2K Games was caught trying to over-monetize its fan base with forced in-game ads in NBA 2K21. Fans pushed back, and now the publisher is fixing the issue.
NBA 2K21, a $70 next-gen game, recently introduced post-launch advertisements to monetize its fans. The unskippable in-game ads were stealthily added one month after launch and popped up in pre-game loading scenes. 2K Games has responded after lots of pushback from fans, claiming that the ad placement was an error that will be fixed soon.
Popular Now: You can now apply DLSS 5 Neural Rendering to your entire Windows desktop"As many are aware, in recent years ads have been integrated into 2KTV segments. Yesterday's 2KTV ad placement impacted our players' experience in a way we didn't intend, as these ads are not meant to run as part of the pre-game introduction. This will be fixed in future episodes. Thanks for your continued feedback," 2K Games said.
The ads are basically the game equivalent of commercials during a ball game, and add an extra layer of monetization to an already microtransaction-driven live game. On top of that is NBA 2K21's new $70 next-gen price tag--a price tag that's justified by Take-Two delivering the "highest quality experiences in the business."
Publisher Take-Two has already enjoyed the most successful basketball game earnings of all time with NBA 2K20, and it has high aspirations for NBA 2K21 to follow in its predecessor's footsteps.
