Page 4 - Developer

GAME PLAN // BRANDON SHEFFIELDeld
game pla N // bra N do N SH e FFI game developer
magazINe
www.gdmag.com
Spam me Not UBM LLC.

303 Second Street, Suite 900, South Tower
San Francisco, CA 94107
SHOuTInG abOvE THE nOISE In THE GaME wOrLD t: 415.947.6000 f: 415.947.6090
SUBSCRIptIoN SeRVICeS
Notifications and cross-promotions Obviously companies need to get away from the Gangnam district, FoR INFoRmatIoN, oRDeR QUeStIoNS, aND
are getting out of control. Facebook the attention of players, and the the financial hub which most aDDReSS CHaNGeS
wants my attention, to tell me pop-up ad is still in effective use Korean game companies call home! t: 800.250.2429 f: 847.763.9606
someone I’ve never met wants to across the Internet, compelling People have to be so desensitized e: gamedeveloper@halldata.com
be my “friend.” Twitter wants me to confused parents and homemakers to advertising and visual noise www.gdmag.com/contactus
know that someone “favorited” my to give their bank information to just to live their normal lives, it’s eDItoRIaL
tweet, and then emails me about fake Nigerian princes. If, perchance, no wonder these game notification pUBLISHeR
that once per week even though you do forget to click on a game for tactics I consider aggressive are Simon Carless e: scarless@gdmag.com
I’ve asked it not to. That’s just life a while, the below image is the sort par for the course in the country eDItoR-IN-CHIeF
in the digital age. But games have of thing you might see in-game: where the model was perfected. Brandon Sheffield e: bsheffield@gdmag.com
gotten particularly bad about this, eDItoR
Patrick Miller e: pmiller@gdmag.com
especially in the free-to-play space. maNaGeR, pRoDUCtIoN
On the simplest level of spamming, Dan Mallory e: dmallory@gdmag.com
you’ll have to click through an ad aRt DIReCtoR
for a game to get to the one you Joseph Mitch e: jmitch@gdmag.com
want to play. Sometimes the ad CoNtRIBUtING WRIteRS
Jim Van Verth, Carey Chico, Mike De La Flor, Chris
takes up most of the screen, but McEntee, Bruce Dawson, Steve Theodore, Damion
this is easy enough to ignore. Schubert, Alexandra Hall, Yann Seznec, Kim Pallister,
Worse, I think, is when your iPad Matthew Wasteland
or iPhone wakes up to tell you it’s aDVISoRY BoaRD
time to restock Tiny Tower’s Luxury Mick West Independent
Brad Bulkley Microsoft
Cruise item in the travel shop. Four Clinton Keith Independent
hours later, you’ll do it again, not to Brenda Brathwaite Loot Drop
mention all the quicker items, so The free-to-play business model The more desensitized one gets, Bijan Forutanpour Sony Online Entertainment
maybe you need to actually keep was honed in Korea. I was just the louder advertising has to get to Mark DeLoura THQ
Carey Chico Globex Studios
those notifications on if you want in Seoul last week pitching grab your attention. Mike Acton Insomniac
to play the game properly. It quickly projects, and I noticed something Many have said that the aDVeRtISING SaLeS
begins to feel like work—the interesting. I’ve become so trend toward overnotification and
mechanic of “waiting to click,” and conditioned to ignore advertising underhanded tactics like always GLoBaL SaLeS DIReCtoR
paying to avoid the wait, is pretty that it took me a few days to see leaving a “1” hovering over the app Aaron Murawski e: amurawski@ubm.com
t: 415.947.6227
much the antithesis of fun. It’s a it, but normal, everyday people in is dissipating. I disagree. The more meDIa aCCoUNt maNaGeR
compulsion more than a fun loop, Seoul are basically living inside of a we see of these tactics, the more Jennifer Sulik e: jennifer.sulik@ubm.com
and that’s why it makes money. real-life pop-up ad. we come to get used to them. And t: 415.947.6227
Some of these games don’t There are some advertising- that may very well mean the tactics GLoBaL aCCoUNt maNaGeR, ReCRUItmeNt
ever let you go. There’s that little light areas, but anywhere you will get even more nefarious. I Gina Gross e: gina.gross@ubm.com
t: 415.947.6241
number notification on your might pause, like subway stations, believe we can do better, and GLoBaL aCCoUNt maNaGeR, eDUCatIoN
smartphone app, telling you how coffee shops, or gas stations, is high-end PC free-to-play is getting Rafael Vallin e: rafael.vallin@ubm.com
many “things to click” you have a wall of advertisements. Even there. But there’s a long road ahead, t: 415.947.6223
waiting for you upon your return— apartment complexes are branded and as companies like Zynga move aDVeRtISING pRoDUCtIoN
but some games don’t ever get rid by some business or other. For into gambling, I foresee even more
of the “1,” even if you’ve clicked this Seoul trip, I stayed with some clever uses of overnotification in pRoDUCtIoN maNaGeR
Pete C. Scibilia e: peter.scibilia@ubm.com
everything. There’s always at least friends to save money. This is the our future. t: 516-562-5134
one thing that needs clicking, so first building you see upon leaving As a final note, I’d like to RepRINtS
the game can constantly shout at their subway exit. thank everyone for reading Game
you to return, because otherwise, Developer over the last several WRIGHT’S MEDIA
Jason Pampell e: jpampell@wrightsmedia.com
why would you go back and click? years. This is my 100th issue as t: 877-652-5295
How would you remember that an editor of this magazine, and I aUDIeNCe DeVeLopmeNt
clicking is a fun thing to do? The will now be officially stepping down
game needs to constantly be in as editor-in-chief, letting my able aUDIeNCe DeVeLopmeNt maNaGeR
your face, or else you’ll forget protégé Patrick Miller take up the Nancy Grant e: nancy.grant@ubm.com
how “fun” it is to touch a field of reins of the magazine and this LISt ReNtaL
Peter Candito
corn to harvest it. That is still the column. But I’ll still have my own Specialist Marketing Services
current face of free-to-play on monthly column, fret not! It will t: 631-787-3008 x 3020
smartphones and on the web. be called Insert Credit—you can e: petercan@SMS-Inc.com
Even inside our games we’re expect to read it next month! ubm.sms-inc.com
getting an incredibly high ratio And this is just the —Brandon Sheffield
of noise to content. Why is this? suburbs—45 minutes by train twitter: @necrosofty

2 game developer | october 2012 WWW.UBm.Com