Support NeoGAF

[Danny Dudekisser]

While this doesn't particularly convince me to buy the game, I don't think it rises to the level of "disgusting." I was expecting better, OP.

 

[Ninja Scooter]

A lot of consumers (and certainly the ones being targeted by GameStop ads) have accepted and embraced these practices so to them it's simply advertising the exclusivity and advantages. Is it dumb? Sure. But they know their buyers.

 

[angelic]

And those Sega adverts were for Viz and other satirical publications, not game mags.

 

[Papo Swing]

This is not disgusting in any way.

 

[LOLCats]

Do not like.

 

[jesu]

absolutely

 

[Tigress]

It's not disgusting, but it's kind of... dumb? Why would you advertise the game by highlighting the worse aspect of pre order bonuses instead of painting it in a better light?

Seriously.... like wouldn't it be better to do something like, "Pre order and we'll even give you this bonus mission". Make it sound like they are getting additional stuff if they pre order and they are being generous, not you are holding out stuff if they don't pre order and that you are holding it for ransom and you're the bad guy that they have to capitulate to to get the mission.

I mean, it's not rocket science (I'm not talking marketing in general, I do think there is definitely a skill in that kind of stuff. I'm talking about the obviousness of how to advertise this particular thing and what not to do). If this is a real ad, they need to fire the people they hire to make their ads.

 

[Bry0]

It's like a parody of itself. Yeah, that is an irritatingly stupid ad.

 

[ToxicPhantom]

I was prepared to see actually something gross.

So this was disgusting?

 

[Ahasverus]

"Jonn Romero is about to..." yadda yadda

Bonus missions on AC have been trash, of the highest order, the trashiest trash ever made. Devs aren't dumb enough to keep good missions that would help their Metacritic for bonuses.

 

[red731]

Power to the players!

 

[Deadly Cyclone]

I mean, it is an ad making light of their own shitty practice of paying to lock content behind pre-orders. That is pretty bad.

 

[TheGameshark]

Funny how honest it is

 

[ChazGW7]

Fuck you Gamestop

 

[Blackage]

All ads should be like this, at least they're honest.

 

[Marcel]

I dunno, I just have to laugh at how on-the-nose asshole it is. "We locked your content, deal with it" just out there in black and white sure is something.

 

[sjay1994]

I feel with this ad,

and these ads

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HfaSJW90bw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XdfT1XtQI4A

Gamestops marketing team is probably trying to sink the company, probably based on how badly Gamestop treats employees.

It's all connected. This isn't a company gloating about bad business practices, its disgruntled employees trying to sabatoge the business for treating them poorly.

It's the only logical explanation for such horrible ads.

Spoiler

sarcasm aside, these ads are awful

 

[Ahasverus]

I wish more companies were this direct actually.

"You think you'll get the whole content of this game for $60? haha you better kept saving"
" You have a 12% probability of getting the armor on the cover if you buy the legendary lootbox".
"if you want something that treats its source material will respect keep walking"

Would make life much easier.

 

[E92 M3]

SEGA knew what was up, though.

I miss the old days sometimes.

 

[Opa-Pa]

Can't decide what's worse, the self parody weirdness of this shitty ad highlighting its own terrible practice or gaming enthusiasts in a gaming forum dismissing it because OP used the word "disgusting" instead of something else.

Oh well, gaming is only getting better every day at least.

SEGA knew what was up, though.

Holy shit, haha.

 

[ToxicPhantom]

Because of their this honest ad, I went ahead and pre-ordered. I wasnt even planning to.

 

[Squire]

It's low quality bait at best.

The mission itself is gonna be a forgettable twenty minute excursion like they always are anyway. I mean, really.

Can't decide what's worse, the self parody weirdness of this shitty ad highlighting its own terrible practice or gaming enthusiasts in a gaming forum dismissing it because OP used the word "disgusting" instead of something else.

Oh well, gaming is only getting better every day at least.

I'm dismissing it because it's petty. The ad is petty, the reaction is petty, and the content in question is most likely very petty itself.

People complaining about vapid pre-order content reminds me of the kids who made a stink about missing out on certain happy meal toys.

 

[Morrigan Stark]

Haha wow. They are so brazen. Get fucked Gamestop.

 

[Marcel]

It's low quality bait at best.

The mission itself is gonna be a forgettable twenty minute excursion like they always are anyway. I mean, really.

AC pre-order content is never usually worth it anyway, yeah.

 

[newsguy]

Came in here to read about assassins kneeling during the anthem or templars sexual advances in Hollywood. This is about as disgusting as charging for extra sauce at chick-fil-a.

 

[JigglesBunny]

Came in here to read about assassins kneeling during the anthem or templars sexual advances in Hollywood. This is about as disgusting as charging for extra sauce at chick-fil-a.

No - that is actually disgusting.

This is nothing but a dumb ad.

 

[Hazu]

People really defend anything.

Yeah sure, that's why I have never spent a single dollar on a season pass (or on any DLC).

