As unlikely as barbarian kings going around wearing Nikes is, this was the latest rumor to go around Funcom's upcoming Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures (PC, Xbox 360) title. In a recent statement released by the developers, it was confirmed that the actual game will not support in-game advertising. Learn more about this story by clicking on the "read more" link below.

Some gamers may find in-game advertisements to be nothing more than shameless plugs, while others still believe it's necessary.

In the Independent Game Conference in Austin, Gordon Bellamy goes into the subject a bit more and discusses how advertising could benefit not only the company who does the advertising, but also the game itself. He also explains why Doritos can't go multiplatform. Find out why in the full article.

In-game advertisements are not really new to gamers. Game developers can basically plaster a Coca-Cola logo on a zombie's chest and players wouldn't mind. (Though that doesn't make them less annoying.) Anyway, analyst Paul Verna from eMarketer sees a bright future for in-game advertising.

Developing games is not cheap at all, especially when the technology improves every other day in leaps and bounds. The solution for some developers is offering advertising spots to other companies that they will insert in-game. In a report called "Video Game Advertising: Getting to the Next Level", Verna says that in-game advertisements would help marketers (it's a whole new platform), fresh opportunities for tech companies, and a good source of revenue for game developers.

Verna gives the figures: "over the next five years video game advertising will grow at a compound annual growth rate of nearly 23%, reaching nearly $2 billion by 2011." The growth will be caused by the widening demographics of gamers - young and old, men and women, casual and hardcore. Online console titles and MMOs are the best sites for in-game ads as they have the bulk of the gamer population and they will be a great factor in the growth as well.

Currently, the cost of making "advergames" have reached US$ 164 million and is expected to reach US$ 344 million in 2011. Revenues from the in-game advertisements are estimated to reach a whopping US$ 969 million (in 2011) in the US alone. And those are very good numbers from a marketing point of view.

There's no turning back now.

In-game advertising company Massive Incorporated seems unfazed with the departure of its top two executives last January. Business as usual, or so they say. The company is now reporting that more than 50 premier titles for the Xbox 360 and the PC will be added to its current roster of video games. Before this announcement though, Massive Inc. was only able to sign 14 since October 2006.

What does this mean to you as a gamer, you ask? Well, in-game advertising (IGA) has always involved tumultuous discussions even here in QJ. This simply means that the video games it signs will be sporting, what else, in-game ads. At least, let this be done in good taste.

Massive Inc. CEO Van Arsdale promised that their company is committed to providing good service both for the global marketing partners as well as for gamers. Arsdale commented,

Our focus at Massive continues to be connecting blue-chip global marketing partners with the appropriate gaming audience through our relationships with major game publishers. During the past two years, we've defined the dynamic in-game advertising business and continue to renew previous marketing partnerships as well as welcome new marketing partners and publishers to the Massive network.

Massive Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Microsoft. So even though a few of the titles it signs are for multi-platforms, the in-game advertisements will only appear in the PC version and in the Xbox 360 version of the video game. The company's latest projects include:

• Crackdown (Microsoft Game Studios)
• DEF JAM: ICON (Electronic Arts)
• Major League Baseball 2K7 (2K Sports)
• NBA 2K7 (2K Sports)
• Need for Speed Carbon (Electronic Arts)
• Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 (Ubisoft)
• Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas (Ubisoft)
• Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Double Agent

Well, it looks like there's no turning back now.

As it turns out, Valve is starting to test out the use of in-game ads for their titles, and the first guinea pig for this experiment is none other than Counterstrike 1.6 (screenies above, both courtesy of SK Gaming). Despite the flurry of protests that the mere mention of in-game advertising tends to generate, many game companies may soon be following Valve's lead.

While some fans argue that the sight of a real-world item being advertised inside a game tends to be detrimental to the whole experience, devs have noted that this form of advertising is actually beneficial for everyone in the long run.

After all, it generates revenue for game-makers.

Revenue equals more (and better) games.

More games equals happy gamers.

On top of that, there have been promises that the ads will remain discreet and out of the player's way.

At the moment, Valve is displaying advertisements for Portal and the upcoming Orange and Black boxes, all of which are their own products.

There have been earlier reports that Google ads may also end up invading the gaming world, and this has caused many to fear the possibility of having to encounter an in-game advertisement for Starbucks in a war-torn, World War II setting. After all, can you imagine running into an ad for McDonald's as you're crawling the trenches in games like Call of Duty or Brothers In Arms? Or perhaps one for Pedigree puppy food during an Unreal Tournament deathmatch?

On the other hand, there are also those who are willing to reach a compromise between revenue generation for the game companies and immersive gaming experience for the gamers. One point of this compromise involve the conditions which specify that ads that appear in games must be carefully chosen to match the theme and setting of the game itself.

Read the rest of the article after the Jump!

