No this happens because in the context of the game it makes sense. Pretending this is a slippery slope argument has continued to look poor.
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EA decided to add full-on commercials in the middle of gameplay in UFC 4 a month after it's release so it wasn't talked about in reviews
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Thank you EA for providing the authentic UFC experience. I could never get into the previous titles because of how unrealistic they were with the lack of pop up ads. You can only suspend your disbelief so much before you have to accept that something just feels off. Now I feel like I'm watching a genuine pay per view bout with this genius addition.
I dunno, I think you kind expect this in Sports Games. I understand the outrage in Battlefield as it comes off pretty tasteless to throw sponsors in a War themed game.
But, UFC is a sport littered with sponsors. I'm sure UFC probably has to approve this and get a cut from this practice and was probably a selling point in giving EA the UFC license.
Are the billboards in FIFA an issue too? When the PlayStation or Gazprom or Banco Santander billboards flip through playing a Champions League match (those are official sponsors), does that count as a commercial?
But, UFC is a sport littered with sponsors. I'm sure UFC probably has to approve this and get a cut from this practice and was probably a selling point in giving EA the UFC license.
Are the billboards in FIFA an issue too? When the PlayStation or Gazprom or Banco Santander billboards flip through playing a Champions League match (those are official sponsors), does that count as a commercial?
Sure but this particular type of advertising has been a thing in sports games for decades. I don't like it but there are far more egregious examples out there.
I wouldn't even say the slippery slope is just a company like EA. This whole industry constantly proves that if the slope even has a slight incline, they'll lube it up.
What we really need, and I doubt this will ever happen, is an end to exclusive licenses for shit like this. No matter what way you put it, with EA having licenses to names such as UFC, NFL and NHL they've effectively bought a monopoly on those sports leagues, and because those leagues are the dominant ones in their respective sports EA has effectively bought a monopoly on games for those sports. Just imagine how much better the world of sports video games might be the rights holders simply put a price on the license, and instead of the highest bidder winning anyone willing to pay that price could make an officially licensed game. Maybe instead of just getting an EA UFC game we'd also be getting 2K (not exactly saints either, I know) UFC games, so now EA and 2K are competing with each other and if one fucks up they have to worry about their playerbase moving to the other publisher's game. Or maybe Sony would also make a fully licensed NFL game just like they're making MLB games, so now EA has to worry about their players leaving for those games if they fuck up.
But yeah like I said, 99% chance that's never gonna happen.
"Commercial" is lol-worthy. It's an ad. This is definitely a bit obnoxious but sports game devs have realized they can make their presentation more realistic and make money while doing it.
This is where I'm at. I don't see the reason for outrage here.
That's exactly my thoughts. Transition with a current picture ad. I was expecting a full video commercial. Haven't other sports games used this kind of thing before?
I'm not a fan myself, but I think what's happening here, which happened a long time ago, is that games are now a platform. The platforms attract audiences that the publishers can mine for recurring revenue as well as sell to marketers for recurring ad revenue. From a business standpoint, it makes sense where we're going and how we got here. As a consumer, this isn't for me, and there are hundreds of other games I can play that don't do what's happening here.
Remember last gen when a game like Rainbow 6 had billboard advertisements, etc in game.
That's not a full commercial, it's a sponsored segment transition. I honestly don't mind that, it's better than it saying something generic like "UFC" or "EA Sports" and more interesting than a blank transition.
So wait this is bad but the monster energy stupid product placement all throughout Death Stranding is fine? Alright ERA, okay. If this was something that broke immersion then sure I wouldn't be a fan but considering the context of it being a sports game and it only being one second then I'm fine with it, there's far more things to be annoyed about when it comes to games.
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The only reason that games aren't completely chock-full of advertising is because people complain about it. If people didn't complain, they would add more.
So, complain as loud as you can as soon as they pull any of this garbage, and they will think twice about doing it again.
Or we could just not complain at all because we wouldn't want to upset anyone. I'm sure that EA would be so grateful about how courteous we are being that they would immediately stop putting ads in games as a thank you for being such polite customers.
DS had almost fullscreen ads in the middle of gameplay or just product placement?
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found it
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They already are chock full of advertising though, the amount of billboard ads and product placements in games is already insane and I see no one making a big deal about it until now.
