• by Wendy Davis  @wendyndavis, August 29, 2005

IDG Entertainment's Gamerhelp.com has launched an ad-supported wiki application for online gamers who want to offer their advice and strategy on a variety of pursuits.

The feature, "Wiki Strats," gives users access to a text-formatting system that allows them to input any information they wish about various games. "Other users will instantly see your changes and can edit, remove, or add to your content as they see fit," states the site's explanation of the feature. "This is democracy in action, folks."

Currently, "Wiki Strats" have been created for 11 different games, including "Fable," "Halo 2," and "World of Warcraft."

The Wikis contain display ads for companies including "Best Buy" and "T-Mobile," as well as six sponsored links at the bottom of the pages. While the links are clearly marked as "sponsored," the identities of the sponsors aren't always clear.

For example, one text link at the bottom of the Wiki for "Dungeon Siege II" reads simply: "The ultimate nerd deathmatch: Pimp That Phone!" Clicking on that link takes users to the Vonage-sponsored site www.pimpthatphone.com site, which explains the rules for a contest to modify the look of telephones. The prize for the contest--which apparently ended Aug. 15, although the page was still live over the weekend--was $2,000 and a year of Vonage broadband phone service. The Pimp That Phone site also included display ads and coupons for Vonage.