• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Press Reset: The Story of Polygon - financed by Microsoft for $750,000

Status
Not open for further replies.
Haunted

Haunted

Member
Riposte said:
Recently I was thinking about starting a videogame "the onion" site to lambast this stuff. Too stupid to really get it off the ground. I should pick up website building as a hobby.
Click to expand...
I honestly don't think it's possible to lambast this. You'd just end up writing the same kind of articles "serious" sites are unironically posting. Like, this trailer and documentary for example! Brilliant as a parody piece of game journalists with inflated egos beyond their station, could really work on a satire website - but nope. It's real, it's unironic.

Terrifying.



edit: loving the tweets from other people in the industry
 
R

rozay

Banned
I didn't click this thread as I don't see any value in this site as opposed to the other "video game journalism" sites that already exist, but I'm glad the thread title change prevented me from missing this.
 
C

chiablo

Member
Zia said:
I keep hearing this...

Must be the overweight, simple, everyman thing.
Click to expand...

Or the fact that they don't take games seriously and are more focused on having fun than serious business... Which is how video games are supposed to be: all about having fun!
 
Riposte

Riposte

Member
This is all really looking bad, but then people loved the indie game documentary unironically.

DennisK4 said:
Internet drama?

Well, eznark is a fellow gaffer so I will defend him till death!
Click to expand...

I'll throw any Gaffer under a bus in a minute. Dog eat dog world.




In my head Polygon is a government project to send all the dangerous/annoying elements to an isolated island in the guise that they think they are starting a NEW GAMES JOURNALISM website. The public is annoyed because the slow progress on the project.
 
B

Bgamer90

Banned
SolidSnakex said:
It seems like companies may have started to send him games early since he's been able to post his reviews for Darksiders 2 and NSMB2 very close to their release dates.
Click to expand...

Yeah I've been noticing that too. Before it would take him about 2 weeks to a month to get a review up after the game released. I make video game review vids myself and they take about a month for me to put up so that I can get a good feel of the game and edit the footage. A lot of people on youtube make reviews 1-2 days after the game releases just for hits but I would never do that. Seems like Mark is the same way.
 
Y

Yaboosh

Super Sleuth
Why is everybody praising what Garnett Lee said?

Giant Bomb is most certainly not all about the games and the people who make them. And it shouldn't be.

You can make the argument that Polygon won't do a very good job of emulating the feeling of Giant Bomb and they may be more successful by making it more about the games and less about them, but to write off any website that makes it about the staff mostly instead of about the games seems ridiculous in the face of Giant Bomb's apparent success.
 
S

see5harp

Member
There's a chance this whole trailer thing was the a decision made by higher ups and lead editors. It's ridiculous either way because I don't think a major website can even pump video and content with that level of polish on a daily basis.
 
T

TheBaronOfNA

Banned
This makes me remember that Mega 64 video about journalism

Riposte said:
This is all really looking bad, but then people loved the indie game documentary unironically.
Click to expand...

Maybe cause they were two different things. You don't see Roger Ebert promoting "Roger Ebert The Movie Teaser" in a relaunch of his Website/Bog
 
A

Ace Harding

Member
KalBalboa said:
Not to fuel the flame, but here's some acknowledgement:


7833316126_165c8e319e_z.jpg



And yeah, I donated to Rebel FM back in the day after the 1upocalypse.
Click to expand...

Yeah there was that, but Anthony openly said it himself on Rebel FM not very long ago. Like, within the last few episodes (maybe)?

He was talking about Kickstarter and donations and stuff, and talking about how they didn't expect to raise that much (or something) but were able to buy Tyler a gaming PC. Said it clear as day. When I heard that it was like a record scratch. WTF?!?
 
R

RedNumberFive

Banned
TheBaronOfNA said:
This makes me remember that Mega 64 video about journalism



Maybe cause they were two different things. You don't see Roger Ebert promoting "Roger Ebert The Movie Teaser" in a relaunch of his Website/Bog
Click to expand...

At the very least, Ebert's sense of accomplishment would be well deserved. These guys, not so much.
 
GhaleonQ

GhaleonQ

Member
Zia said:
I keep hearing this...

Must be the overweight, simple, everyman thing.
Click to expand...

Nah, The Gameological Society, Scroll, and Gamespite (among others) all push themselves as quasi-highbrow or at least well-informed. I think it's just that organizations like Kill Screen and Polygon demonstrate the risks of pushing that extreme better than THE CAPE FEATHER: A NINTENDO FANBLOG or whatever does for its extreme.

I love pretentious criticism. I do not like this. (To be fair, I decided that I did not like this back when people like Matt Leone appeared lower on the masthead than people like Arthur Gies did.)
 
B

Bgamer90

Banned
Yaboosh said:
Why is everybody praising what Garnett Lee said?

