Eurogamer alters article due to legal action - Yet another daily s**t storm in the gaming community.

[veloper]

Any real journalist would avoid even the merest hint of conflicted interests.

They can silence Florence, but they cannot silence whole internet communities, so fuck these guys (and gals). They are in the pocket of the big publishers.

 

[KissmahArceus]

Maybe he could have worded it better but he only says he's suspicious not certain.

Eh, I'm not sure that's much of a defense.

"I'm suspicious that KissmahArceus is a child molester. I'm not CERTAIN, mind you, but the doubt is there!"

Let's just call a spade a spade. He openly accused her of shilling.

But you have nothing to base your wild, hilarious accusation on. Rob did, but I get it.
Putting suspicions in print about "fellow" journalists was a risky/stupid idea.
I think he was just highlighting the perverse way publishers try to influence journalism and that writers who take these bribes/incentives/gifts make themselves look corrupt.

For the record, I LOVE kids

 

[BloatedGuppy]

But you have nothing to base your wild, hilarious accusation on. Rob did, but I get it.

Putting suspicions in print about "fellow" journalists was a risky/stupid idea.

I think he was just highlighting the perverse way publishers try to influence journalism and that writers who take these bribes/incentives/gifts make themselves look corrupt.

For the record, I LOVE kids

Oh he's probably 100% on the nose with his accusation, I'm just saying there isn't really much distinction worth talking about when you're airing your suspicions so publicly. It may not be an official accusation, but it's just as good as. I'm not surprised she got bent out of shape. Guilty as charged or not, people don't usually take well to having their integrity questioned.

 

[KissmahArceus]

But you have nothing to base your wild, hilarious accusation on. Rob did, but I get it.

Putting suspicions in print about "fellow" journalists was a risky/stupid idea.

I think he was just highlighting the perverse way publishers try to influence journalism and that writers who take these bribes/incentives/gifts make themselves look corrupt.

For the record, I LOVE kids

Oh he's probably 100% on the nose with his accusation, I'm just saying there isn't really much distinction worth talking about when you're airing your suspicions so publicly. It may not be an official accusation, but it's just as good as. I'm not surprised she got bent out of shape. Guilty as charged or not, people don't usually take well to having their integrity questioned.

True, I tend to get prickly when my integrity is questioned, but I do feel critics also react poorly to criticism. They should maybe admit mistakes were made instead of threatening legal action and demanding articles be changed.
Perhaps a blog would be a better forum for his opinion but then perhaps journalists/PR reps should think twice about tweeting about a game to get free shit

 

[Thoric485]

You left out the best part. This picture:

Says it all by itself, really.

 

[sanquin]

It's why I like TB's let's plays and interviews. In his let's plays he shows you directly what the game is like, and is not afraid to say so when a game is terrible. (Rocketbirds being the latest one he totally slammed for how generic and uninspired it was.) But he also praises a game for what it does right. In his interviews he doesn't go into the negatives much, but he does ask much needed questions like 'How is this game different from other titles like it?'

Even so, with any game reviewer (I don't want to call them journalists) you should always take things they say with a grain of salt and do more research. Other official reviews, user reviews, gameplay vids, you name it. As in the end you need to come to a conclusion on your own, looking at the game from your viewpoint. Not from someone else's viewpoint.

 

[happy_turtle]

You left out the best part. This picture:

Says it all by itself, really.

I think I forgot to do it on purpose.

To see someone I once respected and at one time aspired to emulate, someone who has been slowly been turned into a joke over the past few years...To see them forced into becoming such a cynical marketing whore for the corporations was probably more than I could bare.

and having that Geoff Keighley bloke sat next to him hogging the limelight was annoying too.

 

[alphamalet]

games journalism hasn't really distanced itself from being a group of people who are merely fans who make money about writing games. Most interviews I see are GODAWFUL and never really ask hard-hitting, challenging questions and come off as cowardly and complacent. And then we get the fact that, frankly, a lot of journalists also like to push personal agendas onto stories. You know what I mean, they passive-aggressively whine in articles about stuff they personally don't like and immediately color an article with a skewed perspective while pretending to be "objective." It's disgusting.

I wholeheartedly agree with everything you wrote. It's so true. Never any hard-hitting questions; no sense of objectivity when reporting. It's painful.

 

[TrevHead]

I don't call them journalist's, most gaming news is "leaked" info from publishers that gets copied and pasted onto every game site. I think Stirling gets how crazy the game journalism racket is since he is always taking the piss it using the words "Gamez Journalizm!"

Where it comes to reviews I generally take the most hyped games with a pinch of salt where as reviews of niche and more underground games I tend to take more seriously.

 

[Jamash]

Spoiler: Click to Open: Some more on Wainwright

Some more on Wainwright:

Spoiler: Click to Open: Concerns over Free presents and Press Kits of games and the likes for Press and Free trips/meals etc. has been brought up

Concerns over Free 'presents' and 'Press Kits' of games and the likes for Press and Free trips/meals etc. has been brought up:

http://kotaku.com/5939030/this-is-the-300-chess-street-fighter-chess-set-capcom-sent-me-today

http://botherer.org/2012/10/24/games-journalists-and-the-perception-of-corruption/

It's surprising that you mention Wainwright and concerns over free presents and didn't come across this page from her website:

http://www.laurenwainwright.com/?p=71

Spoiler

Swag Slag: Alan Wake
Love the Alan Wake swag we got. A signed poster, 2 t-shirts and a Alan Wake flash light for all my ?. flash light needs. Anyway, arrived back in the UK at around 9:30am and I am so hung over. The Remedy guys sure know how to treat us to a night out. We all were taken out for some Finish cuisine. I had Reindeer for the first time and it was delicious! I also had 3 large glasses of wine and some super cold vodka shots. Then, after the restaurant, I had some weird black vodka shots. Of course, we ended up in some ice bar later on and when I arrived back I pretty much stayed away until we had to leave to get our plane at 5:30 in the morning!

