The Next Step For The FPS - Advergames? 97
simoniker writes "The CEO of Vancouver company Threewave, famous for creating Capture The Flag, has been explaining their current project — multiple versions of a free, ad-supported FPS: 'We'd like to provide sponsored content that also supports the brand of the FPS, allowing it to have a whole stream of maps that are available month after month, featuring different product placement each time. Maybe in a Jeep-Chrysler level you'll be able to drive their vehicles. Maybe a Pepsi branded level where you jump through a Pepsi logo to materialise somewhere else.' He also noted: 'For example, one of the projects that we completed recently... features terrorists taking over the Alienware computer factory.'"
hmmm (Score:3, Funny)
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That's right. Terrorists can perform maneuvers with a passenger aircraft that would make a fighter pilot envious and after only a few private flight school lessons and no practical experience. Now that's smart.
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Oh, and let's not forget the various hotwheels and MicroMachine advergames that were also fairly decent.
Noid! (Score:2)
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What, you don't think most Slashdotters are at least 20? I'm 22, and I know what he's talking about (although I never played the Noid game -- for the Nintendo, was it?).
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Reality Distortion Field in overload mode... (Score:2)
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The only thing that allows me sleep at night is the fact that in-game advertising (for pay-for games) will likely be immediate targets for modders to remove.
Sigh, then, of course, there will be the move to stop it with anti-cheat technology.
Then, after much battling, we will end up with what we now call "cable television".
-d
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Heh... I've made the mistake of paying for such a game twice... Need for Speed Underground 2 and Most Wanted. EA really wants to be hated, huh?
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You just now figured that out?!!
Really? (Score:4, Insightful)
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Tch. I remember playing a popular FPS "capture the flag" back in 1983 [fandal.cz]. (Well, OK, not FPS, but certainly FP.)
Re:Does that mean (Score:5, Funny)
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With bargain prices like that, I'll predict a runaway success!!
Um, already done? (Score:1, Interesting)
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It was called Chex Quest. I had already moved to Linux at the time (late 90s?) and was somewhat frustrated at not being able to play it via Wine, so I have no idea if it was any good; I have my doubts. It was more of a running joke between my brother and I than something I seriously wanted to play. But like other posters have mentioned there was a MicroMachines game for the NES, not to mention movie, tv, and comic book hero games such as Bart Simpson, Batman, Spiderman, Evil Dead Zelda 2 hack (scratch tha
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It really wasn't a bad ga
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Gotta love it.... (Score:5, Insightful)
I could go for some hot coffee right about now...
Anyhow on another note, Ads can be placed in games, where appropriate. The first time I jump through a 'pepsi' logo to warp, I'd be on google to find a 'patch' for this distraction in suspending my disbelief.
I would have loved to see a Coke or Pepsi machine in Sin episode 1, but no... the had to be benign and put in 'Hammer cola...Get Hammered!' Great but it's a missed opportunity. The best ad placement I can remember to date is Bawls, in Fallout for the Xbox. not intrusive, it had nice billboards, where billboards should be, and to boot the caps were worth something in-game.
If done correctly this could be a big thing... if done as a spinning pepsi logo i need to jump through, well... there are alot of other developers out there.
If I could shoot at the in-game advertising ok (Score:1)
If that's a feature, sign me up.
"Advergames" are not really that new... (Score:3, Informative)
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-uso.
It was Rootbeer Tapper ... (Score:1)
Ben
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These versions have prominent "Mountain Dew" signs instead of a "Root Beer" or "Budweiser" sign.
-uso.
Dell == Terrorists? (Score:3, Funny)
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Ads in other games (Score:3, Interesting)
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BF2 has wall posters featurign the box art for its arabic release.
BF2: Armored Fury has mild suggestion-type ads for BF2142 in a few places. These billboards would be very good atrgets to replace with rotating banner ads. Since BF2:AF takes place in the US, it would probably make the g
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I can see it now. (Score:4, Funny)
You're in a Wal-Mart on Dec 24th. On one side it's the blue team protecting a Nintendo Wii in the electronics dept. On the other side, it's the Red team with a 10th Anniversary Tickle Me Elmo in the Toy Isle. In the middle is the Sporting Goods dept full of Remington's, Leathermans, Louisville sluggers and other vaious brand name, potentially leathal objects. First team to get the Wii, the TMX and escape to the checkout counter wins. Bonus points if you Collect all 5 Coca Cola Santa 24 can packs scattered through the store.
