“Why Mobile Game Ads Look Nothing Like the Game” (Motherboard)

Hi all,

I came across an article which makes an interesting addendum to the topic on which I presented last week: “Why Mobile Game Ads Look Nothing Like the Game” (Motherboard). As the title implies, it focuses on ads for mobile games (on TV and elsewhere), and has more of an American perspective than our presentation did. Here’s a short excerpt:

The blatant disregard for player expectations in Mobile Strike‘s trailer begs the question: how can free-to-play companies legally get away with this . . . ?

The answer is about as dissatisfying as playing Mobile Strike after watching its CGI trailer. The issue stems less from the gaming industry and more from the vague language of the FTC’s Truth in Advertising law—along with the perpetual speedbump of a slow justice system. Potential plaintiffs attempting to file a false advertising lawsuit against these companies would have to prove that the advertising is likely to mislead “reasonable” consumers—which is a slippery terminology in the fast-paced, constantly developing app marketplace.