Marketing Failure 101 or Why do we Outsource Marketing to Neptune; Bad Gaming Advertising

AdaTheDobie

Despite all the progress we've made throughout the years (a toaster that's an oven? holy sh*t) one thing that still lags behind is the general perception of the "gaming" culture. Too often it is still viewed as niche and out of touch and a waste of time. Why you ask? Well there are a lot of different reasons why but one thing that definitely does not help is:

GAMING ADVERTISING!

How many times have you seen something in print or tv and movies or the internet that portrays gaming in a negative light or is just flat out wrong. Well, share those experiences! I'll begin:



So how long do you think they'll go before one of them realizes they are controlling absolutely nothing and ask to play a game that two people can play at the same time?



Haha! You don't actually own any games!
Alternate: Man, I told you this new avant-garde game was edgy, we play nothing just like we are nothing in life. That's deep man.



I... I just don't know.



I really feel like some kind of authority should be called here... this just makes me outright uncomfortable.


Now Continue!

LTM

That last one...that's good times right there.

Bedigunz

I remember an episode of Scrubs where Turk and JD are playing Halo 3 and it pans to single player.

Also, any crime/law show that deals with videogames (CSI, Law and Order, etc)

A Dabble Of Thelonius

Bedigunz wrote:

I remember an episode of Scrubs where Turk and JD are playing Halo 3 and it pans to single player.

This is basically any popular media that shows people playing multiplayer videogames.

JoeUser

JustinSane07

Bustin out the old favorite.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjCo2I3ooK0

RMS Oceanic

Did someone say bad video game advertisements?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKkPFDEiC6Q

ASimPerson

Bedigunz

A Dabble Of Thelonius wrote:

Bedigunz wrote:

I remember an episode of Scrubs where Turk and JD are playing Halo 3 and it pans to single player.

This is basically any popular media that shows people playing multiplayer videogames.

Still hate it

Aldo

Greetings from free MMO-istan.





Those are for in-browser management sims, by the way.

Langly

the evony ads are so god damn funny

Darric

Just tighten up the graphics on level three.

Edcrab

I remember Sony's adverts being godawful

Also, a bit racist?

Darric

Langly wrote:

the evony ads are so god damn funny

Quite: http://www.lazygamer.net/general-news/a-history-of-evony-ads-the-insanity-continues/

Zonugal

There are also some movies that just bring shame to the whole medium.

Gatsby

The one time I saw a video game portrayed correctly on a TV show was surprisingly in Glee...

PwnanObrien

Bedigunz wrote:

A Dabble Of Thelonius wrote:

Bedigunz wrote:

I remember an episode of Scrubs where Turk and JD are playing Halo 3 and it pans to single player.

This is basically any popular media that shows people playing multiplayer videogames.

Still hate it

For some reason I stopped to watch the opening of a movie that featured Tim Allen (turns out it was Wild Hogs) on FX. I don't know. Maybe my eyeballs had wronged me in some way earlier in the day and I thought the only well measured revenge would be torture.

Anyway, there's this scene where his kid is supposed to be playing a game and ignoring his father (Allen) to show that he doesn't respect him or something. The kid does the usual fumbling with the controls and that's to be expected, but then he turns to talk to Tim Allen and the F1 racer on the screen keeps steering itself. The he gets up and turns off the TV and just walks away.

jackal

It's not for games, but I love the mgid ads that are always some variation of "You won't believe what is there" with a red circle over Emma Watson's crotch.

Gatsby

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFfJ4ZC1AtA

Zonugal

Apparently the Adam Sandler film Reign Over Me uses video games (predominantly Shadow of the Colossus) fairly well.

Langly

is that video for real holy shit

Langly

Zonugal - it does! it becomes a metaphor for the survival instincts Sandler has and how he deals with the world.

Langly

was two thrones even out for xbox?

Langly

oh ok yeah it was

TheySlashThem

tighten up the gra-

oh

I see it's been covered

carry on

Druhim

I think gamer culture itself is much more effective at convincing the world at large that it should be shunned than any advertising does. When it's so common as to practically be expected that an opponent will trash talk you with slurs like, "shiteating cocksucker" or "bitch faggot noob", I can't imagine why the world at large would continue to regard many gamers with contempt. Yes, I know that doesn't describe most of you here. But I'm not talking about this forum, I'm talking about gamer culture at large. Where a player with a female tag will almost assuredly get bombarded with creepy messages from neckbeards.

Langly

Druhim wrote: »

I think gamer culture itself is much more effective at convincing the world at large that it should be shunned than any advertising does. When it's so common as to practically be expected that an opponent will trash talk you with slurs like, "shiteating cocksucker" or "bitch faggot noob", I can't imagine why the world at large would continue to regard many gamers with contempt. Yes, I know that doesn't describe most of you here. But I'm not talking about this forum, I'm talking about gamer culture at large. Where a player with a female tag will almost assuredly get bombarded with creepy messages from neckbeards.

mostly, I don't think of horrible advertising/use in other media as doing dis-service to "gamer culture" as it were, it's just hilariously misguided and almost always wrong in its portrayal.

