In-game advertising company IGA Worldwide continues its streak of signing major console manufacturers and publishers to their network, announcing that they've signed a multi-year agreement with Activision to supply dynamic advertisements for the company's PlayStation 3 titles, beginning with Guitar Hero: World Tour.

"Our partnership with IGA will allow us to deliver dynamic in-game advertising to the growing PlayStation Network community for the first time," said Dave Anderson, head of business development at Activision Publishing. "By incorporating dynamic in-game advertising in our titles where it is appropriate, we can increase the realism of our games by presenting consumers with authentic environments in genuine settings, while also expanding a key growth opportunity for the company."

See? It's all about realism. I hate it when video games make me thirsty for a beverage or excited about a masculine hygiene product that doesn't actually exist. Thank goodness for realistic advertising!

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In-game advertising masters IGA are really loving the PlayStation 3 right now. Not only ave they signed an exclusive deal to become Sony's first advertising partner for the console, they've also just announced a two-year agreement with Electronic Arts to become their exclusive dynamic in-game ad partner for everything the company puts out on the PS3.

"We are thrilled at this opportunity to expand our strong relationship with EA and are pleased to have been selected to support EA and Sony on this new venture," said Justin Townsend, CEO of IGA Worldwide. "It's exciting that the PS3 has opened up and marketers will now have access to the platform, as this represents a tremendous opportunity for brands targeting a valuable and hard-to-reach audience, plus it sends a clear message that dynamic in-game advertising has arrived as a compelling medium for marketers."

So what do these agreements mean to you? Having an in-game advertising partner in place means that the advertisements will be easier to implement as well as being less obtrusive, with appropriate ad placement that doesn't detract from the enjoyment of the game.

I've been a bit down on in-game advertising in the past, but let's face it...this is the future of gaming. Increased production costs have to be offset somehow, and ideally agreements like this should keep game prices at respectable levels. *fingers crossed*

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Here's a shocker: Konami Castlevania dude Koji Igarashi wears a cowboy hat, carries a whip and *here it comes* likes Indiana Jones. Bet you didn't see that one coming! When asked if he was excited about Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, IGA replied:

Ooooooh!

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Back in February, Id Software and IGA announced Quake Live, a browser-based 'freemium' multiplayer version of the classic shooter. Now that they've wet our whistles with a couple of teaser screenshots, their ready to get our hands dirty. Quakelive.com is now accepting email addresses for the upcoming beta test of the game. Remember folks, beta testing isn't all fun and games.

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If you don't already, you should start reading Paul Hyman's weekly game column in The Hollywood Reporter. One reason is that Hyman writes consistently interesting articles, largely on the business aspects of games. Another is that everyone in Hollywood reads The Hollywood Reporter, but not necessarily the game trades. It's interesting to imagine how they are seeing the medium through Hyman's take on it.

That said, I think he's reaching in this week's column.

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The man who eats, sleeps, breathes and craps Castlevania, Koji Igarashi, sat down with Game Informer to chat about the future of the classic Dracula slaying franchise. With "IGA" and crew already hard at work on wrapping up Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles for the PSP and churning out another Nintendo DS sequel, one might wonder when the team plans to revisit Castlevania on home consoles. Iga says it's a possibility, but you might want to secure yourself an Xbox 360 if you want to play it.

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