Licensing and Product Placement

"Simulations...present biased perspectives on the function of systems and situations in the material world. Procedural rhetoric takes advantage of this tendency to make claims about how things work in the world" (173)

The way procedural rhetoric works in product placement is that it makes claims about how things work. My question then is are positive campaign ads examples of product placement? At any rate, video games have to allow a player "to do something meaningful inside its interpretation" (175). Often, however, games are brand extensions that are based on repackaging. Repackaging in a new media does not create the user experience association both with the theme and the genre because of procedurality rules. The game will often adapt the plot, characters, and the story of a book. It may not, however conform to the tenets of a game and that is a failure as far as games go. But such games all come under the umbrella of Licensing. Licensing takes products from their primary forms to secondary others such as toys, clothing, theme parks, all in an effort to engender players to the product. Some think that licensing joins the cast of ad nuseum, which may estrange players.

Bogost's discussion of games such as Caterpillar Construction Tycoon, American Farmer, and Food Forces indicates that they have something in common. I came to the conclusion that games are socially constructed ways of communicating values such as empathy.

How about product placement?
Take a look at this:



Looks like there ain't no mountain high, no valley low, no river too wide for those who have the savvy to reach niche audiences. While this video shows the Obama campaign ads on virtual billboards alongside the gaming action, Bogost writes about more subtle ways of product placement in movies such as Minority report. Popular shows like American Idol have come under fire for prominent displays of coke products on the judge's table.

In video games as in TV and film, or even reality shows, product placement only follows the norm. Bogost, however argues that a better form of product placement would utilize procedural rhetoric by allowing play and interaction with the product itself so it can do the talking. In addition, "context and code-level integration" aid the process of product placement (what does that mean?) At any rate, product placement seems to be an insidious, even beguiling way of advertising.

The rationale for product placement in videogames is that they add realism, which makes that form of advertising more effective than the illustrative or associative form. Using procedural rhetoric can be more effective than moralism. Watch out, anti-advergames crop up with their own agenda using the same technique for the product. At their core is discontent, disaffection with the product.

In the end, however, both advergames and anti-advergames expose the logic that demonstrate claims about dysfunction of products. It encourages critical consumption so gamers can decide between needs and wants. It's the player who has to evaluate

While on the subject of product placement, how do we account for popularity of products worn by prominent people such as Sarah Palin's eye ware and Michelle Obama's clothing