Flawless Victory for Non-Violent Game Advertisers

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By: Dwayne W. Waite Jr.

Unfortunately, the only thing kicking butt and taking names in violent video games are the avatars involved, not the advertising brands. According to research done at the University of Texas at Austin, the more violent the video game, the worse the brand recall and more negative brand attitude for brands that advertise.

According to the researchers, this is one of the first studies that shows a link between video game violence and in-game advertising effectiveness. When broken up by gender, women had a much higher aversion to brands than men overall, and women who played the violent video game had a 11.29% decrease in brand attitude compared to the women who played the non-violent game.

This revelation might not come too much as a surprise; the study relates this finding to violent TV programs, and previous studies showed that violent TV programs hinder ad recall more than non-violent TV.

Why are in-game ads so ineffective? The researchers suggest that since the user's mind is so stimulated with the violence going on, they are unable to process any information the ad is trying to convey. Plus, with the blood, gore, and showering of human limbs, users will link negative connotations with the ads they happen to catch.

U.S. video game advertising spending, says E-Marketer, will eclipse $1 billion dollars next year. But it looks like advertisers have a few options to make sure that money does not go to waste. It seems they can 1) shift their money to non-violent video games, or 2) figure out a way to make the ad in violent games less intrusive so the user can take it in separately without disrupting the flow of the game.

Something needs to be done, or else brands may find themselves looking for quarters as the "To Be Continued?" sign runs out.

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About the Author

Dwayne W. Waite Jr. is partner and principal at JDW: The Charlotte Agency, a marketing and advertising shop in Charlotte, NC. He enjoys consumer behavior, economics, and football.

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