If Halo is rated M for mature game players only, then why the cross-promotion with Megabloks, intended for ages “8 and up”?
Please watch this promotional video (or see screenshots below). Please note that the video includes the Xbox logo.
How does watching this video affect an 8 year old? Consider the sound effects and the dramatic music. What is the physical and emotional response
?
Is it an example of marketers’ sophisticated methods of getting around parents who don’t want M-rated video games for their kids?
Is this deceptive advertising, since the toys don’t really shoot and fly and explode?
Should we leave it up to the entertainment industry to self-regulate? Should the toy manufacturers and marketers be allowed to regulate their own marketing?
And by the way, does a building toy that comes with specific building instructions and a built-in storyline contribute to the development of a child’s imagination?
Where have you seen similarly inappropriate cross-promotions?
(Thanks to recent commenter Michele Hays for bringing this to my attention.)
Marketing, Media and Childhood 
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