Now that's just annoying...

[Firestormalpha]

Full Article

Ads for Obama campaign: ‘It's in the game’ Presidential candidate is the first to buy ad space inside a video game WASHINGTON - 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. Nine video games from Electronic Arts Inc., ranging from the extremely popular "Madden 09" football game to the street racing "Burnout: Paradise," feature in-game ads from the Obama campaign. The ads — they appear on billboards and other signage — remind players that early voting has begun and plug a campaign Web site. The idea of embedding advertising temporarily inside a video game is relatively new, having only begun about 18 months ago, and Obama is the first presidential candidate to buy space, company officials said.

Ok, the regular ads in games were bad enough, I play games to avoid the political crap.

[VulcanRider]

Can we attack the billboards?

[Ilander]

...I saw this on Maximum PC's website, and the comment section just lit up with vehemence.

Is it really so bad that a political figure is trying to get in contact with you?

Would it be better that they advertise on mediums that you have never seen?

Of course not; not for them, not for the country, and honestly, not for you.

This is a great first step to a more informed society.

I actually saw that he advertised in the middle of www.drhorrible.com (a must-watch video, btw)...and clicked on the ad, and was directed to a website that would help me find my polling place!

That's almost the nicest thing a politician could do for you (with the nicest being actually effecting a change that would directly benefit you and not substantially hinder the rest of the country or world).

[Firestormalpha]

Originally Posted by Ilander Is it really so bad that a political figure is trying to get in contact with you?

Is it so bad? Not necessarily. But my point is that going into a game is my way of stepping out of the world for say an hour. If he wanted to reach out to the gamers wouldn't advertising on a website have been more effective?

In general, I find ads within games obnoxious, and more of a deterant. I could be rare in this case though, as we don't exactly have a comprehensive survey on hand at the moment.

A great step to a more informed society is to ignore all presidential candidate sponsored ads and do some digging for yourself. Ads by the candidates unconditionally bend facts to that sponsor's favor. Some true, some not so much, some you have to look at like it's abstract art.

Alternately, this could just be the seasonal political cynicism that I experience late in most election years, usually from overexposure to negative ad campaigns.

[SpiritWarrior]

"They appear on billboards and other signage". So it's not exactly obstructive. And usually, in these sports games, the stadium is laden with ads for products. Sometimes they are fictional or in-game (Such as Nvidia or EA advertising itself in their own game), or sometimes the develepors have sold ad space to someone else (Coca Cola is pretty common). This particular one is new, since it's a politician running for president.

My only concern is this. I feel that product placement and "Drink Coke" ads are one thing, but political stuff is another thing. What if this catches on so much that political statements start to snake their way in? We'll then have Left and Right-wing games, develepors with republican agendas or bias. Sound too far fetched? Think again. After all, it happend on our TV's. Political agendas have saturated media outlets to the point where no-one can escape - even if you want to.

[Ilander]

Well, a historian would happily tell you that games with bias certainly already exist, especially in the form of WWII shooters, or other war simulation games...

It also, I feel, adds to the feeling of immersion in a game, at least if it's a contemporary setting...

Maybe Battlefield 2142 (is anyone still playing that??? I doubt it) would seem like an unlikely place for a modern political ad, but at the football stadium or on the billboards in Hawaii (Obama's former home, it's worth mentioning) the ads are not much out of place.

I apologize for my nested sentences...

The rat the cat the dog chased attacked died.

[Variol (Farseer) Elmwood]

Not to poopoo on things, but should this be in the current events forum?

I think I'm just tired of hearing and reading this stuff from both sides of the border.

[Bungleau]

Hmmm... if by placing ads in there, the game maker was able to reduce the cost of the game, would people still be opposed?

[Firestormalpha]

That's debatable. Some would, some wouldn't. But usually ads just turn into greater profits for the game company, not lower costs for the gamers.

[Ilander]

Yeah...heaven help us consumers if someone that's not a giant company comes along and releases great games for reasonable prices, eh?

I think the biggest problem with the game industry is the way that EA gets to push out its mediocre BS, thanks to its exclusivity agreement with the NFL giving it guaranteed funds out the wazoo until 2012.