In Game Ads

We've seen them, we all hate them. If you dont hate them, than your working for VALVe. This is overall the number 1 attack to the online freedoms that was once the Steam Network. Before these annoying, in the way and uncreatively placed ads were introduced into out main frontier, We were able to freely go in and out of privately owned servers and play without having VALVe's financial outcomes and accomplishments in mind. But now, more and more you go into servers, there it is, right at the top of your status menu, an ad thats just overall in the way. It would be one thing if VALVe just stuck ads in the steam application window like AOL and MSN messenger does, but then again its probably not to late for them to stroll across this thread and read it, but its another thing to stick it in a game where the last thing on our mind is to buy a new Intel chip set or the brand new ATI video card. In most cases, if you can read those ads in game, you obviously dont need them.

Whats next? boosting the prices of counter strike 1.6 to 30 dollars instead of 10? or making the game a monthly paid game to keep up with Blizzards over-hyped World of Warcraft? Or will the Half Life Black and Orange Box containing Portal, TF2 and HL2E2 cost 100 dollars per game. All in all, the freedoms of a gamer just hit a brick wall. 

I agree. Honestly, this is an outrage. Every time I spectate, every time I press tab I feel the life being sucked out of me. It's annoying, in the way,

and makes me want to buy these things they're advertising even less. If they advertise in my free gaming space, they don't deserve my money.

Think about it, they're advertising other games in these game ads. So if you buy there other games will they have more game ads? This is

completely believable, and obviously nobody will be happy about it. The only way steam/valve really cares about any of this, whether we complain

or not they don't care. They're getting money- profit- cash- mulah- bucks- any term you want to use. I wouldn't be surprised if they keep going

further and further with this. If they go any further, I will stop playing the games with ads completely, I won't stand for this!

three games. one box.

three games, one box, twenty thousand ads

I think the best thing to do is when purchasing new products for your computer purposly support the companies that do not advertise in game.

KILL THE INGAME ADDDSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

It's really a sign of the times we live in. Bottom line is Valve and other game companies are in this business to make money. They are not making that much money off CS anymore so they decided to cash in on all of us who have no control over the game content. I think they underestimated their ability to get players to migrate to the new source games. Source games are nice but the simplicity and performance of CS 1.6 keeps us here. We like the ever changing content that is being dreamed up by the CS community in general. New Maps, Mods, Plugins, game styles etc...

I fear the Ads are here to stay. As long as the almighty dollar reigns supreme there will be ads forced upon those that don't want them. Valve will use the success of the HL2 Episode 2 + Portal + TFC2 as proof that the in-game ads work and they will start selling the ad space to other companies if they haven't already.

I can understand the logic even if it bothers me in other ways. For instance one of my other favorite Games Anarchy Online MMORPG started putting ads in the game. They always had the ad space built into the game, Billboards for instance. They made the ads optional for the paying customers and required for the free accounts. It makes sense in this scenario because this is the only way they could give the game away for free and they needed to give it away to keep the player base up. I am sure they got some new subscribers this way as well. Not sure how this would work for Valve/Steam

On a side note, I consider myself to be essentially ad proof. I skip over commercials using DVR, I don't buy items that are too hyped up by ads. If I do buy something I do it based on the merits of the product or word of mouth, not because of a media blitz!

I wish there were no ads in any game unless the ads are actually in game content like the billboards in AO before the ads came. I am not sure how I'm going to react if they start placing ads in our custom maps. Imagine ads in Starwars_trench! ugh!

I bet Vavle will take rush's ads map and make it all that one 3 games on box thing and make it so that u cant play on de_dust2 without the ads everywhere!! lol