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Blizzard job listing mentions 'product placement' within its next MMO

Justin Olivetti — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 08:30:00 EST

Filed under: MMO industry, New titles, Miscellaneous

When details of Blizzard's upcoming casual MMO, code-named Titan, are incredibly scarce due to the developer's ironclad secrecy, it falls to enterprising fans to ferret out any scraps of information that may exist. One such player on the NeoGAF forums was combing through a Blizzard job posting for a Franchise Development Producer and noted an interesting line that indicated the studio could be mulling over the idea of in-game ads for its next MMO.

The line in question specifies that one of the duties of the position is to "work with major consumer brands to facilitate product placement and licensing within the world of Blizzard Entertainment's next-gen MMO that enhances the gameplay experience." Whether this is a sign that we'll be seeing billboards for Skittles while we raid or that players will be able to get endorsements and decorate their outfits a la NASCAR cars is anyone's guess.

It's important to note that the rest of this position entails a number of efforts to promote Blizzard's "next-gen MMO" outside of the tight-knit gaming sphere, including comics, action figures, and short movies.

Blizzard job listing mentions 'product placement' within its next MMO originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 23 Jan 2012 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GamersFirst teams up with Adknowledge for virtual currency offers

Jef Reahard — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Fallen Earth, Business models, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play, All Points Bulletin, Crime, Post-Apocalyptic, Miscellaneous

Free-to-play gamers seem to have no problems paying real-world money for virtual items in their favorite MMORPGs. GamersFirst hopes that its customers will feel similarly about its new partnership with Adknowledge. Who, or what, is Adknowledge? It's the largest privately owned advertising network on the internet, and it's also the parent company of Super Rewards (and you may remember that name in connection with the infamous "offer wall" faux pas attached to Turbine's Dungeons and Dragons Online MMO).

Adknowledge's AdStation program allows gamers to earn in-game currency by completing extra-game tasks including watching videos, taking surveys, and subscribing to various online services. This generates advertising leads for Adknowledge clients, and a new GamersFirst press release calls it "a great opportunity for us to get our titles in front of their vast global network."

Said titles include APB Reloaded and Fallen Earth, but thus far GamersFirst has not released details on how the games will be affected.

[Source: GamersFirst press release]

GamersFirst teams up with Adknowledge for virtual currency offers originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 19 Sep 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GameSamba adding an offer wall

Jef Reahard — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Business models, MMO industry, News items, Free-to-play

The last time we heard the term offer wall around these parts, it was in reference to a Turbine initiative that sparked an outpouring of fan anger centered on Dungeons and Dragons Online. The company ultimately did away with the plan due to concerns over Turbine's third-party partner (Super Rewards) as well as the general shadiness associated with trading a player's personal information.

Today, Realms Online publisher GameSamba has announced its own offer wall, this time in concert with Guppy Media and Peanut Labs. GameSamba's press release says that the new deal "complements [its] existing partnership with Super Rewards, which not only provides free offers but also allows access to over 100 global payment methods."

Super Rewards, Guppy Media, and Peanut Labs are advertising firms that pay GameSamba for leads, in effect exposing GameSamba customers to various third-party products that they might not otherwise be aware of via surveys, special offers, and the like. GameSamba, in turn, gives Sambas (the company's virtual currency) to those gamers who meet certain requirements relating to the third-party advertisers. You can learn more about the arrangement on the GameSamba forums.

GameSamba adding an offer wall originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 27 Jun 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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APB's voice chat feature will contain advertisements

Brendan Drain — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Business models, MMO industry, New titles, News items, All Points Bulletin, Crime

With launch day closing in, crime MMO All Points Bulletin has been getting its payment scheme in order. The game's pricing structure was revealed at the end of April, including several flexible pay-per-time and monthly subscription options. In addition, the game will have a currency called "RTW points," which can be used for character customisations or converted into game time. While looking through the payment options in his account management page early this morning, one APB forum poster spied a strange button that set off a few warning bells in his head. Marked "VOIP Premium," the option removes adverts from APB's in-game voice chat for 30, 90 or 180 days in exchange for payment.

This was the first players had heard of adverts being inserted into their voice chat and speculation began to run wild in the game's pre-release forum community. Players feared the worst -- that right in the middle of their game, a radio advert would start playing over their speakers. Community Officer Toxico was quick to address concerns, explaining the exact circumstances under which the ads will be played. For an advert to play, you have to be entering a district and must not have heard an ad for the past three hours. This ensures that they'll never interrupt normal play and won't play in an irritatingly high frequency. While some forum posters are avidly opposing a premium VOIP service, most seem content with the explanation provided and the conditions under which adverts will be played.

[Thanks for the tip, Kip!]

