Poll: So have you sent EA the email yet?

[DanDeFool]

Ditto. That whole "Your mom's gonna hate Dead Space 2" thing was just juvenile and stupid.

And EC's point isn't that games necessarily SHOULD be more, but that they CAN be more, and that EA's reinforcing the message that games AREN'T anything besides insipid and gratuitous

If with this kind of crap, not to mention embarrassing all their customers.

If the game isn't anything more than that [and in the cases of Dante's Inferno, Dead Space 2 and the like you'd be hard pushed to argue those games are anything other than insipid and gratuitous] then why try to appeal to a demographic that doesn't want to play it? Nobody is really addressing the true issue which is why EA is marketing games the way they are; not that they are marketing them like this. They market games like this because the gaming media reports on them, the players ultimately enjoy the commercials and the games generally sell well. Look at Mirrors Edge for an advertising campaign with a bit more "soul" if you will that sold poorly because it didn't find mainstream appeal.

I see what you're saying, but you're missing the point. The point isn't whether or not the ads are helping EA make money. The point is that, whether this helps their sales or not, they're being stupid.

We're associated with the products that we buy. If you saw me buying a giant vibrator, whether or not you know if I'm buying it for myself or as a gift or whatever, you would make certain assumptions about my character. This is because you already know what giant vibrators are and what they're used for.

Now, assume you saw me buying a game like Dante's Inferno, after seeing some of the advertising that EA put out for it. Let's say you saw the "Sin to Win" promotion, or a news article about the "Bad Nanny" achievement. If you're a gamer you say "Oh, he's going to buy Dante's Inferno. I wonder if that game's any good? Maybe I'll check out a review on IGN or The Escapist."

But if you're a non-gamer, like--oh, I don't know--my boss, you might say "Oh, Johnson is buying Dante's Inferno, the game where you kill babies. I wonder what other kinds of fucked-up shit that guy is into? I hope I can find an excuse to downsize him before he goes on an office shooting rampage."

These are, of course, misconceptions about video games, the kinds of people who play them, and why they enjoy them, but it doesn't matter in this context because my boss has no reason to try to look past the bullshit. All he knows is what he hears on the news (God help me if he watches Fox News; then he probably thinks I'm a closet rapist as well), what he sees when he walks past the EB Games in the mall, and what he sees in television, magazine, and internet advertisements.

The problem with EA advertising games this way is that they're perpetuating these negative stereotypes. Most people who are non-gamers will never learn anything Dante's Inferno or Dead Space 2 other than what they see in ads.

The other issue is that the ads are just stupid. The "Your mom hates Dead Space 2" ad is clearly targeted at young boys between the ages of 13 to 17. You know, the only demographic who might be interested in Dead Space 2 AND still cares what their mom thinks of them.

Problem is, DEAD SPACE 2 IS AN M-RATED GAME! How the FUCK is that ad supposed to appeal to their target demographic? Or, if they were planning on marketing this game to young men ages 13 to 17 in the first place, why did they design it so that their target demographic can't legally buy the game for themselves? Either way, EA is clearly doing it wrong.

I own the original Dead Space (I'm in my mid-20's, BTW). I haven't played it yet, but I get the idea: Action/Horror in a sci-fi setting. Great. I liked Resident Evil and Doom 3, this might be fun. When I heard there would be a sequel, I thought "Well, the last one got pretty positive reviews, so this will probably just be more of the same. If I enjoy the first one, I might get this one too."

When I saw the "Your mom hates this" ads for Dead Space 2, I felt genuinely mortified. I thought, "So EA thinks that A) I still care what my mom thinks about my hobbies, and B) I'm GLAD that she hates what I do with my spare time." How am I supposed to be anything but insulted when I hear that?

Yes, EA does get a lot of press for doing advertising this way. They get a lot of BAD press. You know that saying "There's no such thing as bad press?" Bullshit! When I hear that you're insulting me to my face and telling everyone that I like it and am going to ask for more, and you're a multinational corporation, you look like an asshole, I look like a *****, and I can't say otherwise because you have so much more clout than I do.

People think that marketing departments at international corporations have a pretty good idea about what their customers want, and how to present their product to their target demographic. If EA's marketing department is doing it right, then apparently we're all a bunch of near-psychotic teenage boys who have wet dreams about committing acts of violence, having reckless sex, and flipping off our parents.

Since you're taking their side in this debate, I can come to no other conclusion than that you, D_987, are exactly that.

Are you?

If you're not, then you can agree with me that there are ways to advertise games that don't put gamers in such a bad light, and still help the game do well.

