The UK Advertising Standards Authority has upheld a ruling against developer Mutant Box Interactive stating that images used in Facebook and YouTube advertisements for its game Liberators were misleading and did not accurately reflect gameplay.
Developers should pay close attention whenever a major regulatory body like the ASA rules for or against complaints like this to ensure that advertisements for their own games don’t run afoul of the UK-based ad authority.
The ads in question showed up on both YouTube and Facebook in early January and depicted everything from a tank storming a battlefield to a sniper taking aim on an enemy from afar.
But, after review from the ASA and a lack of response from the game’s developer, the regulatory board ruled that the images were framed as examples of gameplay but did not accurately reflect in-game moments.
Specifically, the advertisements violated rule 3.1 of the Committee of Advertising Practice code against misleading advertising, while a lack of response on the developer’s part violated rule 1.7. As such, the ASA has informed Mutant Box that the ads “must not appear again in their current form” and that future advertisements should not feature misleading images.
The ASA has also offered noteworthy judgments in the past, including rulings on No Man’s Sky, Grand Theft Auto V, and Dungeon Keeper.