commercials in online loading screens?

[newtype]

More info about the ads, and their creators, from video game news site gamustra....

http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/new...hp?story=24677

In-game ad house Double Fusion has brought dynamic, in-game video advertising to the PlayStation 3 game Wipeout HD across North America and Europe, the company said Monday.

Double Fusion said it will inject advertising that will complement the hover-racer's futuristic presentation. The new video ads have yet to launch, but Double Fusion CEO Jonathan Epstein said certain unnamed advertisers have already signed up for placements in Wipeout HD. Ads will be shown during the game's loading screens, Double Fusion said.

The company added that the video ads would be "the highest definition" available in-game, and the game will also have supplemental ads that are standard definition.

One of the game's advertisers is State Farm -- an insurance firm that doesn't exactly reflect the reckless blow-em-up zero-gravity racing exhibited in Wipeout HD or previous franchise entries. (See this YouTube video, found via games blog Fidgit).

Wipeout HD arrived as an ad-free download for PlayStation Network in September 2008. The game is developed by Sony Liverpool, which recently released the expansion, Wipeout HD Fury.

Double Fusion said it plans to launch in-game advertising in "another handful" of PS3 games by the end of the year. The San Francisco-based company services more than 30 game publishers via its ad network.

Analysts have estimated that in-game ad spending could reach $1 billion by 2014. Currently the market stands at about $600 million, a figure that also includes web games.



I agree with your sentiments but it is also true that gaming on the Xbox and PS3 platforms has so far been a huge money-loosing enterprise. It's not surprising to see the Microsoft and Sony trying to recoup their costs any way that they can. If Nintendo started advertising, now THAT would just be greedy

I just hope we can find out if games have ads before we buy...

[crawdad62]

Dude Lance is going to smack your hand.

[Rubix42]

Realistically, what we have so far is the tip of the iceberg. Loading screen ads is not nearly as bad as what will be coming. Someone mentioned commercials interupting gameplay, and I definitely see that happening at some point.

Burnout has billboards with ads, it has vans driving around that feature Gilette fusion. None of these ads have made an effect on gameplay yet, but I don't doubt that someday they will.

[Hacker X]

The State Farm ad SUCKS! I actually came here to see if anyone else noticed it this weekend and glad I found this thread. I usually do not care about in-game ads, their tacky, but no big issue.

HOWEVER....

Wipeout is a game I have been very passionate about since 1996. It, along with Street Fighter Capcom series are my favorite game genres of all times, but even Wipeout is over SF. The whole theme of Wipeout art style has always been "FUTURISTIC". The State Farm advert at the load screen TOTALLY takes the gamer out of the theme for that few seconds. Yes it matters and yes its is TACKY.

SL please fight the power and take the ads out OR at least make them artistically styled in a futuristic way to fit Wipeout. I'd be cool with that. But for now, the ad is terrible.

Yes I'm bitching. Wipeout has always been badass. The Red Bull Wipeout XL advert was badass cause it FIT THE GAME. SL continue the theme of WO. Don't let commercializaiton kill it.

[DawnFireDragoon]

hmmmm, i've been out of the loop for some time...came back online today and found this news is on quite a few gaming news sites...and inevitebly here too. (none, suggesting this is remotely a good move i might add...besides the odd person on here, who doesn't seem to mind too much...which is fair enough)

What a really odd idea to do this with Wipeout and a real shame.

[DividedXZero]

So many posts....so much to comment

* Red Bull ad in XL: i thought was a made up drink for wipeout since it wasnt available in US at that time (at least i've never seen it). It fit with the game, stylized to WOXL, it's motto was relevant to the game. (Something regarding improving your reaction time)

* State Farm ad is annoying with its frequency, and it does change the atmosphere of the game. I agree with those that play a game to get away from things...Save the ads for PS Home! When i watched the loading screen before i was anxiously waiting for the race to start...a competitive mind set, thrown off by this ad. It doesnt change the game or its gameplay, but it does change the feel and mood with continuously interruptions.

* Yes you get ads at the movies with your previews..but only at the beginning of the movie. Same concept of as that made about an ad between music tracks on a cd. If you must do an ad, show it when i boot up my game at the beginning...not in the middle of my gaming sessions..MULTIPLE TIMES!

*Ads on bus or billboards on the side off the road are different. I'm walking or driving forward....that's where my attention is, if i want to see an ad i look to the side or scroll down a web page (which often give you the option to close or minimize an ad). When i play a game i look at the tv screen and they go and plant an irrelevant ad right infront of me...it's frustrating.

