Xbox Series X|S owners may boycott if in-game ads become a reality

Corporate Vice President of Xbox Sarah Bond recently sat down for an interview with Rolling Stone in which she discusses the possibility of introducing new revenue models for Xbox game developers. Bond mentioned that the Xbox team has considered the possibility of in-game advertising,

We’ve talked about how we’re experimenting with other models, like what does it mean for advertising in games which is more prevalent in mobile – are there models of that that work well in PC and console?

The mention of advertising in games didn’t go unnoticed by the Xbox community. Many of them went on social media to voice their displeasure at the mere mention of putting advertising in their games.

Same! Turn my back on Xbox the moment they will do this.

— Old Pixel???? (@OldPixel1984) May 18, 2023

I guess my Xbox will be a paper weight. No one will want too buy it then. I won't even play games on my phone that have ads. I'm sure not going to deal with it on xbox.

— Tifftaff (@shygirlfunny) May 23, 2023

Last year there were rumors circulating that Xbox could introduce a more affordable Xbox Game Pass tier that would be ad-supported. This came in the wake of video streaming platforms Netflix and Disney+ doing the same. A lower-cost, ad-supported Game Pass tier for those that want it would be one thing, but apparently having ads displayed in-game would be a bridge too far for some gamers.

It’s important to note that Microsoft in no way has said anything about bringing ads to Xbox games, and Bond only said it was something they were “experimenting with.” With that said, what’s your take on in-game advertising? It’s something that has mostly been restricted to mobile gaming, but how would you feel if it did come to Xbox games and other platforms? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Via Gaming Bible.