The cost of developing a videogame continues to increase year after year. In order to cover their ever increasing development costs, studios have begun to implement real world advertisements into their games. This has caused quite a riff in the videogame community; there are those who support the decision, and a lot more who oppose it. I’d like to talk a moment about my thoughts on the matter.

When I fire up my Xbox 360 and navigate around the dashboard I’m greeted with advertisements. I can’t get around it, they are there and I have to live with them. Some will say they are obtrusive and shouldn’t be on our consoles. Advertisements are everywhere, when we step outside (if you live in a city) we are inundated with them. They are on billboards, television, and products I buy at the store; they shouldn’t be in my home on my entertainment device.

And I agree. They aren’t bothering me, but they shouldn’t be there. I am a Gold member, which means I pay for the service. There is absolutely no reason for ads to be on the dashboard. I feel like I’m on facebook when I sign into Xbox Live. It’s like every place I go, there are ads. They want more money from me, even after I’ve paid for a service. I feel less like a valued paying customer and more like an unappreciated sack of money.

However, having said that, I’m all for seeing real world advertisements in my videogames.  If I’m cruising down the highway in a game and I see an ad for Coca-Cola or snickers on a billboard, it makes the experience more real to me. “Shite”! You say. Games are an escape from the real world, why would anyone want to see real world things in a game?

The answer to that is immersion. If I step up to a vending machine in a game to rejuvenate and it says “Nuka-Cola”, that isn’t immersive to me. I’m not able to relate to that product. If it were to say Dr. Pepper on it, I recognize it as a real world item; I know what it tastes like and can relate to it. The same thing goes for any other product. I relate more to items in a game if they are something I actually have experience with in the real world.

One caveat though, I do not want to see advertisements for products in situations in which they do not belong. In Alan Wake you use batteries that are adorned with the “Energizer” label. I have no quarrel with that placement. It makes sense. However, if I throw a grenade in Call of Duty and see snickers bars flying around, I’m going to be disappointed. And everyone else should be too.

I understand why gamers hate to see real world products infiltrating their videogames. We pay $60 for a title and it’s laced with the same advertisements we see in our daily lives. The problem is, they won’t be going away anytime soon. As I said, costs are increasing and developers need ways to pay for their projects. If it means not raising the price of a game, I’ve got no problem with in-game product placement.

What do you guys think? Is product placement in videogames unnecessary and annoying? Are you ok with it? Do you not care either way? At the moment I have no problem with it, unless it is out of place. I feel like if it isn’t addressed, developers will start throwing in advertisements for anything and in situations in which they do not belong.