Electronic Arts paid wrong fundamentalists.

The video game manufacturer Electronic Arts must admit questionable advertising methods: A supposedly fundamental Christian demonstration in Los Angeles against a game of the group was in fact a marketing campaign.

 

Sven Stillich
Purchased demonstrators: "Hell is not a game!"

The whole thing was just too strange to be true: The approximately 20 demonstrators who last week before the entrance to the area of video game trade show Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles signs such as "Hell is not a game!" hochhielten (
ONLINE blogs reported), was not a real Christian fundamentalists. The group, which also pamphlets against the development is to game called "Dante's Inferno" distributed, consisted in reality of paid employees of an agency for viral marketing. That is what the producers of the game, Electronic Arts, now acknowledged. The whole was a marketing gag.

True Christian fundamentalists are likely to benefit from the methods of the videogame company little thrilled - remains to be seen whether the action still has a post game. The small group of demonstrators had ostentatiously excited about the fact that in the game, very loosely on Dante's "Divine Comedy" is based, for example with a cross as a weapon will be fought.

Both the posters and flyers and web page of the group, however, seemed unintentionally funny too - also referred to the links on the page exclusively designed horribly directly on advertising material for the game. Very early were therefore doubts about the authenticity of the protest loud. A demand of online blogs on the topic last week was no comment from Electronic Arts Germany - now clarified the Speaker of the U.S. parent company on the matter.

The fact that video game producers to use unusual means to draw attention for their titles to produce and there is gang - but this action marked a new level of public deception. Especially as Christians about the real thing could be quite acidic.