* We are the consumer, we pay YOU for the products and services. Work with us, compromise with us. But dont treat us in such a low and disrespectful manner.

*If it's a matter of $ for Sony (doubtful SL is a part of this), they why only US?

[Rubix42]

For those who are dead set against this, I challenge you to answer this question honestly.

Pretend you own a corner store. Sell beer/wine/snacks/etc in this store. A salesperson comes into the store one day and asks you if they can hang an advertisement on the wall and they will pay you for the space.

How would you possibly say no to that? Can someone seriously tell me that they would look at an offer for free money that doesn't do anything to their customers and say no?

[Rapier Racer]

No, but I think the main issue is people think they should have been told in some form or another.

I'm not particularly outraged yet as such, that's probably going to happen when they do this in Europe and I have to watch an advert for a double McCheese Burger with large fries for only 2 quid every 3rd race.

[DawnFireDragoon]

@Rubix.

surely that comparison would make sense if you were talking about the PSN. but with a product already bought, then been infringed on is a different matter. no?

[Rubix42]

Don't get me wrong, I don't like that this is happening to Wipeout, or any other game, I just don't think fighting about it will do any good.

And in response to the last question, when you click "agree" to the online agreement, it makes complete provisions within that agreement that they reserve the right to alter the product at a later date. Factually speaking, you don't really "own" your copy of Wipeout HD. You "own" the right to play it on your PS3.

But really, it's all economics. More money means more wipeout. Personally I find it distasteful, but nothing can change the fact that it's going to continue to get worse. Until people stop playing games because of it, it will get worse.

[DividedXZero]

More money means more wipeout

Jumping to conclusions are we?
This doesnt guarantee more wipeout, unless SL takes revenue from it and they choose to use it for wipeout. But i'm pretty sure this is Sony's doing and nothing's been stated that such profits for ads will be put back into the company or into game development..it could easily just line a CEO's pocket.

[Sven]

Doesn't anyone remember? Ads have been in Wipeout from the very beginning. Even before Red Bull in XL/2097, there were ads in Wipeout (the original) for the Krazy Ivan video game. There may have been others, but it's been a while (you can check yourself if you want). Not to mention the whole game being a marketing platform for Cold Storage.

However, any ad that negatively affects the performance of paid-for merchandise (by, say, extending load times) is an egregious sin against consumers. I'd much rather see trackside ads, I might even welcome them. I've never seen motor racing sans advertising, I don't know why it wouldn't be any different 150 years from now (unless everyone's communist?). And what's to say modern companies like Coke, DuPont, even State Farm wouldn't exist or be relevant or advertise 150 years from now? Why does/would such advertising bring you out of the immersion?

Now that I think about it, I think it would be pretty cool to have ships powered by Rolls Royce fusion turbines, pilots protected by DuPont ballistic canopies, etc. I think it would really flesh out the technologies behind the ships.

[Mu5]

@DividedXZero : More likely to lessen the damage of the huge loss they made last financial year

[Darkmiss]

Notice the lack of any reply or comment from the SL devs in this post.

[gettinmoney662]

Notice the lack of any reply or comment from the SL devs in this post.

What do you expect them to say?

[DawnFireDragoon]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kX4f9zts6JM

here's why.

this sucks.

when the product is directly effected by something like this, people have the right to complain.

[Darkdrium777]

I am with Sven, if you are going to do in-game advertising, do it right.
Use the billboards in the game and give the ads a futuristic touch. Here's a small concept. Don't shoot the messenger, it's their slogan that I simply shortened.

[Mu5]

They just wouldnt work in-game I dont think. For certain games yes, but not for Wipeout.

[Aeroracer]

Its seems to be two type of people in this thread.

person type one.......They complain about averts for one reason or another

person type two......They say person type one are over reacting and its ok


Thing is if person type one says adverts suck, then they suck for them, telling them its ok wont make them happy or make the advert vanish.

person type three...respects the complainers of adverts and those who see nothing wrong with it.

There is no right or wrong answer its simply down to personal taste..(oh and living in europe helps too)

[okam]

Burnout has billboards with ads, it has vans driving around that feature Gilette fusion. None of these ads have made an effect on gameplay yet, but I don't doubt that someday they will.

That's not quite the same as a full-screen movie showing on your screen, preventing you from accessing the game until it has played until the end - basically forcing you to watch (unless you hurry out of the rooom, or mute your TV and cover your eyes while it lasts), now is it.