bad except for there in dumb positions and the ad looks kinda dumb. Actually they need to change the projector into a 12' Sweet Onion Chicken Teriyaki sub.
Umm you wont be seeing ads in CS:S source...
Seriously!
Look at Swat 4 though :(
we pay 40-50$ for these games even more for those next gen console games. All i know is if there are any visible ads in a game i will not buy that game. plain and simple. Games have been made for so long without it why do they need to start doing it? disgusting.
Just hacked sprays
development costs for games are constantly going up, especially with the next gen coming. yet our games stay at 60. it seems fitting that they would want to get some kind of advertising in there as well. and if a team worked hard to make a game that they love, they wont ruin it by putting random ads. they will incorporate it nicely in the game.
those screenshots on the article are merely custom sprays in counterstrike...
NOOO!! GOD NOOO!!!
I pay for cable TV, and I still get commercials! The industry wants to make commercials unskippable in TiVo recordings! My DVDs have commercials in the beginning for other DVDs and 'don't pirate' propaganda! I can't walk a block without seeing a billboard for some piece of sh** GAP ad that screams: "Wear our cloths or you won't be cool"!
My only refuge from the commercial brainwashing has been gaming, and in 2 years from now, Sonic will be running in Nikes and Master Chef will be drinking Mountain Dew.
I will only accept this BLASPHEMY on one condition:
The game MUST BE FREE, as in NOT COST ME A DIME! If they want to throw a McD's in Grand Theft Auto, then McD's can GIVE ME a copy of that game, because their endless marketing will be a scourge in the game, let alone what they've done in REAL LIFE.
... whew, that felt good.
P.S. http://thebubbleproject.com/
If the game is set in a modern environment, and becomes part of the content (gas stations which are real companies, fast food restraunts, billboards in locations that make sense) then I could see how it could be used to "add" realism to the world and still be good ads.
I think the problem and the worry is that done poorly it could take a decent game and make it a fairly crappy game. Putting ads in can work, but frankly it has to be done with a sense of art and context for the game.
Also, based on a game's rating, maybe fast food isn't what you want to advertise. The average gamer is 30+. Alcohol companies may be a large untapped (pardon pun) market.