Some Xbox Fans Aren't Happy About 'Intrusive' Call Of Duty: MW3 Ads

They just spent $69 billion. They're going to go all in shoving the content they just bought down their users' throats.

Edit: That being said, I have no problem with it. It can be easily and quickly skipped with just one button so it's really not intrusive.

People need to calm down the hell down, I swear some Xbox fans will complain about anything.

Nah fair enough. This shouldn't be happening. I bought the console. I am not renting it. I don't have an ad based subscription. I am in my tabs an ad for McDonald's. I mean wtf. If it was a collaboration and I was getting a free burger or something yeah. But a straight up ad. No no and no. If you want to show me ads Xbox, give me online play for free. It's only fair.

People will spend longer complaining about something then it takes to just close the ad and keep living. You see this with new game pass games too. Instead of not liking a genre or art style or story implications and moving on they’ll spend time complaining and writing negative reviews about it.

If this is the future we have to look forward to then just imagine how more Microsoft will push this. Ads anytime I want to access my games and apps? Ads to boot games I own? 30sec videos I'm forced to watch whenever I power up my Xbox?

@Halucigens you realize that if people don't complain it'll get worse? Remember when Microsoft tried to up the price of Gold last year and everyone lost their ***** so Microsoft reversed course and apologized? That happened BECAUSE people lost their ***** and made such a fuss. That didn't happen by being complacent.

@Bmartin001 I don't think people are complaining about this specifically. It's the idea that if Microsoft can get away with this and no one complains then they will slowly keep upping the ante more and more until it gets to the point where you have to watch a 2 minute ad before you can boot up your own games.

@Astig Well, you bought a TV, too. Most of us bought cable service. We bought a computer and internet service. Plenty of ads there.

@theduckofdeath
Hahaha did you seriously just try and justify Xbox making ad revenue at our expense with no compensation? Also your comment makes no sense, only to prove my point. Ads on TV gives me free TV. Netflix (no ads), Disney (no ads). Internet free information. No ads on my computer. No ads in the games I pay for. So if Xbox wants to give me ads, the I need compensation. I like said. Fair!

My wife was quite confused as to why our Xbox One prompted her with this ad when loading up. All she wanted was to hop onto Netflix. The default login account on that box is a non-xbox live account. No Gold or anything. Haven't bought a game or anything. It only exists and is default so that I don't get booted out of my Series X if she were to start up my old Xbox One while I'm on the other box.

@JokerBoy422 and then they scrapped gold? Complain all you want. I just see gamers being one of the biggest whiners of any hobby. It’s just entertainment. It’s supposed to be fun and we all sit here being negative and complaining. You do you but I’ll just hit the b button and exit the ad and play my game. Keep revolutionizing the world! I’ll go back to enjoying EA WRC and having a grin on my face.

Ehh, to me it's no big deal. The B button resolved the issue fast enough.

Always online, drm, tells you what controller your allowed to use, subscription based gaming platform.

The future has arrived.

Remember last gen when people used to call the Xbox the "AdBox"?

Seems Microsoft took that as a suggestion.

@theduckofdeath That's because no one complains about it and people aren't voting with their wallets.

@Zochmenos indoctrinated much?

Well that was the straw that broke the camel's back. I have lots of Xbox stuff for sale if anybody wants it. I just crossed 1,000 games. I have quite a few ground up refurbished Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One consoles as well as relatively new Series X consoles for sale. I also have countless refurbished controllers and accessories. I'm not doing this s_h_i_t anymore. I'm the customer, not the product and I refuse to do business with a company that treats me any differently. This sucks, because now I have to switch everything to Linux as well, so I guess my Microsoft account is also for sale which has about 500 games on it. I just purchased over a hundred disc games in the last month so I'm kind of extra pissed off about this.

Does it really matter, you push a button and it goes away or you push a button and buy the game.
It happened with other games it’s no big deal.

Never had a single ad like this. All I get is the small tile ads. Didn't get it for Starfield or Forza either. Targeted users maybe?

Adbox Series Ad

“Push a button and it goes away” yeh duh. People aren't angry about the extra time it takes to get to their games. They are angry about the principle of Microsoft forcing even MORE advertising down our throats in ever increasingly intrusive ways. As someone said previously when we buy an Xbox we are the consumer, not the product. If I was getting a free service I would expect to see forced ads (e.g YouTube) but when I paid £450 for a series X and then £12 a month for gamepass I don’t need or want it. Would everyone please just stop accepting and making excuses for Microsoft’s mediocrity.

