As in the cases of print, radio, cinema, and television, video games are a popular medium that attracts a large portion of the population, and therefore it is only natural that companies would seek ways to use that medium in order to expose the masses to their products. Product placement in games is not at all surprising and is not significantly different from product placement in other media. However, one way in which advertisers seem to be approaching games that is not seen as often in other media lies in the creation of advergames, or games that are designed and implemented solely for the purpose of promoting a product.
What is more surprising than the fact that games are being produced purely as advertisements is that people actually play these games. This can perhaps be attributed to the vast popularity of free online games in general. Skyworks, an advertisement company that produces advergames, provides on their site an interesting list of facts regarding online gaming and advergaming, a few of which follow:
- Half of the U.S. population will participate in online games by 2008.
- Advertising in and around online games will grow to nearly $4 billion by the end of 2008.
- 35-49 year old women spend the most time at online game sites.
- 41% of adult women are daily gamers, using it as a way to relieve stress, increase skills and inspire social interaction.
- 19% of males play online games more than they watch television.
Many successful advergames exist. The 2007 article How Advergaming Works lists several examples, perhaps most notably America’s Army, which was developed as an advertisement initiative for the United States military and is reportedly the army’s most effective recruiting tool. What makes this game particularly interesting is that it was developed solely by the army, without the involvement of any outside game developers. The article notes many other advergames with reported success, including online game-driven campaigns that advertise for companies such as Jeep, GM, and Pepsi. Hundreds more examples can be found at sites such as candystand.com, an advergame portal launched by Life Savers which hosts a vast number of free online games spanning a number of genres.
Although many of the free online advergames that most people encounter are not particularly good, the abundance of such games is a testament to the fact that advergaming as a whole seems to be successful, and in many cases, it seems that companies are beginning to view games as a more effective means of advertisement than television or cinema. One reason for this effectiveness lies in the interactivity of games, and more importantly, in the fact that a good game is fun to play. Though other forms of advertisement are sometimes enjoyable because of spectacle, humor, or sex appeal, in general a viewer does not gain anything from watching a commercial. In contrast, a good game is an enjoyable experience that rewards the player for time spent, even if that experience is an advertisement. In other words, a well-designed advergame is an activity in which the player enjoys taking part. It is the equivalent of a commercial that the viewer can win, and one that he willingly watches over and over again.
Candystand: The Hottest Games Online.
Obringer, Lee Ann. "How Advergaming Works." 13 March 2007. HowStuffWorks.com.
Skyworks Interactive
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