Newly Resurfaced Acclaim Signs Up for In-Game Advertising

[fitbabits]

Thanks to Gamasutra (http://www.gamasutra.com) for the news (http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=8605).

Officials from the newly formed Acclaim Games have announced a multi-year strategic partnership to bring multiple massive multiplayer online (MMO) games into the Massive Network dynamic in-game advertising system.

Although it uses the name and logo of the now defunct home console publisher, the new Acclaim Games is focused on online titles, many of Korean origin. The first title to be integrated in the Massive Network will be BOTS, a free action-themed multiplayer online game. One of the top games in Asia with over a million registered users, the game is being redesigned and launched in North America and Europe and is scheduled to start in the next few weeks.

"We are focused on providing the best online multiplayer games for free, something rare in the market. In order to do this, we are using innovative business models including adding in-game advertising, selling in-game content and offering unique subscriptions. Massive has the most established and robust in-game advertising solution, with deep experience in multiplayer games, and so were the natural choice as our partner," said Howard Marks, CEO of Acclaim.

"Acclaim is a great addition to the Massive Network and we're thrilled to work with them to integrate real-world ad campaigns into their games," said Nicholas Longano, president of new media at Massive. "This partnership further emphasizes the growing support for the realism and revenue benefits that dynamic in-game advertising provides. This is a tremendous win for gamers – free games supported by advertising."
Yowza! Acclaim are really putting their best foot forward to try and eliminate any ill feeling left behind by their less-than-stellar back catalog.

That, by the way, was sarcasm!

[NoName]

As much bad rap as in game advertising gets, if they can make it fit in with the game well this would be a big plus for MMO games. Free to consumers is always good.

[Ultima Thulian]

Isn't Guildwars free? I don't remember Guildwars having advertisements...

[Doctor Setebos]

I don't have a problem with this so long as the products are worth the annoyance of the advertising. I mean, it's free! FREE!

As far as Guild Wars is concerned, you have to buy the software first, and you get to play online for free. Unless I'm mistaken, I don't see any mention on the Acclaim website of having to purchase anything. It's a completely free system, so they have to manage the costs somehow.

[Sl1pstream]

selling in-game content

Yes, you can play our game, but if you want to use a weapon or armor, you'll have to pay.

I guess I'll just have to wait and try. Free is a good thing.

[Oddmaker]

Yowza! Acclaim are really putting their best foot forward to try and eliminate any ill feeling left behind by their less-than-stellar back catalog.

That, by the way, was sarcasm!hahaha so true ;)

[Doctor Setebos]

Yes, you can play our game, but if you want to use a weapon or armor, you'll have to pay.The way I understand it is, in the case of BOTS, you can purchase upgrades and additional equipment for your robots. I've heard somewhere else that in 9 Dragons, you'll be able to purchase weapons and equipment and "buy" your way into special zones. I can see it being some sort of "1 dollar = X game currency" micropayment transaction system, but it's too soon to say yet how it will materialize.

[Ultima Thulian]

You get what you pay for...as the old saying goes. With Acclaim's track record and the game being free...well, do the math.

[Magnanimous Gnome]

I still don't understand why any publisher or developer would spend any money, even $5, on the Acclaim name. Acclaim has zero credibility - why get your company off on the wrong foot with the name of such a horrible developer/publisher?

[Ultima Thulian]

I still don't understand why any publisher or developer would spend any money, even $5, on the Acclaim name. Acclaim has zero credibility - why get your company off on the wrong foot with the name of such a horrible developer/publisher?

Very true. But acclaim has done two good things. They brought Mortal Kombat to the consoles and started the Burnout series.

[IagoTheHunted]

Add more games to the list of what I'm NOT going to be playing this year. Advertisers can bite me. I'm too sick of this to even dredge up all the arguments for why it's bad.

[Orz]

Inevitable.

WOW has millions of subscribers. If blizzard put in a system whereby you were forced to watch 3 minutes of ads for every hour played, the money would flood in by the boatload.

"The following Boss Encounter is brought to you by Subaru!"

"Quarter Pounder with Cheese Sword of Demonslaying"

[IagoTheHunted]

Inevitable.

WOW has millions of subscribers. If blizzard put in a system whereby you were forced to watch 3 minutes of ads for every hour played, the money would flood in by the boatload.

"The following Boss Encounter is brought to you by Subaru!"

"Quarter Pounder with Cheese Sword of Demonslaying"

Wow already has money by the boatload... 5 million subscribers at $15 a month ends up being about $75million in profit every MONTH. So hopefully they won't be dumb enough to risk fucking that up (even after sucessfully fucking the people who MADE the game out of their royalty deal and inciteing most of them to quit).

What worries me is that any publisher who's actually strapped for cash is going to sell out their games in worse and worse ways and that people might actually put up with it. If it starts happening we need to just let those publishers die and wait for one that actually respects it's paying customers.

[lockwoodx]

I would never play games with In-game advertising even if they were free.

[aversion2k]

Inevitable.

WOW has millions of subscribers. If blizzard put in a system whereby you were forced to watch 3 minutes of ads for every hour played, the money would flood in by the boatload.

"The following Boss Encounter is brought to you by Subaru!"

