In game ads expected for PS3 & XBOX360




Posted by gamerz


Quoting http://www.gamepro.com/news.cfm?article_id=74168: According to an article from BBC News, because PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 games are so expensive to develop, publishers are beginning to rely heavily on in-game advertising to relieve high-development costs of next-generation consoles.

"There has been this blow out in cost of developing games for next generation systems, and that's causing a lot of problems in the industry as far as being profitable when developing games," said Nintendo Rep David Yarnton explaining the situation.

By acquiring Massive Incorporated, who splice ads into online PC games, Microsoft has become the forerunner for next-gen advertising. Xbox group product manager David Huffer said "the first generation of Xbox we experimented a little bit with online advertising, but the second generation of Xbox, the 360, is much more targeted at something like online advertising."

The currently $56m business of in-game advertising is expected to reach over $700m by the year 2010.



Makes me glad I'm getting a nintendo wii.:-D



Posted by Vampiro V. Empire

Ads in games have never bothered me. Sure they look a little odd, but usually they almost add to the experience. Of course, if I was playing Oblivion and saw a billboard in the middle of Imperial City telling me to buy Gillette Razers... well, then I'll be very disappointed. They just need to know where to draw the line. As long as it's kept to games that make sense or thins like the "Burgerking title," I don't care at all.




Posted by Fate

If it was appropriate, like billboards in racing games or posters in modern-day action/adventure games, it really wouldn't bother me.

It's a small price to pay to develop gaming goodness.




Posted by Poco

Yeah, I agree with Vamp. As long as the ads are kept within the correct time periods, I have no problem with it.




Posted by Prince Shondronai

Heh. I can see TV commercials popping up after the logo screens. After sitting through an hour of extended TV commercials in the movie theatre, I don't rule anything out.




Posted by Klarth

What makes you think there won't be advertising in Wii games? Loads of Gamecube games had sponsorship in them, too.




Posted by Vampiro V. Empire

Here's hoping for KFC bucket items in SSBB




Posted by Prince Shondronai

Colonel Sanders as a playable character would rock so much harder than Solid Snake, it puts Konami to shame.




Posted by Vampiro V. Empire

**** that, give us some BK mascot. Now that would put Konami to shame.




Posted by Kit

I'm not too bothered about in-game advertising, as long as it doesn't affect the plot of the game itself, or makes the characters blurt out adverts.

The link below could be what would make it bad.

[IMG]http://www.vgcats.com/comics/?strip_id=124[/IMG]




Posted by Sean the Wicked

Seeing in-game ads during the more modern games, as mentioned previously many times, like in Grand Theft Auto would be fine by me. In fact, I think it would add a realm further of realism as you could relate to the game...to a point.

"Hey, let's go to Burger King!"
"Okay!"

And etc. Hell, since Vamp mentioned it, if some franchise like GTA ever did something along these lines, they could hit the memes of the internet. Have a GTA mission where the King has a hit put on him for raping a Mafia boss's daughter or something.




Posted by Speedfreak

[quote=Klarth]What makes you think there won't be advertising in Wii games? Loads of Gamecube games had sponsorship in them, too.

Yes, but it was few and far between, and it wasn't often used for development money. Devs must be getting desperate if they can't afford their big but completely unoriginal projects without use of lots of advertising. Future seems pretty bleak for the two "main" consoles, in my opinion.




Posted by DPDude

In-game advertising...I sense loading screens with useless ads.

And that would really suck.




Posted by Vampiro V. Empire

Nah, I doubt that's how it will play out. It'll probably be more "subtle" than that.




Posted by Demonblade


Quoting Speedfreak: Yes, but it was few and far between, and it wasn't often used for development money. Devs must be getting desperate if they can't afford their big but completely unoriginal projects without use of lots of advertising. Future seems pretty bleak for the two "main" consoles, in my opinion.


I really detest overtly biased opinions...and for that, im sure ill get some negative rep, but i dont really care.

In my honest opinion, in game advertising doesnt bother me at all. In truth, i feel it adds a little bit to the game, because honestly, you drive down a city block or open up a refridgerator and you are bound to have something name brand in it. Now, i feel it should be used in moderation though. I dont think its necessary for the main character to open up a fridge and focus on a 2 litre of coke for 10 seconds, only to follow that up by him opening up the freezer, pulling out a 'Hungry Man', all the while focusing on the front of the box for half a minute while he spouts out some random *** quip like "OMG, only 37 grams of fat...amazing! All for 2.49 at your local grocery store as well!"

As long it isnt taken to the point of being rediculous...im all for in game advertising. Im sure not too many people would disagree if i said "it doesnt hurt to have more money when making a video game".



Posted by Last Fog


Quoting DPDude: In-game advertising...I sense loading screens with useless ads.

And that would really suck.
I know right? I reeaaallly hope they dont mess up the loading screens.









WTF



Posted by Prince Shondronai

You know, I've always kind of liked sci-fi that takes place in the distant future where current businesses are still around. Taco Bell's domination of the restaurant business in Demolition Man, for example. I had always hoped that the Nintendo logo would pop up on the viewscreen whenever they activated the holodecks on Star Trek, too. I think it would have been a nice touch.

Anyway, where I'm going with that is that in-game advertising can be fun if used in that kind of context.




Posted by Last Fog

Thats not all too irrational seeing how some compainies and businesses are over a century old.




Posted by WILLETH FOR MONTHS

It's already happening, as I'm sure evryone knows. EA do it all the time - Burnout 3, for example, is full of billboards for Tiger Woods games and Battlefield as you streak by in your car.

That kind of thing I really couldn't care less about. It does make it more realistic, and - in a film, say - it's annoyingly obvious when they order a 'beer' without any specification, or if two people are drinking cans of Coke with the actual logo facing away from the camera on both cans.

As Demonblade said, when they start going The Truman Show on us it's time to start complaining.




Posted by Bebop

Billboard type of things in sports games already occur. And the odd real life product use, like the Duracell battery in Pikmin 2, happen too. As long as a product advertisement isn't being rammed down my throat I'm fine.