Support NeoGAF

[Skeff]

Dear EA,

Fuck You.

I love that this is the first post of a page.

 

[Duxxy3]

I always wondered where these enormous marketing budgets were coming from. I think this week answers that question.

 

[Jimmyfenix]

Well i guess i am in the wrong business.

 

[ChiliManiac]

With EA paying for positive youtube coverage...this begs the question? How many others, and what other sites are being payed off?

 

[BrokenEchelon]

With EA paying for positive youtube coverage...this begs the question? How many others, and what other sites are being payed off?

 

[Yuuichi]

With EA paying for positive youtube coverage...this begs the question? How many others, and what other sites are being payed off?

I agree with this being the most problematic implication of all this, that it makes basically all sources of gaming reviews unreliable until further notice.

 

[NoPiece]

I wonder if Google might step in and try to clean this up a bit. Not out any sense of morality, but they must be a little pissed that all this video money is transacting and they aren't getting a cut..

 

[IAmRandom31]

This makes me laugh because of the explicit instructions to do certain things in BF4. Makes me think of the dozens of times I saw that skyscraper fall or ship hit land or saw an alarm trigger during a " preview ".

I love this industry.

 

[ChiliManiac]

I agree with this being the most problematic implication of all this, that it makes basically all sources of gaming reviews unreliable until further notice.

Though if it's this rampant in gaming? How many other companies are paying for positive coverage on youtube? Not just youtube but any site period? I think we just uncovered a huge controversy here.

 

[Sean*O]

Were they really expecting to keep a lid on this via NDA? LOL

 

[ChiliManiac]

I wonder if Google might step in and try to clean this up a bit. Not out any sense of morality, but they must be a little pissed that all this video money is transacting and they aren't getting a cut..

Why would they? The more views their videos get the more ad revenue they generate.

 

[Kazuma Kiryu]

I agree with this being the most problematic implication of all this, that it makes basically all sources of gaming reviews unreliable until further notice.

That's because the vast majority are unreliable.
Gave a bad review of game X? You're not getting the sequel for review.
Wanna review this awesome new console? Come to this hotel where we pay and customize consoles just for you.
Gaming websites totally plastered with game specific ads, reviewing said game?
Publishers paying for documentaries of websites?
This industry can be a joke sometimes.

 

[Respawn]

Wait, you mean it's not just Microsoft?

/Sarcasm.

Gaf would have you believe that just MS did this. It's been going on for years.

You're doing great. keep it up.

 

[antronoid]

Well that wasn't a surprise.

 

[fade_]

Would be hilarious of someone at MS leaked this to get the heat off their back.

 

[Sean*O]

So, to recap, content providers MS and EA (which implies others are likely to share similar practices within the industry) paid off blogers/youtube personalities to post favorable stuff regarding their products. Then, went to youtube to pull all "unauthorized content" off of youtube so that only their "influencers'" content would remain (ignores Nintendo's angle in this)?

Have I missed anything in regard to the youtube policy changes in conjunction with these new

Spoiler

to me

partnerships with content promotion?

Pretty good scam they got going. Let's see if Google/YouTube does anything reactionary to punish MS and EA... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... this might take a while. LOL

 

[Imperfected]

Well, at least EA was offering a non-insulting CPM. They're on the road to 2nd Worst Company in America, I can feel it!

 

[Junior Mint]

Wait, you mean it's not just Microsoft?

/Sarcasm.

Gaf would have you believe that just MS did this. It's been going on for years.

Right. "Gaf" would have you believe that.

 

[SolidSnakeUS]

Wow... this is becoming aggravating, sad and hilarious at the same time.

 

[Sketch_Turntable]

ET TU EA?

 

[ChiliManiac]

Then literally, the game journalism industry is a rich fucking joke paid off by corporate shrills and the only way to get actual information is through NeoGAF?

 

[Ghazi]

Then literally, the game journalism industry is a rich fucking joke paid off by corporate shrills and the only way to get actual information is through NeoGAF?

Hey, I don't think GameFAQs is paid ol

 

[HariKari]

ET TU EA?

I wouldn't be surprised if EA pitched the idea to Microsoft. "Hey, this has worked great for us, you should try it too. These suckers come cheap!"

Who can be trusted? is anyone left? RPS/Giant Bomb maybe?

 

[stonesak]

Dear EA,

Fuck You.

Time to retire Believe, this should be NeoGAF's new motto.

 

[TriniTrin]

Is this why battlefield's issues were not voiced prominently in any of the major gaming review websites? Why BF4 received great reviews while having crashes and audio/save bugs that none of the reviews showed.

I assumed IGN and most of those kind of sites got paid for coverage of some games (i.e GTA week) but always wondered why glaring errors are never stated in reviews and then later the reviewer always says something like "Oh we never had that happen in our gameplay time".

My other assumption is that they just don't play the game for any longer than an hour.

 

[Quadraphonic]

Is this why battlefield's issues were not voiced prominently in any of the major gaming review websites? Why BF4 received great reviews while having crashes and audio/save bugs that none of the reviews showed.

I assumed IGN and most of those kind of sites got paid for coverage of some games (i.e GTA week) but always wondered why glaring errors are never stated in reviews and then later the reviewer always says something like "Oh we never had that happen in our gameplay time".

My other assumption is that they just don't play the game for any longer than an hour.

Usually what happens is the producer will have a ton of back and forth with the reviewer about the negative things in the article, and anything that was missed. Then usually anything the producer can't argue with, they'll tell the reviewer "That's fixed in the final build" in an effort to get the reviewer to skip over that issue.

