Read the anouncement here.

This is going to be met with a wave of DOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!1!! but i don't see any issue with it. It looks like they're doing a good job of foreseeing complaints and neutralizing them before they can occur, and as long as the ads are tasteful and well-suited to the environment, it shouldn't be an issue. Hell... it could even add to the immersion-- NC could work with the advertisers to make "universe-appropriate" billboards, with Swan hawking Coke and Synapse showing off his brand-new Reeboks. :P



C'mon, how cool would that be? ;)

I'm completely ok with this.

-MJB

[ADMIN]: DRINK COCA-COLA

[SALLY STRUTHERS]Do you wanna make more influence? Sure we all do![/SALLY STRUTHERS]

Hum... maybe I can get Marm an ingame endorsement for Whiskas or something, hehe.

:marm: *Meow!*

Anything that makes the game better in the long run (by providing revenue to fund new content) is ok with me. Personally I think Spud has the right idea, I would enjoy ads made to suit the game world hawking RL products.

I've tried out more than a couple of those "Free" MMO's, the ones which are NOTHING but grind and PVP, where the loading screens are packed with ads, and the only way to have any advantage at all is to pay real cash for in-game items. And the idea of the ads being integrated with the game world is, IMHO, a far, far better idea than anything these free MMO's came up with.

Advertisement is everywhere in our modern world... we're already immersed in it.  It's pretty strange that we -don't- see icons such as Nike or Coke or McD's.

From a gaming perspective, as long as the ads are limited to the same places we'd see them in the real world, they make no difference whatsoever.  If it provides an additional revenue stream and if the ads are tasteful, I'd have no issue with it.  As they indicate, the ads are already in-game.  It's just a question as to whether it's a real brand and whether they make money off it.

Heck, there's even another place where subtle advertisement could be inserted.  NPC commentary.  Imagine an in-game scene where a hero encounters a couple of Hellions trying to steal someone's Nikes.  "I want your Nikes, man!"  Or a child is overheard to say, "Mommie, can we go to McDonald's?"  If it were cleverly done and mixed in with the non-ads, it would be powerful without being in your face.

Certain emotes, like the newspaper emote, could also be a vehicle for immersive ads. That's probably not a great example.  How about dance emotes with accompanying sound bites from new pop albums?

If you have a problem with this in-game, then you ought to have a problem with it in the real world... because that's exactly what they do out here.

Honestly , im more than fine with this . We already have Faux advertisements on billboards and such in the  game, what would be wrong with the real thing? As long as the advertisements don't come in the form of : "while you're waiting for your mission to load, please take a moment to view this commercial from allstate."

I like the idea.  Heck, I'd even be okay if some of those generic zone buildings were replaced with a McDonald's or a Starbucks.  I wouldn't be for this in a fantasy setting, but for CoX?  It works great.

I just had a flash to the CoH/X version of those hawt Axe body spray ads :D

Quote from: BlueBard on April 03, 2008, 07:34:09 PM
Heck, there's even another place where subtle advertisement could be inserted.  NPC commentary.  Imagine an in-game scene where a hero encounters a couple of Hellions trying to steal someone's Nikes.  "I want your Nikes, man!"  Or a child is overheard to say, "Mommie, can we go to McDonald's?"  If it were cleverly done and mixed in with the non-ads, it would be powerful without being in your face.

Except for a strange absence of children in Paragon City . . . and I really doubt Nike would accept their goods being portrayed as grounds for assault and robbery (I'm sure they're tired enough of that in real life).

But the point is a good one.  I think some "real life" bill boards or drive by radio commercials (or a recognizable bag of Dorritos in that vending machine your grav troller just Propelled . . . ) would actually add to the universe  - make it seem more real.  Suppose they get any bucks for the recognizably "Windows" desktop on the computers?

They could also have passers by discussing real life events (although this would not bring in $$ like product placement would).

"Can you believe what that Eliot Spitzer just got caught doing?!"
"I know!  And I thought our politicians were crooked!" :lol:

Quote from: Uncle Yuan on April 08, 2008, 02:20:57 PM
. . . and I really doubt Nike would accept their goods being portrayed as grounds for assault and robbery (I'm sure they're tired enough of that in real life).

Probably not.  Maybe as part of a drug deal...

No, bad idea.

Oh, I know!  Put Nikes on some of those guys running away!  "Ahhh!  Nikes, take me away!"

Quote from: BlueBard on April 08, 2008, 02:58:20 PM

Quote from: Uncle Yuan on April 08, 2008, 02:20:57 PM
. . . and I really doubt Nike would accept their goods being portrayed as grounds for assault and robbery (I'm sure they're tired enough of that in real life).

Probably not.  Maybe as part of a drug deal...

No, bad idea.

Oh, I know!  Put Nikes on some of those guys running away!  "Ahhh!  Nikes, take me away!"

Run like a frightened chicken.  Just do it.

Quote from: Uncle Yuan on April 08, 2008, 02:20:57 PM
They could also have passers by discussing real life events (although this would not bring in $$ like product placement would).

"Can you believe what that Eliot Spitzer just got caught doing?!"
"I know!  And I thought our politicians were crooked!" :lol:

I dunno about that. Based on the general outfits and the look of the cars (especially), I always pictured CoX taking place somewhere in the late 70's / early 80's.

Quote from: Alaric on April 03, 2008, 08:25:39 AM
Read the anouncement here.

Honestly?

Not a huge fan of this. My attention is pulled on by ads constantly and I kinda play games to get away from this.

I'll feel better if revenue streams in from this move and we start to see improvements (much like how they said the wedding pack revenue let them do more). If it means increased content, then cool... I don't mind.

But for now.... not saying doom.... not saying I quit... but I feel stronger than this than I did about ED. I just don't like it.

I honestly feel the "immersion" factor is a media buzzword designed to position moves like this positively....and they don't have my "buy-in", so to speak. But show me a tangible benefit to me as a player for this? Then I'm good with it.



*EDIT*
I just read you'll be able to opt out of it....

Perfect.