Gold and Goblins
The cinematic defence that the ASA rejected
What the ad showed. A paid Twitter ad with a cartoon goblin harvesting resources across a free-roam area.
What the game is. An idle merge miner that takes place in a static location.
Status. The ASA upheld a complaint in April 2022. The developer argued the ad was a cinematic representation of the game's themes rather than gameplay. The ASA found the discrepancy significant enough to mislead viewers.
Why it matters. This is the ruling that closed the cinematic defence: a cinematic must not be presented in a way that can be read as the gameplay experience.
