It’s in the game
posted at 9:50 am on October 15, 2008 by Ed Morrissey
Share on Facebook | printer-friendly
Presidential campaigns and computer gaming have intersected in this election cycle for the first time. EA Sports has included advertising for Barack Obama in nine of its games, in their Xbox versions, and will run them until Election Day:
Nine video games from Electronic Arts Inc., ranging from the extremely popular “Madden 09″ football game to the street racing “Burnout: Paradise,” feature in-game ads from the Obama campaign. The ads—they appear on billboards and other signage—remind players that early voting has begun and plug a campaign Web site.
The idea of embedding advertising temporarily inside a video game is relatively new, having only begun about 18 months ago, and Obama is the first presidential candidate to buy space, company officials said.
The Democrat’s ads are aimed at gamers who like sports, including NASCAR, NBA, NHL and skateboarding, meaning EA Sports’ motto, “It’s in the game,” now applies to presidential politics as well.
Sounds like a smart move by Team Obama, although it plays to a demographic Obama already has, and on voters who have low reliability at actually showing up on Election Day. They have the money to innovate, though, and they won’t likely lose much on the transaction. Their ads could get millions of views at a relatively low cost.
I do have to wonder about EA Sports and their marketing, though. First, accepting political ads unnecessarily annoys at least part of their market. Moreover, why should players have to see ads at all? They invest hundreds of dollars into the game system, and then spend plenty of money on each game they play. If I spent that kind of money playing “Madden 09″, I’d resent EA Sports’s attempt to exploit me for even more money to advertisers, especially on products I don’t want or like.
Of course, I don’t play Madden 09 or any of the other EA Sports games, and perhaps they rely on a lack of sophistication among their clientele and hope they don’t know any better. That would certainly explain the Obama ads.
Update: It’s early, but I think this would win Comment of the Day, if we had such a thing. From Bishop:
Coming soon from EA:
‘Community Organizer 2009′
Battle against your friends or the AI as you attempt to wrest control of Chicago for your own gain. Bribing city officials, befriending communists, blackmailing opponents, it’s all here in the game that’s guaranteed to make you want to be a community organizer too.
Comes with three bonus levels: Stealing A Senate Election, Crushing Your Female Opponent, and Destroying the Nation.
Ouch.
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Blowback
Note from Hot Air management: This section is for comments from Hot Air's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that Hot Air management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment just because we let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with our terms of use may lose their posting privilege.
Trackbacks/Pings
Trackback URL
Comments
Comment pages:
well let me go buy a a gaming system and all the games with “THE ONE” in them, this way i can become a better person./S my ass
custer on October 15, 2008 at 9:53 AM
Ed, you’re missing one of the bigger points here. Obama has specifically spoken about the bad influence that video games have on our children – both from a content standpoint and the fact they are sucked into playing games for hours instead of reading, exercising, etc.
The ultimate hypocrite continues to roll right along.
Sugar Land on October 15, 2008 at 9:54 AM
Obama probably has a Wii so he can claim he played pro sports.
AubieJon on October 15, 2008 at 9:55 AM
I don’t see guys who spend all day playing video games leaving the house and making the effort to stand in line on election day to vote.
Call me crazy . . .
NoDonkey on October 15, 2008 at 9:55 AM
Zing!
amerpundit on October 15, 2008 at 9:56 AM
EA has already alienated a lot of people with their inclusion of SecuROM and DRM stuff in their games. Just another reason to not buy anything from them.
Luthien on October 15, 2008 at 9:57 AM
Grand Theft Obama
Fits with his economic policies.
Those dumb gamers who vote for Obama can forget buying any more games with Obama’s taxes.
jencab on October 15, 2008 at 9:57 AM
Oh no! Just when you thought you could escape from THE ONE by going into the fantasy world of online video games…
titus_pullo on October 15, 2008 at 9:58 AM
Forget all that – can we burn down the in-game billboards? Or does that generate an “Action Wire Alert?”
