CambriaRising
Member
Yup.
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The Trial Of Peter Molyneux by RockPaperShotgun
- Thread starter Pie and Beans
- Start date
Yup.
Psychological Intellect
Banned
Damn. That was brutal. My face was cringed the whole time
DoktorEvil
Banned
That's the point in the interview where I began sympathizing with PM.
It's not the first time someone has called him that I bet and it's not the first time it was by a zealous reporter.
But that's why with the staff he retains, he needed to appoint someone as his PR bodyguard way before these interviews came to light.
30 years of experience should allow one to realize that.
PM is incompetent. Rightfully so. This Godus game I guess was his last hurrah before outright leaving video games.
He doesn't deserve to be badgered for his contribution to gaming, good or bad. No one is perfect 100% in media fields but he does not seem to learn from his mistakes.
benicillin
Banned
On top of all the other stuff going on lately, some of the responses here make me wonder if people actually understand what journalism is in the first place.
I'd say this comment says the most about those that think the only alternative to "lapping up PR bullshit" is insulting hit pieces.
Jacksinthe
Banned
Said it before and I'll say it again.
As a developer you know the size of the sandbox you are comfortable playing in. You know what to expect when trying to venture outside of that sandbox. You can only go as far as your leash of creativity let's you go.
Peter repeatedly tells you he can survive an entire year outside of his sandbox with nothing more than a Clif bar.
This isn't "oops, we miscalculated" as that DOES happen and is excusable in legitimate conditions but " oops" is the platform Peter RUNS ON. He does it time and again. Over and over.
This isn't a one-off. Its how the guy operates. Period. He's a liar and a scam artist. This isn't someone who is enthusiastic or naive. Read that interview and listen to the man. Its classic. classic. Those aren't the words of a man who "awww shucks" his way to where he is. He is divisive and manipulative.
As a developer you know the size of the sandbox you are comfortable playing in. You know what to expect when trying to venture outside of that sandbox. You can only go as far as your leash of creativity let's you go.
Peter repeatedly tells you he can survive an entire year outside of his sandbox with nothing more than a Clif bar.
This isn't "oops, we miscalculated" as that DOES happen and is excusable in legitimate conditions but " oops" is the platform Peter RUNS ON. He does it time and again. Over and over.
This isn't a one-off. Its how the guy operates. Period. He's a liar and a scam artist. This isn't someone who is enthusiastic or naive. Read that interview and listen to the man. Its classic. classic. Those aren't the words of a man who "awww shucks" his way to where he is. He is divisive and manipulative.
Yep I am sure some people will not work with him specifically because of this interview. However it could also lead to some people specifically speaking with him so they can boast about how they have nothing to hide from the unprofessional reviewer.
RelentlessRolento
Member
Overall the interview just answers my main question about Peter that clarifies everything:
I know he's a good person with good intent, but he's in denial and can't step outside of his own shoes. Plain and simple.
It's less about lying and more about denial.
I know he's a good person with good intent, but he's in denial and can't step outside of his own shoes. Plain and simple.
It's less about lying and more about denial.
KiefbladeMaster
Member
And the game is still in development. If this were solely about lack of deadlines met on Kickstarter's we could be here all day, i.e. something that is not new at all.
Whatever you think of the interview it more closely resembles journalism than 99% of the trash that is games media and developer interactions.
When you're interviewing someone who lies constantly in interviews about their lying constantly in interviews the form the interview takes will naturally be unconventional.
2 Slice Toaster
Member
Has Will Wright ever been held accountable for Spore?
TheLetdown
Member
Where's the accusation? If Jackpot is using "some pretty big words to be throwing at someone" by calling Molyneux's actions deception, surely you're doing the same here!
I'm not saying the tone isn't hostile. But the first thing that came to mind, as I've mentioned in a separate thread, is David Frost grilling Richard Nixon. When you're dealing with someone notorious for spinning truth, changing slant, choosing angles, picking his right profile, there comes a point where the line of questioning becomes direct and eschews the placid temperament for an entirely different one.
What's being done here is absolutely journalism. Whether you agree with the tactics is your call.
CambriaRising
Member
They don't. They're used to reading fluff interviews that never ask questions people actually want to know because PR will shut it down and take their ball and go home. No one is held accountable in this industry because everyone's afraid to get their toys taken away. And then fans who love their toys will trash them for it anyway.
PM scammed people out of $800,000, lied to a teenager about putting him in the game, and is already working on his next game instead of delivering what he promised. He deserved the hostility in a way most devs don't.
It gave Molyneux a chance to respond to his public perception. The same as asking Bill Billicheck if he thinks he is a cheater. He got a chance to respond to why this is a problem that follows him into every project he has been involved with for over a decade.
MHWilliams
Member
Nah, they might even want to answer the questions.
I don't think people really understand how PR works.
He is. He obviously wanted to be open. His answers were still very vague and evasive at times, despite the adversarial nature. I just think it could've been a better interview. Less hammer, more scalpel.
