Enlarge / One of the Steam screenshots for No Man’s Sky currently being investigated by the UK’s ASA. (credit: Hello Games / Steam)
The UK’s Advertising Standard Authority is investigating whether Hello Games misled customers with online screenshots, videos, and descriptions of No Man’s Sky that allegedly don’t match with the final product.
The ongoing investigation was confirmed by Eurogamer after being publicized in a Reddit thread discussing the ASA’s response to a number of consumer complaints. According to that response, the investigation is reportedly focused on a number of game features highlighted on the game’s Steam page but allegedly not present in the same form in the final game. These include complaints about ship and animal behavior, gameplay scale, interface changes, load times, and even overall graphical quality. Both Hello Games and Valve have reportedly been asked to respond to a number of questions surrounding that online marketing.
The Advertising Standards Authority is empowered by the UK government to force the removal of advertising it finds misleading and impose sanctions on company’s that don’t apply. Usually, though, the group says it relies on “bad publicity” to effect compliance with its rulings; “an advertiser’s reputation can be badly damaged if it is seen to be flouting the rules designed to protect consumers.”
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Source: Ars Technica – UK advertising board investigating No Man’s Sky marketing