Advergames are utilized to capture the consumer's attention more effectively than regular advertisements because of the medium and its interactivity.
[2] Advergames are commonly targeted to minors, who tend to be more responsive to persuasive messages that can be embedded in such games.
[9] Roblox, an online game platform and creation system, has been commonly used for advergames for its popularity among younger players and allowance for easy development.
Companies have used Roblox for new marketing methods within advergames, such as Walmart, which has sold real products through the platform, and IKEA, which has hired employees for paid work in its virtual store The Co-Worker Game.
Making false claims, even if in language not intended to be advertising, in advergames can result in penalties and fines by the national or regional consumer protection agencies.
In a notable case, the Gatorade company, a subsidiary of PepsiCo, had published a free mobile game Bolt!
The state of California asserted this claim was false, as Gatorade had been shown to be more harmful to the human body than water, and with the game targeted to youth, send the wrong message.
[16] In the United States, attempts have been made by the United States Congress to give the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) authority to oversee online advertising aimed at children, including advergames, but had been challenged by lobbies representing the food industry and effectively shut down such attempts.
[17] Nevertheless, the propagation of online games and advertising aimed at children led to passage of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) in 2000, which set strict standards for what type of private information websites could collect from minors, with the FTC overseeing any such fines.