You missed a spot there. Those questions were to this post:
Based on this statement I made:
He's right about it though, I don't see how anyone can defend PM.
RockTurtle
Member
the dark souls of interviewers
I don't think anyone is. the more popular scope of the thread i think has been "PM deserves tough questions and all, but the manner in which it was conducted might have been a tad overzealous"
I agree. And I have actually had a great time with some of his work in the Fable series in the past. But the fact of the matter here is that he over sold his project, got more money than the goal, and instead of delivering the goods, he handed Godus off and moved on to something else. Someone needed to have the balls to drill his ass to the wall. To hell with being all formal and standard with the approach here just because it is the 'professional' way. Pfft.
Yes the game is in development with 3 people who might not even have all their time dedicated to it. The main dev has already said they are not getting enough funding to do what they need to.
So it's hit a likely outcome that should have been taken into consideration by anybody using kickstarter ever.
Couldn't agree more.
HellofaMouse
Member
the discussion of this whole interview being unprofessional and ego-stroking aside, what bums me out is that it seems to introduce yet another incentive to not go indie, as im guessing indies are more vulnerable against crap like this
Freshmaker
I am Korean.
Only until he keeps his promises.
benicillin
Banned
Just to clarify, I mean that a lot of the people heralding this interview as "true journalism" I don't think really understand journalism in the first place. It's cathartic because everyone is tired of Molyneux's delusions of grandeur but I really don't think the confrontational tone was necessary and despite Walker hammering on him I don't think anyone learned anything that they didn't know before. What was the story here, that Molyneux is an ideas guy who habitually overpromises and underdelivers? We already all knew that.
This is not journalism, it's an embarrassing and childish poking session.
http://www.foreignaffairs.com/discussions/interviews/syrias-president-speaks
That's an interview with Syria's president, who is accused of tyranny oppression and countless deaths. Obviously, Foreign Affairs and RPS can't be held to the same standards but it's absurd to find some of you praising that interview as "journalism".
Peter M. has committed numerous verifiable blunders. If you need to get emotional and disrespectful to convey a message despite there being so much evidence to do it calmly, you're just bad at your job.
Still, his incentives are skewed. Maybe he's not just an absolutely terrible interviewer. Clicks are the only alternative explanation I can come up with. This gives him and his site visibility and revenue so I guess he didn't really mess up. A public that applauds this, however, I just can't understand.
http://www.foreignaffairs.com/discussions/interviews/syrias-president-speaks
That's an interview with Syria's president, who is accused of tyranny oppression and countless deaths. Obviously, Foreign Affairs and RPS can't be held to the same standards but it's absurd to find some of you praising that interview as "journalism".
Peter M. has committed numerous verifiable blunders. If you need to get emotional and disrespectful to convey a message despite there being so much evidence to do it calmly, you're just bad at your job.
Still, his incentives are skewed. Maybe he's not just an absolutely terrible interviewer. Clicks are the only alternative explanation I can come up with. This gives him and his site visibility and revenue so I guess he didn't really mess up. A public that applauds this, however, I just can't understand.
Who was taken advantage of? There was never a risk that anyone would not
I had a line of credit, and a bank account with enough money to make up the shortfall. I asked for what it would take to get the game off the ground at an amount of risk that I could reasonably afford to take on personally.
No holds barred interviews aren't uncommon by any means. But this industry doesn't bite the PR hand that feeds them enough. They're too scared. If people want to talk about what is and isn't journalism, that isn't.
Developers are of course going to hate this interview. They are used to the sugar-coating and the soft ball questions. John brutal honesty is refreshing amid an industry full of ass kissers and Doritos promoters.
Was John aggressive and over-the-top? Yes, but Peter deserves it. He has been giving empty promises for more than decade, and it has always been the same. He does not deliver, moves on to the next big thing, promises heavens in your controller again, and then you wake up to a reality constructed of irritating bugs and missing features. Peter has always gotten away with this: Game journalists
never put him in the spot. Some may hint at his incompetence and over-promises, but Peter quickly spins that and moves on to the next question. John was the opposite of the trend that developers are used to. He kept pressing, asking the hard questions, demanding sensible answers.
It is sad that John Walker will probably never be able to interview developers again. He probably has been blacklisted by every PR organization by now. If I were you, John, I would be updating my resume and looking for different job offers now.
Was John aggressive and over-the-top? Yes, but Peter deserves it. He has been giving empty promises for more than decade, and it has always been the same. He does not deliver, moves on to the next big thing, promises heavens in your controller again, and then you wake up to a reality constructed of irritating bugs and missing features. Peter has always gotten away with this: Game journalists
(lol)
It is sad that John Walker will probably never be able to interview developers again. He probably has been blacklisted by every PR organization by now. If I were you, John, I would be updating my resume and looking for different job offers now.
Notch is very quick to not allow to be interviewed.
Lordkat from ThatGuyWithTheGlasses was denied his chance to interview Notch at a game conference years back because he's loosely affiliated with Spoony One, a person who at an earlier conference shouted "BETRAYAL!" in the halls at the XCOM shooter Bureau.