For contrast, let's take a look at some game advertising that doesn't make gamers look like a bunch of spastic little shitheads.

<youtube=whUcHSDnQKk>

Good thing they didn't advertise Halo 3 like this! It probably wouldn't have sold very well at all! You remember, the real ad had Master Chief shoving his assault rifle up a brute's ass and pulling the trigger, and using a plasma grenade to blow up a covenant orphanage. That was a lot better.

P.S.: This is what my actual reply to your message looked like.

Ditto. That whole "Your mom's gonna hate Dead Space 2" thing was just juvenile and stupid.

And EC's point isn't that games necessarily SHOULD be more, but that they CAN be more, and that EA's reinforcing the message that games AREN'T anything besides insipid and gratuitous with this kind of crap, not to mention embarrassing all their customers.

Compare that to what it looks like above. Next time, D_987, make sure you don't accidentally butcher other people's posts when you reply to them.

 

[Continuity]

did a quick search on "EA email address" and found the privacy-policy email to all the magur EA companies in the world :3
http://www.ea.com/2/privacy-contacts

hope it was the right one O.-

Yeah because spamming EA with e-mail about an internet video will show signs that gamers want "mature" advertisement and so forth...if you really cared about this sort of thing then that method is exactly the wrong way to go about it...

Enlighten us... what is the correct way?

Besides, its not so much the marketing aspect of the EC vid I want them to see.. more the part about them selling out their values.

 

[Elandin]

I'd send them an e-mail but this is probably how mine would look

"Dear EA,
STOP BEING SO STUPID!!!"

 

[Continuity]

If you want to teach EA that what they're doing isn't right, don't buy the games, don't send them angry letters, don't do ANYTHING. The only way we can teach EA, is by hurting their pockets.

I'm sorry but I think this is just naive, how many people do you seriously think will boycott a AAA game title just because of some nebulous qualms that some gamers have that most people, and certainly not any kids, will give a second though to.
In your wildest dreams you couldn't hope to get 1000 gamers to not buy this game if they were going to otherwise, and that sort of figure wouldn't even be noticed by EA.

So basically what you're saying is that the best way to communicate with EA is to not try and communicate with then in anyway whatsoever... With that calibre of thinking perhaps you ought to work for EA marketing.

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

I know this idea might seem blasphemous in present company, but did you ever consider actually writing them a letter. You know, use a pen to craft the various symbols into words and wrangle them into letters onto paper? Yes, it is far more of a pain but, in the end such things carry more weight. It is a physical object and thus harder to ignore (especially when received in mass quantities). The inherent difficulty (with respect to the alternative of simply typing the message) and inconvenience (you have to purchase a stamp and mail the damn thing) demonstrates that you actually care.

Time and again people have pointed out that e-mails and internet petitions carry far less weight than their physical counterparts for these very reasons. So, if you really care, mail them a letter. The same is true about any issue that you think some public entity desperately needs to have your opinion on.

 

[GiantRaven]

No.

Extra Credits was wrong. The main demographic for video gamers IS Teenage Males. Pretending that this isn't a fact isn't helping.

So it's perfectly ok to create an overt advertising campaign where a game is marketed towards people under the age limit required to actually purchase it? It's alright to have an advertising campaign that completely devalues the perceptions of videogaming as a serious form of media, in a time where an incredibly serious vote will be made on said subject?

Seriously? How can people not see this is incredibly dumb and detrimental to videogaming as an entertainment medium.

 

[Staskala]

No.

Extra Credits was wrong. The main demographic for video gamers IS Teenage Males. Pretending that this isn't a fact isn't helping.

So it's perfectly ok to create an overt advertising campaign where a game is marketed towards people under the age limit required to actually purchase it? It's alright to have an advertising campaign that completely devalues the perceptions of videogaming as a serious form of media, in a time where an incredibly serious vote will be made on said subject?

Seriously? How can people not see this is incredibly dumb and detrimental to videogaming as an entertainment medium.

Everyone sees it.

However, the question is: So what?
EA isn't there to push the "games are art" argument, they are out to make money.
If stupid, over-the-top, intelligence-insulting advertisements are furthering that goal, then EA, a business, has done everything right.

Or do you people seriously believe that the ideals of a niche group are more important than millions of dollars? Thousands of jobs?

 

[Azex]

No.

Extra Credits was wrong. The main demographic for video gamers IS Teenage Males. Pretending that this isn't a fact isn't helping.

