Study: in-game advertiser says 82% of you don't mind in-game ads

by Christopher Grant on Jun 18th 2008 2:02AM

The life of a Joystiq editor is frought with difficult – and often perilous – decisions. Take this example: do we choose to run a story about in-game advertising statistics (we imagine a large majority of you are already rolling your eyes, scrolling down to see if there's something a little stronger waiting for you below) or do we simply run a post about another tattoo of [insert popular video game character here]? In this case, we've chosen to share the statistics with you, and we want you to know why.

In-game advertiser IGA Worldwide contracted the survey-mavens at Nielsen to conduct the "Consumers' Experience with In-Game Content & Brand Impact of In-Game Advertising Study." The results of said study may shock you, but here goes: according to IGA's study, a whopping 82% of gamers "felt games were just as enjoyable with ads as without" and a no less impressive 61% "increase consumers' favorable opinions of products advertised in-game post-play." What's this all mean? Why, that in-game advertising works, despite some marketers fears to the contrary.

Regardless of the wall of statistics contained in the press release (really, go check it out), we all know the key to successful in-game advertising comes from using a gentle-touch. MLG ads littered throughout the $60 Rainbow Six Vegas 2? No thanks, really. Some pre-roll ads before your free game of Quake Live, brought to you by none other than IGA? That we can live with.

Source

Tags: advertising, IGA, Nielsen

Reader Comments (53)

Yeah, cause we're reaaaaaally influenced by the large banner ad behind n00b we just pwnd.

On a side note: don't you just hate it when games advertise themselves? Like in a racing game where there are banner ads on the side of the course for the same game for no reason whatsoever?

filler

THAT is probably the only advertising that doesn't bother me. Such real-life courses are often filled with ads... the game advertising itself in the same manner I find a bit like a parody of that.

An 100% wont ever buy anything advertised in a game, so its a waste of time and money

non-intrusive - you mean like a hummingbird?

@farseer
No, non-intrusive like a woodpecker =P.

See, I think the problem is they pulled 82% of wii owners assuming they were gamers.

One such example:

Some old folks on a cruise who had one to many alcoholic lollypop sodas were still riding the high-waves and while playing Wii Bowling in a drunkenly cheerful voice said 'I love the wii! "Meds" in game would be great!'

In game advertising stinks, unless it's relevant. Even then, it should remain non-intrusive. If games want to be considered an art, they can't be shelling out this crap. I don't want to see Coca-Cola's logo feces all over the place when I'm trying to play a game.

I play games to escape reality, not live it. Can you imagine playing GTA5 and every road has 50 different gigantic poster boards advertising McDonald's, Bank of America, etc. (I doubt most of them would want to touch GTA with a 10-foot pole.. but still! This was just the best example of real world advertising meeting gaming advertising I could think of. And to be honest, that's less "intrusive" and more natural than some forms of advertising.)

It's time we face it: gaming companies that do this don't care about you. So in return, you shouldn't care about them. Unless the game is free or you receive a substantial discount, don't pay for it. Or hey, how about 2 different versions: a free, ad-supported version (broadcast TV) and a premium, commercial-free version (HBO)?

Non-Intrusive? That is exactly what they WANT. The less intrusive, the more subliminal it is.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyQjr1YL0zg

Non-intrusive, like an ad on a subway, as opposed to an ad that takes you out of the game play or simply does not belong in that realm (think an ad for Intel in your favorite fantasy-based MMORPG).

Dude, where can I get a sammich-gun? That rocks.

Yeah, though I prefer the .meatball caliber myself. The rounds are much larger and make a huuuuuge mess out of your target.

Oh, and Subway soup grenades are da bomb!

I wish there was more ingame advertisement - as long as it fits.

Although I could live with, say, a Red Bull Mana Potion in a fantasy game... ;)

In EA Sports games I would prefer real ads in the stadiums because that's more realistic, but instead, in NCAA 08 at least, they have the redzone and game changing performance that I can't skip. Stuff that wastes my time or changes the interface bothers me. Ads in in places that would be there in real life are OK (as long as they are varied).

