I was checking out the Gamespot News section this morning and was more than a little surprised to see a "Production Updates" section below the "Top Stories" headers. A whole separate section for Gone Gold announcements and shipping dates, set apart from the other news.
Long-time readers may remember that I recommended such a system way back in September. Apparently, Gamespot has been doing these things since back in early February and I've just been oblivious. So consider this a belated "thumbs up" to Gamespot for no longer trying to mix oil and water.
Thursday, April 29, 2004
Tuesday, April 27, 2004
Putting a spec sheet back in Pandora's Box
So here's the situation. Review these facts carefully, because there will be an quiz later.
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If you haven't guessed by now, this situation is not hypothetical. It happened recently to IGN, who did not post the picture with their story on the leak. The competitors that posted the picture included GamePro and Xbit Labs. The quotes above come from the IGN article and a GamesIndustry.biz article which also didn't post the picture.
I have to give IGN major kudos for their decision. It would have been pretty easy to ignore Microsoft's request and defend the decision by saying the picture is already available to the public elsewhere and is therefore fair game for further publication. This would also be a practical decision, seeing as IGN might be losing readership to the other sites that either didn't hear or didn't listen to Microsoft's request.
Nonetheless, given that the picture can't be confirmed as authentic and could in fact be protected proprietary information, I think the decision not to republish it is the right one. Just because a document is available elsewhere doesn't mean you have to help publicize it, especially when you're not sure if it's reliable or not. There's nothing you can do to prevent readers from going to less scrupulous sites to view the material, but at least you're not adding to the problem. I applaud IGN for taking the high road on this one.
Anyone think IGN actually made the wrong decision? Feel free to defend your position using the comments link below.
- A picture has been posted on the forums for Chinese website GZ Easy. The picture shows what is allegedly a leaked system specification and schematic diagram for the next Xbox system. The picture bears the name of Michael Dougherty, head of Xbox Advanced Technology Group.
- There is contradictory information about whether or not the picture is real. One anonymous source says, "I'm sure Microsoft is freaking out because this is the same stuff [developers] have now." Another expert, however, says, "there's some really surprising missing detail, like the twin-core architecture and a few other really crucial things... I'd have to guess it was a fake."
- You work at a major video game news site. Microsoft's Legal Department has specifically asked you not to post pictures of the alleged schematic.
- Some of your competitors have already posted the picture on their site, and some other mainstream technology sites have posted it as well.
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If you haven't guessed by now, this situation is not hypothetical. It happened recently to IGN, who did not post the picture with their story on the leak. The competitors that posted the picture included GamePro and Xbit Labs. The quotes above come from the IGN article and a GamesIndustry.biz article which also didn't post the picture.
I have to give IGN major kudos for their decision. It would have been pretty easy to ignore Microsoft's request and defend the decision by saying the picture is already available to the public elsewhere and is therefore fair game for further publication. This would also be a practical decision, seeing as IGN might be losing readership to the other sites that either didn't hear or didn't listen to Microsoft's request.
Nonetheless, given that the picture can't be confirmed as authentic and could in fact be protected proprietary information, I think the decision not to republish it is the right one. Just because a document is available elsewhere doesn't mean you have to help publicize it, especially when you're not sure if it's reliable or not. There's nothing you can do to prevent readers from going to less scrupulous sites to view the material, but at least you're not adding to the problem. I applaud IGN for taking the high road on this one.
Anyone think IGN actually made the wrong decision? Feel free to defend your position using the comments link below.
Monday, April 26, 2004
Why can't Kojima insult journalism in this country?
Thanks to Jeff Bridges (no relation, he assures me) for sending a link to an excerpt from Hideo Kojima's comments on the state of video game journalism. "It is shit," the Metal Gear creator succinctly explains in this months Edge and VideoGiochi magazines. "I am certain that most game reporters in Japan are not really journalists, they are useless idiots."
As for the rest of the world, the excerpt is cryptic. "It's easy for us to compare the quality of reporters from Japan and other parts of the world when we visit E3 or ECTS, and this fact makes me hard." Does this mean other parts of the world are better? Worse? Exciting?
Anyone want to defend the industry against Kojima's obviously baseless accusations?
As for the rest of the world, the excerpt is cryptic. "It's easy for us to compare the quality of reporters from Japan and other parts of the world when we visit E3 or ECTS, and this fact makes me hard." Does this mean other parts of the world are better? Worse? Exciting?
Anyone want to defend the industry against Kojima's obviously baseless accusations?
News of The Ombudsman and the ombudsman
For those who don't think that headline doesn't make sense, this blog is The Ombudsman and I am the ombudsman.
