Activision uses AI generated ads of fake Call of Duty and Guitar Hero games for market research

by Danny Craig  · 
Activision uses AI generated ads of fake Call of Duty and Guitar Hero games for market research
Activision

Activision reportedly used generative AI to create advertisements for non-existent Call of Duty and Guitar Hero mobile games in order to conduct market research.

The details:

  • As spotted by several users and later reported by Insider Gaming, Activision recently posted a number of strange-looking advertisements to Instagram for "Guitar Hero Mobile," "Crash Bandicoot: Brawl," "Call of Duty: Zombie Defender," and "Call of Duty: Sniper." However, none of the games have been officially announced or mentioned by Activision in the past, and clicking on the ads directed users to surveys and Geeklab, a market researcher that allows companies to create mock-up app store pages to assess interest.

  • The artwork for the ads immediately raised eyebrows as they all made clear use of generative AI, with fans labeling it as low effort "slop". The Guitar Hero Mobile ad, for example, featured a band all holding four strange "guitars" with the franchise's iconic chart consisting of a random selection of colors and poor attempts to recreate the circular shaped notes. Meanwhile, the Call of Duty ads consisted of generic military and zombie characters, while the Crash Bandicoot Facebook post featured a character with half of its head completely missing.

  • The ads were posted just days after Activision confirmed that it used generative AI in Call of Duty via its Steam store page. While it is unclear to what extent the controversial technology was used, players have discovered a number of cosmetics, such as loading screens, calling cards, and in-game ads, that were clearly AI generated.

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