So keep your eye on Consolemonster.com for the preview which should hit mid Feb. I Met some fantastic people at the event. I usually do a lot of community events or smaller press events, so this time it was nice to hang out with some of the bigger sites/publications and chat to them. ♥ Neon ? videogamer.com ♥ Tam - incgamers.com ♥ Nick ? telegraph.co.uk ♥ to name a few!

I?ve found business cards from people at MTV, IGN and Remedy as well. So whole trip was a real experience for me and had got me thinking about a few things career wise as well. Need more confidence in myself!

I don't understand why a self-proclaimed Swag Slag got so upset at the article, perhaps Robert should have chucked her a Burnistoun DVD box set and Consolevania t-shirt.

 

[daveman247]

snippy

And people used to make fun of the people claiming the reviewers were paid off :/

Maybe they dont take money directly, but all this special treatment is going to have the same effect.

I'm not sure there's a lot of people who take games journalism too seriously these days

Yeah i think most are getting better because of stuff like this. I remember in the past most people just looked at the score and anything less than an 8 got shafted. Now people are started to question a bit more.

when i was younger i used to do this too (judging off the score). Until i bought a game that got shat on by reviewers and actually really enjoyed it. I can't remember which game but it looked really good from videos and the scores didnt add up to what i saw.

 

[RA92]

snip

I'm curious why Escapist hasn't posted anything about this. It's not like they worry about slagging on other sites (IGN slowbros). Twitter has been ablaze and stuff.

 

[Valis7]

This isn't just a gaming issue. Objective journalism has been dead for years.

 

[Icehearted]

Yeah, this has come up before, and usually with sponsorship 'conflicts' like a review on a site like 1up for Resident Evil while they have Resident Evil banners everywhere, and then of course the famous Gerstman thing. Most websites in gaming that claim journalism are nothing more than and extension of advertising. Watch E3 and see the "journalists" cheering and wailing during preview videos as much as anyone else there.

This isn't just a gaming issue. Objective journalism has been dead for years.

Too right.

 

[ODWX9K]

I see nothing wrong with people taking "bribes" to write a review about something, because I find the bigger problem to be with people that blindly accept any review as the "Word of God". Though, I do think people should disclose such information like bribes.

More so to the point, entertainment like almost everything else in life is a relative concept. You may enjoy COD, I don't; I enjoy FFXIII-2, that doesn't mean you have to. Instead, if one should pay attention to the entertainment value, it should be in the patterns thereof: if you enjoy X, Y, & Z then it's a safe bet you'll enjoy similar games as those that also enjoy X, Y, & Z.

 

[Dooly95]

...

Oh he's probably 100% on the nose with his accusation, I'm just saying there isn't really much distinction worth talking about when you're airing your suspicions so publicly. It may not be an official accusation, but it's just as good as. I'm not surprised she got bent out of shape. Guilty as charged or not, people don't usually take well to having their integrity questioned.

Dave Cook (another one that was mentioned in the article, one of the ones that tweeted and won a PS3) took to the comments and defended himself. How many people care about him? Or that guy in the photo? He didn't seem to care for being called a shill either.

There's reaction, and then there's over-reaction.

I don't think there was anything there. Most readers would just see it as an example to further assert his position, and wouldn't give a damn. And the ones that would go digging would go digging regardless. Like this - http://storify.com/andybeta/gmadefiance

I had also expected something from the Escapist regarding this though....

 

[crazyrabbits]

This isn't just a gaming issue. Objective journalism has been dead for years.

Too right.

It's not dead - just pushed to the background. Insofar as news stories, newspapers are finding that they have to deliver compelling, researched content or die on their feet, as evidenced by the growing number of publications that are hiding behind paywalls to bolster their sagging subscriber numbers. That's a debate for another time and place, though.

As a writer (and former editor myself), one of the hardest things to do is remain impartial to anything and everything that could compromise my writing. When I was an entertainment editor for my college paper, I saw the whole gamut. One experience I remember very well was a piece I did on a Walt Disney animated film. I attended a public Q&A with two of the film's voice actors, got one-on-one time with one of the actors (who drew me a portrait of one of that film's characters that I still own), and got access to an advance press screening, along with a poster for the film. I got two weeks of material out of that access, but in the end, the film was garbage, and I called it out in my review.

I've killed stories for less. When I write, the first question I ask myself is 'does this suit my audience'? I've been given access to people and stories, and decided after the fact that it just wasn't interesting enough to write about and relay to an audience. When I look at gaming blogs nowadays (especially Kotaku, who now reports on snacks and glorified PR stunts), I see an industry that doesn't ask that question of itself, and is content to take the easy road to get a story without putting in the legwork.

The first rule of any PR liaison is having the confidence to choose whether or not you're going to fall for it. The only thing this controversy has proven (much like I said in another topic) is that gaming writers (I refuse to use the term 'game journalist') can be bought and paid for just as easily, if not moreso, than other writers in other industries. It's symptomatic of an industry that pushes day-one DLC, monetization schemes and ridiculous buzzword-filled press releases to make every game look like the second coming of Christ.