If you didn't notice, I gave the blog a spiffy new template just now.It doesn't seem to cascade across the archives, but at least the italics and right-side links will be readable from now on. (Never mind. I figured it out.)
Also, regular readers of GameCritics.com may have noticed that I now hold the title of News Editor on that fine site. Many of you will no doubt see this as hypocritical given my past tirades on the subject of "link-and-quote" journalism. I ask that you consider the following:
If you didn't notice, I gave the blog a spiffy new template just now.
Also, regular readers of GameCritics.com may have noticed that I now hold the title of News Editor on that fine site. Many of you will no doubt see this as hypocritical given my past tirades on the subject of "link-and-quote" journalism. I ask that you consider the following:
- That GameCritics.com is mainly a reviews site and doesn't have the resources for original reporting.
- That I provide analysis of the news items and not simply a copy-and-paste recitation of the headline and important quotes.
- That providing links to important news gives the site readership a common basis of understanding for the state of the industry, which in turn engenders community building.
- That I am, in fact, a giant hypocrite.
Thursday, April 22, 2004
A Timely Style Note
E3 stands for "Electronic Entertainment Exposition." Therefore, it should be written as "E3" and not "E3 Expo" or worse, "E3 Exposition."
If you want to write it as E3 (with the superscripted 3) every time, be my guest, but it is hardly necessary.
Thank you.
If you want to write it as E3 (with the superscripted 3) every time, be my guest, but it is hardly necessary.
Thank you.
Tuesday, April 20, 2004
The system works...
...in a roundabout sort of way. Most of you will remember a recent post about a 1up story that seemed incredibly vague about the identity of former Take-Two CEO Jeffrey Lapin. Well, today I got an e-mail from the article's author, 1up news editor David Smith:
Thanks for the catch. What happened there is that when highlighting the text to paste it into the publishing form, I missed the first paragraph. The story now makes more sense, although it is no less boring and still of minimal interest to the common gamer ^_^
So there you have it. Simple human-computer interaction error is to blame for the faulty reference. Remember, you too can make a small difference in this world by whining about small errors on a blog =).
Thanks for the catch. What happened there is that when highlighting the text to paste it into the publishing form, I missed the first paragraph. The story now makes more sense, although it is no less boring and still of minimal interest to the common gamer ^_^
So there you have it. Simple human-computer interaction error is to blame for the faulty reference. Remember, you too can make a small difference in this world by whining about small errors on a blog =).
The Ombudsman Goes Curmudgeoning
You readers might be interested in a recent piece I did for Curmudgeon Gamer, a video game blog that's almost as cranky as this one. The article focuses on how ineffective online-enabled sales stats are for measuring how many people actually play console games online. I decided not put this on the Ombudsman because most of the sites I saw covering the story were quick to add caveats to this effect. Still, an interesting little statistical game to play.
Monday, April 19, 2004
VG Ombudsman Trademarks "Non-Story." Click for details!
(Thanks to my friend Keavin for first showing me this story)
As a general rule, if you note in the text of a story you're writing that the information you have is essentially worthless, you either need to (a) do more reporting or (b) just stop writing the story.
I say this because of a recent piece on IGN headlined Sega Games Revealed? The sub-headline notes that there have been some "mysterious new game titles discovered." What it doesn't note is that there hasn't been much else discovered:
The wonderful thing about video game titles is that they all need to be trademarked. A trademarked name doesn't guarantee it is the final title for a game nor does looking it up on the United States Patent and Trademark Office website offer any hints to the nature of the game or even the system it's on. Still, a name is always a good place to start when learning about new titles.
On March 23, Sega filed trademarks for two games, Nosferan and Ghost Squad. It's unclear which Sega development team is working on the titles or even which platforms they are coming to. Sega was not available to comment on the titles.
Put in your pre-orders now, people!
Read that first sentence again and tell me why these trademarks are such wonderful things. They don't tell you who's developing it. They don't tell you what platform it's on. They don't tell you what the game is about, what genre it's in, or how to find the key on the third level of the airport.
Take a look at the actual trademark applications for Nosferan and Ghost Squad on the USPTO site and you'll see just how useless they are. The only bit of significant information is that both the titles represent either "video game software; computer game programs; game discs, cassettes and circuit boards containing game programs for use with handheld or arcade video game machines with built in screens," or "stand alone video game machines; arcade game machines with built-in screens." Well that certainly narrows it down, doesn't it.
To make matters worse, the IGN article even admits that the trademark "doesn't guarantee... the final title for a game." So it's not even useful to file away as a title to look for on the GameStop store shelf in a few months. By then, Nosferan could be called Jane's Magical Bunny Quest. Who's to say?