 

[iamsirjoshua]

Pretty sure the banner ad in the OP was confirmed as fake. Not sure about the Facebook ad, but the OP should at least identify that some this isn't real before throwing everyone into an outraged frenzy.

Mods, can you help?

 

[mdubs]

Tbh I laughed at how brazen this ad is

 

[ffvorax]

I stopped buying from gamestop years ago... and ad is nothing compared to their prices and incompetence...

 

[Hoho for breakfast]

Power to the players!

I laughed. I think because it was bolded lol

 

[IchigoSharingan]

I find it kind of funny actually.

average joe gamer is the reason the industry is in the shape it is today

 

[ElBoxyBrown]

average joe gamer is the reason the industry is in the shape it is today

We are all the "average joe".

 

[ShutterMunster]

What’s the source of that ad? It doesn’t look real at all.

 

[Marcel]

We are all the "average joe".

NeoGAF is not a representation of the "average" gamer in any sense, lol.

 

[Alexander DeLarge]

Pretty sure the banner ad in the OP was confirmed as fake. Not sure about the Facebook ad, but the OP should at least identify that some this isn't real before throwing everyone into an outraged frenzy.

Mods, can you help?

Every single outlet that reported on it hasn't retracted the story or has any editorial note saying it's fake and it's on Vox's CDN and appears all over their sites and I've seen it elsewhere too.
https://aotf.com/articles/assassins-creed-origins-gamestop-ad/
https://www.polygon.com/2017/10/10/16453336/gamestop-ad-pre-order-assassins-creed-origins
https://games.mxdwn.com/news/gamestops-new-assassins-creed-origins-add-is-a-low-blow/

Only thing I can find about it being fake is some response on Reddit which is pretty flimsy because the ad doesn't even claim it's their exclusive. A mission that is for pre-orders is more enticing than a retailer exclusive pin.

Put the pitchforks down folks. This is fake. Gamestop's "exclusive" preorder bonus is a 3 inch Fig pin... And if you guys were truly paying attention, you would realize most of the current "exclusive" preorder bonuses have been something physical for a while now. (I.e. Shadows of War, has an axe bottle opener. Forza, has a toy car.) The other things have been free characters that you would have otherwise had to pay for out of pocket otherwise. The extra mission DLC will be included in the box, as an incentive from Ubisoft to buy the game at launch.

https://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/comments/75ani5/aaaaand_this_is_how_you_lose_sales/do4yh0n/

 

[Kintaro]

For what its worth, this isn't the Assassin's Creed ad that plays in stores. Just a standard "Get this when you Pre-Order..."

The preorder mission is everywhere. It's on Steam version, Uplay, etc.

Leaning towards fake and people just flipping out as usual.

 

[Alienous]

I actually appreciate how brazen it is.

 

[kc44135]

This is disgusting.

 

[ElBoxyBrown]

NeoGAF is not a representation of the "average" gamer in any sense, lol.

We are just "Joe".

 

[Human Trashcan]

People really defend anything.

Most people here love giant companies more than themselves

 

[Keym]

Lol they really don't give a crap, do they.

 

[NoMoreTrolls]

Disgusting lol. So hyperbolic.
Using such words this way robs those words of meaning.

 

[GTR R35_Supra RZ]

Can't see this going through PR or any other. This would NOT get green lit in million years..fake as mutha @$!#&

 

[Bits N Pieces]

I chuckled, lol.

Has a petition been started yet?

 

[theechrisfox]

It is pretty scummy. And comes off as a little desperate.

 

[benicillin]

Someone posted this comment on Reddit and I've yet to see any actual proof that the ad in the OP is real.

Hijacking the top comment because this won't be seen down there.
The reason I say this has got to be fake is because I know the designers who currently work for GS corporate and used to be one myself. If this is a real gamestop ad, it definitely did not go through gamestop itself.
First point:
A lot of attention is given to the voice of the advertising material. One key point is to avoid ever sounding negative. This says "The bonus content is blocked unless you pre-order". If this was real, it would say "Get this bonus content when you pre-order now". Never present something you're trying to sell as a negative.
Second point:
There is always a strong "CTA" or "call to action" in every advert that goes out. The CTA in the ad you're seeing seems like an afterthought and hides down in the bottom right corner. Gamestop CTAs are usually treated like this. https://imgur.com/a/mXC1e
This will get downvoted to oblivion because reddit, but whatever.
Not trying to defend Gamestop. I have more reason than any to have negative feelings about the company. Just saying that this is almost certainly fake.
*edit for formatting. I don't reddit much.
**edit I'm saying that the ad itself is fake. I don't doubt Ubi carved up game content and locked it away behind a pre-order. This kind of bullshit is to be expected from publishers.

EDIT: Was finally able to find it here. http://fandom.wikia.com/articles/assassins-creed-origins-bayek-senu-aya

 

[Skatterd]

This doesn't make me want to preorder, it makes me want to never shop at Gamestop again. Not sure what the intention is here.

 

[Ashtar]

so has anyone been able to verify if this is real yet? because it seems like a parody of a gamestop ad

 

[BabyFaceKillah]

I laughed at the camel.