Naga symbol at the tower of the shuttered eye

You're now stating a different objection. Before you were concerned that it wasn't feasible that a fictional character could come up with the same symbol.

Now you're complaining about what you view as commercial advertisement. That is a different complaint, and perhaps justified. Buw why raise that concern now when it has been known for some time that there is a partnership with Razer and Shroud of the Avatar? SotA supports Chroma features in the game. Razer did the promo where people got a $20 bonus to their accounts that they were sponsoring. I didn't hear any complaints when Razer was giving us all that free bonus.

 

Did you actually read my posts from the first page? Cuz this is THE ONLY thing I have been complaining about. I care about this because I view it as shameless product placement and the selling out of a game, a crowd funded game nonetheless. The idea that the ceo of Razer "came up with his own banner independently" is a joke because he came up with a trademarked logo that advertises his real world company and products, that is what I was saying in the post you quoted and I thought that was obvious.

Who cares if they gave us $20? I for one cannot be bought or convinced to sacrifice my principles for 20 bucks. Advertising has no place in the game and they should keep that to the website, as I've said over and over throughout this thread.

 

I understand that you are sticking to your principles and can't be bought off, and that is very commendable. But please try to understand that not everyone cares about the same things you do. I can only speak for myself, but I am not sacrificing my principles when I say I like the symbol and that it doesn't bother me that it is the Razer logo.

 

Would it be ok if Taco Bell slapped their logo on the side of a dungeon if they sponsored SotA in the exact same way Razer did? What is the deciding factor about allowing freemium game tactics into a game people pay full retail for?

 

Advertising is fairly common in full retail games as well. And I wager plenty of players will see the logo and not even realize what it is. It doesn't say the company name, name a product or anything like that.

I think this is a bit of an overreaction.

 

I would say a big thing would be if it fits the theme of the world. I personally have no issues with product placement depending on how its done and if it doesn't look too obtrusive (again haven't seen this scene yet so no comment on it). If there was an adobe building with a bell in and a small little annoying dog outside, I don't think I'd care if I knew it was taco bell placement... if it was in a desert scene. Seeing it in a swamp or somewhere else I might have a different view on it.

 

Can I have Coke cans to stage around my house? And Nike chain mail boots?

I do think there is a point of overdoing it, like those examples. A symbol only - especially one like this that could have multiple meanings - isn't so big of a deal though so long as it is used tastefully.

 

Ofcourse. Not saying that you are doing anything wrong in disagreeing with me. I was just replying to the statement that no one complained when Razer offered us all 20 bucks as if that should affect whether or not I can dislike their logo being in the game.

What if a bunch of other Baron level pledges wanted to put their companys trademarked logo in the game? Would the entire game be full of real life trademarked logos, or would it become immediately clear that they made a 1 time exception for razer? If the ceo of FedEx was a Baron level backer could he make a fictional parcel service and use FedEx branding? My point is that real life logos, whether they fit or not, should have been disallowed from the very beginning because product placement in a crowd funded video game is going to be seen by many as a betrayal at worst and at best will be kind of a joke. I can just see people on other websites or after release referring to it as the Tower of the shuttering razer naga.

 

It's really a question of where in the spectrum of corporate logo recognizability is it ok to litter a game with advertisements. Where is the cutoff point between Taco Bell and Razer? If this was a football game or a NASCAR, then Taco Bell would be fine. But it's not. My biggest concern is that this could easily be slippery slope. I'm not claiming the picture below is what is going to happen to SotA. That would an overreaction. I just don't like seeing GimmeUOPlz's concern being dismissed like he is completely wrong.

The scene isn't obtrusive. It actually fits in very nicely.

 

Probably you can say its in RG's discretion.

I don't think the objections are really complicated. People feel stuff like this just in principle is tacky. In this particular instance, though, I'm not sure its something to worry about. I'm pretty sure if Taco Bell wanted their logo in the game, RG would say "no." (I'd hope so )

 

So the CEO of Razer is a huge RG / Ultima fan and funds the marketing of this game by allowing Portalarium to share booth space at very expensive conferences, and he donates tons of gear that are given away during Hangouts. He gets his likeness put in the game as an NPC and his company's logo in the game, sans actual company name.

Likewise, Alienware is a partner and we see the logo on the laptop during the opening cinematic but also without the company name.

I think the use of the Razer and Alienware logos weren't as blatant as it could've been...

 

I still cringe when I see the Alienware logo on Harry Potter's laptop in the promo video.

 

yeah me too.

In other news, I mostly agree with the OP. I think in this particular instance it isn't as bad as it could be, because of the nature of the design of the logo itself, but I am very against modern day product placement in a game like SotA.

Here's hoping this is as far as it goes.

 

Damn you with all your hard to argue good points. I guess I'll just have to accept the fact that LB knows how to run a business and I don't.

 

Captain Jack thinks that the guys should go even further! Think about how many entry and exit points there are to scenes, that is a missed opportunity for all kinds of attention grabbers. We could have medieval billboards that dynamically update!

Maybe give a few requirements for people to advertise in scene billboards that help progress the project:
Contribute 5 small to medium size models to Shroud.
Contribute 1 large model to Shroud.
Contribute cold hard cash.

Win an ad for life:
Finish ship stretch goal.

Captain Jack can see this in SotA, can you?

 

Well these are good discussions to have from all viewpoints. And your post above with all the logos is also worth exploring: how much is too much? Let's say we get a few more arguably innocuous / inconspicuous / unobtrusive logos. Ok, how about 10 more...maybe 25 more? Each one might not be a problem, but in total, it might be.

 

Your image just reminded me of an easter egg found in Ultima 7 Serpent Isle where there was a locked house with a pirate inside sitting in front of a computer. When double clicking on the computer, it would scroll through several 'then' current Origin titles, including Strike Commander. It seems that advertising in-game is nothing new to RG.

 

I remember many, if not most, of the games of my youth advertised other games published by the same company within a game. Breaking down the 4th wall is something commonly unique to computer games, since we have such a high interelationship with the game itself. I like that portalarium elected to keep the 'product placement advertising' within a single scene, rather than making a 'vanduul polearm'.. oh wait.. err.. is that a problem too? Should I go around burning all the puzzle trees and protest against the wishing wells too?

Keep up the feedback, let them know how we feel. Yeah, it's going to be difficult to see the 'naga' symbol and not think 'razer' rather than about the in-game lore, especially if they keep it neon-green. But for the most part, I feel they're making smart business decisions that help the game rather than hurt it.

 

I agree! I think the business aspect of it is great, but seeing the razer naga symbol is a huge cringe for me. I hope this is the extent of product placement in New Britannia, not a fan.

 

I am devoted to SotA, am a Razer fan, and love the logo. Still, I had the exact same reaction to the logo on the tower as Flientje Vantmeeden. It makes one pause -- Is this an ad for Razer? How does that fit into our game? Especially out here in the boonies on the tower? Definitely IB -- immersion breaking.