Why Are Ads and Games Different?
I've been sharing TFT posts with you for a long time, but of course, I don't just play that game. I've become very interested in mobile games lately, and nowadays, mobile games mean ads. If you've downloaded a free game, you'll see ads at regular intervals as long as your internet is on. Unless, of course, you've paid to play without ads. These are usually game ads, and sometimes they can really catch your attention. So why are games and ads so different?
What do you mean, incublus? I see a gameplay video of a game in an ad, and sometimes it catches my interest. I want to try that game. I download the game, and it turns out to be something completely different from what was shown in the ad. Right now, there's a game called Kingshot that's one of the most popular free games on the App Store. Based on the ads, it's supposed to be a tower defense game. You download it, and it turns out it's not like that at all—it's a game where you build and develop a city. Or Whiteout Survival. I kept seeing ads for that game for a while. The ads show you hunting bears outside and then leaving them in an area, collecting and selling their meat, upgrading your weapon as you earn more money, and so on. Sounds like a classic idle game, right? Wrong. You download the game and see that it's actually a city-building and development game. Another example: Royal Match was another game I saw advertised a lot. In the ad, you solve interesting puzzles to save a king or a family. It sounds fun. You download the game, and that's only 1% of it. The rest is the same as Candy Crush. So why would I play this game? I'll play Candy Crush because it has many more levels and many more different combinations.
I don't know why these companies deceive people with their ads and make them play boring games they never expected. Show ads with actual gameplay footage, and you'll get more loyal players. Do players who download the game, play for 10 minutes, and then delete it benefit you? I highly doubt it. More downloads might get you higher on the charts, but they're worthless if they're not real players.
By the way, I know these are ads meant to attract attention and can be misleading, but they claim to show you in-game footage. Some ads even let you move characters and play the game. With technology being so advanced, it would be better to use it more accurately.
Anyway, I just wanted to rant a little about the mobile gaming world. I hope you enjoyed reading this. See you in my next game post.
Thanks man
OMG! I was just about to rant about this. The ads are crazy and everywhere in mobile games.
Exactly and they are not real unfortunately...
Even worse 🤦🤦
If I find a game was advertised deceptively, I usually delete it. And I haven't played many mobile games at all now that I many have burned me over the years. I dabble in Fallout Shelter nowadays, and that's about it, because ads are entirely optional. It's to the point now where I just assume any game ad is deceptive, whether it includes "gameplay" or not.
That's what I do. If I find it different than ads no matter if I like it, I just delete it. You're right about advertisements; I know they exist to make something look better than it is, but making it look completely different seems very wrong.
It is frightening that were it not for this network of self-referential ads that a whole bunch of this stuff wouldn't be sustainable or even viable. It is a run for formulaic money making - without due care to the creative medium upon which it sits.
That means one thing - if the game was not viable without the advertising, micro-transaction or lock-progress behind payment mechanics that so many of these use - it is simple - it is not worth playing or entertaining.
I would love to see a version of app store where such games were excluded from the rankings and we could let gems rise to the top, but sadly, this isn't in the interest of the curators of app stores, because they get a cut on every sale.
All comes back to money.
How many games are on the app stores for free, that are masterpieces that we don't know about because they don't advertise, they don't have microtransactions and are just good gaming experiences?
The scarier part about these sorts of "Games" is that these are the games that our "future" developers and game designers will grow up looking back at with nostalgia and reverence in the future, and we lose so much of what makes interactive fiction and gaming so unique and powerful.
I absolutely agree. Ten years ago, there were no ads in any games, and the gameplay was fantastic. Now, you have to watch ridiculous ads every five minutes. Want to progress in the game? Can't get past a level? You have to watch ads to strengthen your character...
I don't play mobile games anymore, and the reasons you describe are the reasons I stopped playing them. I have enough old games to play at this point that it is unlikely that I will get through them all before its time for me die :P I'll be a gamer for life! :)
Gamer for life but not fake ad games 👾🎮
You mentioned TFT, and I haven't been able to play it for a while due to internet issues. Right now, it's so unstable that I can't play it, but I'll have good internet service soon.
On the subject of ads for free mobile games, they're a nuisance. Before, you could play something for free from the app store, where without internet, you avoided ads. But now, if you don't have an internet connection, you can't play it because the game requires it, even if you're playing solo :(
Yes, unfortunately, almost all games require an internet connection. You can't even log into the game without internet.
Good luck with the good connection man. It must be annoying...
This happened to me yesterday on IG haha. It's definitely annoying, but they've been doing it for so long that it makes me think that most people who see the ad know it's fake or that the game isn't really what it's advertised to be, so they ignore it. Many of these ads have become memes because they're so ridiculous compared to the actual game haha
Yeah on IG I saw every comment like "nice try diddy" XD XD If they advertise correctly they will have loyal players...