As the story says, a potential game name is a good place to start when looking for information on new titles. It is not, however, a good place to finish. You need to have some additional information to make the story worth your readers' time. Without that support, the name is less than useless; a total non-story.
IGN finishes their article by saying, "We'll have more on these and any other new Sega games as information becomes available." Perhaps they should have waited until that information became available before writing about these two particular games.
As a general rule, if you note in the text of a story you're writing that the information you have is essentially worthless, you either need to (a) do more reporting or (b) just stop writing the story.
I say this because of a recent piece on IGN headlined Sega Games Revealed? The sub-headline notes that there have been some "mysterious new game titles discovered." What it doesn't note is that there hasn't been much else discovered:
The wonderful thing about video game titles is that they all need to be trademarked. A trademarked name doesn't guarantee it is the final title for a game nor does looking it up on the United States Patent and Trademark Office website offer any hints to the nature of the game or even the system it's on. Still, a name is always a good place to start when learning about new titles.
On March 23, Sega filed trademarks for two games, Nosferan and Ghost Squad. It's unclear which Sega development team is working on the titles or even which platforms they are coming to. Sega was not available to comment on the titles.
Put in your pre-orders now, people!
Read that first sentence again and tell me why these trademarks are such wonderful things. They don't tell you who's developing it. They don't tell you what platform it's on. They don't tell you what the game is about, what genre it's in, or how to find the key on the third level of the airport.
Take a look at the actual trademark applications for Nosferan and Ghost Squad on the USPTO site and you'll see just how useless they are. The only bit of significant information is that both the titles represent either "video game software; computer game programs; game discs, cassettes and circuit boards containing game programs for use with handheld or arcade video game machines with built in screens," or "stand alone video game machines; arcade game machines with built-in screens." Well that certainly narrows it down, doesn't it.
To make matters worse, the IGN article even admits that the trademark "doesn't guarantee... the final title for a game." So it's not even useful to file away as a title to look for on the GameStop store shelf in a few months. By then, Nosferan could be called Jane's Magical Bunny Quest. Who's to say?
As the story says, a potential game name is a good place to start when looking for information on new titles. It is not, however, a good place to finish. You need to have some additional information to make the story worth your readers' time. Without that support, the name is less than useless; a total non-story.
IGN finishes their article by saying, "We'll have more on these and any other new Sega games as information becomes available." Perhaps they should have waited until that information became available before writing about these two particular games.
Friday, April 16, 2004
Thursday, April 15, 2004
CEO Quits Take-WHO?
Thanks to a reader who prefers to remain anonymous for pointing me to a 1up article about recent shake-ups at mega-publisher Take-Two. The anonymous reader writes:
Read the article closely. They never actually name the CEO that stepped down until the very end. And even then, it's only his last name (I believe). [He's right -ed.]
There's also a quote halfway through the article attributed to "Roedel." Whoever that may be.
Indeed, the two people referenced in the story are simply referred to as "Roedel" and "Lapin." Lapin is almost definitely former CEO Jeffrey Lapin, who readers of this article would be forced to identify from the pretty sparse context given in the last paragraph. Odd, that, considering his resignation is the topic of the article, as evinced by the headline: "Take-Two CEO Quits, The Warriors Delayed"
A little Googling revealed that Roedel is probably recently appointed Take-Two board chairman Jeffrey Roedel, but again, readers have almost no way of knowing this.
At first glance, it looks like this article may have been the victim of some quick, overzealous editing (Note the abrupt lead and lack of full identification on first reference). Then again, it may just be some really bad writing, culled from other sources and not sufficiently proofed. Anyone want to give their vote on these options (or any others I may not have considered)? The comments link is always open.
Read the article closely. They never actually name the CEO that stepped down until the very end. And even then, it's only his last name (I believe). [He's right -ed.]
There's also a quote halfway through the article attributed to "Roedel." Whoever that may be.
Indeed, the two people referenced in the story are simply referred to as "Roedel" and "Lapin." Lapin is almost definitely former CEO Jeffrey Lapin, who readers of this article would be forced to identify from the pretty sparse context given in the last paragraph. Odd, that, considering his resignation is the topic of the article, as evinced by the headline: "Take-Two CEO Quits, The Warriors Delayed"
A little Googling revealed that Roedel is probably recently appointed Take-Two board chairman Jeffrey Roedel, but again, readers have almost no way of knowing this.
At first glance, it looks like this article may have been the victim of some quick, overzealous editing (Note the abrupt lead and lack of full identification on first reference). Then again, it may just be some really bad writing, culled from other sources and not sufficiently proofed. Anyone want to give their vote on these options (or any others I may not have considered)? The comments link is always open.
