Gaming and Advertising: The Duo That Wins Over Millions of Players
The Gaming Universe Attracts Brands. Millions of people worldwide spend a significant portion of their free time in digital environments. These virtual worlds turn gaming experiences into substantial opportunities for advertising.
Every August 29th, Gamer Day is celebrated. To mark this special date for gaming fans, MarketingDirecto.com – MKD wanted to explore how brands approach the video game sector and the marketing strategies they employ. We gained insights from Gameloft, the advertising and gamification division of Gameloft—a French multinational that develops games for PC, consoles, and mobile devices—as well as from several companies that have found this niche to be a way to expand their reach and creative advertising.
How Do Brands Engage with Gaming?
On the one hand, advertising can be integrated into interactive environments or immersive adventures within the games themselves. On the other hand, many brands participate in gaming-related events, which are prime opportunities to connect with these large audiences and collaborate with streamers whose content focuses on gaming. Additionally, products, services, and experiences tied to these themes are created. The approaches are diverse; the key is finding the one that fits the brand’s needs, resources, and messaging.
Why Should Companies Invest in Video Game Advertising?
As an expert in the field, Antonio Ferrer, Head of Advertising Spain & Portugal at Gameloft for brands, explains: “Gaming offers brands a unique opportunity to reach audiences that are hard to engage through other channels, in a safe, controlled, and measurable space, with formats that add value to the player’s experience.” He adds, “It’s no longer just a trend; it’s one of the pillars of current entertainment.”
To support this claim, Ferrer shares some stats showing the strength of the sector: “Globally, over 3.4 billion people play video games, making this environment one of the largest, most transversal, and most active in the digital ecosystem. In Europe, the number of gamers exceeds 454 million, and in Spain, according to the Spanish Video Games Association (AEVI), there are more than 22 million gamers—almost half the population.”
This large segment is desirable for brands, as it is highly active, playing an average of 8.2 hours per week across mobile, console, and PC, Ferrer notes.
Such consistent engagement ensures prolonged ad exposure, but in a natural way. “In-game advertising allows brands to enter these environments contextually, non-intrusively, and highly visibly, integrating into the game universe without interrupting the user experience. Unlike other digital media, the player is fully present and engaged with what happens on screen. It’s high-quality attention in a positive emotional context,” Ferrer breaks down. Clearly, this highlights the usefulness of these spaces as a platform for creating strong advertising recall.
The Gamer Profile: What Does It Look Like?
The stereotype of the gamer as a very young male or teenager is widespread but inaccurate. “The gamer audience is much broader and more diverse than often assumed. In our network, we observe a balanced gender distribution, with an average age range of 18 to 45. More and more sectors understand that gaming is not just a channel to ‘reach young people,’ but a new digital public square to connect with key audiences in a positive, receptive environment,” Ferrer explains. Not only do generations who grew up with video games remain enthusiastic, but this form of entertainment has also captivated new audiences.
People navigating and interacting in these digital worlds show a high affinity for digital consumption, entertainment, technology, fashion, sports, automotive, and pop culture. This variety opens the door for brands from many industries to invest in video game advertising. For example, Ferrer mentions brands from retail, FMCG, tourism, entertainment, luxury, and even public institutions.
Many themes can fit in these universes, as long as they are activated appropriately. And how can a brand incorporate ads into video games? There are tools designed for this, such as COMBO!.
What is COMBO!?
COMBO! is a solution created by Gameloft for brands. “It’s a global in-game advertising platform that allows the insertion of native, contextual, and non-intrusive formats within premium games developed by Gameloft and our partners,” Ferrer notes.
Brands can be confident that they are communicating in a controlled, measurable ecosystem aligned with gamers’ expectations. “We work with billboards, screens, integrated objects, interactive rich media, rewarded video ads, as well as branded experiences and mini-games for a more immersive approach,” lists Ferrer. As he emphasizes, brands appear within a coherent visual universe, without the risk of being next to sensitive or controversial content, as could happen on social media.
“Ads can be displayed on mobile, PC, and console within Gameloft games and those of other publishers and partners in our global network,” Ferrer explains. The potential reach is 1.2 billion active players per month worldwide. In Spain, COMBO!’s game network sees 7.5 million monthly active users.
