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Nexon launches investigation into claims AI-generated The First Descendant ads were used on TikTok
Esports

Nexon launches investigation into claims AI-generated The First Descendant ads were used on TikTok

by admin August 18, 2025


Nexon said it has launched an investigation after The First Descendant players noticed a number of seemingly AI-generated advertisements on TikTok, including one that used a content creator’s likeness without permission.

The developer/publisher issued a statement after Reddit user iHardlyTriHard penned a viral post collating four AI-like advertisements they had found after “only 10-15 minutes” browsing their For You Page.

The statement did not apologize directly for the AI advertisements but did apologize for “the delay in providing notice as the [investigative] review is taking longer than expected.” Nexon did not, however, explain when it was notified of the adverts, or when it launched its review.

Nexon said it wanted to “inform [players] of certain irregularities identified in the operation of [its] TikTok Creative Challenge for creators,” and said the campaign “allows creators to voluntarily submit their content to be used as advertising materials.” It also stressed that all submitted videos had been “verified through TikTok’s system.”

“However, we have become aware of cases where the circumstances surrounding the production of certain submitted videos appear inappropriate,” the statement added. “Thus, we are conducting a thorough joint investigation with TikTok to determine the facts.

“We sincerely apologize for the delay in providing this notice as the review is taking longer than expected. Once the verification is complete, we will promptly share an update through an official notice. Thank you for your patience and understanding.”

Nexon has yet to respond to DanieltheDemon’s public claim that he “did not consent for my likeness to be used.”



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August 18, 2025 0 comments
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The First Descendant is using bizarre AI ads, at least one of which appears to be a clone of a real content creator
Game Reviews

The First Descendant is using bizarre AI ads, at least one of which appears to be a clone of a real content creator

by admin August 17, 2025


The First Descendant developer/publisher Nexon has been accused of using a series of “embarrassing” AI-generated TikTok advertisements, at least one of which is alleged to have imitated a real content creator.

As collated by u/iHardlyTriHard on Reddit by scrolling on their For You Page for just 15 minutes, they came across four ads, along with another two “low effort ads that aren’t specifically AI”.

As the OP points out, the issue isn’t the use of generative AI in and of itself, but the fact that at least one ad uses the likeness of DanieltheDemon – and we don’t yet know if it was with their consent or not.

The AI ads are worse than you think
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“It’s really a kick in the teeth to TFD content creators for them to be using AI for ads like this instead of actual content creators, especially since Nexon Creators has over 8.8k people signed up to it,” the post author explained.

“If I saw these ads before playing the game, I’d assume the game was 1) fake, 2) some sort of scam, virus, or phishing attempt,” said one player.

Some players report that the team behind The First Descendant’s TikTok account are “deleting comments” from people who call the ads out, and “they delete and re-upload the AI ads whenever they get too much backlash in the comments”.

At the time of writing, Nexon has not publicly commented on feedback from players about the advertisements. Eurogamer has reached out for comment and will confirm if/when we hear back.

At the end of July, players similiarly hit out at The Alters developer 11 Bit Studios after AI prompts were discovered in both subtitles and flavour text in the game, intimating routine use of large language models (LLMs) without disclosure. 11 Bit Studios later insisted the controversial elements discovered by players were either “temporary” assets “never intended to be part of the final release” or used in a “very limited manner”.



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August 17, 2025 0 comments
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New Xbox 360 Update Adds More Ads 20 Years After Launch
Game Updates

New Xbox 360 Update Adds More Ads 20 Years After Launch

by admin June 26, 2025



Photo: Kotaku / Xbox

Today, some folks turned on their Xbox 360s to discover Microsoft has updated the aging device. The new update fixes an annoying issue bugging players for a bit now, but it also slaps two big ads on the home screen for Xbox’s newest consoles.

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As spotted by True Achievements on June 25, some players on the Xbox 360 subreddit shared the news that their old consoles looked a bit different when they booted them up. To their surprise, Xbox has updated the nearly 20-year-old Xbox 360 to fix an issue with game thumbnails and box art stretching out and looking weird. That’s nice! What’s less nice is that the console now has more ads on it.

I booted up my Xbox 360 to confirm that yes, the dashboard has been slightly updated. And I can also confirm that it now sports two different ads for the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S consoles on the home dashboard. One of these ads is a picture showing the newer consoles. That’s it. The other one is a QR code. That’s it. If you click on them, they do nothing at all. Neither ad even says “Xbox Series X/S” or lists a price or anything.

My guess is that Xbox wanted these ads to be something they don’t have to update for a long time, if ever, so they just slapped a QR code on the dashboard, allowing them to tweak the webpage it sends you to instead of having to update a 20-year-old console again in a few years.