Tuesday, April 13, 2004
Interview with the Interviewer
I came across an interesting interview over at GameSpy today. The interviewer was noted freelancer Steven Kent, author of "The Ultimate History of Video Games." The respondent was Hideo Kojima, creator of the Metal Gear Solid series of games. Kent asks some pretty good questions, and Kojima gives insightful answers, but the following section on the interview's second page gave me pause:
GameSpy: Why set the game in the '60s?
Kojima: Basically, MGS's roots are the 007 series. It's more about espionage and spies. The time frame when espionage was most lively was during the cold war era. That was the '60s.
[Personal Note: I could not agree more. In fact, I think the Bond movies should return to the '60s as well.]
To be perfectly clear, the personal note was added by Kent and not by me. Kojima's response to the question extends past the note.
Most readers probably just skipped over this throwaway note, but I found it more than a little jarring. Supposedly, I was reading this article to hear Kojima's thoughts, not Kent's. Does this little interlude add anything to the interview? Does it take anything away?
Kent follows up on the idea of his personal note in the article's conclusion:
[Kojima has] also returned his Bond-based hero to the '60s, a move United Artists and the makers of Bond have long overlooked.
Of course, there's no rule saying an interview story can only include question/response pairs and no other writing. Another interview -- posted the same day on the same site by the same author, in fact -- mixes original writing with the comments of Nintendo president Satoru Iwata. But in that article, the original writing is there mainly provide analysis and context for Iwata's statements. Kent's personal opinions barely fit into the equation.
Right now I'm generally against anything that makes the questioner the focus of an interview instead of the respondent, but I could easily be swayed on the issue. Should interviewers be able to insert their own opinions into interview articles? Post your thoughts using the comments link below.
GameSpy: Why set the game in the '60s?
Kojima: Basically, MGS's roots are the 007 series. It's more about espionage and spies. The time frame when espionage was most lively was during the cold war era. That was the '60s.
[Personal Note: I could not agree more. In fact, I think the Bond movies should return to the '60s as well.]
To be perfectly clear, the personal note was added by Kent and not by me. Kojima's response to the question extends past the note.
Most readers probably just skipped over this throwaway note, but I found it more than a little jarring. Supposedly, I was reading this article to hear Kojima's thoughts, not Kent's. Does this little interlude add anything to the interview? Does it take anything away?
Kent follows up on the idea of his personal note in the article's conclusion:
[Kojima has] also returned his Bond-based hero to the '60s, a move United Artists and the makers of Bond have long overlooked.
Of course, there's no rule saying an interview story can only include question/response pairs and no other writing. Another interview -- posted the same day on the same site by the same author, in fact -- mixes original writing with the comments of Nintendo president Satoru Iwata. But in that article, the original writing is there mainly provide analysis and context for Iwata's statements. Kent's personal opinions barely fit into the equation.
Right now I'm generally against anything that makes the questioner the focus of an interview instead of the respondent, but I could easily be swayed on the issue. Should interviewers be able to insert their own opinions into interview articles? Post your thoughts using the comments link below.
Sunday, April 11, 2004
Cliché-Watch: Kurosawa's Grave Spinning
Welcome to Cliché-Watch, a feature that I just came up with to call attention to some of the worst use of clichés in the video game media.
This edition of Cliché-Watch came about when I noticed two different sources talking about acclaimed Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa 'spinning in his grave' in reviews of Sammy's Seven Samurai 20XX. The first was the latest issue of EGM, where reviewer Jon D said "I expect Seven Samurai Director Akira Kurosawa's grave is equipped with some sort of industrial centrifuge to accommodate the amount of spinning he's doing right about now," (May 2004, p.96). The next reference came while watching Tech TV's X-Play. "Hear that distant sound?," co-host Morgan Webb asked, "That's Kurosawa spinning in his grave!"
I happened to see the X-Play reference about one hour after I read the EGM reference, which made the repetition stand out in my mind. It got me wondering: were these two isolated incidents of an overused cliché, or was it more prevalent than that?
A few Google searches later, I found that it was indeed more prevalent:
This edition of Cliché-Watch came about when I noticed two different sources talking about acclaimed Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa 'spinning in his grave' in reviews of Sammy's Seven Samurai 20XX. The first was the latest issue of EGM, where reviewer Jon D said "I expect Seven Samurai Director Akira Kurosawa's grave is equipped with some sort of industrial centrifuge to accommodate the amount of spinning he's doing right about now," (May 2004, p.96). The next reference came while watching Tech TV's X-Play. "Hear that distant sound?," co-host Morgan Webb asked, "That's Kurosawa spinning in his grave!"
I happened to see the X-Play reference about one hour after I read the EGM reference, which made the repetition stand out in my mind. It got me wondering: were these two isolated incidents of an overused cliché, or was it more prevalent than that?
