Background
This ruling forms part of a wider piece of work on misleading gameplay in ads for mobile games, identified for investigation following intelligence gathered by the ASA.
See also related rulings published on 4 November 2026.
Summary of council decision:
Two issues were investigated, both of which were Upheld.
Ad description
Three paid-for Google ads for Dark War Survival, a mobile game, seen on 28 April 2026.
a. The first ad opened with a scene in which a woman introduced her boyfriend to her parents before being shouted at because his shelter was “only level four”. The graphics in that scene appeared highly realistic. The ad then showed a real person explaining the concept of the game, alongside scenes of post-apocalyptic survival bases shown in an anime style. The person said, “This is the most relaxing game of 2026 […] you’re given a calm space to build and manage. You gather resources, upgrade your base and watch everything come together at your own pace. No rushing, no pressure. It’s survival but relaxed. Download Dark War Survival and see this is the chillest way to survive the end of the world”. Serene music was played during the ad.
b. The second ad used in an anime style with high-quality graphics to show people in a train carriage fitted out as a survival base. Several scenes showed zombies outside the train, as well as an armed train moving through the setting. Calm music was played during the ad.
c. The third ad showed a third-person survival game in an anime style with high-quality graphics. The character was shown looting a shop for supplies and shooting zombies. They then got into a car and drove back to their base, where they made dinner. A voice-over stated, “In-game ads, pay-to-win? Say goodbye to all of this nonsense. Here in this game, you’ll only get pure strategy fun. No shortcuts, no VIP privileges.” Later in the ad, the voice-over stated, “It’s not just about fights, it’s about building a home.” The ad also featured on-screen text, which stated “2026 Game Creative” and “2026 Survival Game”.
Issue
The ASA challenged whether:
- the ads misleadingly gave the impression that they showed, or were representative of, the gameplay in Dark War Survival; and
- the claims in ad (c) that the game had won the “2026 Game Creative,” and “2026 Survival Game” awards were misleading.
Response
1. Omnilojo Pte Ltd said the ads were created using storyline sequences and character introductions from the game Dark War Survival. They said all of the content shown in the ads existed within the game and was not fabricated or unrelated to it. They said those materials were non-interactive story sequences used for world-building purposes and were intended to complement the game’s interactive features, such as base building, resource management, hero development, alliance cooperation and combat systems. They said the game also included hero story content through which players could learn more about individual characters and receive in-game rewards, and that they considered those elements to form part of the game’s overall content and experience. They said the purpose of using those materials in the ads was to highlight the game’s characters, storyline and setting. They provided gameplay screenshots which they said showed the corresponding in-game content featured in the ads.
They acknowledged that the ads could have done more to distinguish between those world-building sequences and the game’s core interactive gameplay features. They also said the ads could have provided more context to explain the game’s main gameplay. They accepted that, as a result, some consumers might have understood the story sequences shown in the ads to represent the game’s core gameplay.
2. In relation to ad (c), Omnilojo Pte Ltd said the phrases “2026 Game Creative” and “2026 Survival Game”, shown alongside laurel-style graphics, were intended to refer to the game having been featured and recommended in official rankings and promotional placements on Google Play and the Apple App Store. They said it had not been their intention to suggest that the game had won formal third-party awards. However, they acknowledged that consumers might have understood the statements to mean that the game had won awards.
Assessment
1. Upheld
Ad (a) opened with a highly realistic story sequence before showing a person describing the game alongside stylised scenes of post-apocalyptic survival bases. The person said players were given a space to build and manage, gather resources and upgrade their base. We considered those direct claims, together with the accompanying survival-base scenes, presented the content as part of the experience available in Dark War Survival rather than as clearly separate story or cinematic material.
Ad (b) showed people in a train carriage fitted out as a survival base, zombies outside the train and an armed train moving through the setting. Although the sequence did not include a cursor, heads-up display or other obvious interface elements, it formed the substantive content of the ad and was not presented as a short introductory sequence before identifiable gameplay. It was not made clear that the scenes were non-interactive story content. We therefore considered consumers were likely to understand the survival scenario shown as representative of the kind of experience available in the game.
Ad (c) was presented in the style of a third-person survival game. It showed a character looting a shop for supplies, shooting zombies, driving back to a base and making dinner. The voice-over referred directly to the playable experience in the game, stating that players would get “pure strategy fun” and that “It’s not just about fights, it’s about building a home”. We considered the third-person perspective, the sequence of apparent player actions and the accompanying claims presented that content as gameplay rather than merely thematic or cinematic material.
We considered all the ads presented Dark War Survival as a zombie survival game which involved managing a survival base, looting supplies, fighting zombies and driving vehicles. We also considered that the highly produced graphics used throughout the ads contributed to the impression that their visual presentation was representative of what consumers could expect when playing the game. We therefore considered consumers would understand the ads to show gameplay available in Dark War Survival, or content that was closely representative of the playing experience.
We understood that Dark War Survival’s gameplay primarily involved building a base and managing resources. We acknowledged there was some overlap between those mechanics and the themes and activities referred to in the ads. We also acknowledged that the storyline and character sequences depicted in the ads were derived from content that existed within the game. However, we understood that the storyline and character sequences used in the ads were non-interactive world-building content rather than the game’s core interactive gameplay, and that players did not carry out the activities shown in the ads in the manner depicted. We also considered the visual presentation of the game’s interactive gameplay differed materially from the highly produced graphics shown in the ads. Although ad (a) referred to genuine gameplay mechanics, the accompanying scenes were not clearly distinguished as non-playable parts of the game. Similarly, ads (b) and (c) presented non-interactive story content in a way that was likely to be understood as representative of the experience of playing the game. We also noted that Omnilojo Pte Ltd acknowledged that the ads could have done more to distinguish the world-building sequences from the game’s core interactive gameplay. We considered that, by presenting those non-interactive storyline sequences, including their highly produced graphics, as representative of the playing experience, the ads exaggerated both the range and nature of the gameplay available in Dark War Survival and the visual quality consumers could expect during play.
Because the playing experience presented in the ads differed materially from the gameplay available in Dark War Survival, we concluded that the ads were likely to mislead consumers into understanding that the gameplay shown was available in the game, or was closely representative of it.
On that point, the ads breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1 (Misleading advertising), 3.7 (Substantiation) and 3.11 (Exaggeration).
2. Upheld
We next considered the on-screen claims in ad (c), “2026 Game Creative” and “2026 Survival Game”, which appeared alongside laurel-style graphics. We considered that consumers were likely to understand those elements together as meaning that Dark War Survival had won formal awards with those titles, or had otherwise received equivalent third-party recognition.
The wording of the claims, combined with the laurel graphics, gave the clear impression of awards won rather than app-store rankings, recommendations or promotional placements. Consumers were unlikely to understand the claims in any more limited sense.
We understood that the advertiser intended the claims to refer to the game having been featured and recommended on Google Play and the Apple App Store, and did not intend to suggest that formal third-party awards had been won. However, that did not alter the impression created by the ad. Because consumers were likely to understand the claims as objective claims that the game had won awards, and because the advertiser had not shown that such awards had been won, we concluded that the claims were misleading.
On that point, ad (c) breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1 (Misleading advertising) and 3.7 (Substantiation).
Action
The ads must not appear again in their current form. We told Omnilojo Pte Ltd to ensure that their ads did not misleadingly give the impression that they showed, or were representative of, gameplay in Dark War Survival, and did not misleadingly imply that the game had won awards unless that was the case.