So it's perfectly ok to create an overt advertising campaign where a game is marketed towards people under the age limit required to actually purchase it? It's alright to have an advertising campaign that completely devalues the perceptions of videogaming as a serious form of media, in a time where an incredibly serious vote will be made on said subject?

Seriously? How can people not see this is incredibly dumb and detrimental to videogaming as an entertainment medium.

Well, when teenage males AREN'T the main demographic then we can start treating it that way. Until then stop whining.

yes or no
is it wrong for them to market an M game to non M gamers?
OBVIOUSLY yes its wrong.
regardless of whether or not the game is played by non M gamers, via there parents researching it and deciding for themselves whats right for there kids is something else.
but by deleberatly doing what they did, it just makes all involved look bad. im sure ALOT of 13-17 year olds would be really insulted at that add. I know i would have been.

 

[GiantRaven]

We should have the freedom to market games as we see fit, and doing otherwise means all the bad media coverage and the irrational fears over gaming have WON.

EA should have the freedom to basically insult and negatively portray an entire religion just the sake of selling some games?

No, i will not conform to being tidy and PC for the sake of a generation composed of old people who will die. In my eyes, that hurts the medium much more than any childish marketing scheme EA can come up with.

Methinks you should watch the latest 'The Big Picture'. There's a difference between being 'PC' and just plain being a dick.

However, the question is: So what?
EA isn't there to push the "games are art" argument, they are out to make money.
If stupid, over-the-top, intelligence-insulting advertisements are furthering that goal, then EA, a business, has done everything right.

I find it pretty hilarious (or rather, depressing) that currently you are referring to a company called 'Electronic Arts. The worst thing is that you are completely and utterly correct.

Or do you people seriously believe that the ideals of a niche group are more important than millions of dollars? Thousands of jobs?

I believe that you don't have to give an entire entertainment medium negative connotations to make millions of dollars.

 

[FernandoV]

Nope. I don't really have an issue with how EA markets anything. That's actually been my issue with Extra Credits as a whole. They have this grand idea of how games "should be more", and act like anyone who doesn't agree is hurting the industry as a whole. Sometimes a game is just a game. The show in general, and that episode in particular, just comes off as way too preachy for me.

They have outright said when they suggest something that not every game should follow it to the T; they are suggesting a direction games should follow but are not above just sitting down to shoot shit once in a while.

 

[LunaSocks]

So basically what you're saying is that the best way to communicate with EA is to not try and communicate with then in anyway whatsoever... With that caliber of thinking perhaps you ought to work for EA marketing.

Eh, no. You are putting words into my mouth. That's not even remotely close to what I was saying.

In your wildest dreams you couldn't hope to get 1000 gamers to not buy this game if they were going to otherwise, and that sort of figure wouldn't even be noticed by EA.

So what else should we do? Send them an e-mail saying "Don't do this again." and a wag of the finger? In your wildest dreams you couldn't hope to get 1000 gamers to write a letter, and that sort of figure wouldn't even be noticed by EA.

 

[FernandoV]

No.

Extra Credits was wrong. The main demographic for video gamers IS Teenage Males. Pretending that this isn't a fact isn't helping.

So it's perfectly ok to create an overt advertising campaign where a game is marketed towards people under the age limit required to actually purchase it? It's alright to have an advertising campaign that completely devalues the perceptions of videogaming as a serious form of media, in a time where an incredibly serious vote will be made on said subject?

Seriously? How can people not see this is incredibly dumb and detrimental to videogaming as an entertainment medium.

Well, when teenage males AREN'T the main demographic then we can start treating it that way. Until then stop whining.

yes or no
is it wrong for them to market an M game to non M gamers?
OBVIOUSLY yes its wrong.
regardless of whether or not the game is played by non M gamers, via there parents researching it and deciding for themselves whats right for there kids is something else.
but by deleberatly doing what they did, it just makes all involved look bad. im sure ALOT of 13-17 year olds would be really insulted at that add. I know i would have been.

Had the video on Extra Credits not come out we'd see A LOT less people care about the ad.

 

[Azex]

yes or no
is it wrong for them to market an M game to non M gamers?
OBVIOUSLY yes its wrong.
regardless of whether or not the game is played by non M gamers, via there parents researching it and deciding for themselves whats right for there kids is something else.
but by deleberatly doing what they did, it just makes all involved look bad. im sure ALOT of 13-17 year olds would be really insulted at that add. I know i would have been.

The ESRB is a guideline for parents, now the law.

i never said it was against the law. i said it was wrong to push it on that demographic. it makes everyone involved look bad. thats the point