Comment From the other side (Score 1) 278
I work on a game that uses Massive advertisements in-game (it was even one of the mentioned titles), Major League Baseball from 2K Sports.
Costs to develop a successful title these days are crazy! Development is only one aspect of those costs. The licensing fees alone would blow you away (especially on a sports title where you have to deal with leagues, players associations, broadcasters, etc). In addition there are costs associated with marketing, legal, etc.
It's true that premium games in this generation now cost 20% more than last generation ($60 compared to $50) and most consumers aren't happy with that so developers and publishers are looking at alternative revenue systems to offset the rising costs without raising the cost of the product directly. In-game ads are one large revenue stream that developers are tapping into. There also looking at micropayments and pay-for-content type systems.
Costs to develop a successful title these days are crazy! Development is only one aspect of those costs. The licensing fees alone would blow you away (especially on a sports title where you have to deal with leagues, players associations, broadcasters, etc). In addition there are costs associated with marketing, legal, etc.
It's true that premium games in this generation now cost 20% more than last generation ($60 compared to $50) and most consumers aren't happy with that so developers and publishers are looking at alternative revenue systems to offset the rising costs without raising the cost of the product directly. In-game ads are one large revenue stream that developers are tapping into. There also looking at micropayments and pay-for-content type systems.
