Since yesterday, messages have multiplied on social networks to denounce the new advertisements for Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3. On Xbox consoles, the game appears in full screen, with a not very subtle button encouraging you to purchase the latter. Some prefer to take the matter with humor, making the link with the recent acquisition of Activision-Blizzard by Microsoft.
“Fight against the ultimate threat. » This is a message that is enough to arouse enthusiasm, if you are sensitive to this kind of slogans. It still needs to be distributed in the right way. This is obviously what Activision failed to do, given the almost unanimous reactions of players to the new advertising for Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3. While the release date of the next juggernaut is fast approaching, the The publisher is in fact turning the knobs on aggressiveness in terms of communication.
Since yesterday, it seems, some Xbox players have been greeted by a promotional message when they turn on their console. If the practice can already be annoying in itself, it is the format chosen by Activision that makes people cringe. The publisher saw the big picture: it is not a simple banner that is displayed, but a full-screen insert dedicated to the glory of the king of FPS. With, of course, an eye-catching “Buy now” button. Subtle.
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A little bigger advertising for Call of Duty please
Given the lively comments from players following the broadcast of this ad, it would seem that this advertising operation is concentrated in the United States. We tried to find the insert on our consoles at the editorial office, without success. But among American players, the controversy is in full swing. On Reddit, some do not hesitate to describe this advertisement as“unacceptable”or even “vomitive”.
Others are amused by the coincidence (or not) with the recent acquisition of Activision-Blizzard by Microsoft, indicating that the Redmond firm must now “make profitable” the most expensive transaction in the history of video games. Let us point out, on the one hand, that the advertising does not seem to appear on PlayStation consoles; on the other hand, that this is not the first time that games have been entitled to a full screen insert on Xbox.
Indeed, Starfield and Forza Motorsport, both Xbox exclusives, also received this treatment with Call of Duty. Obviously, Microsoft no longer hesitates to promote its own games in an invasive manner.