The challenge: But while advertising interest is growing within the industry, consumers haven’t reacted so positively. Games have a long history with advertising from their inception, but the re-injection of ads into free-to-play games should be handled with care or risk alienating consumers.
- A Reddit thread on popular forum r/Games with over 3,500 upvotes was full of negative responses to the news. “Billboard ads in-game is one thing, but having ads interrupt in the middle of the game would drive me insane,” said one commenter. Popular gaming news site Kotaku’s coverage of the news begins, “Raise your hand if you’re excited to see more ads inside your favorite video games? I don’t see any hands. Well, bad news.”
- Some of consumers’ anxiety comes from concerns about how these ads will take form. Xbox’s rumored proposals include in-game billboards in racing or open-world games that could be updated with new advertisements, but questions about whether players would be served ads between game matches or have ads obscure the screen mid-match have consumers worried.
The big takeaway: From licensed games dating back to the ‘80s to Fortnite’s lavish in-game concerts, advertising has been part of the gaming experience since the medium’s birth. But ads still aren’t baked into the medium the way they are for TV, and advertisers should be mindful of players’ wishes for a non-disruptive experience.
Source: https://www.emarketer.com/content/in-game-advertising-ramping-up-consumers-worried