Hannibal Smith on October 15, 2008 at 9:58 AM
LOL jencab! Is this a subtle reference to ACORN?
titus_pullo on October 15, 2008 at 9:59 AM
Coming soon from EA:
‘Community Organizer 2009′
Battle against your friends or the AI as you attempt to wrest control of Chicago for your own gain. Bribing city officials, befriending communists, blackmailing opponents, it’s all here in the game that’s guaranteed to make you want to be a community organizer too.
Comes with three bonus levels: Stealing A Senate Election, Crushing Your Female Opponent, and Destroying the Nation.
Bishop on October 15, 2008 at 10:00 AM
C’mon guys… that’s like saying Fox News is in the tank for Democrats because it’s running wall to wall Obama campaign or W. ads.
It’s capitalism and McCain sucks at it.
Skywise on October 15, 2008 at 10:00 AM
I heard that they’re going to rerelease Metroid, but Mother Brain is going to actually look like Nancy Pelosi.
Sweet.
And while we’re at it, doesn’t Reverend Wright kind of remind you of Bowser?
watchmen on October 15, 2008 at 10:01 AM
Odolto’s new target audience:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlAhxoRRxfI
Bishop on October 15, 2008 at 10:03 AM
Well, I know that I’ll never buy another EA game again….I haven’t bought one since my Commodore C-64 days, but hey! Never again!
Vntnrse on October 15, 2008 at 10:04 AM
You just touched on a subject that gamers bitched about for years XD
The reasoning behind it is that EA wants to monetize every possible aspect of its games. And part of that comes from the fact that EA, up until very recently, was relying on pumping out the same 5 games on a yearly basis – and their sales were tanking. Now EA’s doing quite a bit better than they were some years past, they probably don’t need the ads – but gamers have grudgingly accepted them, so it’s doubtful EA will remove them.
apollyonbob on October 15, 2008 at 10:06 AM
This is not new. I worked on “Tony LaRussa Baseball” in the early 1990’s and we sold billboard and outfield ads to a variety of companies.
Sinner on October 15, 2008 at 10:06 AM
EA Sports has seamlessly integrated Obama into Madden ’09. Every time a game begins, an Obama avatar tosses an inconvenient associate under John Madden’s tour bus.
Mr. D on October 15, 2008 at 10:08 AM
Now all those 12-14 year olds will know who to vote for.
Snark aside, I believe the median age for an active gamer is now in the 30’s. See this.
I still wonder about them alienating half their audience, though. At least it will be all over in a couple of weeks.
JeffC_95 on October 15, 2008 at 10:08 AM
These games undoubtedly have a plethora of cheat codes.
Vashta.Nerada on October 15, 2008 at 10:10 AM
Too bad we can’t have The One appear in a video game where you can either blast him with a Xeon Death Ray or sic zombies on him or something.
pilamaye on October 15, 2008 at 10:16 AM
Too bad we can’t have The One appear in a video game where you can either blast him with a Xeon Death Ray or sic zombies on him or something.
pilamaye on October 15, 2008 at 10:16 AM
That would be, of course, racist. Only games which depict Bush being killed are allowed, and where do you find such a game? Chicago.
http://www.knbc.com/news/16898140/detail.html
Bishop on October 15, 2008 at 10:20 AM
Sim Senate, the object of the game is to try to get as many pieces of legislation as you can to come up for a vote, but make sure you keep an eye out on Senator Obama, if he thinks to hard and tries to actually vote any way besides “Present” his head may explode.
MobileVideoEngineer on October 15, 2008 at 10:24 AM
MobileVideoEngineer on October 15, 2008 at 10:25 AM
There is no way any man could live up to the expectations the Dems have for Obama.
.
If he does win, it will be funny seeing their messiah fall.
.
Although he does have the media to prop him up at every stumble.
abinitioadinfinitum on October 15, 2008 at 10:26 AM
Ah!!! I made another mistake, oh well… you get the idea.
MobileVideoEngineer on October 15, 2008 at 10:26 AM
Game Review Comments:
“I highly recommend this game. In fact, I have mastered the San Francisco version that includes “saving the planet”—–Nancy Pelosi
“I’m waiting for the Fannie and Freddie version—–Barney Frank
“I just love the “Destroying the Nation” feature that allows you to buy political positions”——-George Soros
Rovin on October 15, 2008 at 10:28 AM
Hmmm… How many of the NFL players on the Madden game cover missed the season? I say put him on the cover of Madden Sissy Bowling 2008.