A few Google searches later, I found that it was indeed more prevalent:
- NetJak probably gets the award for the first use of the cliché, saying way back in their E3 2003 report that the idea is "a disgrace to the movie it stole the title from. I don't even like the original Seven Samurai and I still Kurosawa would be rolling in his grave to see this much liberty taken with his work. I mean...robots? Come on!"
- EuroGamer threw in what seemed like an afterthought reference to Kurosawa-spinning in a story about Koei's Samurai Warriors: "Time may prove us wrong, but, judging by the rumble of Akira Kurosawa's spinning corpse, we doubt it."
- Japan Today gets the award for most creative mangling of the cliché, saying in a commentary piece that, "Somewhere in Japan, Akira Kurosawa's bones are rolling over in their urn."
- The San Francisco Chronicle was the biggest name offender I could find, saying in a review that "Kurosawa may not be turning in his grave, but he's probably scratching his head."
- Like Anna Karina's Sweater proves that it's not only the big name video game sources using the cliché. A post on the film-centric blog is titled That's the sound of Akira Kurosawa turning in his grave.
Wednesday, April 7, 2004
A great story, but...
Note: This was supposed to go up Wednesday but blogger didn't want to publish it for some reason. Sorry for the delay.
In my editorial duties an NPR this morning, I came across a great commentary piece by Lev Grossman, the literary critic for Time Magazine. The piece talks about the evolution of videogames as a storytelling art form, comparing them to movies, television and literature in that regard. The piece is well written and delivered, but it is almost ruined by the following quote about two thirds of the way through the story:
Borges would have gotten a kick out of Grand Theft Auto III, a game about gangsters set in 1980s Miami.
Any semi-serious gamer cringes at this point, knowing full well that the author is actually talking about Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and not Grand Theft Auto III. Some listeners won't even notice, but to many listeners, myself included, this small flub goes a long way toward ruining Mr. Grossman's credibility on the subject of video games. "Why should I listen to this guy," a listener might ask himself, "He doesn't even know the difference between GTA3 and Vice City."
Now I don't mean to pick on Mr. Grossman; his piece just happens to be the one I noticed at the moment. I'm using it as an illustrative example of how important it is to check and double check all your facts, even the seemingly inconsequential ones. Every factual mistake costs you a little bit of credibility to your readers and, as a journalist, credibility is one of your most important traits. The time it takes to read through the article one last time (or better yet, have someone else read it) to find that small error is well worth it.
Just looking through this piece one last time, I changed the word "televisions" in the first paragraph to the correct "television." How many of you would have stopped listening to me if I had spelled "television" wrong? I probably missed some other horrible grammar errors, but (here comes the overarching point:) every little bit helps.
In my editorial duties an NPR this morning, I came across a great commentary piece by Lev Grossman, the literary critic for Time Magazine. The piece talks about the evolution of videogames as a storytelling art form, comparing them to movies, television and literature in that regard. The piece is well written and delivered, but it is almost ruined by the following quote about two thirds of the way through the story:
Borges would have gotten a kick out of Grand Theft Auto III, a game about gangsters set in 1980s Miami.
Any semi-serious gamer cringes at this point, knowing full well that the author is actually talking about Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and not Grand Theft Auto III. Some listeners won't even notice, but to many listeners, myself included, this small flub goes a long way toward ruining Mr. Grossman's credibility on the subject of video games. "Why should I listen to this guy," a listener might ask himself, "He doesn't even know the difference between GTA3 and Vice City."
Now I don't mean to pick on Mr. Grossman; his piece just happens to be the one I noticed at the moment. I'm using it as an illustrative example of how important it is to check and double check all your facts, even the seemingly inconsequential ones. Every factual mistake costs you a little bit of credibility to your readers and, as a journalist, credibility is one of your most important traits. The time it takes to read through the article one last time (or better yet, have someone else read it) to find that small error is well worth it.
Just looking through this piece one last time, I changed the word "televisions" in the first paragraph to the correct "television." How many of you would have stopped listening to me if I had spelled "television" wrong? I probably missed some other horrible grammar errors, but (here comes the overarching point:) every little bit helps.
Thursday, April 1, 2004
Happy Pagan New Year
Update - April 2: I've been scouring the web most of yesterday and today and have found a TON more jokes. Scroll down to see the new ones. I'm sure I've still missed some, though. Keep sending them in.
It's April 1, and if you don't know what that means, well, you're just a fool.
Site's all over the internet use this opportunity to let their creativity and humor shine, and video game sites are usually no exception. I'm a big fan of all the fakery that goes on every April, so I'm going to attempt to chronicle all of today's video game related foolery in this post. Consider it a "correction of the record" if you want to gibe it with this site's stated purpose. Expect this post to be updated a few times throughout the day and maybe throughout the week. If you notice something I've missed, please don't hesitate to mail me a link.
