Advergames

Advergaming is a unique and smart way of incorporating a company’s brand into a video game. These games promote or advertise a brand by using product placement. For example, a video game like Crazy Taxi integrates several brands that one would come across on the street, including Pizza Hut, KFCs, sportswear stores, etc. I believe this is a clever way of putting your company out there without making it too noticeable. When playing a certain game, one is so focused on achieving the goal or getting a lot of points that the brand isn’t ruining the game. Although, you still see the image and you know it’s there, yet it doesn’t make you lose concentration on the race. Therefore, this type of product placement is successful in a way where consumers distinguish the brand and still enjoy the game they are playing.

Although, from experience, the worst kind of advergaming is when the game stops and you have to watch the advertisement. In my opinion, this makes me not want to buy the product. However, a game like Chex Quest where the product is in the name and the brand is incorporated when playing the game, it allows people to play and not be annoyed with advertisements that pause the game. In the article, “Selling Your Soul for Fun and Profit: The 10 Best Advergames” by K. Alexander Smith, you can see the top ten advergames and why they were so successful.

http://www.pastemagazine.com/blogs/lists/2011/10/selling-your-soul-for-fun-and-profit-the-10-best-advergames.html