Targeted Advertising for the Right Audience
COMBO! has three variants that allow brands to choose the most relevant depending on their target and strategy:
- COMBO! Core: Focused on passionate gamers, with highly competitive or visually realistic titles like Asphalt Legends Unite or Modern Combat. Ideal for campaigns seeking a strong image within the traditional gaming universe, with a highly engaged audience.
- COMBO! Pop: Oriented toward a mainstream and casual audience, playing occasionally or in downtime. Games like Minion Rush, Dragon Mania Legends, or Disney Speedstorm reach a large, diverse audience, making them ideal for awareness, FMCG, or lifestyle campaigns.
- COMBO! Kids: Specifically designed for children and family audiences, fully compliant with data protection regulations like COPPA and GDPR-K. It provides a 100% safe environment for brands seeking to communicate responsibly with young users.
COMBO! offers advanced segmentation to adapt campaigns by age, gender, location, device, game type, or connection times. “This allows us to fine-tune the message and format to impact at the right moment and context without losing relevance or disrupting the player experience,” says Ferrer.
Gameloft for brands collaborates with NumberEight, a tech company specialising in data and AI, to perform real-time targeting. Campaigns are activated based on user behaviour and state: whether the user is on the move, playing from home, relaxed, or more active. The partnership ensures full compliance with GDPR and COPPA, especially in sensitive environments like COMBO! Kids, as no personal data is collected. “The result is smarter, respectful, and more effective advertising, adapting to each player and moment without invading privacy,” Ferrer summarises.
Investing in Gaming Advertising: A Worthwhile Decision
Brands recognise users’ enthusiasm and commitment, engaging with the gaming environment in different ways. But what ingredients make a campaign successful among gamers? Ferrer is clear: “The most important thing is to respect the gaming experience. A good in-game campaign doesn’t interrupt; it complements and enriches the environment. Formats should be native and integrated with the game universe, providing both aesthetic and functional value. Understanding the game context and community is also key: it’s not the same to communicate in a racing game as in a strategy or lifestyle game. The most successful campaigns create an emotional connection with the player without imposing a message.”
The Future of Video Game Advertising
Video games evolve in tandem with technological advancements, global trends, user preferences, and advancements in audiovisual capabilities. Brands must keep pace. “We’re seeing a shift toward increasingly immersive, interactive, and adaptive advertising. The future involves more personalized experiences, playable campaigns, and formats that leverage the potential of the metaverse, AI, and persistent worlds,” Ferrer asserts.
Challenges in the industry include: maintaining a balance between monetization and player experience, developing common standards for measuring and verifying in-game impact, and demonstrating to brands that gaming is not just a channel but a language and culture requiring intelligence, creativity, and humility.
Success Stories: Brands That Win with Gamer-Focused Advertising
Epic collaborations between video games and brands have become deeply ingrained in collective memory. Strategies vary, but all bring brands closer to these audiences.
McDonald’s: Connecting with Gamers
McDonald’s collaborated strategically with Minecraft. “It was a success story showing the power of co-branding when combining two cultural icons with strong emotional consumer ties,” explains Álvaro Miguel, CMO of McDonald’s Spain.
Alongside the release, the brand launched two initiatives: an exclusive collection of twelve toys inspired by the cubic universe linked to Happy Meals, and a special menu for adults featuring a limited-edition sauce, along with a parallel collection reimagining classic McDonald’s characters, such as Grimace or Hamburglar, in a pixelated video game style.
“The campaign’s success rested on three pillars: the strength of two highly recognised brands, a 360° communication strategy, and creative execution focused on synergy between the two territories,” says Miguel. “We employed a transmedia narrative spanning digital and Spotify content, social activations with gaming influencers, and quizzes encouraging active community participation. The campaign resonated with both new players and those who grew up with Minecraft, incorporating a highly valued nostalgia element.”
This initiative reinforced McDonald’s positioning as a close, innovative, and culturally relevant brand, especially with younger audiences.
KFC: Boosting a Specific Channel
KFC noticed that younger audiences were unaware of their drive-thru service—a way for customers to order and receive food without leaving their vehicle. To drive sales through this channel, KFC created KFC Auto Grand Prix, an exclusive, playable track in collaboration with Xbox and Forza Horizon 5.
They were inspired by the most extreme curves of fifteen real KFC drive-thrus in Spain.
This interview was originally published by Marketing Directo in Spanish. You can read it here.