Also, since this site is supposedly a serious journalism review, I'll pose a more serious question for discussion on the comments thread: Are April Fools jokes appropriate for news outlets? Do news providers run the danger of readers confusing fake news for real (with potentially serious consequences)? Could readers disregard real news as fake because they've been fooled before (I needed to do a Google search before I believed this AMF Bowling 2004 review was legit)? Or does anyone not paying attention today deserve whatever confusion they get? Discuss!
All ratings are out of a possible 5. Jokes are posted in the order I find them. Big thanks to Blue's News for providing many of the links, Slashdot Games for many others.
Total jokes so far: 33
GameSpot
Links: Rockstar Confirms GTA: Port-Au-Prince, First Look: Godfather 2072, Bowie planning Star Wars Galaxies gig?
Believability Rating: 2 - An E-rated GTA game? Get real!
Cleverness Rating: 4 - Major props for poking fun at the new Seven Samurai remake.
Favorite Quote: "I used to be angry, so very angry," [Rockstar Spokesman Greg Venezuela] told GameSpot. "However, since I started chakra-meditating in the employee incense lounge, the stress just melts away."
GameForms
Links: The Passion of the Christ, Preview, Screen Shots, GBA Screen Shot.
Believability Rating: 3 - Christ is the new Hot Media Property... or so the media tells me.
Cleverness Rating: 4 - It's the "screen shots" that push it above average.
Favorite Quote: "While the movie has been a great success, we want to ensure the message of Christ's love can be experienced in a more interactive way, a way that involves pushing colored buttons at the correct time while Jesus dies."
ThinkFishStick
Link: Doom 3 Source Code Leaked
Believability Rating: 4 - Remember, what happened to Valve can happen to YOU!
Cleverness Rating: 3 - A little obvious, given the proximity to Half-Life 2
Favorite Quote: "Carmack's personal collection of MP3's and AVI's was also nicked from the scene, including some very sensitive footage showing John Romero in women's clothes, parading through the ID offices "
Armchair Empire
Link: Microsoft Cancels Xbox 2, Halo 2 in Jeopardy
Believability Rating: 1 - Microsoft runs out of money? My bones will be dust long before it happens.
Cleverness Rating: 3 - Playing off the wishful thinking of Nintendo/Sony fanboys is never a bad idea.
Favorite Quote: "Do you have any idea how much square-footage a massive inventory of Xboxes occupies? ItÂ’s massive!"
Blizzard
Link: Blizzard Entertainment® Announces .999~ (Repeating) = 1
Believability Rating: 5 - I'm no Math major, but I believe it.
Cleverness Rating: 4 - I'm no Math major, but I still enjoyed the joke
Favorite Quote: "Elaborate and yet crafted with deceptive simplicity and elegance, Blizzard's proof that .999~ = 1 is a true wonder of modern mathematics."
Beyond Unreal
Links: Breaking News: UT2004 Production Suspended, UT2004 LE Released for Free, Download
Believability Rating: 2 - Where did these legal disputes come from? Have I been asleep?
Cleverness Rating: 3 - Props for providing a download link. Has anyone actually tried downloading it?
Favorite Quote: "It's with great sadness that I have to confirm that the rumors are true - as of today, we're suspending production of UT2004 while we clear up a bunch of legal crap that's going on here at Epic HQ."
Gaming Nexus
Link: Interview with Joe Lieberman
Believability Rating: 4 - An interview with Senator lieberman seems perfectly reasonable... until you start reading it.
Cleverness Rating: 4 - References to Kerry's snowboarding, Dean's scream and Bush taking down a virtual Saddam. Well done.
Favorite Quote: "ThereÂ’s nothing like coming home and relaxing while trying to take over a crime-ridden, drug infested city. ItÂ’s a lot like running for president."
NFS Unlimited
Link: Need for Speed 8 gone GOLD!
Believability Rating: 3 - A game announcement doesn't seem too strange, but the crappy render hurts the package.
Cleverness Rating: 1 - Games go gold every day, and there isn't enough text to the actual story.
Favorite Quote: "What will make the game different to other games in the series is street racing with the first time in NFS series the ability to run over pedestrians!"
(The following links are new as of April 2)
IGN Pocket
Link: New Limited Edition SP
Believability Rating: 5 - This is highly plausible given the recent NES styled Game Boy
Cleverness Rating: 5 - It's just like Nintendo to milk its past for all its worth, even the embarrassing parts
Favorite Quote: "The apocryphal Virtual Boy Game Boy Advance will launch for $199.99. It will quickly drop in price to $99.99, then $49.99, eventually hitting clearance aisles and outlet stores for $29.99 before disappearing into obscurity six months after its release."
