Comments on: All Gamers Are Still Children: The Delusional Marketing of Dead Space 2

By: tareq salah

tareq salah — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 00:44:10 +0000

In reply to Franti. coudln't agree more. i think the way ea took this chance of free twisted idea of moms and made it into a successful ad-campaign was (brilliant) even if we all disagree.

By: tareq salah

tareq salah — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 02:09:56 +0000

i agree with the realist, i think its childish in itself to be offended by a tv add.
when i saw the add for the first time, i said, well these women were payed to act like this game was horrible, but then i said i dont think kids even were going to be attracted to it in the first place.

dead space was aimed at those who played resident evil in the late 90’s so most of them are in their late 20’s by now.

that add was a waste of money.

By: Aveo

Aveo — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 04:59:33 +0000

Yes, but how will you come to know that whether the game is bought for that small guy or for the guardian. This is a never ending debate.

By: DirectingChaos

DirectingChaos — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 01:02:40 +0000

I will comment on both points made here (now that’s multitasking lol), firstly I feel very strongly about underage gamers playing very inappropriate games however there is a major difference between having an age rating and enforcing it. I used to work in a video store and was told you can get 6 months in prison and up to a £5000 fine for selling or renting a game to someone that is underage however if a 9 year old gave the game to their parent or guardian we couldn’t stop them and had to do it (that actually happened). I fail to see why people who work in shops and rental chains should be risking a prison sentence etc when the people that should be stopping the children from playing these things clearly aren’t. Personally if I am playing something like Black Ops and hear a voice that could only belong to a child I tend to finish the level I’m on and turn off because that is not what I go on to that kind of game for, but why should I have to do that, after all should Xbox and Playstation not be doing a lot more to ensure this doesn’t happen or do they think that little of the age guidelines they are meant to stick to.

As for the older gamer side of things, before my grandfather passed away at 83 he played the DS at least 2/3 times a week, my mum and dad both have DS’s too and even have a Wii (for them nothing to do with me or my brother) which they use a lot more often than I ever would have thought possible. Gaming has became so diverse there really is a game out there for everybody, even the most technophobic person which would most certainly include my father.

By: Eh

Eh — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 04:09:03 +0000

Uh, what?

I didn’t see it that way. My mother actually happens to adore horror games, but I imagine old women wouldn’t like it that much anyhow because a good startling isn’t what you need at that age, lols.

Bottom line, you’re too sensitive. If you’re seeing deep meaning and insult in something like this, then you really need to relax. I didn’t, for even a second, think that they were trying to make it seem edgy. I thought they were just making a funny commercial but at the same time trying to point out how scary/startling it is, not that it’s cool to play it because your mother wouldn’t be into it (which they, obviously know, they might.)

By: Shane

Shane — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 21:58:27 +0000

Good read. I completely agree with you.

By: Tim

Tim — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 17:07:14 +0000

I may not have a degree in marketing but I’ve worked sales long enough to know that messages are two-fold; how the message was intended and how the message was received. Perception is reality and Visceral’s marketing division made it appear as though, “this game is edgy, playing it is rebellious, therefore you will like it.” If this wasn’t how they intended the message to be received, then how did they want concerned parents to interpret this? Did their marketing staff really think parents would be like, “Oh, they’re spoofing us parents. How swell!” or that they would not see it at all? If this ad campaign was intended as a spoof, it is poorly done. It’s childishness or stupidity, pick one.

Then again, these are the same people who staged a fake religious protest at E3 over Dante’s Inferno, thinking it would garner attention… it didn’t. Even their true believers at Game Informer had to say it was a bad idea.

BTW: I own Dead Space 2 and gave it a “C” grading. It was solid but hardly scary as Visceral seemed more interested in making a gory game rather than a scary one. DS2 is a rental at best.

Great article!

By: Franti

Franti — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 23:09:23 +0000

In reply to Franti.

Heh, it’s nice to have people to comment on it!

Although I’m not sure the intent was to make a silly ad that attracts attention because it’s so bad… I understand the aphorism that no publicity is bad publicity, but I can think of better ways to go about it.

Then again, if it sells games, who am I to criticize? I just get frustrated with the attitude toward gaming that people tend to have, and so I tried to show a few of the intelligent and very cool ads I had seen before.

By: MindCandy999

MindCandy999 — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 20:25:51 +0000

In reply to Franti.

I understand, but my point was that it IS getting their money’s worth because all the people talking about the horrible adds is just spreading the word about the game. It’s not classy at all, to say the least, but it is working.

Also, it’s cool that you guys actually monitor your articles and reply. It’s nice to be able to have a dialogue with the author.

By: Franti

Franti — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 18:25:47 +0000

@MindCandy – I don’t mind giving th game free advertising. My complaint is mostly that DS2 isn’t getting their money’s worth from that shitty ad. If this helps sell a few more DS2s, whatevs. The game most likely deserves it.