APB's voice chat feature will contain advertisements originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Comment spam, lewd advertising, and stolen assets abound for Evony

Seraphina Brennan — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Business models, Culture, MMO industry, Free-to-play, MMORTS

If you've been on the internet for longer than five minutes then you've probably run into ads for Evony, an online free-to-play browser real-time strategy game. The game is a medieval MMORTS, but you probably wouldn't be able to figure that out from some of their recent advertisements, most of which center around lingerie and women.

The game's unorthodox marketing strategy has been a target of the blogosphere for some time, starting back when they were still called Civony instead of their current title. During that time the company was caught by bloggers for stealing images without permission from other sites and using them for their game's marketing. Since then, the name has changed and new advertising has appeared, including an overuse of blog comment spam.

Interestingly enough, the company has denounced the use of spam amongst their users of the iEvony codes, calling it a "unethical" and "abusive."

The company may have more to worry about than just poor taste in marketing, as many sites are also noting that the game's art assets and writing assets have been ripped from other real-time strategy games. Things such as text from Civilization 4 to the castle sprites from Age of Empires have been found in the game, creating the feeling for some users that this developer, whoever it is, is not entirely on the legitimate side.

Comment spam, lewd advertising, and stolen assets abound for Evony originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 13 Jul 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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In-game ads now live in CoX

Adrian Bott — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 08:30:00 EST

Filed under: Super-hero, City of Heroes, City of Villains

The first sign of the much-debated in game advertisements has now made it into City of Heroes. So far, there appears to be only one ad, a billboard-size poster advertising JETER CLUTCH sneakers. British players needn't worry about seeing this particular ad, as they won't be able to, whether they play on American servers or not. The ads are regionally targeted, so only those that are appropriate for a given audience will show up. We've not yet received any reports of what the UK players see instead, though some players have found a cached image of Statesman standing near a Union Flag.

Understandably, even though these ads are optional, not all players are happy with their presence in CoX. Immersion seems to be the main issue, so some players, led by Marcian Tobay of the City Scoop, have started a satirical thread to customize the sneaker ad for a super-powered audience. There are some funny entries, but you'd be hard pressed to match Zombie Man for sheer quality of snark.

In-game ads now live in CoX originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 28 Jun 2008 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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SOE runs first EverQuest magazine ad in years

Samuel Axon — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, EverQuest, EverQuest II, News items

Sony Online Entertainment reportedly bought a "three-page advertising spread" for EverQuest in this month's issue of PC Gamer magazine. The massive ad promotes the Living Legacy campaign -- an initiative that allows former EQ and EverQuest II subscribers to play for free until the end of July.

In two interviews, reps from SOE told us that the Living Legacy initiative is intended to show lapsed and potential EQ and EQ2 players that both games have evolved over the years, and that they deserve a fresh look. A print ad is a bold statement, although new marketing pushes for old games are not unprecedented. Near Death Studios bought ad space for Meridian 59 on the Vault Network when the game relaunched in 2001 after a two year absence. Electronic Arts plastered the web with Ultima Online: Kingdom Reborn ads in the wake its 3D graphics engine upgrade.

But will it work? Should more old MMOs do it? Are advertizing blitzes and a couple of free months of play what MMOs of yore need, or does this industry move too fast for that to be sufficient? Commence pondering.

SOE runs first EverQuest magazine ad in years originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 23 Jun 2008 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Paramount and Habbo BFF

Chris Chester — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Business models, Habbo Hotel

In-game advertising is something we've heard a lot about over the last couple of years. Game publishers and advertising companies have fostered close relationships based on the demographics they covet. Though some self-deluded "experts" on the topic like to argue that ads in games actually improve the gameplay experience, it's an extremely precarious rope to walk. The very second the advertising steps over invisible line of bad taste, the player base is liable to rebel.

It's difficult then to tell what to make of this new partnership between Paramount and Habbo, where Habbo players will be able to purchase in-game merchandise branded with new Paramount properties like The Spiderwick Chronicles, Beowulf, and Mean Girls. Now, obviously, the fact that Habbo is more of a social networking game aimed at teens changes the equation a little bit, but people have to actually pay for the privilege of shlocking their in-game advertisements around? I want to say it will never work, but young people always manage to surprise me, so I wouldn't put money on it.

[Via Tech Crunch]

Paramount and Habbo BFF originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 30 Jan 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dewmocracy: from Mountain Dew marketing to MMO?

