• Wired, Thursday, October 5, 2006 11:32 AM

Video game advertising integrations are becoming much more robust. For example, anyone who purchases Electronic Arts' basketball game NBA Live '07 for Microsoft's Xbox 360 or Sony's PlayStation 3 will be able to unlock a host of sweet items and game features in the game from Adidas. As part of its sponsorship, there are more than 100 Adidas-specific elements hidden in the game that can be unlocked using simple codes, available through retail, online and real-world events. Gamers will be able to unlock five NBA players: Tim Duncan of the San Antonio Spurs, Tracy McGrady of the Houston Rockets, Kevin Garnett of the Minnesota Timberwolves, Gilbert Arenas of the Washington Wizards and Chauncey Billups of the Detroit Pistons.

The players will wear custom Adidas uniforms, touting the retailer's latest marketing slogan, "It Takes 5IVE." They can take on any five players in the game in an exclusive, branded Adidas arena. "We worked very closely with EA over the past year to implement this into the game," says Ryan Morlan, global communications manager for Adidas Basketball, who added that the broader marketing program features the same five players. This is much more than two-dimensional brand placements or free power-ups and other goodies; it's really a true crossover of marketing and content. It remains to be seen how players react to it. The game only just hit shelves, but what Adidas and EA have done is to create an advergame within a game. Study after study shows how many gamers feel that real-world ads enhance the realism of certain games. Marketers are clearly starting to take note, and are now producing some unique stuff.

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