I believe that's exactly the way the ad breaks look during an actual UFC event, even the PPVs where you spend $70 and are still advertised to. EA probably saw an opportunity to A) make the production closer to the real thing while also B) getting some ad revenue.
This isn't the first EA game to do this. Their sports games have done ad placement in their games for years. I'm kind of surprised people are treating like this hasn't been done before. Whether you like it or not is one thing and certainly worthy of a discussion, but this isn't something being done for the first time.
Edit: Here's an example of it being done 12 years ago:
www.nbcnews.com
Edit: Here's an example of it being done 12 years ago:
Ads for Obama campaign: ‘It's in the game’
Too busy playing video games to watch presidential ads on television? Barack Obama has found you, too, by becoming the first presidential candidate to buy ad space inside a game.
www.nbcnews.com
Lmao that's a good point. Out of curiosity did people not complain about that or actually defend it on here?
This is awful, but they probably changed their TOS so everyone agreed to it, when associating their account.
What I don't get however, is the weird meta discussion in this thread around what an advert actually is. These are products being touted inside an entirely unrelated product as if it you were watching some shitty american TV station.
What I don't get however, is the weird meta discussion in this thread around what an advert actually is. These are products being touted inside an entirely unrelated product as if it you were watching some shitty american TV station.
Thinking on this again, reviews wouldn't have even mentioned it had it been there when the game dropped.
The idea that governments should take action on 2, 3, or 4 is actually absurd. Oh my god, people are selling add-ons for a product, heavens no
The idea that governments should take action on 2, 3, or 4 is actually absurd. Oh my god, people are selling add-ons for a product, heavens no
Kojima always does stuff like this but people suddenly care way more when it's a Western brand, like nerdy Metal Gear fans (like myself) didn't eat a bunch of Calorie Mates just because they were in MGS3. Fuck MGS4 had an in-game iPod WITH AN ACTUAL PODCAST BY RYAN PAYTON
That's fine but why not put it in the review copies of the game and let people decide if they want to accept that or not.
I mean the Monster energy thing with DS has to be one of the worst in gaming, by far. I remember seeing a few people defend it by saying that it's "in your face" to the point of being acceptable, and I'm just like "Yikes."
Not to mention the ads for Norman Reedus's show and for that one music streaming platform.
It's just funny, and if it means he gets a little more money to go off with, fine IMO.
The title had me expecting like a f2p mobile game where you really have to watch a 15-30 second clip in the middle of the gameplay. It's just a second of it showing on a replay to look like a real broadcast that you can probably skip anyways.
EDIT: Now I think of it, 2k is worse at this, there's always a part of the halftime report that's unskippable, usually the intro and the outro that has an ad which takes about 5 seconds each.
EDIT: Now I think of it, 2k is worse at this, there's always a part of the halftime report that's unskippable, usually the intro and the outro that has an ad which takes about 5 seconds each.
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As a fan of the UFC - but also playing Devils Advocate here - this is fairly authentic to what happens between all cuts and rounds of a fight.
I don't mind it so long as it's customary in the actual sport.
I don't mind it so long as it's customary in the actual sport.
haha nope not even when Playstation sponsors the Champions League and ends up with ads on other platforms
I mean, I feel like this is just because 2k started it with their basketball game a year or so ago with full 30 second ads on loading screens for TV shows and what not and while there was some anger that week, afterwards no one gave a shit. Unfortunately, the majority of gamers don't give a shit
Somewhat off topic, but is Pikmin the only game where Nintendo has added in-game advertisements?Stuff like this is honestly more "intrusive" than what EA have done, but I also think it works, as the whole idea of the game is scavenging for objects. Adverts are okay if they fit in well IMO>
If the game had paused and a "real commercial" played out then I can see the annoyance.
A quick flash of a title card is shitty to see, but it's also shitty to see in the real world as well.
THPS 1+2 is out, and it's got brands up the ass cause it fits within the game. Ad's during a UFC game is no different than showing ads during a real match.
As a graphic designer, I hate advertising.
A quick flash of a title card is shitty to see, but it's also shitty to see in the real world as well.
THPS 1+2 is out, and it's got brands up the ass cause it fits within the game. Ad's during a UFC game is no different than showing ads during a real match.
As a graphic designer, I hate advertising.