Chris Chester — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 13:30:00 EST

Filed under: Business models, MMO industry, New titles, Free-to-play, Browser

When it comes to MMOs, we here at Massively see it as our charge to explore every type of game out there, whether it be multi-million dollar blockbuster title in the making like Warhammer Online or a simplistic browser-based game like Dofus. We don't discriminate. Except, as in the course of my warm-up lap around the internet this morning, when I see the term MMO co-opted as a corporate buzzword for "anything online that appeals to the 18-35 male demographic." When I found a story claiming that Mountain Dew's new "Dewmocracy" campaign was part MMO, and a successful one at that, I was skeptical, as you can well imagine. Part of the spirit of the campaign is a story (penned by Oscar winner Forrest Whitaker no less) set in a sort of dystopian future where a man's soda options are enforced at the business end of a policeman's baton. Players are tasked with coming up with the newest flavor of Mountain Dew, which will be put to a national taste test later this year, and presumably free mankind from the long arm of tyranny.

Instead of factions in the tradition sense, you align yourself with whatever new flavor of Mountain Dew you like best. At this stage of the game, most of the preliminary flavor choices have already been made, so it's largely about branding. Using a flash-based interface that is strangely reminiscent of the MUDs of yore, you're tasked with making logos and other branding pieces to be voted on by other players of your faction. This is linked with a number of little mini-games that are derivative even by Webkinz standards. The only really "massive" aspect of the game is the fact that players get to vote on their favorite flavors and advertising materials.

What's perhaps most startling is that, even though this Dewmocracy thing hardly qualifies as an MMO in even the loosest sense of the term, their VP of Marketing has expressed an interest, and here I assure you I am not joking, in "expanding it into a long-term MMO." Pirates of the Unquenchable Thirst? Tabula Cola? World of Dewcraft? The mind reels in horror.

Dewmocracy: from Mountain Dew marketing to MMO? originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 28 Jan 2008 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ad for EVE demo turns heads, makes us blush

Chris Chester — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 12:30:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, EVE Online, MMO industry

And we had thought the dancing night elves had cornered the market on sexy MMO advertising. No, it would be appear that EVE Online developer CCP is trying to do the impossible - market a game that is largely based around spaceships, asteroid-mining, and piracy using risque and very possibly NSFW subliminal advertising. And now that we've virtually assured that we've got your attention, here it is. If you didn't want to try the demo before, we bet you do now!

On a side note, any resemblance of the above spaceship to a phallus is completely incidental and we think it's very immature of you to suggest otherwise.

Ad for EVE demo turns heads, makes us blush originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 30 Oct 2007 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NCsoft picks up advertising partner for Dungeon Runners, Exteel

Chris Chester — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 14:36:00 EST

Filed under: Fantasy, Dungeon Runners, Business models

NCsoft has raised the curtain on a new advertising deal with Double Fusion that will pave the way for new in- and around-game advertising in both Dungeon Runners and the as-yet-unreleased giant robot game, Exteel. Evidently, the idea is to open up new sources of revenue for these titles, where they were previously relying entirely on a small monthly fee charged to players for tiered services like voice chat, access to banks, and stackable potions.

The specifics of this advertising-based approach remain cloudy. It's unclear whether players can continue to pay the optional monthly fee to opt out of the ads, or whether playing the free, advertising-supported version will now net you membership benefits. We support advertising as an alternative revenue stream in principle, as long as we don't start seeing billboards hawking deodorant in the middle of dungeons. Regardless, Dungeon Runners is a heck of a lot of fun for a free game (though the verdict is still out on Exteel), so we'll keep you posted on the specifics of this deal as it develops.

NCsoft picks up advertising partner for Dungeon Runners, Exteel originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 25 Oct 2007 14:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hellgate: London uses tailored in-game advertising

William Dobson — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 07:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, MMO industry, New titles, News items, Hellgate: London

Following the release of the demo for Hellgate: London, a somewhat disappointing discovery has been made. Heartless_Gamer has a post that shows that the game's licensing agreement has provisions for them to collect information about users, to help them tailor in-game advertising. In other words-- adware. Hellgate: London is being published by EA, and as Heartless_Gamer points out, this isn't the first time they've bundled this helpful addition with their games. Battlefield 2142 caused a stir when the full retail version of the game did exactly what Hellgate: London is doing now. Is there really any point in hoping that this will only be included with the demo of Hellgate?

The advertising seen in the demo is in the form of posters on the walls, but I'm willing to bet that they could be a lot more creative than that. There is also the question of whether we want to see ads in games at all, "dynamically served" or otherwise. If Hellgate is set in a post-apocalyptic London, then why am I seeing current-day ads in-game? Games in the sports genre include bucketloads of advertising, but in most cases, the fact that those ads are there at real life sporting events lends more authenticity to the games -- okay, perhaps not the Burger King's Fight Night cameo (coincidentally also EA's doing). Let us know where you draw the line in the comments section, and if Hellgate: London is collecting information from you, will you still buy it?

Hellgate: London uses tailored in-game advertising originally appeared on Massively on Wed, 24 Oct 2007 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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