Akzed on October 15, 2008 at 10:29 AM
The same could be said for DVDs, cable/satellite, and the internet. My family has always been peeved about paying for cable AND having to watch the same ads as broadcast tv.
TMK on October 15, 2008 at 10:31 AM
How about a game with a politically neutral “pick your target” shooting gallery?
Shoot at a Bush effigy or an Obama effigy, your choice.
Count to 10 on October 15, 2008 at 10:36 AM
If Obama was in Warhammer Online so greenskins could feed him to a pack of squigs, I might be interested. Otherwise there’s no way I’m buying an EA game until they stop bundling them with malware like SecuROM in the name of DRM.
Rip Ford on October 15, 2008 at 10:38 AM
On second thought, that’s probably not such a good idea. I just imagined the people that would get ideas from something like that.
How about “wack-a-pol” instead.
Count to 10 on October 15, 2008 at 10:40 AM
You spend around a hundred dollars on a dvd player (more if you like blueray) and then 10-30 bucks (again more for blueray discs) on a movie and they place advertisements (other move trailers) in it?!
Same goes for cable. You pay for the box, you pay monthly for the service and (save for the movie channels – and they have self adverts between films occasionally as well) you still have to deal with commercials. That’s just big business.
Trent1289 on October 15, 2008 at 10:46 AM
It’s a bit of startling choice to advertise in the Burnout games. The enlightened forces in Europe have previously deemed the advertising for this game series too violent. Perhaps the possibility of an appearance of the one in the game, would make them reconsider.
The Burnout series isn’t as bad as Grand Theft Auto, but the concept is glorified drag racing. In Burnout Paradise you engage in street races by driving to a corner. You receive a boost for crashing other cars off the road (Takedowns). Nothing is off limited in doing so, players are encouraged to slam rivals into the wall until they break down. One could slam pedestrian cars into rivals and cause a crash, called Traffic Checks.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTOS84D_zR8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDe9xLA6V9M
http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/xbox360/review/R122192.html
amazingmets on October 15, 2008 at 10:51 AM
If I may shatter a stereotype or two, I am in my low 30s, am a full time engineer (or was, until I was laid off, thanks Governor Jenny), and am a full time law student. I have always been a big gamer, more towards the sports games, which are dominated by EA. Nowadays though, I have to wait for breaks in school terms to play, but I still do.
They have been talking about this for a lot longer than 18 months. This has been thrown around for years, and the original intention, or at least their stated intention, to include ads and share the savings with customers. Sounds great, but when they discovered that they could include the ads, and not bring down prices, and we still bought the games, well, you get passes from Tom Brady to Barry O.
ConservativeLawStudent on October 15, 2008 at 10:52 AM
What do you expect when you have Republicans like Jack Thompson trying to torpedo their business?
Caiwyn on October 15, 2008 at 10:57 AM
The average age of gamers is 28 years old, its not a dumb a move as you might think, its not 12 – 14 year olds as mentioned above.
Remember, anyone under thirty now has never known a world without video games, I’m 28 and I got an Atari 2600 before I even started school.
cyclosarin on October 15, 2008 at 10:58 AM
Amen. Another thing is that asinine activation limit. You can only install it 5 times (used to be 3)….WTF?
As for that stereotype of the gamer who never votes, not all of us are like that. We don’t all just blindly follow The One and never leave the house to vote. In fact, I already voted.
Luthien on October 15, 2008 at 10:59 AM
EA incluides advertising because they seek to emulate a “real world” environment in some of the games, like Burnour for example. I really don’t have an issue with this, unless they never offered the same advertising space to McCain. If Obama wants to pay to get the word out to folks that more than likely are already in his camp, have at it.
changer1701 on October 15, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Yeesh. When EA Sports was putting ads in the background of their games, it was merely annoying. Then, with NCAA Football ‘07, I couldn’t help but notice they’d gone farther still and have the booth commentators announcing “the players of the game, brought to you by Coca-Cola.”