Giant Bomb is most certainly not all about the games and the people who make them. And it shouldn't be.

You can make the argument that Polygon won't do a very good job of emulating the feeling of Giant Bomb and they may be more successful by making it more about the games and less about them, but to write off any website that makes it about the staff mostly instead of about the games seems ridiculous in the face of Giant Bomb's apparent success.
Click to expand...

It's all about the way they hold themselves (for lack of a better way for me to put it at the moment). Giant Bomb doesn't take itself seriously at all. It's fun, tounge-in-cheek.

Polygon on the other hand (at least to me) has a very "haughty" vibe from being a bit too serious. It's funny since the site isn't even up yet.

So while both sites have personalities, the personalities on Giant Bomb don't seem to take themselves as seriously. They come across as "laid back" guys to me. Polygon just seems to be a bit too overdone at the moment especially for (again) a site that isn't even up yet.

Just my opinion.
 
Danny Dudekisser

Danny Dudekisser

I paid good money for this Dynex!
There are a couple people at the site who I like a lot, but then... Polygon also had the Lollipop Chainsaw review that was more about Arthur Gies' personal vendettas than the game... and I just kinda stopped reading the site after that.

So, not particularly interested in a documentary.
 
S

see5harp

Member
Yaboosh said:
Why is everybody praising what Garnett Lee said?

Giant Bomb is most certainly not all about the games and the people who make them. And it shouldn't be.

You can make the argument that Polygon won't do a very good job of emulating the feeling of Giant Bomb and they may be more successful by making it more about the games and less about them, but to write off any website that makes it about the staff mostly instead of about the games seems ridiculous in the face of Giant Bomb's apparent success.
Click to expand...

That's exactly the way I feel. Who the hell is ACTUALLY using the dumb ass Gamefly/Shacknews app and reading press releases on shacknews? You may disagree with the way they made a trailer to announce their direction and laugh at how serious they are taking themselves, but it's not any different than the old 1up Show and those were great IMO. Justin McElroy would fit right in with the Giant Bomb and when I see people post the skyrim gif, I wonder whether they actually know how awesome and funny Justin really is.
 
B

BocoDragon

or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Realize This Assgrab is Delicious
I don't know if it changed, but I hated the "best game of the week" format of their podcast. Considering how many diverse game podcasts I listen to, that's saying a lot.
 
Y

Yaboosh

Super Sleuth
Bgamer90 said:
It's all about the way they hold themselves (for lack of a better way for me to put it at the moment). Giant Bomb doesn't take itself seriously at all. It's fun, tounge-in-cheek.

Polygon on the other hand (at least to me) has a very "haughty" vibe from being a bit too serious. It's funny since the site isn't even up yet.

So while both sites have personalities, the personalities on Giant Bomb don't seem to take themselves as seriously. They come across as "laid back" guys to me. Polygon just seems to be a bit too overdone at the moment especially for (again) a site that isn't even up yet.

Just my opinion.
Click to expand...

Your opinion is about whether or not you like their site and content. Not about whether or not it is valid. Garnett Lee's twitter posts are terrible because they would apply to Giant Bomb too. Giant Bomb is awesome. If they made it all about the games and the creators it would be way worse.

You not liking the site or their content doesn't validate Garnett Lee's twitter posts.
 
E

Empty

Member
SolidSnakex said:
We need an official topic for CGR. It seems like companies may have started to send him games early since he's been able to post his reviews for Darksiders 2 and NSMB2 very close to their release dates.
Click to expand...

the guy that reviews racing games on there really knows his stuff. love them.
 
J

John Rabbit

Banned
Yaboosh said:
Why is everybody praising what Garnett Lee said?

Giant Bomb is most certainly not all about the games and the people who make them. And it shouldn't be.

You can make the argument that Polygon won't do a very good job of emulating the feeling of Giant Bomb and they may be more successful by making it more about the games and less about them, but to write off any website that makes it about the staff mostly instead of about the games seems ridiculous in the face of Giant Bomb's apparent success.
Click to expand...
because he's right?

there is a distinct tonal difference between the "kids goofing off in the basement" mentality of giant bomb versus the studied "look at great we are/this is going to be" narcissism of the polygon trailer.
 
7

7threst

Member
GhaleonQ said:
I love pretentious criticism. I do not like this. (To be fair, I decided that I did not like this back when people like Matt Leone appeared lower on the masthead than people like Arthur Gies did.)
Click to expand...

It's the same with me. Some pretentiousness I like, but there is also room for fun like Giantbomb. I really liked what KillScreen was doing (not very much anymore though, don't really know why), and am a big fan of Edge. Problem with this is, they don't have anything to show for their pretentiousness. After all the hate Edge magazine is getting, there is till the magazine wilt lots of great and original content. These guys have nothing except a stupid teaser that makes you throw up..
 
