I can still remember when commercials on TV were deemed terrible, because, at best, they cut into our viewing time, and, at worst, they were just plain awful. And while there are still some pretty bad commercials out there, there are ways to get around them. It usually means forking over a bit more money to do so, but at least the options are there.
Ads on the internet are now the cause of so much ire, tracking us from one site to another, autoplaying audio and video, or sometimes just flat-out blocking the entire page of what we were originally navigating to. Online ads can be pretty bad, but they aren't going anywhere any time soon. Still, there are ways to get rid of them, some worse than others.
The same can be said for ads on games, too. Most of them are pretty bad.
One of the more frustrating things I deal with on a semi-regular basis is when I let my kids play games on my phone, and they're playing along, having fun, and an ad pops up while they're trying to activate something on the screen. So instead of getting to the next level or something, they pull up an App Store listing for some other game. Thankfully, now that they're older, this doesn't instantly mean I'm about to pay for some terrible mobile game (and thanks to extra security measures, too), but it hasn't always been like that.
But ads on games can also be small and relatively out-of-the-way, too. Not all of them are awful, even if they are still annoying to look at. I've got a few games on my phone where the ad just pops up at the bottom of the screen. It stays there the whole time, but at least it isn't in the way and it doesn't stop me from playing the game.
But getting rid of ads is just another in-app purchase in some, if not most, games. I've never really been a fan of the whole idea in general, as it can simply break down into something ridiculous (or, potentially even worse, pay-to-win scenarios for some games), but in these cases where paying money to get rid of ads is the only option, it seems necessary.
I don't do it for every game, though. I have to know that I plan on going back to play it. I've had a ton of titles on my phone that seem like a great time at first, but, after a week, they either get discarded in a folder or removed from the phone altogether. But, if I think it's going to stay fun, and I need to get rid of some ads, well, that's a buck, or three, I'm willing to fork over.
Of course, I'd prefer it if this wasn't the situation at all. I wish I didn't have to pay to get rid of ads. Even if that means I have to pay for the app upfront, that's fine. At least then it typically means I get all of the content in the game, too, without having to spend any additional funds.
Do you pay to get rid of ads in games that you play? Let me know!