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GoNintendo 'End of Day' thought - Destin Feature: Full Disclosure

by destin_legarie
29 November 2010
GN Version 3.1

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Man, what a lousy way to start the work week. Leslie Nielsen passing away is a real bummer. He wanted to do another Naked Gun, it was announced that the project would move forward, and then the poor guy passes away. I think I’ll have to put aside some time for a Naked Gun marathon this week. At least we have Destin to brighten our Monday morning. We also have some Destin action for Monday evening as well…but more on that later! See you guys in a few, short hours. - RMC

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When you cover games for a living you get a lot of free stuff.  You get review copies, trinkets, t-shirts, trips, hotel rooms, and sometimes food.  Some people feel that companies are trying to buy high scores but I find it hard to believe that a place to sleep and a good dinner makes a game a 9 instead of a 6.  So what some are asking for is full disclosure, something I think is completely unnecessary.  Sure I’ll tell you if you ask, but what place does the type of food I was given have in a review?

It keeps coming up again and again.  Readers and writers talking about the “gifts” they’re given in exchange for coverage.  Recently there was one event that had game reviewers brought into San Francisco, put into fancy helicopters, and then flown to a fancy resort where they had to play one game for four days straight.  Afterwords they got to keep their helmets and expensive gaming headset.  That game was Call of Duty: Black Ops.

Shortly after another game got a similar treatment.  Press was flown to Disney World where they were given hands on time with a game staring a mouse and an angry rabbit.  While there, writers interviewed Warren Spector and were shown attractions that “inspired” the creation of this game.  It was Epic Mickey.

Keep in mind that those two examples are not standard but the lavish treatment of the press is becoming commonplace.

Since I started doing this “professionally” in 2008 I’ve received more crap than I’ve ever wanted.  I have a plastic guitar and bass pedal, both of which I’ll never use, collecting dust in my closet right now.  They’re there mostly because I’ve been too lazy or busy to give them away.  I did keep one thing, a headset that was given to all the people at the preview event.  I never reviewed the game.

Not only are there fancy things like headsets, but I’d say that 90% of my wardrobe consists of t-shirts that I was given at E3.  I also know of a desk at my other job that’s piled high with stuff that we have to give away but haven’t.  It’s becoming standard practice for a publisher or developer to send you something you probably don’t want with a review copy.

So is the solution full disclosure?  Do writers need to reveal every single thing that happened when they were reviewing a product?  I say no but something does need to change.  Trust.  I think that readers need to learn who they can trust and writers need to remember where their alliance lies.  With the reader, not the publisher.

I know that it’s very difficult to get coverage on a particular game if you’re not at a preview event.  For a website to keep up with their competitors they need to attend these events, get early review copies and sometimes you get nice stuff.

Is it right?  I don’t know but I do know that there’s people out there that you can trust.  It will not become standard practice to reveal if a review copy was given to a writer, or if they reviewed a game while at an event or if they were given some type of gift before or after a review.  The only thing that I do know is that there’s good people out there that you can trust whether they tell you everything or not.

Do you disagree?  Are you worried that the reviewers of today are corrupted?  Let us know in the comments.