Dont mind, as long as its not overly obvious, over done or not fitting, be rather pointless having an ad for mc donalds in world of warcraft wont it :S

Oh really 82% of gamers don't mind in game advertising? Well I find in game advertising 100% annoying and inappropriate. I am already paying $60+ for a video game to be immersed in a world DEVOID of advertising. There are few things tackier than trying to enjoy a game and have a huge advertisement stick out like a sore thumb. I don't watch TV expressly because of advertisements. But I suppose everyone is so desensitized at this point that they don't realize that Burger King and Dogde propaganda are spammed all over an otherwise near perfect game like Fight Night Round 3.

In-game advertising can be very important and beneficial to the game industry as a whole. It is a way to get companies not already part of the game industry to actually care about it and help the industry look like it is worth something to investors.

Granted, it has to be unobtrusive; as people have mentioned, wall ads in sports games.

Besides, there is in-movie and in-TV show advertising going on all the time but no one seems to complain about that. A certain character on a show or in a movie drinking a branded soda is advertising, but no one notices and it doesn't bother anyone. And it helps the movie developers.

The 82% probably said they wouldn't mind adverts when in proper context, such as in a sports game. All the marketing company had to do was rephrase it a bit to twist the facts.

For some reason, I feel like having Subway now.

100% of us hate copy/pasta ads in games that look like shit and screws up the flow of gameplay.

I'M LOOKING AT YOU AXE BEAR SPRAY.

Yeah, I don't mind in-game ads only if the ad fits the picture.

A good example are ads in a racing game on the walls.

A bad example is if I'm playing a horror game and I opened a door to have some Subway sandwich jump out at me moaning "FIVE DOLLAR FOOT LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG".

its catching on ...

That would make my day.

Hm, a survey funded by an in-game ad company says gamers don't mind in-game ads! What a coincidence!

My thoughts precisely.

I'm confident we'll see third-party tools to block ads in any such games.

I remember when I used to play Battlefield 2142. They said they were going to start using in-game ads, and it was discovered how to block them. They only reason I knew it was working was because one of my clan members said something on teamspeak along the lines of "regroup at the intel billboard," and I didn't know what the hell they were talking about - I still had the placeholder fake billboards on my screen.

I was pretty happy then.

All of the participants were given sample game discs. The selection was not random or scientific. All this shows is that the majority of "gamers" who sign up to get a free sample disc don't mind if it has ads on it. I doubt the majority of gamers who actually have to pay $60 for their games would agree.

It's pretty appalling what passes for "scientific" studies nowadays.

This survey is suspect as all hell.
Seriously, I don't know any gamer who actually can stand in game advertising. This whole "82%" statistic is as bullshit as the ads themselves.

I feel like swearing.
FUCK!

I seriously wouldn't mind as long as it subsidized the cost of the game. I would totally buy Call of Duty 5: Brought to you by McDonalds for $30, and watch McDonalds ads whenever a map is loading. If it really bothered you, you could buy regular old Call of Duty 5 for $60.

I bet you the McDonalds one would sell way more copies.

I remember a few years ago when companies were saying that they were going to use in-game ads to offset development costs, and pass the savings onto gamers by offering cheaper games.

Looks like they didn't stick to their words!

The only way ever that I wouldn't mind ads is when the game is set in a real world location that actually has the same ads there in real life. ANYTHING else can fuck right off.

