Rewarded only by choice
A rewarded ad can only be shown after the person clearly accepts, knowing what they will get and what they need to do.
Guide · Games and entertainment
Game sites: rewarded ads, full-screen ads and a young audience
Game sites use the formats that earn the most and also the ones that cause the most warnings. This guide explains when rewarded ads are allowed, why gift wheels and fake buttons cause problems, how to use full-screen ads between levels and what changes when the audience is children.
- ✓Based on Google's official policies
- ✓Rewarded ads explained step by step
- ✓Read without clicking on ads
7 sminimum time a rewarded ad on the web must stay visible to release the reward
25%maximum discount on the value of a physical item when the reward is a voucher
13age below which Google prohibits interest-based ads, under the COPPA rule
1value of the age tag (TFAT) that requests child treatment in ad requests
The scenario
Formats that earn more, stricter rules
Game portals, quizzes and pastime sites have long sessions and many screen changes. This opens room for rewarded ads, where the player watches an ad in exchange for an extra life, and for full-screen ads between one page and another.
Google allows these formats, but with clear conditions. A rewarded ad can only appear when the person chooses to watch. Full-screen ads must respect the Better Ads Standards. And sites with a child audience have their own rules for data and personalized ads.
The costliest mistake on game sites is turning an allowed format into a trap: a next level button that opens an ad, a wheel that promises a prize that does not exist or a full-screen ad that does not let the game start.
Where the risk lives
The four points that weigh most on game sites
Each one comes from the Ad Manager policies for rewarded ads, from the publisher policies or from the Better Ads Standards.
Wheel and free gift
Promising a prize, credit or gift that will not be delivered is a deceptive practice. Direct money can never be a reward.
Full-screen ad in the right place
On mobile, a full-screen ad before the content fails Better Ads. Google's vignette appears between pages and can be closed right away.
Child audience
Sites for children under 13 must be tagged for COPPA and cannot receive interest-based ads.
Rewarded ad
What is and is not allowed with a reward
Examples from a browser game portal using Ad Manager.
Allowed
- Watch ad button to earn an extra life, with a No, thanks option
- Coins that are only worth something inside the game itself
- Chest with a random prize, stating the odds before the ad
- Reward delivered as soon as the ad ends
- Vignette between one page and another, which closes right away
Not allowed
- Rewarded ad when tapping Next level or Back to menu
- Pix, balance or a voucher that can be transferred as a reward
- Wheel that always lands on almost won
- Blocking the game for those who refuse the ad
- Saying the prize is guaranteed or approved by Google
Audience age
When the audience is children, ads change
Google policies require sites covered by COPPA, the US children's data protection law, to be tagged for Google. On these sites, and for users known to be under 13, there can be no interest-based ads or remarketing.
In Ad Manager and AdSense, the old TFCD and TFUA tags were replaced by the TFAT age tag. The value 1 requests child treatment: it turns off personalized ads and remarketing and blocks requests to third-party ad vendors. If nothing is set, the default is to allow personalized ads.
Google reminds publishers that these tools do not remove the obligations of the law and that, in some cases, it may start treating the site as child-directed on its own. Adult-themed content on pages that look like children's content is prohibited.
Common errors
Six mistakes that repeat on game portals
All have a simple fix in the game code or in the ads plugin.
Rewarded ad on a navigation button
Someone who taps Next level wants to play, not see an ad. This is not a clear choice and puts the ad where the reader expects to navigate.
No option to decline
The invitation screen must have a No or I do not accept, and declining must not get in the way of normal use of the site.
Fake credit generator
Pages that promise free credits or items and do not deliver are deceptive functionality under Google's spam policies.
Several rewarded ads at once
On the web, Ad Manager does not accept requesting more than one rewarded ad at a time.
Video with autoplay sound
An ad video that plays on its own with sound fails the Better Ads Standards, on mobile and on desktop.
Real-money gambling game
Casino and real-money betting are restricted content: fewer advertisers compete for the space and sometimes none.
In practice
A casual game portal that reorganized its rewarded ads
Before
The Continue button, at the end of each level, opened a rewarded ad. A daily wheel promised an app store gift card that was never delivered. On mobile, a full-screen ad appeared before the game loaded.
After
The rewarded ad is now offered on its own button, Earn extra life, with a No, thanks option. The wheel now gives only game coins, with the odds stated. The full-screen ad before the game was replaced by the vignette between pages.
Players can still choose to watch ads in exchange for perks, which is the spirit of the format. The difference is that now nobody is taken to an ad by accident, and no promise goes unkept.
In ConsentMode
What the audit checks on game sites
- Finds rewarded ads tied to navigation buttons, such as Next level and Back
- Flags wheels, generators and gift offers that may be deceptive
- Detects full-screen ads before content and videos that play with sound
- Points out signs of a child audience so you can check the age tag
- Reads everything without touching ads or reward buttons
Frequently asked questions about games
Can I use rewarded ads on my game site?
Yes, in Ad Manager, as long as the person chooses to watch, knows what the reward is and can decline without losing access to the game.
Which rewards are accepted?
Items that are only worth something inside your site or game, such as lives, coins and hints. Never direct money, and items transferable to another person are not accepted either.
My site has a mixed audience, with children and adults. What do I do?
Talk to a lawyer about COPPA and local laws and use the TFAT age tag in the ad requests of those who should receive child treatment.
Is Google's vignette the same as the prohibited full-screen ad?
No. The vignette appears between page loads and can be closed right away. What Better Ads fails on mobile is the full-screen ad that blocks content before it appears.
Does ConsentMode click the rewarded ad to test it?
No. The audit never clicks an ad or a reward button, and blocks ad requests so it does not generate impressions on your account.
Library
Official sources
This guide was written from these official pages. Read them directly at the source:
- Ad Manager: policies for rewarded ad unitssupport.google.com/admanager/answer/7496282
- Ad Manager: rewarded ads on the websupport.google.com/admanager/answer/9116812
- Ad Manager: age tag in ad requestssupport.google.com/admanager/answer/3671211
- Google publisher policiessupport.google.com/publisherpolicies/answer/10502938
- Coalition for Better Ads' Better Ads Standardswww.betterads.org/standards
Find out whether your game portal follows the rules
The audit reads each page like a player, without clicking on ads, and shows what to change.