IGN PC
Link: PC 2.0
Believability Rating: 1 - PS2 and XBox games on your PC... legally? I don't buy it
Cleverness Rating: 3 - If it weren't so entirely implausbile, it'd be a neat idea
Favorite Quote: "People are tired of dealing with performance issues, drivers, multiple CD installations, crashes, lockups, and other problems that dog PC gaming. A unified solution looks like the obvious choice, and streamlining hardware makes for cheaper development and lower prices for everyone."
IGN PC
Link: Tribe Interview
Believability Rating: 1 - The picture ruins any chance of being fooled
Cleverness Rating: 4 - I'm all for making fun of the obsessiveness of Tribes players
Favorite Quote: "IGNPC: Can I call it Princess? Chris Mahnken: The SkyPony shall not be mocked. Its name is McGuffin.
Nintendojo
Link: Nintendojo to Become First Official Nintendo Fansite
Believability Rating: 4 - The concept seems ludicrous, but the writing is so good I started to believe
Cleverness Rating: 5 - What better way to goad fans of such an independent site by saying you've sold out.
Favorite Quote: "Due to an increasingly dire financial situation, and the publicity it would offer the site, we were both in agreement that this deal could be nothing but a positive change for the future of Nintendojo."
Nintendojo
Link: Breaking: Silicon Knights Developing Realistic Zelda for GameCube
Believability Rating: 3 - The fuzzy picture hurts credibility, but there's definitely a market for the idea
Cleverness Rating: 3 - Entirely too standard. There are plenty of recent Zelda games to be had.
Favorite Quote: "I'd love to do a realistic, mature take on Zelda. Ah, I shouldn't talk about this."
1up
Links: Final Fantasy XXL Announced
Believability Rating: 1 - Pretty obviously a joke as soon as you see the hideous box art.
Cleverness Rating: 1 - See, cuz there's an X... and the X stands for extra. It's funny!
Favorite Quote: "'We always typically try to make our quests larger with each new installment in the Final Fantasy series,' said Kitase. 'This time we decided to focus on the characters.'" (rim shot)
1up
Link: Snake Eater Deemed Phallic Symbol
Believability Rating: 3 - Never say never when it comes to Christian Fundamentalists, but the over-the-top writing does it in.
Cleverness Rating: 3 - These groups seem to find sex corrupting our society everywhere. This was a logical fit.
Favorite Quote: "It's bad enough that our kids are bombarded with penises every single day by Disney and the recording industry, but now they have to ward off Satan's member on their PlayStations, too?"
1up
Link: EA Announces The Sims: Cracked Out
Believability Rating: 2 - EA makes a drug-themed game. Did they buy Rockstar or something?
Cleverness Rating: 4 - Hey, if you're gonna simulate life, you might as well include junkies.
Favorite Quote: "And don't think you can take one or two hits, and give up. If your sim goes too long without a hit, withdrawals set in. "
1up
Link: Mario Gets Sex Change, Becomes Man
Believability Rating: 1 - What? He was a woman. Oh... I get it. Bad joke.
Cleverness Rating: 1 - Mario's games don't let you shoot hookers. He must be a woman!
Favorite Quote: "However, narrow-minded brother Luigi, of staunch Italian-Catholic upbringing, will still refer to Mario as "big sister," and may even publicly ridicule his sibling if embarrassed (possibly a new gameplay innovation)."
1up
Link: Nintendo Appeals to Adult Gamer
Believability Rating: 3 - Nintendo "growing up" is only a matter of time, but I doubt they'd touch their classic series'
Cleverness Rating: 4 - The picture of possessed Pikmin is so bad that it's good!
Favorite Quote: "In exactly what capacity the DS will expand Pikmin 2, we do not know, but Nintendo officials have hinted that one screen can be used to pinpoint close-up abusive kills on specific Pikmin, much in the same way the DS can zoom in on a soccer player's face, for seemingly useless reasons."
OpenBeer
Link: OpenBSD/game boy advanced sp
Believability Rating: 5 - Hey, they've ported Linux to everything else for no apparent reason.
Cleverness Rating: 2 - I almost missed this joke because I just didn't care about it.
Favorite Quote: "Now you can funny with your OpenBSD box everywhere! In bus, subway, taxy, school, toilette, restaurant, church, cinema, theatre..."
World of Warcraft
Link: Choosing the Two-headed Player Race (Best Joke of the Year Award Winner!)
Believability Rating: 5 - This is actually a good idea. Why didn't I think of that?
