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Ubisoft gave journalists a free Nexus 7 at a Watchdogs Preview event.
- Thread starter Hanmik
- Start date
Luft Vanship
Banned
Don't forget Polygon's Arthur Gies offering to disclose Sony NDA/Contract stuff to the lead of Xbox One planning. Tweet was deleted afterward.
Disgusting then again its Gies so its no surprise.
If giving gifts like this didn't work then they wouldn't be doing it.
Oh, don't get me wrong: I don't like the fact. but a "journalist" can't complain if he accepted the gift imho
thelatestmodel
Junior, please.
Guys, a Nexus 7 is a tablet, not a phone.
And yes, this does raise serious concerns about how much confidence UbiSoft have in the game. It'd better be good or this will be one of the biggest wasted opportunities in gaming, ever. Such a great concept.
Yup, that's why they gave a tablet.
RPGCrazied
Member
Yeah. Didn't they receive free PS4's at some event too? How about free stuff, that uh, buy your games? If anything, DLC should be free up to a certain point in time.
So, you're free to accept a bunch of free, expensive shit as long as you're able to rationalize it. You get to keep the free stuff and get wined and dined by the company you're covering as long as you say that you are unable to be swayed by money and gifts.
As long as the person giving the bribe doesn't explicitly ask for a particular outcome of said bribe, it's okay to accept bribes. I don't agree with you. I think you are accepting a bunch of free stuff and allowing yourself to influenced without any kind of accountability. No one is super-human, these items and expensive things are purchased with the sole intent to influence you and it has been proven to work.
Yeah, other professions have far more devious ways of grafting.
I'm always amazed at the level of surprise shown about how this stuff happens in consumer journalism.
Swag (cheap or expensive) is always problematic. But, journalists are people and people are different.
I know a guy who is always mega-hyped about every game he can see/play in preview build at some fancy event. I remember playing Battlefield 4 at local EA event for press, he was totally in love with game, despite of many obvious problems it had. I also know journalists who are always cautious and critically disposed to any game, no matter how big event is and how good swag is.
Some sites, like IGN, are all about hype, less about critique. They probably don't even view any gifts as bribes, cause they are always hypying games up anyways. Some sites don't accept gifts at all.
Personally, I don't like taking freebies. Even though I know myself and I know it won't affect my opinion, I always feel weird. But, it's worth noting, that being offered something expensive is ultra-rare. Recently I saw Witcher 3, Titanfall, Thief, Dark Souls 2, The Crew, Murdered and couple of other AAA games from various publishers at preview events. There were t-shirts, maybe a mug here and there, nothing more. I'm surprised to hear about Nexus 7 to be honest
I know a guy who is always mega-hyped about every game he can see/play in preview build at some fancy event. I remember playing Battlefield 4 at local EA event for press, he was totally in love with game, despite of many obvious problems it had. I also know journalists who are always cautious and critically disposed to any game, no matter how big event is and how good swag is.
Some sites, like IGN, are all about hype, less about critique. They probably don't even view any gifts as bribes, cause they are always hypying games up anyways. Some sites don't accept gifts at all.
Personally, I don't like taking freebies. Even though I know myself and I know it won't affect my opinion, I always feel weird. But, it's worth noting, that being offered something expensive is ultra-rare. Recently I saw Witcher 3, Titanfall, Thief, Dark Souls 2, The Crew, Murdered and couple of other AAA games from various publishers at preview events. There were t-shirts, maybe a mug here and there, nothing more. I'm surprised to hear about Nexus 7 to be honest
On the really young and poor maybe? Guessing that most of the people attending already have (better) tablets.
Entertainment and media industry.
I had no idea that every games journalist works for Ubisoft.
There's a big difference between getting a PS4 pre-release so that you can do your job by providing coverage for people thinking they might want to buy a PS4 and getting a mostly unrelated tablet.
MemoryHumanity
Member
This is super shady, for sure. But lol at the hate on game journos in this thread; I think a lot of you must hate your jobs :lol
flyinpiranha
Member
Meh, I don't really care about this stuff much anymore. I usually read reviews for gameplay context rather than their "opinion" anyway. The score is usually the least interesting part.
I say let them have their free shit.
I say let them have their free shit.
