• Cylusthevirus@kbin.social
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    10 months ago

    Oh it’s not, dead, it’s just changed shape so we don’t immediately recognize it. This, for example, is an ad for about 5 different games.

    Notice how the brands were mentioned. Notice how much more palatable this is as a delivery system for that sweet brand awareness. They’re making statements we agree with! They’re demonstrating values that align with our own.

    Now look it’s video games so I really don’t mind. This is certainly nicer than what we had in the 90s and 2000s (which were occasionally hilarious but I digress) , but I still want to raise awareness a bit. Larian isn’t the only company that rolls this way. Thing is, they’re probably not even lying, but an executive at a company does media like this for a reason.

    This is them “speaking to you.”

    • It’s a PC Gamer article about a meeting between developers. Of course they mention the dev names and a recent product from them. That’s how these fluff pieces have always worked. This isn’t even a different shape of marketing. It’s the same old shit. It’s not even just a gaming industry tactic. Next time you read any news article about a thing or a company, look how often they name the brand and products or that of a competitor (depending on if the news is good or bad about first product). Much of “journalism” these days is just advertising.