I’m not one for defending large rich corporations but they did spend loads of money to buy Activision and with COD being such a popular series, of course they’re going to advertise it and perhaps it’s over the top but much to do about nothing in my opinion. Press the back button and move on.

I swear the same people in this place moan about absolutely everything, no matter how small or inconsequential it is to their lives. In the grand scheme of life, this is an absolute nothing burger

Asking for compensation, come on, its a advert for a video game not an accident at work that has severely impacted the rest of your life. The entitlement from gamers is truly extraordinary

@Halucigens I never said you couldn't enjoy videogames... i don't think you get it. No one here is complaining about this because they don't want you to enjoy games. People are mad because ads are becoming bigger and bigger everyday. I'm not mad about the one simple MW3 ad today. I'm frustrated because I know what Microsoft is likely to do in the future if we don't cause a fuss. If it causes enough negative feedback that could affect shareholders confidence or at least put them in a negative public viewpoint and then they'll stop or at least pull back a little. And the complaining against Gold last year did work as they pulled back on the price increase so I'm not sure of your point there. They changed what the service is now called a couple months ago but it's still essentially the same service...

I got a similar ad when starfield came out. That's when I turned off the xbox and put it in its box. Will never buy another xbox again. The ads are getting annoyingly ridiculous.

What are we even talking about anymore? They put up a 1-time screen for each of their first party games. You'll see 4 or 5 of these a year. It takes less time to exit out of it then the Xbox start-up splash screen.

Looking at how far from this the hypotheticals that people are making up are really tells you how this isn't actually anything. It like saying people shouldn't be allowed to have cats because they will eventually get lions.

@InvaderFromSpace but we have so far had, redesigned dashboard that shows far more Ads, full screen pop ups. So clearly it’s only going in one direction and it certainly isn’t less ads.

If they want to show ads, then simply do an ad supported tier. That is cheaper, therefore those that don’t mind it can sign up and save some ££. And those of us that don’t like it can have an ad free console.

I drove down the road the other day and BOOM, a billboard popped out of nowhere trying to sell me a big mac. I had to pull over and compose myself. The absolute horror it introduced to my day was astounding!

@InvaderFromSpace This really is the era of fake outrage and "look at me!" talk. I swear a lot of these dudes probably never even go outside the home ...

Wow, people complain about the smallest things. Oh the horror and outrage.

@cburg back when i was growing up we had to actually rewind our movies on a cassette tape! It was horrific. Isn't that MIND BLOWING? lol

@GeeEssEff We paid $500 for a device that cost more than $500 in parts to this day. At launch that gap was even wider. Game development is expensive, and the costs are growing.

No one here commissioned the creation of a console; we are all consumers. The entire point of a console is to be a delivery mechanism of data. They would beam it all into our heads if it was cheaper. MS and whomever else will find a happy medium of ads/MTX/etc. that are not excessively intrusive yet eventually yield profit.

@theduckofdeath it's almost like the people that complain that xbox doesn't have any marketing and needs to do better are complaining that xbox is marketing there stuff lol I was happy they promoted Starfield, happy about Forza, and happy about this. I saw it, clicked a button, and it was gone.

Love seeing the marketing at work. It ain't the boogeyman, here.

@Astig Compensation?!? 🤣 You are demanding compensation? Consoles have not magically remained $500 for twenty years. Instead of complaining, you could funnel that time & energy towards earning & utilizing MS rewards points. Or pursuing a career that makes earning points just another game. Or both.

BTW, what are you going to do with a TV without a source of video? Cable channels all have commercials, despite the fact that we pay a premium. You pay for internet service, and every site has a multitude of ads. Ad Blockers ask you to pay/contribute, and the sites in turn ask you to turn them off. Ads in streaming apps are two-fold; passive (just like Xbox ads) and active/intrusive ads, which interrupt video. When you pay from a premium account, you only eliminate the interruptive ads. BTW, the price of all tiers across many streaming services is climbing, regardless.

@Zochmenos be sure to clutch your pearls with one hand and shake your fist at the sky with the other when you do it.

@theduckofdeath Your statement just describes what is happening. It does not mean it's ok at all.

@Zochmenos It is not an agngry fit. It is me standing up for myself and others. Change doesn't happen by being silent. Businesses operate to provide a service people want, not the other way around. I like a lot of what they are doing in the games and on the hardware side. I do not like my device slowly and secretly converting itself to an ad supported device even though I paid full price for it. It's like others are saying, "it's a slippery slope". First it was those little squares on the dashboard and then the recent dashboard update that converted the dashboard into a full fledged ad space for game pass and now full screen ads when you start the console. THIS IS NOT OK MICROSOFT! Again, as others have said, "this is a slippery slope" and I will not stand for it. I will speak up about it. If they don't change it, they loose a life long customer. Also, I am totally ok with paid DLC as long as it is good quality and I am not OK with unfinished games releasing. I can't grasp the concept of someone who is ok with unfinished products and giving free ad space to a giant corporation on property that you purchased from them. I'm having my attorney send Microsoft a cease and decist with the ads on my property and a fee scedule if they do not comply. All legally binding in court. Everyone should do this as well and they will rethink their strategy.

@ZYDIO The ad in question is so inconsequential that we are all wasting our time discussing it.

@theduckofdeath Just because it isn't important to you, does not mean it isn't important.

@Zochmenos If they do not reverse what they have done, I definitely will get rid of my stuff. I did it with Sony and my Playstation stuff years ago when they stole my purchases on my account. I also sued them in court for it and won. I guess have fun with your 30 minute infomercial that you will have to watch before you get to your dashboard ad on your AdBox Series Ad in the near future.

@Zochmenos I say we all make a support group and meet up. Maybe we can go to every company that does advertising and protest outside said company. That could take a while ...

Some people 🐑 here can't wait to play games filled with product placement and ads everywhere.

If nobody says anything, they will assume that is ok and and we like it.

Wouldn't be surprised at this rate if within a few years because of the Activision acquisition being approved, the Xbox experience becomes like those mobile games where you have to watch a long, unskippable video ad to do anything.

Turn on the console -> watch a long video ad to get to the dashboard -> select a game -> watch another long video ad before it starts loading -> load your save file if a single player game -> watch another long video ad to get into the game -> you die ingame -> watch yet another long video ad to reload the last checkpoint or save -> process repeats throughout your whole gameplay session

I wonder how long before companies will start putting commercials on cable and marketing on food products ... oh my God ... IT'S HAPPENING!

@Zochmenos indeed. Makes you wonder if any of these people could have survived even 20-30 years ago. It's the participation trophy era where people just want to complain about the most trivial things because they're bored with home life. They probably don't even play games, really.

@Zochmenos when sony raised prices to $70 at the beginning of the generation did they take a stand? Nope. When Nintendo closed the virtual console and nickel dimed for lazy ports of older games did they take a stand? Nope. When someone charges you $30 for a stand that used to be included did they take a stand? Nope. But an ad for a new product that takes 1 second to click away is the final straw.

I needed a good laugh, today, man.

Press a button it's gone no problem

@Zochmenos That noise is what brings change, silence brings nothing.

@GeeEssEff I agree. I just to enjoy playing good games and want to enjoy the platform I use. I don't care what brand it is until I'm done wrong. That's when I say something. I will not defend a brand or company for being a brand or company. I technically don't care for any of the companies, I just pick the most tolerable.

@Zochmenos Freedom is the endgame.

@J_Mo_Money Those things you just listed happened on Nintendo and Sony platforms. I do not own any of those so I have no need to say anything about them. I do agree that what they did was wrong but it doesn't affect me directly so I have no need to speak of about it.

@Zochmenos if you're referring to me, why do you keep referring to me as an old man? I am anything but. Though, I am someone who stands up for myself and what I think is right. I find it disgusting that so many people are defending a mega corporation that only exists to take your money any way they can. It's like you are pulling your pants down, bending over and begging to be fist f_u_c_k_e_d in the a_s_s constantly. The indoctrination of the weak minded is REAL.

@ebony-shabba The ease of dismissal isn't the problem. It's the reason the dismissal exists that is.

@Zochmenos I am not concerned with money losses. That is for shallow people. I am most concerned about freedom, respect and integrity.

@themightyant Does the Switch even have high enough resolution to display additional and legible ad tiles? 😉 I don't own one — well, I can't really count Ryujinx or Yuzu. 😄

OK...Steam PC shows you ads first thing on boot up, unless there is an available update; then the ads come second. Steam Deck show ads on the Home screen. There's push down a bit because of the resolution and tile size.

For Xbox, you listed everything you would see if you scrolled down ten times. That is rather disingenuous. The main screen you are met with on login shows a large store tile and about 3 ad tiles across the bottom row. The top row tiles are smaller "recently used" shortcuts. You can tap up once and click once to get to all your games.

I agree that the tiles on the main page could be dropped down, go invisible when idle, or undergo a shrinking the ad tiles. That would make the background more visible. I am not concerned with the ads themselves.

However, what good is an ad that is hidden from view? A positive side effect on the main page zero (and in the GamePass section) is to bring visibility to indie developers and smaller, often overlooked games.

@ZYDIO i question whether anyone is really "effected" by this, though. I click the B button and its gone forever.

I don't even look at ads on my xbox. I start my console up and play the game almost immediately. I always know what i'm looking for so there's no need to do endless scrolling to find any of these ads.

I have no problem ignoring them entirely. They don't effect me in the slightest.

@themightyant you make perfect points. But as always people will defend it.

All the info aside I reckon it will be more accepting to US owners compared to European as we seem to be more unforgiving with this kind of stuff.

Doesn’t bother me but in truth I’ve never had a full screen on on my Series X. If I get one then it sounds like pressing one button will remove the add, hardly tricky!

What I find more perplexing is why anyone might buy this - it’ll be on Gamepass in a few months anyway so why shell out c£70 for it now?

@theduckofdeath You really are comparing a full screen full of ads on a box you paid, in a service you already paid to 3 tiles that are just part of the wake up process?

I wish i could insult you, honestly.

@ZYDIO I get what you are saying but still it's a non problem for me to be honest but different strokes and all that

Ugh. Awful.

Never been happier to have my spartan Switch homescreen with its beautiful little game tiles and nothing else.

@Faruko Go ahead, clown. You're b1tching about a splash ad that pops up once and is dismissed as quickly as it appears. An ad mechanism that has been around a couple months and may very well just be an experiment. Somehow something so insignificant is significant to your life. You insult yourself.

Reading the comments and I'm not sure why so many people are getting offensive over differences in opinion, but hey that's how a lot of wars happen - am I right? 🤷‍♂️😅

Personally I'm not a fan. Sure it's one button press but it started from changing the dashboard into adverts at the cost of a simpler and easier to use interface. Considering how it's developed/progress in a short time, what next? An advert that forces you to watch for 20 seconds before you can skip? Perhaps a 20 second advert everytime you switch games? Hmm might not be long until games become shifted for more ad-heavier games... Sounds like the reason why I stopped playing anything on the mobile phone.

I know I'm only making predictions, but if it's happened on another platform, I can't see why it won't happen here.

In their financial plans Microsoft made it clear they are targetting significant income rises from advertising from the xbox group.
This is the start of what that will mean, and I suspect this will become a common occurrence.
Its not what I want from a games console I bought, and its something I never experience on other consoles. Now that xbox employees now include some total scumbag managers still nesling under Boby Koticks evil shadow, and some of the people responsable for almost evil levels of monitisation, im thinking long and hard about if I can continue gaming on this platform. Ive bouycotted activision for years, Ive seen nothing so far to have any trust those issues have been, or will be, tackled.
Its not that I have to press a B button to get back to my ad laden dashboard, thats merely a symptom. Its a slow steady drip of Microsoft actually becoming the Pantomime villain people have been incorrectly labelling them as for years.
Ive just discovered my gp ultimate subscription is up next month and I dont have another year stacked like I thought I did. Its still great value, but given the transformation MS are going through I dont know if I can support them with a new sub yet.
Im waffling again, sorry all..

Intrusive adds would be a clear reason to ditch the Xbox as there are other alternatives where this doesn't happen. Thankfully I haven't seen any yet.

@ebony-shabba It's all irrelevant now. I purposely rubbed all of my disc games on the concrete, stepped on all of the cases and then let them soak in the pool all night to ruin the artwork. Then I drove that soggy mess up to Gamestop and dropped them off so they can deal with them. Then I took all of my xbox hardware outside and smashed it on the street and then ran over whatever I could afterwards with my car. My Microsoft account is now for sale with over 500 xbox games on it if anyone is interested. Screw Microsoft for becoming worse than Google, Apple and Sony. I'M OUT!!!! --- Drops mic --- Haha.

P.S. This site is just a bunch of ads for Xbox anyways. Its no different than the xbox dashbaord lately.

@ZYDIO Can't argue with that