I'm sorry but its not always as cut and dry as your making it out. Wellness benefits, company discounts etc can all be subsidized by various means. Including external sources outside of the company. The benefits your talking about can also be worth thousands of dollars. Much more than the couple of hundred of dollars we're talking about with the Nexus 7.
Frankly it's you that seem really naive saying stuff like this. "Bribery" in the industry is a concrete thing, Gerstmann-gate wasn't for nothing. Also you give "journalists" too much credit, they aren't saints, besides there's an unconscious effect attached to the gift, they could alter their opinion without even realizing it.
The Jackdog
Member
Can we start calling game journalists by what they really are please?
Bloggers.
Bloggers.
SkullplateMurray
Member
1. It's a tablet not a phone
2. It's a preview event. Reviews and scores will be a separate event
3. Yes:
OXM - https://twitter.com/dirigiblebill/status/456001819828051968
Eurogamer - https://twitter.com/tombramwell/status/456004899835498496
Videogamer - https://twitter.com/TheSteveBurnio/status/455999217744744448
RedNumberFive
Banned
Outside of free gaming memorabilia I'm not sure that there is a lot to envy. Low pay, and high competition for community manager positions.
brandonh83
Banned
They can do this but I guess they can't afford QA. So excited for Watch Dogs.
TheOnePercent
Member
Umm... he knows.
Cosmo Clock 21
Banned
Well now your previous replies in this thread make much more sense now.
ElectricKaibutsu
Member
This is such BS. Impartiality is impossible after a gift like that.
I'm glad I'm not a video game reviewer. Admittedly it'd be hard to turn down a free phone.
Edit:
I'm glad I'm not a video game reviewer. Admittedly it'd be hard to turn down a free phone.
Edit:
Or maybe not, lol
1-It's not the same budget and 2-What's wrong with Watch_Dogs' QA coverage? The game is not out yet, how do you know it's gonna be buggy?
Yep.
What some people seem to confuse here, is the terminology bias and the ability to write a balanced review. If you get something, you WILL be biased. That's how human beings work. You can't just forget a gift you received, but you can be aware of the effect it might have on your cognition. By being aware of your bias, you can make sure to be thorough and still write a balanced and fair review, but it will be harder than if you had no bias in the first place. I guess we just need to have faith in gaming journalists to be aware of their psychology 101
flatearthpandas
Member
I like how people act like this totally obvious, public, and precedented act is some kind of scandal.
Most of these people were going to write 9/10 and 10/10 reviews anyway and the ones who weren't still aren't going to.
Most of these people were going to write 9/10 and 10/10 reviews anyway and the ones who weren't still aren't going to.
Yeah, bribery is so rampant and such a problem that Thief metacriticed at 67 and Knack at 54.
...come on people. Show me the problem.
Hmm since The Crew debacle, disappointment in learning about Watch Dog's multiplayer and Ubisoft's unwillingness to have the game playable at PAX even though we are a month away from launch has been decreasing my hype. This just pushes me to wait until my friend buys it and try it out at their place.
RedNumberFive
Banned
I wonder if they need to report this stuff as taxable income to the IRS. If mommy bloggers have to comply, why not gaming bloggers?
OldAsUrSock
Banned
If I was a publisher I would give all of the popular gaming news websites like IGN, Gametrailers, etc... coal.
Joe Shlabotnik
Banned
Once you accept a "gift" like this, your opinion is influenced. Even if the influence is you double- and triple-checking yourself to make sure you are "not influenced". You're too close to yourself to know for sure, and regardless, it's something you wouldn't have had to do without the gift.
The effect of something like this can be very subtle but still unavoidable. And I think video games journalism is pretty small potatoes so I'm not losing sleep over this, but in general this is why bribery/"gifts" are frowned upon in every position of influence regardless of industry.
The effect of something like this can be very subtle but still unavoidable. And I think video games journalism is pretty small potatoes so I'm not losing sleep over this, but in general this is why bribery/"gifts" are frowned upon in every position of influence regardless of industry.
brandonh83
Banned
Well it wasn't meant to be taken 100% seriously for starters. Also, going by the fact that their games, at least their large-ambition open-world types are buggy messes... call it a hunch.
guess i know what reviews i'll be reading.
As much as I don't like this I am still quite hyped for Watch Dogs lol.
Even though impressions here and I guess yours too are a bit down.