While it’s nice that Xbox fixed a strange graphical bug that’s been a problem ever since Microsoft killed the Xbox 360’s servers in July 2024, it still feels really desperate of the company to shove new ads into the aging machine’s dashboard two decades later. Like, come on, let it retire in peace. Stop using the corpse of your past victories to promote new shit.

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June 26, 2025 0 comments
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WhatsApp is officially getting ads
Gaming Gear

WhatsApp is officially getting ads

by admin June 16, 2025


WhatsApp is rolling out ads. In an update on Monday, Meta announced that it will now show ads from businesses through its Stories-like status feature.

The status feature lives within WhatsApp’s “Updates” tab and allows users to share disappearing text, photo, voice notes, or video messages. But now, you might see sponsored content in addition to the updates shared by friends or family members.

Meta says it will tailor the ads to your interests by using “limited” information, including your country or city, language, the channels you follow, and how you interact with ads on the platform. You can also change your ad preferences from Meta’s Accounts Center if you’ve opted into the hub.

“We’ve been talking about our plans to build a business that does not interrupt your personal chats for years and we believe the Updates tab is the right place for these new features to work,” Meta writes in its update. The company says it “will never sell or share your phone numbers to advertisers,” adding that it won’t use your messages, calls, or groups to inform its ads.

This isn’t the only change Meta is making to WhatsApp. The company will also start showing promoted channels when you click on the Explore button to find new ones to follow. It’s also rolling out the ability to subscribe to channels to “receive exclusive updates” as well.



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June 16, 2025 0 comments
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youtube logo on red background
Esports

YouTube rolls out more unskippable ads that make viewers wait even longer to watch videos

by admin June 13, 2025



YouTube is testing a series of new unskippable ads that will appear far more often for viewers.

Google-owned YouTube has been upping its ad game for years now, introducing pause screen ads, shutting down adblockers and even using AI to show ads when viewers are most engaged.

Now, the video platform is once again finding another way to implement advertisements by beta testing 30-second non-skippable ads in regular campaigns.

In other words, YouTube is giving advertisers yet another method to show you commercials.

Article continues after ad

YouTube tests new 30-second unskippable ad format

As reported by Search Engine Land, 30-second ads used to be reserved through YouTube Reservation deals, but now, Google Ads is allowing more advertisers to include 30-second ads in regular campaigns.

According to Swipe Insight, this ad format will allow advertisers to show video ads between 16–30 seconds exclusively on TV screens, which include Smart TVs and Chromecast devices.

Additionally, these 30-second unskippable ads are being rolled out alongside 6-second bumper ads and 15-second unskippable ads.

Article continues after ad

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YouTube

This test is already being well received with Anthony Higman, the CEO of ADSQUIRE, claiming that users will “probably” watch 30-second ads.

“…the 15 second non-skippable YouTube ad format is my all time favorite,” he said. “These can be targeted to keywords and audiences and the user must watch the ad to get to the content they want to watch.”

Search Engine Land also warns that viewers will need to get used to waiting longer to watch videos than they already do, or opt to bite the bullet and subscribe to Premium.

Article continues after ad

However, if you watch a lot of Shorts, you may want to avoid Premium Lite, as YouTube recently announced that ads will begin appearing on that content, even for paying users.

That said, for those wanting to save money, the platform is working on a new Spotify-style subscription that will give two people access to Premium for a little bit less than purchasing two individual plans.

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June 13, 2025 0 comments
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AMC Will Soon Start Adding More Ads Before The Movie Starts
Game Reviews

AMC Will Soon Start Adding More Ads Before The Movie Starts

by admin June 5, 2025



Screenshot: Kotaku / FOX / Disney

AMC, the largest theater chain in the United States, will soon start showing even more commercials before the start of a movie. This is on top of the usual 20 minutes of trailers and ads already shown before most films.

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On June 3, Bloomberg reported that AMC Theaters has reached an agreement with National CineMedia, one of the largest cinema advertisers in the country, to start running more ads directly before a film starts. This is described by CineMedia as a “platinum spot” and is much harder for moviegoers to skip as it plays just minutes before the movie begins. It also means that the already long stretch of trailers and ads that play before a movie may soon be closer to 25 minutes, or even more.

Starting July 1, AMC will begin running ads in this “platinum spot” nationwide. AMC will get a cut of the ad revenue from these spots, with the company calling it “vital revenue.”