How long before the Barry O billboards morph into plotlines and dialogue? I can see it now, “Grand Theft Auto V: Chicago”. Kill rival gang members! Then register them to vote! Bomb police stations and get tenure! Get fat checks from Uncle Sam for doing nothing!
landshark on October 15, 2008 at 11:09 AM
EA Sports – it’s in the tank.
Brass Pair on October 15, 2008 at 11:18 AM
Wow Ed what a ricist picture!
How is a black man with a black bowling ball not just as Racist as comparing a black man Raines with a black candidate Obama “Blessed be his name”?
I’m going to forward your Racist article to our beloved Senator Reid for his reaction.
cmptrnerd on October 15, 2008 at 11:18 AM
If Obama can get em young, then he has a head start on keeping them brainwashed as they get older.
csdeven on October 15, 2008 at 11:20 AM
I wouldn’t mind advertising in DVDs and/or video games if they give me an opportunity to skip through the ad/preview section and go directly to the menu. That way they can make their money if they want and I can ignore it. Everybody wins.
Tom Blogical on October 15, 2008 at 11:20 AM
That’s it, he’s left handed too, the End is Near!
kirkill on October 15, 2008 at 11:22 AM
You’re crazy.
;)
In all seriousness, the Gamer market has been maturing for years. While I don’t own a console, I have been a PC gamer for YEARS now. Gaming on a PC is my primary form of entertainment. I don’t play sports games (or watch sorts on T.V. for that matter) but I have logged many many hours in EVE Online, Planetside, Supreme Commander, Call of Duty, Halo, Half-Life, and on and on.
I’m in my mid-Thirties, and have been playing video games since I was a pre-teen. Many, many other gamers are guys and gals JUST LIKE ME. We live, breathe and sleep games. it’s just what we do and who we are. It’s our passion, just as football and sports are many other people’s passion.
The old stereotype of the dorky pasty-faced kid in his mom’s basement no longer applies. We gamers are successful, goal-oriented and driven individuals, many of whom are great successes in business and in life. We are a MAJOR market force (the market for video games surpasses that of Hollywood by about a billion dollars), and we do NOT like being pandered to.
Personally, I think that this effort will backfire on Obama. Most gamers HATE the in-game ads, and many will go out of their way to find a way to block them if possible. Obama is associating himself with something hated. Dumb move.
wearyman on October 15, 2008 at 11:26 AM
kudos for Bishop. Right on target. Wish McCain had your sense of humor.
eaglewingz08 on October 15, 2008 at 11:31 AM
“My legs, I can’t feel my legs!” ——Chris Matthews
Brat on October 15, 2008 at 11:36 AM
Out in time for X-Mas!
Grand Theft Election (ACORN collectors edition)
NoDonkey on October 15, 2008 at 11:54 AM
Soon, you too will be rejoicing in the post-racial, post-partisan, post-freedom One We’ve Been Waiting For.
So suck it up and like it, or The One We’ve Been Waiting For will provide, free of charge, a new way of thinking for you. That’s just the way He rolls.
hillbillyjim on October 15, 2008 at 12:27 PM
do you get special power ups like, ‘Claiming Moral Superiority’?
DaveC on October 15, 2008 at 12:30 PM
..continued from above.
and the ‘Race Card’?
DaveC on October 15, 2008 at 12:30 PM
wearyman on October 15, 2008 at 11:26 AM
I’m not down on gamers, I admit enjoying NCAA Football 2009 myself (only game I own and I don’t play online).
The only ad NCAA football is for the Pontiac Game-Changing performance. Which actually ads a little realism to the game, along with the annoyingly lengthy replays on blown referee calls.
I just don’t think anyone silly enough to be swayed by an Obama ad in a videogame, is going to get motivated enough to trek to the polls.
NoDonkey on October 15, 2008 at 1:16 PM
I don’t play video games, but my husband and sons do. When I read this to my husband, he said “Well, I guess I won’t buy Madden ‘09 then”.
The price of the games is bad enough without being subjected to Obama ads. No thanks.
Common Sense on October 15, 2008 at 6:56 PM
That’s true but I think its still a brilliant move on his part.
Cr4sh Dummy on October 15, 2008 at 10:12 PM
Comment pages: