

{"id":26665,"date":"2025-01-31T13:50:14","date_gmt":"2025-01-31T18:50:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/?p=26665"},"modified":"2025-02-12T10:38:27","modified_gmt":"2025-02-12T15:38:27","slug":"beyond-banner-ads-my-neopet-loves-mcdonalds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/blog\/beyond-banner-ads-my-neopet-loves-mcdonalds\/","title":{"rendered":"Beyond Banner Ads (My Neopet Loves McDonalds)"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"689\" src=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/1227097_jpg-1024x689.jpg\" alt=\"Young girl works on a computer, 2006, gift of Kristy Allen Hisert, The Strong National Museum of Play, Rochester, New York.\" class=\"wp-image-26666\" style=\"width:339px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/1227097_jpg-1024x689.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/1227097_jpg-300x202.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/1227097_jpg-768x516.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/1227097_jpg-1536x1033.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/1227097_jpg-2048x1377.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Young girl works on a computer, 2006, gift of Kristy Allen Hisert, The Strong National Museum of Play, Rochester, New York.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Having been born in the 1990s, I grew up during an era of growing availability of home computers and internet. Each new piece of technology, software, and online game was a novelty. I remember buying the <em>Catz 5 <\/em>and <em>Dogz 5<\/em> games before we had a computer capable of running them and reading the manuals over and over until I could finally play. The advent of online gaming sites, especially those geared toward children, holds the most nostalgia for me. While I could wax poetic about my memories of that era, I\u2019ve been thinking lately about the ripple effect of something a little more divisive that found its root in these early online games: immersive advertising.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"450\" height=\"425\" src=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Neopia-Central-Map_jpg.jpg\" alt=\"Neopia Central Map. Photo courtesy of Neopets Wiki user SetJetter45 through Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License.\" class=\"wp-image-26668\" style=\"width:236px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Neopia-Central-Map_jpg.jpg 450w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Neopia-Central-Map_jpg-300x283.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Neopia Central Map. Photo courtesy of Neopets Wiki user SetJetter45 through Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"868\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/105448_jpg-868x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Happy Meal: Neopets, 2004, gift of Franklin Sciacca, The Strong, Rochester, New York.\" class=\"wp-image-26667\" style=\"width:239px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/105448_jpg-868x1024.jpg 868w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/105448_jpg-254x300.jpg 254w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/105448_jpg-768x906.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/105448_jpg-1302x1536.jpg 1302w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/105448_jpg.jpg 1485w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 868px) 100vw, 868px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Happy Meal: Neopets, 2004, gift of Franklin Sciacca, The Strong, Rochester, New York.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p><em>Neopets <\/em>was a gaming staple of my middle school years. It had everything: pet care simulation, customizability, socialization, an extensive economy, lore, daily activities, games, and more. Many of us even took our first foray into HTML coding in <em>Neopets<\/em>. <em>Neopets<\/em> was also one of the early leaders in immersive advertising in a game that, while not necessarily exclusively for children, was one that surely attracted lots of kids. Immersive advertising was a buzz-phrase coined by the company under Doug Dohring\u2019s tenure to reflect its approach to advertising. The phrase was actually trademarked with a 2001 filing that lasted until 2009. It encompassed the company\u2019s strategy of using product and brand placement within the game itself as a way to engage players with those products and brands in a more interactive way.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"961\" height=\"598\" src=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Pika-Seek_jpg.jpg\" alt=\"Pika Seek. Image courtesy of Neopets Wiki user Spacerocks14 through Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License.\" class=\"wp-image-26670\" style=\"width:268px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Pika-Seek_jpg.jpg 961w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Pika-Seek_jpg-300x187.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Pika-Seek_jpg-768x478.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 961px) 100vw, 961px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Pika Seek. Image courtesy of Neopets Wiki user Spacerocks14 through Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"667\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Adver-Video_jpg.jpg\" alt=\"Adver-Video. Image courtesy of Neopets Wiki user Ji Robinson through Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License.\" class=\"wp-image-26669\" style=\"width:300px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Adver-Video_jpg.jpg 667w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Adver-Video_jpg-300x169.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 667px) 100vw, 667px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Adver-Video. Image courtesy of Neopets Wiki user Ji Robinson through Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Immersive advertising exhibited itself most obviously through in-game products. You could virtually own Capri Sun juice pouches, Lunchables, Oreo snacks, and more. To live your true early-2000s dreams, you could even pick up some EZ Squirt Blastin\u2019 Green ketchup or a Pok\u00e9mon 2000 poster for your Neohome. Some brands like McDonald\u2019s or Zazzle even had their own stores in the game. The products weren\u2019t the only brand placements. According to the Neopian Times, the Disney Theater offered opportunities to \u201cplay the latest Disney themed games, or pop by the screening room to watch trailers from new releases.\u201d There was also a game called <em>Adver-Video <\/em>that provided opportunities to earn Neopoints watching advertisements. <em>Neopets<\/em> was the home of a variety of Flash games that also provided an opportunity for brands to get involved, spawning games like <em>Pikachu\u2019s Pika Seek at the Pok\u00e9mon Factory, General Mills Cereal Adventure, Coca-Cola Bubble Pop!, Apple Jacks Crashers, and Attack of the Plaque! <\/em>(promoting Crest\u2019s SpinBrush).<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"420\" height=\"320\" src=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Apple-Harvest_jpg.jpg\" alt=\"Kool-Aid Jammers Apple Harvest emulator screenshot. Image courtesy of Internet Archives user Computerdude77.\" class=\"wp-image-26671\" style=\"width:279px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Apple-Harvest_jpg.jpg 420w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Apple-Harvest_jpg-300x229.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 420px) 100vw, 420px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kool-Aid Jammers Apple Harvest emulator screenshot. Image courtesy of Internet Archives user Computerdude77.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>While Neopets was a leader in immersive advertising in the children\u2019s gaming sphere, a larger ecosystem was evolving online with this model in mind. Brands were realizing that people like to play games, and an engaging Flash game or two could keep kids coming back to their websites again and again. \u201cAdvergames\u201d weren\u2019t new. The arcade game <em>Tapper <\/em>was originally sponsored by Anheuser-Busch to sell beer and<em> Polo<\/em> was created by Carol Shaw to promote Ralph Lauren\u2019s cologne of the same name (though it was cancelled before release). However, the ease of producing Flash games for wide consumption spurred the production of these advergames. Some sites released a few games and others released entire online arcades like Post\u2019s <em>Postopia<\/em> which had games like <em>Kool-Aid Jammers: Apple Harvest<\/em> and <em>Honeycomb Factory Frenzy<\/em>. My after-school routine often took me on a tour of the websites for Barbie, Bratz, My Scene, and Disney Channel, all of which were stocked with games to play.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"970\" height=\"720\" src=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Gushers-Re-Do-Your-Room.jpg\" alt=\"Gushers Re-Do Your Room, game uploaded to Internet Archives by user Renelda E., screenshot courtesy of the author.\" class=\"wp-image-26673\" style=\"width:266px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Gushers-Re-Do-Your-Room.jpg 970w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Gushers-Re-Do-Your-Room-300x223.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Gushers-Re-Do-Your-Room-768x570.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 970px) 100vw, 970px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gushers Re-Do Your Room, game uploaded to Internet Archives by user Renelda E., screenshot courtesy of the author.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" src=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Millsberry-Arcade.jpg\" alt=\"Millsberry Arcade. Photo courtesy of Millsberry Wiki user Moneyman18 through Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License.\" class=\"wp-image-26672\" style=\"width:295px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Millsberry-Arcade.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Millsberry-Arcade-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Millsberry Arcade. Photo courtesy of Millsberry Wiki user Moneyman18 through Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>What I remember most, though, are the brands that took this to the next level and developed immersive gaming worlds, that just happened to be all about their brand. Instead of paying a company like <em>Neopets <\/em>to include their brand within their world, they just made their own. I was actually a Millsberry player before I was a <em>Neopets<\/em> player. Launched in 2004 by General Mills, players could customize their character, decorate their house, go shopping, and of course play lots of General Mills themed mini-games featuring brand names like Lucky Charms and Reese\u2019s Puffs. Maybe I\u2019m just another cleverly netted consumer, but I dream of <em>Millsberry<\/em> resurrecting from its 2010 sunset. Lesser known, but firmly planted in my memory, was <em>Gusher\u2019s Re-Do Your Room<\/em> which was created to promote the Gusher\u2019s 2005 room remodel sweepstakes and provided players an opportunity to decorate their rooms and visit their friend\u2019s rooms. Though less expansive than a site like <em>Millsberry<\/em>, it still engaged players with customizability. Is it a surprise that General Mills is also behind that brand?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Moving forward in time, more brands picked up on the successes of the MMO (massively-multiplayer online) game format. <em>Nicktropolis<\/em>, by Nickelodeon, was launched in 2007. Build-a-Bear launched their online world <em>Bearville<\/em> in 2007 to allow customers to bring their purchases into a virtual world\u2014likely inspired by <em>Webkinz,<\/em> a brand of stuffed toy that took the market by storm with its digital component when launched in 2005.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"821\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/11810677_jpg-821x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Xbox One Fortnite, 2017, The Strong, Rochester, New York.\" class=\"wp-image-26674\" style=\"width:222px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/11810677_jpg-821x1024.jpg 821w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/11810677_jpg-241x300.jpg 241w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/11810677_jpg-768x958.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/11810677_jpg-1232x1536.jpg 1232w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/11810677_jpg.jpg 1386w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 821px) 100vw, 821px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Xbox One Fortnite, 2017, The Strong, Rochester, New York.