When given a choice, MMO players will usually shun away from in-game advertisements. They, with some analysts, have argued before that it actually disrupts gameplay experience as the presence of ads are somewhat out of place. Imagine your virtual world having banners of real-life commodities such as snacks ans soft drinks. It just feels weird.

Now, we guess it's kind of different for reality-based MMO games. Linden Lab's Second Life, for example, will definitely look fine with ads and all, because they are supposed to be there in the first place. Developer Netamin recently announced that they want to spice up Ultimate Baseball Online by adding in-game ads. Its CEO and president, Andy Wang, has even mentioned that this is something being asked by players:

UBO players have been eagerly awaiting in-game advertising as a way to increase the realism of their game experience. Through our partnership with Double Fusion, these stadium ads and videos have the potential to reach a huge international audience because of the worldwide popularity of baseball and our free-to-play game model.

Sadly, this is the reality for free MMO games. With them not getting subscription fees from players, they have to resort to other means to sustain their game. IGAs, as we've said before, are not inherently bad. They just have to be done in good taste.

Well, it looks like Google is once again finding new ways to integrate itself into our everyday lives. And its new target? In-game advertising.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Google is planning to acquire Adscape, a company which specializes in in-game advertisements. Though there has still been no official word about the matter, many are guessing that negotiations may already be happening. Meanwhile, a Google spokesperson did say this:

We are always considering new ways to extend Google's advertising program to benefit our users, advertisers and publishers. In-game advertising offers one such possible extension among many others.

It has also been noted by members of the industry that Google may have taken a fancy to Adscape because of its AdverPlay technology which allows "two-way communication between in-game ads and the outside world".

Considering that other Google applications are already starting to make their appearances in the world of gaming, could this mean that those Google text advertisements that we usually see on webpages will soon become part of the wall graffiti in your next round of CounterStrike?

GameDaily points out that tucked behind Battlefield 2142's manual is a white card that says that the users IP address and "other anonymous data" would be sent to a company called IGA Worldwide in order to deliver in-game advertisements. The disclaimer then says that users should not install or play the game on a system that's connected to the Internet if users aren't comfortable with having their information transmitted and collected by the IGA.

This isn't anything new. And since word of it got out, rumors spread, and people started claiming that Battlefield was forcing spyware into people's computers. Of course it was later confirmed that all that was being sent was IP addresses, geographical regions, info on what advertising the player has been exposed to already, and how big the ad was.

The situation of course raised online debate about whether or not in-game advertising is acceptable. Some argued that it's just the same as having to put up with movie trailers in DVDs, some said that it ruins the gaming experience. Some say that they're alright with it as long as the ads "fit" in the game world; contemporary ads (say a Coke billboard) for contemporary games (in GTA). Some say they don't really mind, and if given a choice between a game having to be more expensive and ad-free or having the game sport a few promos in it but have a lower tag, they'd choose the latter.

Steven Wong of GameDaily pointed something out that made sense. He says:

The biggest problems arise when the advertising takes priority over the game, so players end up spending money on long commercials. Sure, one could buy Burger King-themed games for kids for $4, but I can't imagine too many people who would be willing to spend $50 on something like that.

We guess it's all well and good to have in-game ads as long as it doesn't cross a certain line thematically (no modern ads in a fantasy game please!) and ethically (do not collect more than IP info), and the game still stays a game, not an interactive billboard with a patched on story.

Steven-Elliot Altman, lead writer and loremaster of the Acclaim Martial Arts MMO, 9Dragons, had some interesting things to share about what's up with the game and just what we could expect come its release date. Yup, that developer journal was sure oozing with info and we are sure that this Altman interview is info-ridden too.

When asked of how historically-accurate the game will be, the lead writer mentioned that the Korean design team was given instructions that if it didn't exist in China's Ming Dynasty, it wouldn't have any room in the game. Every detail - the music, design of the cities, clothes, and weapons - are all historically based.

As for the writing part of the game-making process, he promises to bring ancient Chinese wisdom in English, but then again the writing team will balance familiar storytelling elements with historically accurate visuals. So don't expect this game to be your guide through that Asian History subject of yours.

Altman also says that beta-testing is virtually essential to them since community should be their strongest asset. He says that it is always fun and inspiring to see them testers discuss game details or report bugs. He also says that 9Dragons aims to be the world's best free-to-play game, supported solely by in-game ads. Which may be a bit confusing because if post-modern ads get mixed up with a Ming Dynasty setting, well, the game just wouldn't work. But as Altman said, they are working on it. They'll be asking what their players think and might even let their players create their own ads.

And since there are no live, fire-breathing dragons during the Ming Dynasty, you shouldn't expect for rideable mounts/ dragons here. But, he divulges that three advanced clans (The Union of Noble Families, Black Dragon Clan, and The Disciples of Iron Fist) will be user-controlled. As for physical representations, their "Epithet" system will get you covered. It is basically a title above your character's avatar that will tell others who you are and will also raise your stats.

If you want to read the word-per-word interview, click on the 'Read' link below.