For nearly six years, AMC was the only major theater chain that refused to let CineMedia run ads right after the trailers but before the movie had actually started. At the time, AMC said it didn’t play ball with CineMedia because it believed moviegoers would react “quite negatively” to more ads being squeezed into theaters. It was the sole holdout as Cinemark and Regal agreed to the deal. But now, in 2025 and after some of the worst box office years ever, thanks to COVID-19, AMC is taking the deal.

“While AMC was initially reluctant to bring this to our theaters, our competitors have fully participated for more than five years without any direct impact to their attendance,” said the company in an email seen by Bloomberg.

If you’ve been to a movie in the last few years, you know there are a ton of ads and trailers to sit through before the film starts. Some of these are just TV commercials. It’s annoying. And now, even people who skip those ads might be sitting down just in time to catch one more ad before the movie starts.

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June 5, 2025 0 comments
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Activision Says It Accidentally Added More Ads To Call Of Duty
Game Reviews

Activision Says It Accidentally Added More Ads To Call Of Duty

by admin June 4, 2025



Image: Activision / Kotaku

Last week, players noticed something gross and annoying in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Warzone. Following a big update for the new season, many angry players spotted ads for bundles and battle passes in never-before-seen places, like inside the loadout menu. Activision now says this was all just a big whoopsie and has removed the ads.

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On May 29, Call of Duty news and rumors outlet CharlieIntel reported that players were encountering more ads in Black Ops 6 and Warzone following Call of Duty’s big season 4 update. The annoying and obtrusive ads were popping up in the loadout and the class creation menus, as well as in the events section of each game’s menus. The loadout menu in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Warzone is likely the place in which players spend the most time when not actually shooting people in-game. And to suddenly see cosmetic and season pass ads shoved in here angered many. It seems the backlash was so intense that Activision stepped in to remove them all.

On June 2, the official Call of Duty “updates” account run by Activision tweeted out a short message addressing the annoying ads, explaining that they were added to the games “in error.”

“A UI feature test that surfaced select store content in the Loadout menus was published in the Season 04 update in error. This feature has now been removed from the live game,” said Activision.

Of course, many players didn’t buy this explanation, with some suggesting that Activision quietly added it in to see what the reaction would be, and when players went nuclear, backed off. Even if you take Activision’s word that it was mistakenly added, the fact that it was even testing the idea of adding more advertisements into more parts of Call of Duty means it was clearly being considered. And that’s concerning.

This is a franchise with some of the worst, most ad-riddled and ugly menus in all of modern video games. To shove even more ads into the few areas of CoD that are still useful and useable is gross, especially when you remember that Activision still charges $60+ for new Call of Duty games and sells an endless list of in-game cosmetics every day. Did the company really need to test out more ways to squeeze in ads? I don’t think so, and based on how players reacted, I’m sure Activision will be careful about adding more advertisements in the near future.

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June 4, 2025 0 comments
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Activision claims Call of Duty loadout ads for microtransactions were a test it published accidentally following intense community outrage
Game Updates

Activision claims Call of Duty loadout ads for microtransactions were a test it published accidentally following intense community outrage

by admin June 4, 2025


Activision has claimed advertisements for microtransactions Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Call of Duty: Warzone players were seeing on their loadouts were added by mistake, following intense community fallout.

This announcement came from the official Call of Duty Twitter account, which posted, “A UI feature test that surfaced select store content in the Loadout menus was published in the Season 04 update in error. This feature has now been removed from the live game.”

Reactions to this post aren’t exactly glowing in positivity. Twitter users expressed their disbelief in the statement, unconvinced that a feature like loadout ads were accidentally implemented, rather they were pulled down following negative feedback. One user wrote, “this some soviet era level gaslighting”.

You can watch the Season 4 trailer here, if you need a catch-up on what’s new.Watch on YouTube

This controversial addition at the weekend came alongside the game’s fourth season, and essentially meant that every time you swapped weapons you’d see a billboard-style poster shilling a premium skin. This, as you can imagine, went down like a lead balloon among the Call of Duty community, with one player on Reddit writing, “actively witnessing call of duty become the krusty krab”.

The Season 4 update also brought with it the returning Verdansk map to Warzone, widely believed to be the best map the game has ever had, with a variety of new additions to mix things up for older players.

At the same time, Activision continues its years-long struggle against cheaters, recently allowing players to turn off crossplay in order to help avoid cheaters, a nasty group of ne’er-do-wells Activision admits are most prominently found on PC.



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June 4, 2025 0 comments
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Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 now shows you microtransaction ads when you swap weapons
Game Reviews

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 now shows you microtransaction ads when you swap weapons

by admin June 1, 2025


Eagle-eyed Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 players have spotted a new feature on the weapon selection menu.

Right at the top there now sits advertisements promoting premium weapons and skins, so players get exposed to ads for microtransactions in-game.

