Ads

Sarapis

Hi all. Quick contest: I want some ad copy to use for some new ads, and more ideas would be helpful. Obviously the below example is not entirely serious, but it gives you an idea of how much space there is for text. The font can be brought down by 2-4 points, but that's about it, so it needs to be succinct and grab the viewer in some way with precious few words. (Well, ok, grab the less-than-1% of viewers that will click on an ad to begin with.)

Any ideas that I like well enough to potentially use will earn the person who came up with it 50 credits. (And just to clarify, I'm looking for copy - text - for an ad that has about this much space for text. I'm not looking for new graphic design.)

Nellaundra

A free world where you can enact true change.  Join us, it won't hurt.

Jules

"Deep combat system, play free"

"A world in your mind, play free"

"Player run cities, play free"

"Crush your enemies, play free"

"Pikes for their heads, play free"

"Sail the high seas, play free"

"Play hard, play long, play free"

 So, F-bombs on the forums again?  Missed them! 

EDIT:  as a true credit whore, the free aspect didn't hurt in drawing me to the game on a rainy typhoon afternoon. 

Skye

Actually, I rather like the line you already have on there.
:-\"

Jules

^I agree, maybe make it "legit" for a sort of almost professional ad, like "If you haven't played it, die slowly"

 

"Graphics are for noobs, play free"

"play it, you will" 

Nellaundra

Are you a Shallamite?  If not, play now!

Sarapis

Do you guys think 'play free' has any power today, when playing online games for free is pretty much the norm, minus World of Warcraft?

Nim

I just imagined the ad being really corny and animated, with the text changing through various key points (like things related to what @Jules suggested) that makes Achaea Achaea.

That way, they're short and sweet, but it catches people's attention by changing all the time. Plus, people like me who're OCD about watching animated gifs in their entirety will sit to read it all!

ETA: Being free is definitely part of why I play, so, while I think the words "play free" are pretty cliche, I think it is a definite selling point.

Jules

Sarapis said:

Do you guys think 'play free' has any power today, when playing online games for free is pretty much the norm, minus World of Warcraft?

I'm really not sure...  If it turns out it's something that people assume, it certainly gives you a bit more room for copy.

Tarkanian

"Go fuck yourself, Aardwolf."

Kitarel

"Choose your own adventure for the 21st Century!"

Silas

How about, "If you haven't played it, fuck you."

Orklanishkal

High fantasy. No cost. Hundreds of hours of fun.

Veldrin

"Play poker in a fantasy world!"

Sidonia

"Play now, my lord"

Jules

"I've been bangin' 30 lb embers" (insert picture of Cain) - Never mind that they'll have no idea what it means (and I'm not sure I do, since I wasn't there, but the whole thing as retold made me think of Charlie Sheen).   

Nim

"I'm a fish reading a book*.
*Artistic representation of actual gameplay." 

Nakari

"We won't try to be WoW"

Tvistor

I'm not going to lie. "If you haven't played it, fuck you." is an incredibly compelling ad. It implies the game should be played, you suck for not playing it, it's different from 99% of all other ads out there, it's hilarious and most importantly, attention grabbing.

Nellaundra

Agree 100% with @Tvistor

Blujixapug

"Player-controlled cities in an epic fantasy world."

"Assassin. Politician. Graffiti artist. Choose your role."

"Democratic governments. Taxes. War. Revolution. A living world."

I don't think "play free" stands out like it did ten years ago - not without clarification of how "free" it is. "Free" makes me think "flash game" or "what's the catch". It may even be a detraction. I wouldn't want to play a "free" PVP game it was pay2win, and I don't want to play a "free" version of SWTOR that's so pared-down as to not be remotely fun.

Achilles

Looking for a game to play at work?

Buy one Siren get one Free

Your better looking than this guy

1:1 guy girl ratio *just kidding

Reading is sexy

Facebook friends can't raid with you

Before Twitter there was us

We're the dorks that make fun of the other dorks

Jules

4Chan is "incredibly compelling", but you can't really use it as ad copy :P  There are quite a few (parody) ads that use "fuck you" for its comedic shock value: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRuNxHqwazs

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/16/pizza-hut-fuck-you-pizza-ad_n_1522626.html

and they're all tips of the hat to Idiocracy's "fuck you" ads (which Sarapis' also was), but I can't imagine someone using them as a *real* ad. 

