The Billboard Conspiracy

[Sier_Pinski]

Remember all of those Internet Explorer 9 ads from Shift 2? I just discovered today that all of them have been replaced with Dr. Pepper ads.

But what really catches my attention is this: how did all those billboards change themselves, if there were no patches to change them? Because if I recall, I did not install any new patches whatsoever during this change of adverts.

PS3, patch 1.02.

(P.S. This is NOT a rant, just a question of curiosity.)

 

[tribolik]

Billboards from the game? its tracks? if your connected to the internet while playing they can say anything... no need for patches

 

[NLxAROSA]

Either it gets them from the internet, or they came on the disk or in one of the patches.

 

[Tireseas]

It's also possible that they were in the game to start with and were activated with a trigger of some sort. Most likely though they get rotated and added via the internet connection.

 

[TommyWizard]

Could have been a time switch.

So say it was today that Microsoft was scheduled up to to have an IE9 advert, then the game can after that day switch to another pre-prapared board. Next update might update the calender as such.

 

[RomKnight]

Curious thing talking about pub and S2U, today.

In a somewhat related subject,
I saw free pub to S2U while watching "the grid" on Motors Tv. Tommy was talking about le man's series with him doing an hotlap around Laguna in the background (one of the clips in shift2 website)

 

[squeakD]

I don't think there is any type of a conspiracy here. There are numerous ways this could have happened. It's very possible these billboard changes were already implemented via the patch updates and are timed to switch at some point.

It's not a conspiracy.., but I will say that this "in game advertising" bull$hit done by developers today is utter nonsense. It's a total sell-out by them IMO. I think that it's pretty lame these advertisers are contracting with game developers to push products in our faces "during" game play.

 

[Tireseas]

If there's anywhere advertising belongs in a game it's on billboards that'd be there anyway. Besides, it's motorsports we're talking about here. Ads are about as jarringly out of place as the sound of tires squealing. Not like they're making you watch full length video commercials for fabric softener as the track loads

 

[squeakD]

If there's anywhere advertising belongs in a game it's on billboards that'd be there anyway. Besides, it's motorsports we're talking about here. Ads are about as jarringly out of place as the sound of tires squealing. Not like they're making you watch full length video commercials for fabric softener as the track loads

Don't give them any ideas! At this rate.., it wouldn't surprise me one bit if we end up watching that stupid Snuggle Bear bounce around in a basket of clean towels while waiting for tracks/races to load

 

[Esahaettr]

Don't give them any ideas! At this rate.., it wouldn't surprise me one bit if we end up watching that stupid Snuggle Bear bounce around in a basket of clean towels while waiting for tracks/races to load

But here's a question for you... If they sold a second version of the game where they did throw in commercials during that 30 sec - 60 sec load time (I'm not sure if that's how long it is now...sometimes feels like it) instead of just a blank "loading" screen, and then made the game free for you to play... would you get that version instead? I would actually consider it, because I feel like I just end up staring at the screen or getting something to drink while it loads anyway.

Plus, that may compel the company to produce games that can be played for a long time (more free add-on content, longer career modes, ect.), because the longer people play the game, the more commercials they see, and the more money the company makes. This is basically how El Goog made all their money. And, from the looks of it a lot of mobile based gaming companies are going this route too. I wouldn't be surprised if we see it someday on a console platform that supports that type of system.

Whether or not that's ideal for the gamer is another question. I do enjoy free.

 

[Tireseas]

Can't say I'd go for that. I don't mind in game advertising that isn't out of character with the subject material, in some cases it can even add to the flavour of the game itself. I draw the line when they start getting intrusive or feel forced.

By way of example, Shift 2's billboards that function as billboards don't bug me, Underground 2's constant peddling of Cingular all over the UI on the other hand did.

 

[Esahaettr]

Yeah, it's probably wholly dependent on the person. I'm a stiff-### penny pincher, so giving me the possibility of a free game even with ads would definitely be something I would jump on (at least until the Spouse throws the PS3 out the window...another story though). I mean, pretty much all television and radio programming is interrupted by advertisements (is satellite?), which are often even more jarring and out-of-place than other forms.

I also agree...I didn't ever notice the billboard in Shift2. There's too many other things to focus on while racing, there's no way I could have told you what was being advertised and if it changed. I do wonder though if they're collecting money based on the advertisements. Since they DID apparently change, I'm assuming they are collecting some sort of fee to have them in there, no matter if it was updated via the internet or already hard coded into the game.

 

[NLxAROSA]

Besides that, if you have time to read what's on the bulletin boards when you're racing, you're doing it wrong!

 

[fatkrakr]

The only ones i ever notice are the ones with the big macs on them. Im always hungry after that lol.

 

[Sier_Pinski]

If there's anywhere advertising belongs in a game it's on billboards that'd be there anyway. Besides, it's motorsports we're talking about here. Ads are about as jarringly out of place as the sound of tires squealing. Not like they're making you watch full length video commercials for fabric softener as the track loads

The scary thing is that it has actually happened at least once:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LLTkF1IFuo