Advergames and the bandwagon effect

MediaPost reports about the Entertainment Expo that took place last week in Los Angeles. During the event marketing managers had the chance to discuss advergames’ potentials in prototing a brand.
More and more advertisers are looking at video games and advergames as an important vehicle to reach 18-to-34 years old males. A part from a recent research by Gartner G2, we haven’t many numbers to confirm the trend is going to bring positive results. We have the “feeling” things are going well but, sometimes, I think there is a “me too” effect. I do like advergames and I would encourage marketers to adopt them but, at the same time, I always fear the “low quality menace” that could annoy consumers and consequently harm the entire industry.
On Mediapost there’s actually another article, by Ross Fadner, who considers the question from gamers’ perspective. The discussion isn’t about advergames, rather about in-game advertising. Product placement in videogames has raised several polemics, claiming that a lot of sponsorships usually bring no value to games. P.J. MacGregor, vice president and partner, Play-the Starcom MediaVest Group said: