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The Matrix Online: In Game Advertising

StraddenStradden Managing EditorMember CommonPosts: 6,696
in News & Features Discussion

The Matrix Online has made an intetresting and potentially controversial announcement. It seems that their game will now be full of real-world advertisements:

Massive In-Game Advertising Announcement

An exciting new addition is coming to the world of The Matrix Online. As part of Update 38 we will be introducing Massive in-game advertising to The Matrix Online. For long-time community members, and those of you who play Planetside, it will be a familiar part of the game.

Real-world advertisements will begin appearing on billboards around the Mega City after Update 38 goes live. Just like real-world billboards, they’ll change to feature new advertisements over time. (Don’t worry: Your favorite ads for Slumberil, The Sentinel, etc., will remain a part of the game.) These static advertisements will not affect game performance in any way.

The inclusion of Massive in-game advertising opens up the possibility of something many community members have been asking for, player advertising around Mega City. We will be looking into the idea of running contests for selecting player-generated ads in the future as a way of incorporating these ads into the game. Once we have confirmed we can do this, we will make an announcement on Data Node One. Stay tuned and we will keep you updated on our progress over the next few weeks.

For more on The Matrix Online, click here.

Cheers,
Jon Wood
Managing Editor
MMORPG.com

Comments

  • ianubisiianubisi Member Posts: 4,201

    How it is they can warp this into "an exciting new addition" is beyond me.

  • zer0.hellzer0.hell Member Posts: 10

    finaly more advertising, just like the dvd's i buy: its full of it and i just love it!

    hope this plauge dosent spread to more montly fee games...

    -Lurker

  • tigris67tigris67 Member UncommonPosts: 1,762

    They make it sound like its something we've always wanted...yay...adds for walmart in our mmorpg that have absolutelly nothing to do with it...I agree with the above first post..

    Hi! My name is paper. Nerf scissors, rock is fine.
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  • AstabonAstabon Member Posts: 13

    This was the straw that made me cancel my Station Pass account when they threw this into Planetside...one of my all time favorite games.

    They will work this in to Star Wars Galaxies and EQ soon enough, you wait and see.

  • FernusFernus Member UncommonPosts: 28

    Sell Outs Everytime

  • necbonenecbone Member Posts: 358
    um, this is kinda evil if the price for the game doesnt go down...
  • MoraxMorax Member Posts: 59

    At least the sales and marketing department at Sony excels.  To bad thier customer support and develement teams are so poor.  It seems to be the way of the future for Sony games.

    I cancelled my EQ2 account when they introdued the pizza advertisement.  I do not reward game companies with bad decisions, even if i like their game.

  • FernusFernus Member UncommonPosts: 28

    Originally posted by Morax
    I cancelled my EQ2 account when they introdued the pizza advertisement. I do not reward game companies with bad decisions, even if i like their game.

    Um.... You do know that was a joke right?
    ::::05::

    Anyway, there are a hundred other good reasons to quit but if that did you in you didn't want to really play anyway.

  • QforQQforQ Member Posts: 101

    The big difference between this game and many of the other games mentioned, is this is MxO. The Matrix Online takes place in a world that is a simulated USA in the year 1999. We already have many billboards throughout the game, and ever since beta have had ads on them. Before SOE owned MxO Warner Brothers had ads on the billboards for movies like Batman Returns and others. This is actually not a bad thing for MxO, and will add to the imersion in the environment. The game needs the extra income because of it's smaller population and it being re-released here soon.

    I hope they use the money for something to benefit the game, but who knows what will happen for sure. The community made advertisements will be exciting and they already announced that they are interested in planning a contest for such things.

    If you played MxO, you would know that the ads actually add to the game, not take away from it.

    Sam "QforQ" Houston
    Senior Social Media Marketing Coordinator
    Perfect World Entertainment
    http://www.PerfectWorld.com/blog

  • necbonenecbone Member Posts: 358


    Originally posted by QforQ

    The big difference between this game and many of the other games mentioned, is this is MxO. The Matrix Online takes place in a world that is a simulated USA in the year 1999. We already have many billboards throughout the game, and ever since beta have had ads on them. Before SOE owned MxO Warner Brothers had ads on the billboards for movies like Batman Returns and others. This is actually not a bad thing for MxO, and will add to the imersion in the environment. The game needs the extra income because of it's smaller population and it being re-released here soon.
    I hope they use the money for something to benefit the game, but who knows what will happen for sure. The community made advertisements will be exciting and they already announced that they are interested in planning a contest for such things.
    If you played MxO, you would know that the ads actually add to the game, not take away from it.

