Two Facebook ads for Homescapes and Gardenscapes, from March and April this year, were referred to the ASA for being misleading. “Some mobile game developers are actively targeting consumers that are more likely to pay for in-app purchases, or sit through a higher number of ads,” Matthew BaileY, games analyst, Omdia. As the popularity of puzzle games is on the rise, there has been an increase in the number of mobile games that have used different ad videos to show mechanics they don’t use. And shares the same gameplay concept, combining traditional match-3 mechanics with a storyline.

Gardenscapes combines simulation elements and traditional match-three mechanics while Homescapes is a Gardenscapes spin-off. The ASA also mentioned that the ads should not be used again. ASA said that the ads showed the gameplay where players pull pins in a specific order to solve a puzzle but the actual games had totally different gameplay. Homescapes and Gardenscapes ads banned by ASA after they received formal complaints from seven users. This has come as a shock for Playrix, which recently became world’s second-biggest gaming company by mobile revenue, reported by AppAnnie.

These games are Homescapes and Gardenscapes. In a recent development, the ads of two popular games from the Russia-based international developer Playrix have been banned by Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).

Homescapes and gardenscapes ads banned