 

[Kiant]

"Do not make a video focusing on glitches/bugs"

Wow that must of been a hard task to do in BF4

 

[Raoul Duke]

So this clusterfuck is a like a tsunami wave, shit travels far and wide... Not the least bit surprised. I wish we had an industry that provided honesty rather than lies.... they slither their way into our wallets with lies, like snakes. Just make a good product and you will get what you deserve... critical acclaim, commercial success and a ton of cash. Ship a broken product and you will get the derision you deserve.

 

[Dead Man]

So is there likely to be any government/regulatory backlash against these sorts of things where they are prevented from talking about the payments for comments?

 

[John Harker]

if you pay me for $4 for every 1000 impressions of the reveal thread....

Spoiler

just kidding. i just wanted to get in on the laughs too, instead of always being a party pooper haha

 

[rrs]

So is there likely to be any government/regulatory backlash against these sorts of things where they are prevented from talking about the payments for comments?

One sack of money and they look the other way.

 

[olimpia84]

This is huge. EA should be exposed and ridiculed for this.

 

[DoubleTake]

This completely explains why nothing was said about Battlefield's issues...wow. I will never read another gaming website review again. That is pure bull shit.

 

[Imperfected]

Is this why battlefield's issues were not voiced prominently in any of the major gaming review websites? Why BF4 received great reviews while having crashes and audio/save bugs that none of the reviews showed.

I assumed IGN and most of those kind of sites got paid for coverage of some games (i.e GTA week) but always wondered why glaring errors are never stated in reviews and then later the reviewer always says something like "Oh we never had that happen in our gameplay time".

My other assumption is that they just don't play the game for any longer than an hour.

The more accurate question would be, "Is this why every major gamer on YouTube seemed to suddenly become super interested in Battlefield 4, even when they had no real background in playing online shooters?"

 

[Dead Man]

One sack of money and they look the other way.

Indeed :/

 

[Whompa]

So EA is a shoe in for third year in a row for worst company I guess...

I think that whole voting thing is stupid but chances are 4chan will flood that voting system with EA votes.

 

[DenogginizerOS]

Here is Peter Moore responding to "standard, shoddy website journalism":

"Standard, shoddy website journalism recipe, born out of a desperate need to increase click-thru rates to support advertising revenue," he wrote. "Fabricate a story using an 'unnamed source,' post it first thing in the morning, add the letters 'EA' to the story (oh, and link it to micro-transactions - always a fan favourite) and then stand back and enjoy the vitriol which you turn into revenue. Rinse and repeat..."

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2...s-following-poor-sales-of-dead-space-3-report

Ironic given these latest revelations.

 

[Yagharek]

So is there likely to be any government/regulatory backlash against these sorts of things where they are prevented from talking about the payments for comments?

Look into your heart. You already know the answer.

 

[Laughing Banana]

Then literally, the game journalism industry is a rich fucking joke paid off by corporate shrills and the only way to get actual information is through NeoGAF?

Oh don't make the mistake of thinking GAF as the ultimate haven for all opinions and news that are all pure or unbiased, GAFis full of fanboys too; the different is, they do not get paid, hahaha.

 

[outunderthestars]

I love that this is the first post of a page.

Should be the first post of every EA thread.

 

[Yagharek]

Oh don't make the mistake of thinking GAF as the ultimate haven for all opinions and news that are all pure or unbiased, GAFis full of fanboys too; the different is, they do not get paid, hahaha.

Some probably do get paid - there was that viral marketing wave of bans during the xbone saga. It's inevitable that a couple have slipped through security, despite the best efforts of the mods.

 

[A-V-B]

Some probably do get paid - there was that viral marketing wave of bans during the xbone saga. It's inevitable that a couple have slipped through security, despite the best efforts of the mods.

There've been multiple waves, haven't there? I seem to remember a particularly big shill-lynching happening about two years ago, wasn't it...

 

[Dead Man]

Look into your heart. You already know the answer.

I was trying to be optimistic. It only happens once every couple of years, you didn't have to crush the dream

 

[Dryk]

Wonder how deep the rabbit hole goes with this stuff. Starting to wonder where can you go to get an honest opinion about things if potentially all of these companies are doing these type of contracts.

Well that's the entire point. They don't want you to get an honest opinion.

From a friend you know who has played the game, that opinion you can trust.

They're coming for him next.

 

[Yagharek]

I was trying to be optimistic. It only happens once every couple of years, you didn't have to crush the dream

Haha, you should know better than to be optimistic about these things.

 

[GardenSirens]

why don't they just hire people like normal companies instead of luring us into thinking ti's a nice payout but only if we're not honest and lie saying it's perfect.

 

[nib95]

Have EA commented on this yet?

 

[BeerSnob]

why don't they just hire people like normal companies instead of luring us into thinking ti's a nice payout but only if we're not honest and lie saying it's perfect.

Direct marketing isn't as effective as word of mouth campaigns. Further, if you can bribe the more respected peers in a group you can manufacture that group's consent to just about anything.

Test yourself. Go read a review for a game that the guys at Giantbomb or that Totalbiscuit or whoever enjoyed. Once you've read the review, watch a video by someone you respect or who's videos you enjoy. The video will be MUCH more influential because you now have a feeling of consensus with a respected peer and you also feel like you've seen the game in action. Once they've instilled that viewpoint in you, your cognitive bias will inherently make you gloss over the game's inherent flaws. You will actually DEFEND a product designed to screw you over because to you it is "your" opinion that the product is good.

 

[Serrato]

I guess it's time for detectiveGAF to use the great means and uncover how deep we are getting lied and fucked over. By whom, how and since when.

 

[NeoGash]

Lol!!!
"They're just being a business!"

Oh. My. God. Microcunts and EA never cease to amaze.