In game ads should be suitable, so no Coke ads in BF 2142 for instance.
If games were full of them then reduce the price of the game accordingly.
If your really desperate to have in game ads, the loading screens are perfect for them.
All of this has yet to happen properley.

i am for free sponsored content. put your name on it ... not in it.

i understand product loyalty, and to a certain extent product duty. i am dutiful to several companies that i am super-duper pleased with. superb customer service is sometimes overlooked for a cheaper alternative. i'll pay a little more for a product from a company that doesn't outsource to india and has great RMA policies (been doing a lot of that lately). Or how about hand-written, personalized thank you notes with every purchase from an online retailer? Or a company that pays to distribute a multiplayer map-pack free to download. that's what i want more of ... not those damn HUMMINGBIRDS!

/tangent

I don't mind advertising if it's going to reduce the price of the game, but so far that hasn't been happening. So these game companies are raking it in, getting full price from us and then being paid to put other companies' ads in their games.

It's a joke. Either slash the prices or remove the ads.

There's a difference between ads and product placements.

If I'm in a racing game, I don't mind putting a Garrett turbo on my car, or seeing a poster for StreetGlow lights in the car shop. Hell, games like Formula One and NASCAR Racing demand such product placements.

An "ad" is something that does not integrate into the game, no matter how matched the subject matter may be. I don't want to see billboards for Oilzum motor oil in said racing game.

Carmageddon II had a ton of spoofs on billboards. Anyone up for the ultimate energy drink? "Drink Urine(TM)!"

Oh, and don't put them in the damn center of the screen, either. I already have to look at close-ups of Coke cans, Nokia phones, and Apple laptops in the movies. Cameras should be pointing at the action, please.

My biggest problem with in game ads...why are we still paying $60 a game? If an advertiser or two or three pays some decent money to get in the game, shouldn't that cut down on costs elsewhere. We know stores like GamerapeStop and others still need to make thier $12 cut on a game, but what about $10-15 bucks somewhere else. I can put up with ads, as long as I am not paying to watch them.

Was this study based off of GTAIV?
Made up advertising mocking the supidity of real advertising? SURE!

Subway: Eat Flesh

/is not a zombie

I'm fine with in-game advertising as long as it's done in a tasteful manner. I mean, it's more excusable in sports games, as it adds to the believability of the environments. I don't want to see them throughout a military base, though.

Good lord I loved Counter Strike...

Ok, I just can't seem to get a reply to work correctly today. :(

In-game ads = DO NOT WANT.

In a game like GTA4 it would be acceptable as it would be immersive, but in any game not set in a modern city, it's unrealistic and annoying.

It depends how they are done. Like seeing billboards and add along the road or on the car in a racing game is good because that's how it is in real life. But I don't want to see a Domino's delivery guy on the battle field in a game of Call of Duty.

Lmao at the sandwich gun.

Its a 'Sub'-machine gun. Get it?

Like others have said, it depends on the context. In fantasy type settings, ads would detract from the game, but in real-world settings, then billboards and signs almost helps immerse you more into the environment. That and I agree with the others that if companies want to get their products in front of our faces by having in game ads, then the price of games should go down.

Provided it's non-intrusive and actually fits the scenario, I have no problem with it. There are some cases where they do a lingering shot on Pepsi cans and it's just like ... we get it. You're advertising the damn thing. As long as they're tasteful about it and don't turn the game into the Josie and the Pussycats movie then we're all good.

An "in-game advertiser" says what now? By the way, who studied?

As long as the developers control where the ads go, I'm pretty cool....as long as it fits. Sports nowadays are seething in advertising, so seeing it along the race tracks or stadiums...it makes sense. Playing a spy game or role playing game and a billboard of Mt. Dew comes up? Not so much. It's gotta fit with the game just like anything else. Wouldn't expect the Eiffel Tower to appear in a game that takes place in Egypt, would ya?

I agree with several of the others here - in-game advertising ruins the experience. Its very jarring when you are immersed in a game world that is very different from the real world. If the game is simulating real life, like a sports game for example, then ads are more acceptable - it is not as jarring. The only circumstance in which I will accept in-game ads is when doing so reduces the cost of the game.

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Study: in-game advertiser says 82% of you don't mind in-game ads

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