Rise of Kingdoms

What the ads show. Cinematic 3D battle sequences that do not correspond to how the game renders or plays, alongside staged live-action scenes between real people. Marketing analysts describe the approach directly: 3D footage used to depict a game that is a straightforward 4X build-and-battle loop.

What the game is. A real-time strategy MMO where you pick a historical civilisation, build a city, research technology, level commanders, gather resources and fight on a shared world map with alliances.

Status. No ruling on the ads. Documented by marketing and games press. The gap is well enough known that it has become a running joke in the community.

A separate legal matter, often confused with this one. In December 2019 a false advertising class action was filed in the US against the game's marketers. Read the complaint carefully: the allegations concern the long-term cost of play, undisclosed odds on random-item purchases and the claim that the game operates as unregulated gambling. They are not about the ads misrepresenting gameplay. Two different criticisms, and conflating them weakens both. The store listing does confirm the presence of loot boxes.

One further incident, on a different axis entirely. In October 2020 the press reported a YouTube ad for the game containing a depiction of sexual violence, based on a capture posted by a Reddit user, running without an age gate. That is a question of harmful ad content rather than misleading ad content, and this site's evidence scale does not currently measure it.