S

steadfast

Member
Nibel said:
Which mod gets my high five for the thread title edit
Click to expand...

icKqBkqGadnxW.gif


Can't blame them for modelling themselves after GB, have to see how it works out. However, the pool of 'talent' that has over a half-century of experience does not resonate with me at all.

YOU GUYS, VIDEO GAME DUDE IS GETTING A TATTOO....WE"RE FUCKING CUTTING EDGE OH GOD PLEASE LOVE US.

Bgamer90 said:
That's the thing, the personalities of the people at Giant Bomb don't take away from the games. They are having fun, video gaming is fun, it works.

For Polygon it's different in my opinion. Their haughtiness, constant amount of hype, and overproduced "sneak peaks" is taking away from the overall feel of a video game site, bringing more attention on to them than the video games.

Again, this is just my opinion but it seems like many people feel the same way. I like the Verge, but Polygon is getting a bit too dramatic for me.
Click to expand...


All sizzle; no steak - you said it much more eloquently than I could.
 
Y

Yaboosh

Super Sleuth
John Rabbit said:
because he's right?

there is a distinct tonal difference between the "kids goofing off in the basement" mentality of giant bomb versus the studied "look at great we are/this is going to be" narcissism of the polygon trailer.
Click to expand...



Except that isn't what Lee seemed to be railing against. Sure, he hates that the trailer is pretentious, which is obviously valid. But then going on to say that was wrong because they don't make it all about the games and the passion of its creators is ridiculous.

What you said is why you would like Giant Bomb over Polygon, and is obviously inarguable, you like what you like. I certainly like Giant Bomb but have no experience with these guys and I doubt I will ever visit their site.

But you can't say it should be all about the games and the passion of its creators and not write off Giant Bomb as well.

You can say that video games shouldn't be a bunch of pretentious bullshit, which I would get behind. But that isn't what Lee seemed to say in the limited space of two twitter posts.
 
B

Bgamer90

Banned
Yaboosh said:
Your opinion is about whether or not you like their site and content. Not about whether or not it is valid. Garnett Lee's twitter posts are terrible because they would apply to Giant Bomb too. Giant Bomb is awesome. If they made it all about the games and the creators it would be way worse.

You not liking the site or their content doesn't validate Garnett Lee's twitter posts.
Click to expand...

That's the thing, the personalities of the people at Giant Bomb don't take away from the games. They are having fun, video gaming is fun, it works.

For Polygon it's different in my opinion. The haughtiness, constant amount of hype, and overproduced "sneak peaks" is taking away from the overall feel of a video game site, bringing more attention on to the creators than the video games.

Again, this is just my opinion, but it seems like many people feel the same way. I like the Verge, but Polygon is getting a bit too dramatic for me and the site isn't even up yet.
 
I

illmatic19

Member
Who is actually excited for this 'documentary'?

Aren't professional journalist supposed to have thick skin when it comes to criticism? Arthur Gies is so immature and unprofessional.
 
S

see5harp

Member
John Rabbit said:
because he's right?

there is a distinct tonal difference between the "kids goofing off in the basement" mentality of giant bomb versus the studied "look at great we are/this is going to be" narcissism of the polygon trailer.
Click to expand...

Garnett didn't say that though. He's always wanted to focus more on games and content creators but that's as far as he's got. The best mainstream article I've read in a while is the Game Informer interview with Infinity Ward. I think it's fair to criticize the way in which they are launching their site but I don't disagree with their decision to make it make it more staff/personality driven.
 
R

Red UFO

Member
Bgamer90 said:
For Polygon it's different in my opinion. The haughtiness, constant amount of hype, and overproduced "sneak peaks" is taking away from the overall feel of a video game site, bringing more attention on to the creators than the video games.
Click to expand...

Yep, not to mention that Giant Bomb was also built around a giant wiki that encompasses games, creators and concepts.
 
T

TheBaronOfNA

Banned
I actually think Giant Bomb has the right balance between goofiness and seriousness. Yes, they goofing around with Quicklooks and old shitty Olimpic games but you see Patrick articles, Jeff's Jar Times and some reviews that they actually have strong opinions about the industry and gaming journalism.

They are not Screwattack or a Angry Reviewer from That Guy With Glasses, they actually know their stuff even if not always is apparent.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

Star Ocean The Second Story R | Review Thread
Analysis Review 2 3
108
9K
PanzerCute replied
[Windows Central] Microsoft and Xbox announced 'Marvel's Blade' at The Game Awards — but could it also be coming to PlayStation?
Platform 6 7 8 9 10
499
38K
Darsxx82 replied
WWE 2K24 - Reviews Thread
7
2K
adamsapple replied
Homeworld 3 | Review Thread
Analysis Review
20
2K
P:axMagellanic replied
Tekken 8 | Review Thread
News Analysis Review 2 3 4 5 6
263
17K
Klosshufvud replied
Top Bottom