I recently got myself into the ludicrous, very feminine position of convincing my wife that buying Sims 3 is a better idea than propping up our garden with new goodies from the nursery.
I know… very manly of me. But I’ve been fascinated with The Sims ever since the game was conceptualised and discussed on the pages of some 90s computer magazine. And this time they’ve taken it a step further by introducing advertising into the actual game play, which is fed to the game via an internet connection. According to an old article by AdAge, in-game advertising will take the form of billboards and posters, as well as the possibility of outdoor executions.
I can already see the hundreds and thousands of people complaining about this notion: “no more advertising in The Sims 3!” And who can blame anyone for feeling like that? When you play a game, the last thing you’d want to see is an advert for Bio Slim or some arbitrary product that has absolutely no relation to you. Also, aren’t we exposed to ads enough already?
Initially, I was excited to hear about the fact that in-game advertising will be emphasized, especially when considering the possibilities. Personally, I feel that unless a so-called in-game billboard or poster runs in conjunction with say a product launch where Sims can actually try out the product, wear it, etc., those billboards and posters will have the same effect (or should that be ineffect?) as a banner ad on Facebook. Yes thousands will see it, but most will have no relation to it whatsoever and in the end it impacts negatively on the Sims 3 game.
Product-orientated brands such as clothing and other usable items can definitely add value to a player’s experience of the game, but I think it would be important for Maxis or EA (or whoever is running in-game advertising) to approve advertisers at their discretion; not just chase the possibility of an additional revenue stream. I saw that the Toyota Prius is on promotion at the Sims 3 Exchange, and you can download it and make sure that the rest of your neighbourhood stays green.
Of course, whenever advertising is introduced on a website, social network or in a game especially, it constitutes co-branding at a certain level. As a player, being able to get your hands on the latest iPod touch would be awesome, but conversely if you only have the option of getting in touch with a JNC SSFT-4200BK , my personal view is that it would reflect negatively on The Sims brand. This, however, could just be because I’m in marketing and tend to overanalyse things…
It’s not the first time advertising has been used in the Sims. H&M previously introduced an expansion pack that included all the latest fashions from the department store, and an Ikea expansion help Sims players out with some nice furnishings for their simulated homes.
I’ll post updates as they come a long, after I finished constructing a nice log cabin for Venter van Staden.