It's like, they are obviously doing it to hit a target audience, but they do 0 research and come off looking like idiots.

That's why it's funny to me, not because of how people who aren't in the culture react to it.

Fyndir

Druhim wrote:

I think gamer culture itself is much more effective at convincing the world at large that it should be shunned than any advertising does. When it's so common as to practically be expected that an opponent will trash talk you with slurs like, "shiteating cocksucker" or "bitch faggot noob", I can't imagine why the world at large would continue to regard many gamers with contempt. Yes, I know that doesn't describe most of you here. But I'm not talking about this forum, I'm talking about gamer culture at large. Where a player with a female tag will almost assuredly get bombarded with creepy messages from neckbeards.

I only bombard them with creepy messages ironically, so that's ok.

PwnanObrien

Oh man, the PSP squirrel commercials...just remembered those.

chiasaur11

Langly wrote:

is that video for real holy shit

Yup.

Life was a great show, but yeah. It was hilariously off base there. Like the writer for that episode had been in prison since 1995 and just found out video games still existed.

Langly

i think the best part is when he grabs the xbox off the tv and it isn't plugged in or anything.

Bucketman

If I recall correctly, in the Charlie's Angles movie some kids are playing FF8, then it pans out and their playing an N64

HallowedFaith

Druhim wrote:

I think gamer culture itself is much more effective at convincing the world at large that it should be shunned than any advertising does. When it's so common as to practically be expected that an opponent will trash talk you with slurs like, "shiteating cocksucker" or "bitch faggot noob", I can't imagine why the world at large would continue to regard many gamers with contempt. Yes, I know that doesn't describe most of you here. But I'm not talking about this forum, I'm talking about gamer culture at large. Where a player with a female tag will almost assuredly get bombarded with creepy messages from neckbeards.

I think we might be stepping away from being able to label "Gamers" like we were able to even 10 years ago. So many things are tied into "Geek" culture now-a-days that unless you are US sitting here and discussing it, the majority of the world is starting to blur all the lines into one big techno-dick. I mean, depending on where you go (FACEBOOK FACEBOOK FACEBOOK) some people think if you read Reddit you're supportive of the mighty Anonymous terrorist group trying to bring down Governments.

Artreus

All I want for christmas is a PSP.

Also it is okay blackhawk1313, you are allowed to say "shit" on these forums

PwnanObrien

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dp460zM_PGA

Game.Com...because the best way to advertise your product is to tell your audience nothing about it and call them morons for wanting to know about it.

Artreus

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0G0LlXv-nyI

A Dabble Of Thelonius

Bedigunz wrote:

A Dabble Of Thelonius wrote:

Bedigunz wrote:

I remember an episode of Scrubs where Turk and JD are playing Halo 3 and it pans to single player.

This is basically any popular media that shows people playing multiplayer videogames.

Still hate it

Same here. My wife has gotten to the point where it will happen in a show and she'll cut me off before I can complain.

Langly

Artreus wrote: »

All I want for christmas is a PSP.

Also it is okay blackhawk1313, you are allowed to say "shit" on these forums

the fuck he can

Druhim

HallowedFaith wrote: »

Druhim wrote:

I think gamer culture itself is much more effective at convincing the world at large that it should be shunned than any advertising does. When it's so common as to practically be expected that an opponent will trash talk you with slurs like, "shiteating cocksucker" or "bitch faggot noob", I can't imagine why the world at large would continue to regard many gamers with contempt. Yes, I know that doesn't describe most of you here. But I'm not talking about this forum, I'm talking about gamer culture at large. Where a player with a female tag will almost assuredly get bombarded with creepy messages from neckbeards.

I think we might be stepping away from being able to label "Gamers" like we were able to even 10 years ago. So many things are tied into "Geek" culture now-a-days that unless you are US sitting here and discussing it, the majority of the world is starting to blur all the lines into one big techno-dick. I mean, depending on where you go (FACEBOOK FACEBOOK FACEBOOK) some people think if you read Reddit you're supportive of the mighty Anonymous terrorist group trying to bring down Governments.

I get what you're saying, but my point is that in most multiplayer games, it is pretty much expected that you're going to get trash talked. Again, I realize that most of us here wouldn't call a stranger a "mother raping noob faggot", the fact that it's so prevalent is what I'm talking about. That's what people experience and that's unavoidably going to influence how they see gaming in general. Gaming is still populated largely by ignorant, trash talking teenage boys and the men that still haven't grown out of acting like a child while gaming. It is of course entirely different if you're trash talking a friend because that's between the two of you.

AdaTheDobie

Hehe I know Artreus, the not cursing thing that got etched into me by my parents in ages past still reasserts itself now am then. Also, my wife gets that way about medical inaccuracies on medical shows (she's an RN) so we have a balance there. She gets to bitch about how they aren't using proper procedures and I get to rage at the Xbox not even connected to the tv or the tech person on a show "hacking" by hitting a shit ton of key a mile a minute.

WeedLordVegeta

So, as the world's #1 Life fan

I cannot defend the Prince of Persia thing