Hell i'd play it. Especially for free.
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Unfortunately, the most enjoyable objects would not want to sponsor a violent game... like Gerber or Huggies.
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Well (Score:2)
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Of course not! That would only happen in Simpsons games (and it would be Bart, not Sonic)!
They will charge more for the ads.. and get it (Score:5, Interesting)
Go to your friendly neighborhood Walmart (or Target, K-Mart, etc) sometime and look around. Especially in the stuff aimed at kids. You almost can't avoid buying co-marketed merchandise. I was commenting on just that last week while in Wallyworld. They still have a few copies of Memory(tm) in the original flavor... but you can see the way the wind blows with the much larger stack of Dora the Explorer and Disney co-branded copies of Memory, selling at $2 more. Yup, people pay more to get the ad for the TV shows. Try to buy a kid a puzzle with a generic picture on it. No can do, all they have is stuff enblazoned with some franchise character or another. Almost half of the toy aisle is stuff co-branded with a TV show or movie. Now go to the clothing dept and find a childrens shirt without a franchise character or an outright product ad on it. If you look you can still find un branded stuff, but that isn't what is selling, just look at the other customers.
The question of advertising in games isn't when is it coming, the only question I have is why hasn't it happened yet? Best guess is because games get played long enough most ads would 'date' the game too much. That and they could get really burned if events hammers em between a game going gold and release. Imagine the PR nightmare if Nike inserts a set of ads with some sports star who gets busted for dope, accused of rape or overdoses yet millions of games are heading to stores too late to recall and repress.
Give em a network connection to update the ads to the current crappy movie being hyped to death or the current ad campaign and watch out.
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Or if, say, someone were to create a boxing game with Mike Tyson as the title character. Think of how bad it would look if he then went to jail or bit someone's ear off or something. Err, nevermind.
As long as the endorsement celebrity doesn't do anything incredibly stupid shortly *before* the game is re
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Hate to break it to you but those company's are doing someth
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Which was exactly my point. People will pay more for a product with an advertisement on it. And while the slashdot crowd will bitch when it happens, Joe average will pay more for a video games that is basically an ad. Look at every movie tie in videogame ever released for proof.
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oh come on, we can do better than that (Score:1)
Smoka-Bowla Soft Drinks Inc. puts addictive drugs in their products, and only a lowly Pepsi delivery man can stop them with the new Pepsi-based detox.
But why just FPS? Gatorade Sports could give EA's NFL monopoly a run for its money - toss the league and sign the players independently through Gatorade.
Or a Red Bull brand bullfighting game. (See Mike Tyson's Punch Out
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THPS3 (Score:1)
There is a way to do this right, and the other way (Score:2)
A possible Pepsi game? (Score:2)
reminds me of a map I played in Unreal Tournament (Score:1)
Welcome to 1999 - Boinger (Score:2)
Jack9: Open Source developed games are the future. It's one of the industries that will actually work better.
Boinger: How do those guys expect to be paid?
Jack9: Ads on a racetrack, billboards, on the backs of their avatars. Welcome to capitalism.
Boinger: huh...I guess that might work.
Hey Boinger, remember that?
if its free why not? (Score:2)
It has als
DinoHunters: FPS selling Schick Razors, HL2 Engine (Score:2)
So . . . (Score:1)
Immersion (Score:1)
Harsh, but fair (Score:2)
'For example, one of the projects that we completed recently... features terrorists taking over the Alienware computer factory.
I'm not the biggest Dell fan, but that seems needlessly harsh :)
Maybe not in FPS's, but been there, done that (Score:2)
It wouldn't be hard to put a little low-level advertising in the games: posters on the walls, drinking Pepsi to regain life, or some other things of the like that wouldn't distract much from actual gameplay.
Super Smash TV (Score:1)