As some players point out, it’s not an advert in the classic sense, and no one’s trying to flog you a cheeseburger or a pair of jeans every time you swap a weapon. Nonetheless, it’s a new and insidious addition that we haven’t seen in Call of Duty games before.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Opening Scene and Gameplay (4K).Watch on YouTube

“One of the unwelcome changes I’ve noticed with Season 4 is that they’ve now inserted a new ad spot at the top of the list of your weapon specifics builds,” wrote one player. “So now every time you toggle between weapon builds you get to stare at ads for $20-$30 skins. I’m sure the Activision developer who suggested this terrible feature is very proud of themselves.

“This change is especially unneeded because you could already toggle from Builds to Shop on any given weapon and apparently not being thrown directly in our faces didn’t make them enough money. Many of us payed [sic] $60-$100 for a feature game and don’t want to be bombarded with additional ads.”

“Actively witnessing Call of Duty become [SpongeBob SquarePants’] the Krusty Krab,” replied another.

Season 4 brings new ad spot in game for weapons
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“Well guys looks like COD can suck a fat one,” replied someone else. “This ad mess is ridiculous. They make huge bank already for them to even do this should be illegal. I’ve never been done with a COD this fast ever. But she’s getting deleted. You can’t scrounge people for money and not have a decent game. I’m not asking for a great game, just not a buggy game.”

In a separate thread that’s been upvoted almost a thousand times, one player opined: “I wouldn’t even be mad if this was just in warzone, a free game, but putting it in a pay-to-play premium title, with how expensive they’re getting?”

“Agree 100%, it really feels like one of those free cell phone games from a tiny indie studio begging you for money at every turn. Pathetic for a full price, stand alone game from a huge developer,” replied another.

Earlier this year, in a update shared on social media, developer Treyarch said it recognised cheaters “are frustrating and severely impact the experience for our community” but insisted it was addressing the issue, and will continue to do so “throughout 2025”. At the same time, it confirmed 136,000 ranked play accounts were banned for cheating across both Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Warzone.



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June 1, 2025 0 comments
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Nintendo Blocks Fans From Sharing Switch 2 Ads In Its News App
Game Reviews

Nintendo Blocks Fans From Sharing Switch 2 Ads In Its News App

by admin May 27, 2025


Nintendo’s emphatic dislike of sharing has reached a bizarre new level, with the Nintendo Today app now stopping users from screenshotting or videoing its advertising material.

Nintendo Switch 2 Could Launch With Almost No Reviews

Nintendo Today is just ads. There’s nothing wrong with that—plenty of people want to get new Nintendo information—and the app is a fun, if cumbersome, way of hearing the latest about what Nintendo is hoping you’ll buy. But, whichever way you slice it, it’s a commercial tool for plugging games and devices. Today on Today, underneath a cute animation from Tears of the Kingdom, you can watch a 21-second video about Donkey Kong’s hand slap in forthcoming Switch 2 title Donkey Kong Bananza.

“Cool!” you might think. “James’ll love that! I’ll grab a screenshot of the video and send it to him.” Or, if you don’t know James, you might think, “Ooh, I’m so excited for Donkey Kong Bananza! I’m going to post a video clip of this on my BlueSky account!” Except, no, you won’t do any of this. Now all you’ll get is a black screen. Here’s a screenshot I took today:

Screenshot: Nintendo / Kotaku

I can right now, on an Android phone, still screenshot the text-based stories, such as the one plugging the new Switch 2 “All-in-One” carrying case, and I can capture the screenshots recently uploaded from Mario Kart World. (Except, with the latter, the shots are included in landscape, in an app that only runs in portrait, with no way to zoom in or rotate them. Just stellar work.) It’s just videos that are being blocked.

Screenshot: Nintendo / Kotaku

Let’s be unambiguously clear: Publisher-provided screenshots and videos of a game are advertising. They have only ever been advertising. The games media is guilty of having allowed such things to be commoditized, fighting one another for the “exclusive” to publish such commercials on their own website, then becoming furious when another site reprints the adverts they wanted to be the only one to show. But ads they remain.

They exist to promote a game, with the intention of building interest and excitement in a product, and the goal of increasing sales. That’s it. That’s what they’re for. And here’s Nintendo, very cleverly encouraging millions of people to install an app on their phones that only serves to show its users these ads, and then going out of its way to stop their being shared? That’s bonkers.

But, it feels very par for Nintendo’s course. Sharing is such an anathema to this company that it even applies it to its own game footage and trailers—clips you’d imagine were created with the express purpose of being seen by as many people as possible. But no! Shut that shit down! People might get ideas.

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May 27, 2025 0 comments
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