    dont jock games or companies....yur a consumer(unless you work for them); do not be fooled by adding advertising to the game adds "depth"....the consumer should see some sort of benefits from that shit too...sony's going to make their money, dont worry bout them and they will bail on a bad idea...
  • DeaWelshDeaWelsh Member CommonPosts: 34
    This is a game I want to try, but haven't yet.  However, it makes sense to have billboards in this game since it is set in modern times.  I doubt seriously if they earmark the income toward the game.  It's just another way to make money off the product. 
  • QforQQforQ Member Posts: 101

    Believe me necbone I dont follow the game/company blindly. I do know from playing the game for the past 8 or 9 months that the ingame ads dont hurt anyone, and yes they can add to the game. I've seen ads for alienware, constantine, batman begins, WB DVD's, and others for the past 8 or 9 months that i've been playing. It certainly doesnt take away from the game, It's not like a WoW game where an ad for computers would be out of place. This is modern times. If the game is a simulation of our real world reality, why can it not have ads from our real world? It doesnt hurt me in any way so I dont see why I should object.

    Sam "QforQ" Houston
    Senior Social Media Marketing Coordinator
    Perfect World Entertainment
    http://www.PerfectWorld.com/blog

  • necbonenecbone Member Posts: 358


    Originally posted by QforQ

    Believe me necbone I dont follow the game/company blindly. I do know from playing the game for the past 8 or 9 months that the ingame ads dont hurt anyone, and yes they can add to the game. I've seen ads for alienware, constantine, batman begins, WB DVD's, and others for the past 8 or 9 months that i've been playing. It certainly doesnt take away from the game, It's not like a WoW game where an ad for computers would be out of place. This is modern times. If the game is a simulation of our real world reality, why can it not have ads from our real world? It doesnt hurt me in any way so I dont see why I should object.

    its easy, if you dont benefit from outside advertising its dumb...do you enjoy seeing commercials on tv? theres only maybe a couple hundred thousand to a million of us in the country, fight the power?!?
  • AltimitAltimit Member Posts: 82

    I don't really have a problem with advertising on TV or web sites, that's because I get access to them for free. Putting advertisements into something that one has to buy, and then pay a monthly fee for is just sick.

  • GuffsterGuffster Member Posts: 3

    When you buy a newspaper there is advertising on it.

    When you buy a magazine there is advertising on it.

    When you watch Cable TV almost all of it has advertising on it( and you pay for the cable.)

    When you access the internet many websites have advertising on them(and most people pay for that internet.)

    Does it REALLY surprise you that they will begin advertising in MMO's?

    Also don't be fooled into believing that there won't be advertising in fantasy MMO's.

    Town Cryer yells "Four bells and all's well..... Shop at Wally Marts for those always low prices on all your dungeoneering needs!......"

    If a buck can be made, someone is always gonna make it.

    Truthfully they would be stupid if they didn't at least try it!!!!

     

     

     

     

  • GuffsterGuffster Member Posts: 3

    double post. sorry.

  • shaeshae Member Posts: 2,509

    Well... I'm not really sure what the big deal ? They had this back in beta, lots of billboards had Constantine add's on them, Batman Returns was on there too, so I'm not really getting the hooplah lah !!

    Don't get me wrong, I'm the first to enjoy a good SOE bash, but it's smart business sense in this case. The add's wont get in the way since it's mostly a city setting, and if it's done with a certain amount of tact, it can even add to the setting.

    On top of that, if they can add in game bill boards add's for players as a feature that can be bought in game, awesome idea. MxO has a large amount of player run activities so I can see people now advertising for a big party in one of the bars... pretty cool idea.

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  • CrappyfoxCrappyfox Member Posts: 40
    How is this game i had seen on tv what the games looks like but have not played it so giv us a post back.
  • VenerableDVenerableD Member Posts: 41


    Originally posted by Altimit

    I don't really have a problem with advertising on TV or web sites, that's because I get access to them for free. Putting advertisements into something that one has to buy, and then pay a monthly fee for is just sick.


     

    Well Pay-Tv has advertisements, and you have to buy that and then pay a monthly fee.

    How often does your monthly fee increase??? In alot of MMOs it never does. There's a little thing called inflation, also wage increases are usually above inflation (if you want to keep good staff). You'd be happy with say a 5% fee increase every year??? Let's also not forget the other price deals you get from SOE - they have to be made up for somehow. I can't help feeling that many of the complaints come from kids who have never experienced the real bill-paying world.

    Also Matrix Online needs a little bit of atmosphere added to it's insipid environments so some adverts will be beneficial.

  • WhisperMMOWhisperMMO Member Posts: 6

    http://www.statesman.com/business/content/business/stories/10/28sony.html

    Hmm, wonder if MxO might be the "game title as yet unrevealed".
    I might come back to MxO if there were no subscription fee.

    Anarchy Online went this route as well (basic game free, in-game ads) and they are still hanging in there.

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