Persuasive Games: Promogames, Another Kind of Advertising Game - Ian Bogost
As much as Burger King’s recent promogames might seem wholly original, titles that could easily qualify for the designation appeared a quarter century ago. Back in 1983, Mattel Electronics’ M Network division created Kool Aid Man for the Atari VCS (2600) and the Intellivision. The game would later be available for traditional retail purchase, but originally would-be virtual thirst-relievers (“Oh yeah!”) had to send in Kool Aid UPC symbols along with a small handling fee to get the game. Johnson & Johnson commissioned a similar title the same year, Tooth Protectors, also for the Atari, which was only available by mail order from the company. And also in 1983, Purina offered Chase the Chuckwagon, similarly available only by mail order in exchange for UPC’s and a handling charge. While some critics (including myself) have discussed these titles as early examples of advergames, the games also show a compelling prehistory for promogames.1 Just as Burger King uses the young adult demographic of the Xbox as a lure for their desired market, so General Foods, Johnson and Johnson, and Purina used the younger demographic of the Atari and Intellivision as a lure for theirs. Of these three early promogames, Chase the Chuckwagon most resembles Burger King’s recent effort. At the time the game was released, a popular Purina dog food commercial showed a dog chasing a small chuckwagon (the brand’s mascot) through a kitchen. Like Sneak King, Chase the Chuckwagon was conceived as an adaptation of the theme of the TV spot.
While some critics (including myself) have discussed these titles as early examples of advergames, the games also show a compelling prehistory for promogames5. Just as Burger King uses the young adult demographic of the Xbox as a lure for their desired market, so General Foods, Johnson and Johnson, and Purina used the younger demographic of the Atari and Intellivision as a lure for theirs. Of these three early promogames, Chase the Chuckwagon most resembles Burger King’s recent effort. At the time the game was released, a popular Purina dog food commercial showed a dog chasing a small chuckwagon (the brand’s mascot) through a kitchen. Like Sneak King, Chase the Chuckwagon was conceived as an adaptation of the theme of the TV spot. Games like these show us that a single perspective on advertising games is not only an inadequate way to understand the intersection of these two worlds today, but that it wasn’t even adequate twenty-five years ago. No matter one’s opinion about the relative merits or dangers of advertisers’ continued invasion of video games, we must try to understand approaches to game-based advertising in complex ways—not just as serious games developers or advertisers interested in creating new games, but also as game players interested in understanding how and why brand companies seek to persuade us to consume their products. Promogames offer one view onto the developing landscape of advertising games, a terrain whose exploration demands more critical attention as its popularity increases. 5 For a much more detailed discussion of all three of these early games, see my forthcoming book, Persuasive Games: The Expressive Power of Videogames (MIT Press, 2007) http://mitpress.mit.edu/catalog/item/default.asp?ttype=2&tid=11152
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