Bad ads are killing the mobile gaming experience – here’s how we fix it

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These aren’t just buzzwords – they’re the types of “bad ads” quietly eroding trust, frustrating players and putting long-term growth at risk. While some creatives may deliver a short-term spike in installs, the cost to brand equity and player loyalty is becoming too steep to ignore.

If the mobile gaming industry is serious about sustainable growth, studios need to reclaim control of the ad experience. However, as the scale of mobile advertising grows, so does the complexity of managing it. Billions of ads are served daily – many dynamically generated or behaviorally targeted – and that scale makes manual oversight nearly impossible. And even if studios invested in the talent and tech to identify and block disturbing ad content, they would still be blind to the malicious code and technical breakdowns hidden deep in the creative that turn ads into nightmares.

Today’s bad ads aren’t just annoying – they’re aggressive, complex and often harmful. The Player Sentiment on In-Game Ads report, based on a survey of mobile gamers and published by AppHarbr, identifies a growing disconnect between ad quality and player expectations. It reveals that 58 percent of players will quit a game immediately due to disruptive ads, and 84 percent will uninstall after repeated exposure. These aren’t isolated incidents—they represent a systemic threat to player retention.

Fighting bad ads with better labels

Pinpointing which ads are doing the most damage is essential, which is why “it’s essential to have a shared, structured way to define the worst offenders,” Alex Yerukhimovich, General Manager at AppHarbr, told me on the PocketGamer.biz podcast. He urges studios to go beyond surface-level issues and understand the deeper patterns behind harmful ad experiences.

“It starts with a more detailed taxonomy,” Yerukhimovich says. “That gives ad monetization teams and ad ops professionals the clarity to spot recurring patterns, understand how players are reacting and decide when—and how—to step in to filter unwanted ads to match player expectations.”

1. Non-Skippable & Intrusive Ads

These ads interrupt rather than integrate. From autoplay videos with deceptive close buttons to playables that trap users in endless loops, these formats sabotage the player experience. And while once hailed as premium, even playables are being subverted by dark patterns.

AppHarbr’s research found that 93 percent of players abandon games with deceptive ‘X’ buttons, and 45 percent delete a game due to overly frequent interstitials. These numbers speak volumes—and so do gaming industry leaders.

John Wright – former VP of Mobile Games at Kwalee turned gaming consultant and investor, provides a practical perspective on the problem. If you saw something offensive in a Harrods window, you’d probably walk away,” he explains. “It’s the same when players encounter poor or offensive ads – they leave.”

He’s also seen how underhand tactics, like forcing clicks before an ‘X’ appears, distort performance data and harm trust. “It falsifies results. Players are forced to click just to exit, and that click gets counted – even if the user wasn’t interested in the game,” he says. “It’s bad for experience, and it misleads everyone downstream.”

2. Malicious & Misleading Ads

These creatives cross the line and range from irritating to dangerous. Fake system warnings, prize scams and gameplay trailers that misrepresent the actual experience erode user trust. According to the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), 56 percent of mobile gamers have encountered ads that blatantly misrepresent gameplay – a disconnect that breeds frustration, mistrust and churn.

Some deceptive tactics are becoming harder to detect, and Piyush Mishra, Director of Growth Marketing at Product Madness, warns that teams across all genres are struggling to keep pace. “One of the biggest issues that has come up in our advertising industry and it has become free-for-all,” he says.

What’s most alarming, he adds, is how problematic messaging continues to slip through – just dressed differently. “We’re seeing advertisers push similar messaging in increasingly disguised ways,” Mishra notes. “It’s getting harder to spot what’s misleading – and when those slip through, the damage isn’t just deceptive. It’s often deeply offensive.”

3. Sexist & Offensive Ads

Perhaps the most shocking category, these ads reflect deeper issues in monetisation culture. AppHarbr has documented examples of creatives where women are burned, assaulted or humiliated – and they continue to appear in apps certified by major app stores.

That’s a risky move in a market where female players now make up nearly half of all gamers in the U.S. alone. And when offensive content crosses a line, the impact goes far beyond complaints. “When the content crosses a line, female players don’t just complain – they quit,” observes Jack Dunne, who leads Research Operations at playtesting and player insights platform PlaytestCloud.

Disturbing ads don’t only alienate women – they affect all players. PlaytestCloud interviews and internal data show male players also express “serious discomfort” with sexualised or suggestive content, especially when same-sex narratives feel out of context or inappropriate for the game.