Aepas

Define yourself ~Achaea
Embrace destiny ~Achaea

We don't need you. ~Achaea
One of the oldest and most powerful games in existance. 15+ years and strong.

Also, bring back the 8 bit theater? that's what made me play

Edit: Come to think on it, I think it would be really important to have different quotes depending on where the ad is placed. You might need something a bit more humorous for a webcomic site, a bit more powerful for a video game site, or very fantasy based if it's on some kind of fantasy RPG place. I don't rightfully know, but it would be good to have several different slogans for different locations. Marketing is such tricky buisness, but hey, I know several people that only began playing because of the ads themselves.

Oceana

"Are you talking to me?"
"Live your dream"
"Go beyond your fantasy"
"Once upon a time..."

Nim

@Aepas: Using multiple quotes might be cool. I actually had another thought, which was showing a random quote every time the ad is viewed, or something like that. I could imagine some complicated system of having a large variety of quotes, and categorizing them, and weighting them based on their relevance to the site the ad's displayed on, and picking a random quote, and, and... complex things!

It might be too complex though, but I think it'd be cool.

Tesha

I have to say I agree with the others. If I saw the ad you posted before I ever heard of Achaea I would have tried it. If you can get away with that it would be really cool. 

As for some actual submissions:

Start playing, and you'll likely still be playing in 5 years.

Play a game where your choices truly matter, rather than simply appear to.

I know I expect to be playing in 5 years (I did not spend like $200 for a few weeks) and my choices for my character have all had tremendous impacts on my experience. Much more so than if I chose the purple helmet or the pink helmet from that one boss.

Favonius

Meet the greatest hero you'll ever write.

(Also variants with 'villain', 'lover', 'spy', 'thief', 'leader', 'neutral-good runic knight' etc)

Ephram

An MMORPG with an end game beyond leveling.

Or something along those lines. Can't count how many of my friends quit playing WoW but then start again with each expansion, until they've leveled up completely and have nothing else to do.

And on the original ad, if you have sites where you can't just blatantly swear, go the Cee Lo Green route and use "Forget You?" I agree with @Tvistor though. That's an incredibly compelling ad.

Iocun

Blujixapug said:

"Player-controlled cities in an epic fantasy world."

"Assassin. Politician. Graffiti artist. Choose your role."

"Democratic governments. Taxes. War. Revolution. A living world."

I don't think "play free" stands out like it did ten years ago - not without clarification of how "free" it is. "Free" makes me think "flash game" or "what's the catch". It may even be a detraction. I wouldn't want to play a "free" PVP game it was pay2win, and I don't want to play a "free" version of SWTOR that's so pared-down as to not be remotely fun.

Yeah, I think one of the biggest challenges is setting it apart from all those "fun for about two hours" games. Yet, just calling it "addictive" or similar just makes it sound even more like those.

I like your slogans there. Perhaps most so the second, because it tells us that we're actually talking about an RPG, while the first and third make it sound more like a city-building strategy game.

Perhaps a touch of the second of these slogans, but with more emphasis on the fact that those things are actually totally different ways of playing the game (respectively goals), and not just "classes".

"Grow into a feared fighter, wealthy merchant, emperor of a whole state. Or remain insignificant."

Hrm, perhaps a bit long.

"Grow powerful, respected, feared. Or don't."

"Will you be a peaceful philosopher? Skilled assassin? Simple peasant?."

"Thief? Bodyguard? Dictator of a player city? Your choice."

"Rich merchant? Street artist? Experienced hunter? Tough warrior?."

Rugnar

Where will the ads be placed? On places where people have a clear idea of what a MUD is, or is the goal to attract players who haven't even seen one yet? Or both?

Edit: I personally would think it cool to see something entirely different than what you usually see. Something that doesn't try to explain the entire game in a single sentence, but just tries to provoke interest.

And ad along the lines of this would really draw me in, or at least make me entirely curious:

     Achaea, even our ads are entirely different than those of any game you've seen before.

Or something shorter:

     Even our ads are unique.