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Fast forward to the present and the results of the immersive advertising testing field that was the aughts can be seen in many of today\u2019s most popular games. <em>Fortnite<\/em> is known for brand collaborations, particularly in cosmetic items and special locations. The game has included skins and characters from Marvel, <em>Star Wars, The Walking Dead, Street Fighter, Naruto: Shippuden,<\/em> and more. There have been locations related to IPs (intellectual properties) like Batman\u2019s Gotham City and Iron Man\u2019s Stark Industries. Items have been made available from fashion brands like Ralph Lauren and Nike and partners like the NFL. <em>Fortnite <\/em>has also been host to special experiences like <em>Stranger Things<\/em>-inspired Upside Down portals, Ferrari\u2019s in-game test drives, and concerts from the likes of Marshmello and Travis Scott. The addition of Fortnite Creative and Unreal Editor for Fortnite has expanded branded opportunities by enabling the creation of custom islands like One Piece\u2014Straw Hats vs Marines, Coachella Island, and Whataburger Breakfast in Bedwars.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"473\" src=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Roblox-Gag-City-1024x473.jpg\" alt=\"Screenshot of Roblox Gag City, 2024, courtesy of the author.\" class=\"wp-image-26676\" style=\"width:284px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Roblox-Gag-City-1024x473.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Roblox-Gag-City-300x138.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Roblox-Gag-City-768x354.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Roblox-Gag-City-1536x709.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Roblox-Gag-City-2048x945.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Screenshot of Roblox Gag City, 2024, courtesy of the author.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"473\" src=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Roblox-Nextworld-1024x473.jpg\" alt=\"Screenshot of Roblox Nextworld, 2024, courtesy of the author.\" class=\"wp-image-26675\" style=\"width:293px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Roblox-Nextworld-1024x473.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Roblox-Nextworld-300x138.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Roblox-Nextworld-768x354.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Roblox-Nextworld-1536x709.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/app\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Roblox-Nextworld-2048x945.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Screenshot of Roblox Nextworld, 2024, courtesy of the author.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p><em>Roblox<\/em> has also created the perfect platform for advergames. As a \u201cvirtual universe,\u201d <em>Roblox <\/em>hosts a variety of virtual worlds and allows users to create their own. As a result, it\u2019s become the perfect launching platform for brands to meet kids right where they\u2019re already playing. They even have a whole subsection of their <a href=\"https:\/\/brands.roblox.com\/\">website<\/a> dedicated to helping brands utilize <em>Roblox<\/em>, with the tagline \u201c77.7M users, 2.4 hrs daily. Only on Roblox.\u201d As a site with its own infrastructure and tools, it also allows brands to be flexible, responsive, and current. Netflix recently created Nextworld, Nicki Minaj launched Gag City in late 2023 to promote her new album, last back-to-school season Walmart teamed up with various brands for Supercampus, and Nickelodeon had Nickverse until pivoting to specific brand activations like SpongeBob Simulator and TMNT: Battle Tycoon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While <em>Neopets<\/em> has largely moved on from their days of immersive advertising and brand partnerships\u2014many of the branded in-game items have since been converted to more generic equivalents\u2014its impact is still seen. Today, many of the branded Flash games, gaming websites, and immersive worlds of my childhood are gone, but the advertising philosophy isn\u2019t. With the popularity of games like <em>Fortnite<\/em> and <em>Roblox <\/em>and their metaverse approach, brands have been given the tools to meet players within their favorite games in the next generation of immersive advertising. The gaming world may continue to evolve, but I suspect that meeting players where they play, in the multi-billion-dollar gaming industry, will continue to be a successful brand strategy for many years to come.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Having been born in the 1990s, I grew up during an era of growing availability of home computers and internet. Each new piece of technology, software, and online game was a novelty. I remember buying the Catz 5 and Dogz 5 games before we had a computer capable of running them and reading the manuals over and over until I could finally play. The advent of online gaming sites, especially those geared toward children, holds the most nostalgia for me. [&#8230;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":85,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"8727,8033,7015,7365,7919,7620","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[48,46,49],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26665","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-electronic-games","category-games","category-video-games","entry","has-post-thumbnail"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Beyond Banner Ads (My Neopet Loves McDonalds) - The Strong National Museum of Play<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.museumofplay.org\/blog\/beyond-banner-ads-my-neopet-loves-mcdonalds\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Beyond Banner Ads (My Neopet Loves McDonalds) - The Strong National Museum of Play\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Having been born in the 1990s, I grew up during an era of growing availability of home computers and internet. Each new piece of technology, software, and online game was a novelty. I remember buying the Catz 5 and Dogz 5 games before we had a computer capable of running them and reading the manuals over and over until I could finally play. The advent of online gaming sites, especially those geared toward children, holds the most nostalgia for me. 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