Huge video ads in the header

Is it just me or are the ads on Giant Bomb starting to get a bit obscenely big now? Here's what I'm seeing today (this is my full browser pane):

Granted, it's not as bad as the full-page ads that kicked up a storm, but it's pretty damn annoying that the ad is so huge I can't even see any content without scrolling way down.

Sure I could probably subscribe and lose the ads, and I might. But I was considering posting more on my Giant Bomb blog rather than guest writing elsewhere, and I don't really want my audience having to wade through that. So it just puts me off getting more serious about the user content stuff, really.

I don't mind ads, but not to the point where it trashes the design. I've always been delighted by Giant Bomb's great design(s) and it's unfortunate that like too many sites the user experience is becoming ruined by ads.

Rome 2 doesn't have ads it has PSAs.

@ryanjw: Hey. Buy Rome 2. Do it.

You should hit that "Become a member" link in the top left.

If you actually have an audience that follows from site to site, you are doing it wrong by not having your own site.

I've never understood the point of designing a nice clean website and then fucking it up by putting huge ugly ass ads in it.

You know what to do, buddy...

BUY ROME 2

Probably has something to do with affording that nice clean website lol.

Subscribe! or Ad-Block, if you gotta be like that. To quote Lu Kang, "every man is responsible for his own destiny".

You shouldn't take my opinion as anything but bias but you should buy that game. Click the link... go on... do it.

Well I mean I understand why, but it just must be the most depressing thing having to ruin your nice looking website after.

Well I mean I understand why, but it just must be the most depressing thing having to ruin your nice looking website after.

Yeah, that giant ad for Deus Ex is crazy. Tear it all down!

As someone who builds websites as my job ... yeah it is. Ad's suck, but sometimes there is no way around them.

Must.....resist.....buying.......total.....war...rome......deux....

19% off at GMG http://www.greenmangaming.com/s/us/en/pc/games/strategy/total-war-rome-ii/

you should subscribe. it makes the world a better place!

so you are upset that you and your audience have to deal with ads because you host your blog on a site you don't own nor contribute any money towards?

35%... E: That said the game is $70 for us normally, so I see why the discount is bigger here.

On the other hand, how would I have known that if I pre-order Rome II I can get the Greek States Pre-Order Bonus (TM) free? That deal is just TOO GOOD TO PASS UP!

I dont see any ads?

Ads? What ads?

Ad block that bitch!

oh noes - withholding your blog. Traffic is going to tank.

We're living in an age where the 'you don't pay for it so be quiet' excuse is laughably weak. I said quite clearly in my original post that I'm fine with ads, as somebody who's run more than a few websites I'm aware of the need for them. There's a point where it starts being extremely detrimental to the user experience though, and a huge video that pushes the content way off screen is definitely treading there.

I'm not upset, I'm just giving some feedback and providing others with the opportunity to agree (or not). If nobody were able to voice opinions about things that're free then it'd be a pretty shitty internet.

I'd imagine that Giant Bomb didn't build these community features for the sheer hell of it, they presumably want people to actually use them. A great way of doing that is to not saturate them with ads. I want to use them, I just don't want the experience to be so poor for people I want to share my articles with. It's not about withholding anything.

i dont recall telling you to shut up because you dont pay. it was a question because i was trying to understand exactly what you were getting at....

...so did you buy Total War Rome yet?

Yes those ads are disgusting. Remember when Giantbomb claimed to never have gross ads like that and they'd carefully pick what ads would go up? yeah...fuck that! Lets all joke about him buying Total War Rome, we're hilarious guys!

You're just paraphrasing. The actual quote is *turns into a dragon and eats you*

Well we live in some funny times now. In the past you'd go on some websites that didn't have memberships and read the articles or post on the forums - because they were free. These days if you go on a website and don't let all the ads load up or even worse block them with a simple plugin then you're a thief, because despite what you might think this website isn't free, and these servers don't pay for themselves, these writers don't work for fun, their kids don't live on air, you scumbag - you want to read these articles then go buy a membership, and if not then watch the ads or get the hell out of here.

I buy the membership for GiantBomb to see the premium content, because thats actual content. Call me a scum or a thief that rationalizes his evil ways, but I'm not going to pay a membership fee for the sole purpose of not having my experience constantly ruined by huge ads that force me to scroll down to get to content. Ironically enough, if I was forced to view a Sprint phone ad every time a video loaded up and then subsequently on every page I'd go to, it would probably make me hate Sprint much more than entice me into buying anything from them.

You also have to take in the fact that the Giant Bomb staff isnt anymore directly responsible in making all of the decisions when it comes to the style of advertising that they do.

Giant Bomb is owned by CBS and if the bean counters in there decide to push bigger and more flashy ads then they cant really object that much.

Probably Alex´s and Patrick´s rant about people who use adblock was probably partly brought by some bean counter at cbs telling the Giant Bomb staff that they arent generating enough income at the moment (this is just purely speculation on my part).

It is just incredible to me that advertisers still dont get that a flashy and intrusive ad isnt necessarily better than a smaller one. Annoying your customer isnt usually a good way to sell your product. Sometimes it feels like Jar Jar Binks is designing these ads in how they are offered to potential customers.

Very good post Nardak. That is exactly how I feel: ads aren't a bad thing, but when it utterly ruins the experience of using the site then that's going to do far more damage long-term.

YouTube skippable ads are good because you're respected enough to make the choice regarding whether you watch it or not. Often I do end up watching it anyway because it's caught my interest, but when an unskippable one comes up I get an immediate feeling of resentment against that product. Not good.

I personally don't use things like AdBlock, I just stop visiting the site. I love Giant Bomb and I've been here virtually since its inception, which is why I don't want it becoming so riddled with ads that people stop joining and people already here start leaving. It can and does have an effect on visitors — I've watched visitor numbers and time spent on the site fall almost in real time as a direct result of implementing intrusive ads on some of my web projects.

Maybe this is a good time to remember that it was being driven by advertising and marketing concerns that caused the original downfall of GameSpot and Jeff being expelled from the company. This is something that should concern people, and pointing towards membership options — which GameSpot also had — isn't a solution. This is a road to ruin if it's not kept in check.