And the interview is a likely outcome that Molyneux should have taken into consideration before pissing on the people still willing to support him.
It's the last game EA allowed him to work on, so I'd say maybe. However, I think he decided to leave.
JacksUsername
Member
I think it showcases something even worse, and that's an enjoyment in seeing someone insulted and treated like shit during an interview. I'm not even that big of a fan of Molyneux, but the hostility that the interviewer displayed was over-the-top and unprofessional. I'm all for improving journalistic standards in the gaming industry, but this interview is not an example of that.
Yes but he said specifically he wasn't going to get funding from a publisher. You are comparing different situations.
Freeman
Banned
Sometimes they are, not most of the time. Usually its like nothing is happening and the press even sides with the publishers sometimes.
Bullshots are comm practice, so are PR pieces ridden with lies that are passed forward by the press as valid information.
ME fans were lied to(just a fact) and were called entitled by most of the press.
As of PM, the problem is not the fact he was confronted but the way it was done.
Lalalandia
Member
It's not a straight forward answer ,sometimes asking a bald question and having the interview terminated says everything the audience needs to know in a way that thousands of words can't. In Molyneux's case I believe he kept the interview going because he felt he could turn it around and persuade JW that he's just an 'over ambitious guy and that aw shucks I mean well'. I think the aggression showed a nasty emotionally manipulative streak (the complaining that he was being made to feel bad, the accusations that JW wants him out of the industry, the crying in prior interviews) and forced him into several mutually contradictory answers. You're right that PRs would have shut this down probably before JW finished his first question but what does it say that PM doesn't feel the need any more for PR when talking to the gaming press? What's more one of his former PRs has described the issue of trying to persuade him to dial back that 'enthuasiasm':
MHWilliams
Member
If you think they're not uncommon, then you should be running a site my friend.
PM has shit on gamers for years. Turnabout is fair play(and the questions weren't even actually unfair considering what PM has done).
KiefbladeMaster
Member
Another common occurrence with Kickstarter. It's investing in an idea, not necessarily a finished product. There have been many funded projects that were never fully realized.
You all are acting like this is the first time this have ever been done.
SomedayTheFire
Member
Molyneux deserved it. He should have been told this stuff years ago, or gotten a PR person.
The way RPS dealt with the subject is pure harassment. There are more tactful and subtle ways to get him to understand what he has done to some people. Reasoning with him is a way better to get through to people. Harassing them just makes them put up their defences.
On the other hand, poor old Peter is so caught up with his own hype and imagination, he often falls so short of his grandiose plans. He needs some assistant/carer that reigns him in sometimes. To his credit, the man did bring us some great games but he always dreams a bit too high for this own ability or that of the team he is with.
I think he needs to go silent now for a while, work on his projects and let them speak for him.
On the other hand, poor old Peter is so caught up with his own hype and imagination, he often falls so short of his grandiose plans. He needs some assistant/carer that reigns him in sometimes. To his credit, the man did bring us some great games but he always dreams a bit too high for this own ability or that of the team he is with.
I think he needs to go silent now for a while, work on his projects and let them speak for him.
Molyneux isn't the first long time developer to be grilled over Kickstarter for over promising. He is someone that had a history of over promising even with publisher money backing him up, so when he started the kickstarter this was predictable from the beginning. I want to know why he continues to put himself in this situation time and time again, why if he sees his statements as creative ideas that he would like to some day see come true but doesn't expect them to would he take up the role of selling this project to fans and asking for the money up front.
I'd rather 0 interviews than PR bullshit. I'd rather games get absolutely no press if they refuse to answer questions like that. Then hopefully it would come to a point where they would have to candidly answer people if they wanted any publicity for their game. There's only so many hits a PR release can get on their own sites if everyone refuses to publish it. If people do shady bullshit they should be concerned about consequences, not be able to just handwave it away and keep getting hyped by the media like they do now.
Then maybe gaming news sites would start publishing more actual stories about games (like Kotaku has said they'll be doing) rather than just being nothing more than a collection of PR mouth pieces that regurgitate press releases all day long. That's what most of them do, re-post press releases or post softball interviews that are nothing but press releases filtered by PR. It's sad.
Morrigan Stark
Arrogant Smirk
Boom, RPS. Good job.
Look at this part:
Disagreed. He fully deserved it.
Yup this.
Look at this part:
Trying to call the interviewer "emotional". Hahaha fuck you. What a slimy asshole. Reading his answers, he reminds me of an old boss I had, one kept failing to pay his employees but promised the money would come, they'd make all the conversations about themselves and how hard they were trying and how much they believed in the company and blah blah blah. Just another manipulative liar.Peter Molyneux[/quote said:
As long as they are not mired in any controversy or shady dealings, then there should be no problem.
kitschbeam
Member
That was absolutely heart-wrenching. Reading the interview is like reading a script from a movie. I kinda feel bad for Molyneux actually and I really don't know what to feel from this interview.