Based on those sessions, Dunne says discomfort often escalates into disengagement — and ultimately, churn. “That means developers aren’t just losing a user, but also a powerful advocate.”

Why the fix starts with studios

Fixing the ecosystem starts with internal accountability.

It’s the approach Wright advocates, having seen first-hand how studios underestimate the cost of letting low-quality or offensive creatives run unchecked. “They think they’re getting more installs or higher CPMs,” he says. “But what’s really happening is they’re damaging their own storefront—their game, their inventory, their reputation.”

Brand is on the line, and studios can’t afford to play defence. 

It’s not enough to shift all the blame to ad networks – although they do play a role. In a climate where a backlash against “shocking ads” is growing fast, so is the pressure on studios to take ownership of the complete player experience and responsibility for how ads appear and impact gameplay, perception and player loyalty.

“Fighting back starts with ad monetization and ops teams recognising that bad ad quality isn’t an isolated oversight; it’s a problem of scale,” Yerukhimovich explains. With dynamic variations and auto-optimised placements flooding the ecosystem, automation is critical – but so is consistent oversight. “Interstitial and rewarded placements delivered by top networks are driving users to offensive and harmful creatives. And these creatives are slipping through approvals,” he adds. 

In other words, studios face more than just a content problem – they face a volume crisis. Without smart systems to set and enforce policies regarding the ads served and eliminate harmful ads at scale, even well-meaning publishers risk becoming delivery vehicles for the worst offenders.

Ignore the ad experience, and the fallout comes fast. Studios aren’t just setting themselves up to destroy brand equity and diminish player trust – they open the door to public and regulatory backlash.

On March 20, 2025, the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) announced a crackdown on mobile game ads, banning eight creatives for objectifying women and promoting coercive, non-consensual scenarios. These included promotions for games like Linky: Chat With Characters AI, My Fantasy, and Love Sparks: Dating Sim, with rulings citing clear violations of advertising codes around social responsibility and gender portrayal.

Just weeks earlier, on March 4, 2025, a Sky News investigation revealed the disturbing rise of misogynistic tropes – particularly the ‘Help the Girl’ narrative – in mobile game ads.

These creatives often featured women in distress, humiliation, or danger as a means to provoke clicks, raising ethical concerns and reinforcing harmful stereotypes.

Regulators and media are turning up the heat, and studios that fail to act are playing with fire.

From firefighting to flow

The problem is systemic. The fix has to be, too.

Božo Jankovic, Head of Business Development at Game Biz Consulting, advises studios to take the lead in redefining how they manage ad quality. The starting point, he says, is seeing ad experience as central to the overall user experience. In practice, teams must align monetization, UA, and live ops around a shared understanding of what’s acceptable.

“This is a cross-functional challenge,” Jankovic explains. “Studios that succeed are embedding ad quality into QA pipelines, building alert systems based on player feedback, and strengthening relationships with ad tech providers.”

Across the industry, studios are creating streamlined workflows to triage complaints, define creative standards and enforce ad policies in real-time – and they’re seeing real results. It’s no longer just about damage control; it’s about creating consistently better ad experiences.

It’s the hands-on approach Ora Zilberman, Monetisation Manager at Playtika, follows to build player trust. “When players report issues, I immediately collect details – user IDs, ad networks, timestamps – and escalate directly to the ad provider,” she explains. “If a creative crosses the line, we block it. Period. It’s all about respect and reliability.”

Vincent Fervier, CMO at TapNation, takes this further, calling for publishers to “proactively unite” around shared creative standards. “By speaking with one voice and pushing back when ads fall short, we set clearer expectations and protect our communities.”

Smarter systems, sharper standards

Studios get high marks for refining their ad quality management strategies. But the real opportunity lies in an approach that stops bad ads before they reach players.
In practice, Yerukhimovich pointed out on the podcast, this means empowering ad monetisation teams with tools that provide real-time control over disruptive ad behaviour, creative content, and policy violations. “It’s not about dictating what’s acceptable. It’s about giving publishers the tools and insights to set and enforce their own standards.”

For TapNation’s Fervier, efforts have to go beyond establishing best practices to building a competitive edge. “We need to raise the bar,” he says. “Ad quality directly influences player retention.”

With 213 million gamers in the U.S. alone and global gaming ad spend expected to reach $11.5 billion by 2027, the pressure to act is greater than ever.

Bad ads are not inevitable. Lasting change requires publishers, studios, and platforms to align on higher standards and hold each other accountable. A poor ad experience in mobile gaming can break trust, but an exceptional one can build far stronger connections.