Product Placement in Video Games

Billboards, drink machines, and clothing are all fair game for advertisers in video games. In Half-Life, these items are branded with generic names, presumably not to detract attention from the game itself. On the other hand, according to a USA Today article quoted on howstuffworks.com (I can't find the original), "Play Crazy Taxi and a lot of your passengers will ask you to take them to Pizza Hut or KFC (both owned by Tricon Global). Dive into Die Hard: Nakatomi Plaza...and you'll see Zippo lighters and Motorola cell phones. UbiSoft's Surf Riders has G-Shock watches and banners for Mr. Zog's Sex Wax, a surfboard wax." The article also notes how product placement in video games began in 1980, around the beginning of the video game craze.

A 2004 article in BBC News discusses how some gamers and programers say that advertisements make video games more realistic. That's the truth: driving along city streets in Crazy Taxi, it's much more realistic if you're as bombarded with outdoor advertising as you are in real life. The article also points out that "a quarter of US gamers have cut the time spent watching TV and a fifth more intended to, according to a recent survey."

There aren't any commercials in video games, so advertisers must find a new way of reaching this audience. Product placement in video games allows gamers to interact with the products while playing their favorite games. Some games don't allow for product placement because of their topics (World of Warcraft, for example, takes place on an alternate world, where Coca-Cola doesn't exist). However, earth-based games are great alternatives to the traditional 30-second ad for advertisers.

To be continued... next post: advergames - the ultimate product placement tool.