"Quarter Pounder with Cheese Sword of Demonslaying"

But wow players have already paid for the game and are still paying, Forcing them to watch advertising would be total bullshit, unless the monthly costs were dropped.
I doubt they would put this in wow anyway.

[Sl1pstream]

Right, like Auto Assault is going to be free because it has ads?

[Orz]

I never said WOW would do it, just speaking hypothetical like.

Would you put up with ads that played at the same time for everyone, tv-style, in exchange for cheaper or free WOW? I would. 3 minute break, go grab a drink or something.

It's when they try to integrate them into the game environment when they get stupid.

[motor]

We'll here's the choice. I'm making a very simple MMO (you play for about 15 minutes every day). What would rather do? Play $20 a year or sit through 1 minute of ads at the start of every game (about 6 hours by the end of a year). Is you time worth more then $3/hour? Frankly, my current choice is just to charge the $20 bucks. I think given the option people would rather pay a minimal amount to be able to just play the game.

[Orz]

We'll here's the choice. I'm making a very simple MMO (you play for about 15 minutes every day). What would rather do? Play $20 a year or sit through 1 minute of ads at the start of every game (about 6 hours by the end of a year). Is you time worth more then $3/hour? Frankly, my current choice is just to charge the $20 bucks. I think given the option people would rather pay a minimal amount to be able to just play the game.

Good luck with that, poncho.

Considering most people sit in queues for WOW for ten to fifteen times that long and still play the thing, I'd rather that time was used to bring the monthly fee down to zero.

[CrashCart]

Wow already has money by the boatload... 5 million subscribers at $15 a month ends up being about $75million in profit every MONTH.Gross Income != Profit.

Not that I don't think they're making a lot of money on this game, but they do have expenses that cut into net profit each month. Just sayin'. Everybody seems to throw the X subscribers * $15 a month equation around like everybody in Irvine is rolling around in piles of money. Granted, they could be, but I don't even want to guess at how much they pay for bandwidth and server maintenance for all of their realms.

On topic: Advertising in general is kind of annoying when it does nothing to offset the viewer's costs. And though I don't want to see it unreasonably invade my gaming space (I already have to watch nVidia/Intel commercials when I fire up some games), it's going on everywhere. Do those ads on the sides of buses reduce transportation costs significantly? Or do the 5 commercials I sit through before the movie bring ticket costs down? Does all the TV advertising reduce my cable bill? (That one actually just went up :mad: )

Bottom line is that, in general, advertising in media and many other places really only serves to offset the production costs. The consumer really doesn't benefit from any of it.

[Demize99]

I would never play games with In-game advertising even if they were free.

I'm curious what games you've played recently.... I bet one of them has ads or product placement in game and you may not even notice it.

[IagoTheHunted]

Gross Income != Profit.

Not that I don't think they're making a lot of money on this game, but they do have expenses that cut into net profit each month. Just sayin'. Everybody seems to throw the X subscribers * $15 a month equation around like everybody in Irvine is rolling around in piles of money. Granted, they could be, but I don't even want to guess at how much they pay for bandwidth and server maintenance for all of their realms.

On topic: Advertising in general is kind of annoying when it does nothing to offset the viewer's costs. And though I don't want to see it unreasonably invade my gaming space (I already have to watch nVidia/Intel commercials when I fire up some games), it's going on everywhere. Do those ads on the sides of buses reduce transportation costs significantly? Or do the 5 commercials I sit through before the movie bring ticket costs down? Does all the TV advertising reduce my cable bill? (That one actually just went up :mad: )

Bottom line is that, in general, advertising in media and many other places really only serves to offset the production costs. The consumer really doesn't benefit from any of it.

I didn't mean for my equasion to add up like that, I know net != profit. However when your counting in the MILLIONS of dollers and your only upkeep is servers and butt-loads of bandwidth, AND people are paying an initial fee of $250 MILLION to offset upkeep for the first few years, then your profit is going to hit pretty close to the net income mark. Even if they SOMEHOW mannaged to pay 30 million every month for upkeep (I SERIOUSLY doubt it's any more than 2 million, but just for argument) than they're still bathing in money and my point stands.

Also video games != TV or other avenues for advertising. We're buying a PRODUCT, not a streaming service. It's like putting advertising on DVDs of TV shows, not like TV shows. In other words it's TOTAL BULLSHIT.

[aversion2k]

The most annoying thing is a lot of these ads wont even be relevent here in New Zealand.
I always seem to get these 2 on gaming sites.
"Join the American Navy"
"Join the American Army"
And no matter how many times I apply they wont let me join for some reason :P

[motor]

My understanding is that any MMO is profitable at around 100,000 users and some that have really clever ways of ramping up / down the sever requirements can be profitable at around 20,000. So that should give you an idea of the sever costs. My guess is about 90% of the monthly fees for WOW are profit.

[lockwoodx]

I'm curious what games you've played recently.... I bet one of them has ads or product placement in game and you may not even notice it.


Reciently I'm playing HL2 deathmatch (yes I know steam has advertisements but I have the option to skip them), Galatic civ 2 (michigan pride baby), Dark age of Camelot, Bookworm, and all my DS games. (ebgames still doesn't know when phoenix wright willbe back dammit!)

[lockwoodx]

Right, like Auto Assault is going to be free because it has ads?


I accually cancled my CE preorder when I found out they would have in game advertising.