Cleverness Rating: 5 - The subtle allusions to marriage and relationships make the joke complete
Favorite Quote: "When the bond between two players is forged within a single Ogre body, that bond is permanent for better or worse."
Battle.net
Link: Goblin Hero Invades Azeroth Bent on Revenge
Believability Rating: 2 - Huh? Where did this guy come from?
Cleverness Rating: 4 - I like the idea of a Goblin out to defend to the honor of his race.
Favorite Quote: "Goblin Merchants, Laboratories, and Goblin Shipyards provide additional services and merchandise. For what reward? It's time to pay the Goblins back! The Goblin Tinker is coming for you!"
LoonyBoi
Link: IF Quake
Believability Rating: 4 - It seems entirely plausible, but as the FAQ page explains, it's not really a joke. Um, OK.
Cleverness Rating: 5 - Read the room descriptions in the screenshots. Funny stuff.
Favorite Quote: "In IF Quake, you walk through the exact same levels you do in the graphical version of the game, only instead of circle-strafing and firing at your enemies, you type commands like 'ATTACK GRUNT WITH SHOTGUN'."
Globe & Mail
Link: must have game
Believability Rating: 5 - Why hasn't anyone seriously reviewed Solitaire. Everyone plays it!
Cleverness Rating: 4 - A nice idea, and it's treated like a real review. Well done.
Favorite Quote: "Addictive gameplay, a great cast of characters and fantastic graphics combine to make Solitaire a standout among PC games."
Bungie
Link: Pimps at Sea
Believability Rating: 2 - The concept seems ludicrous, but I've seen real games based on stupider ideas.
Cleverness Rating: 2 - When every other line is a pimp joke, it begins to grate.
Favorite Quote: "Pimps At Sea: where pimping and poop decks collide! Coming Soon(tm) Arrrrrh, bitch!"
Inside Mac Games
Link: Aspyr Announces New Sims Expansion Pack
Believability Rating: 4 - Everyone who lives in a city probably already owns the game. Why not reach out to the rural population
Cleverness Rating: 5 - Call me a sucker for a bad pun, the "milkin' it" title still makes me grin
Favorite Quote: "'Now that the Sims are no longer trapped in suburbia there are endless possibilities,' Glenda explained to IMG in an exclusive interview this morning. 'Like a 'Sims: Survivor' reality show. Or maybe we'll try to interest hardcore gamers with a World War II expansion, or explore the criminal element with 'The Sims: Underground.' Farms are just the beginning.'"
DoomWorld
Link: Doom 3 GONE GOLD! (APRIL FOOLS)
Believability Rating: 2 - Come on... we all know Doom 3 will never ship. Also, was that (APRIL FOOLS) in the headline on April 1?
Cleverness Rating: 2 - Can't think of a good joke? Just say some game is canceled and/or released early. Instant fooling!
Favorite Quote: "After four grueling years of workmanship we have finally completed Doom 3. It has been a long and arduous process and was the combined effort of many, many people including some of the guys here at id like, uh, that other guy with my name, and that guy with the beard and, does Paul Steed still work here?"
Planet Black & White
Link: Black & White 2 Canceled
Believability Rating: 2 - No market for god games... uh huh... sure. The petition link helps a bit though.
Cleverness Rating: 1 - This looks like it took 5 seconds (combined) to think up and post.
Favorite Quote: "'There is no market for god-games nowadays', EA said in the press release."
Stalker Oblivion-Lost
Link: Microsoft gets exclusive Rights!
Believability Rating: 4 - Who's going to question Microsoft buying someone out?
Cleverness Rating: 3 - The actual article isn't written too well, but the hidden bold "april fools" is a nice touch.
Favorite Quote: "Jon A. Shirley, chief operating officer at Microsoft, explains that GSC will receive a nice sum of money. There are no exact information available, however insiders act on the assumption that several million Dollars are involved."
RelicNews
Link: Dawn of War CANCELLED!
Believability Rating: 2 - Over the top writing hurts the chances of anyone believing the full story
Cleverness Rating: 2 - Another cancellation joke. YAWN!
Favorite Quote: "We had to have copyright notices tattooed on our retinas... the pain was intense. Armed Commissars stood behind us, ready to shoot if we disobeyed orders."
Star Wars: Dark Forces
Link: Star Wars: Dark Forces Gold Edition, April Fools page
Believability Rating: 5 - A lot of message boards I've read welcomed the idea, and the page looks pretty authentic
Cleverness Rating: 4 - A neat idea, but one that's sure get people accusing you of selling out.
Favorite Quote: "Mr Turner said 'this is an extremely exciting opportunity for us' and concluded 'with the funding of an established gaming studio like LucasArts, the possibilities for this project just increased ten-fold.'"
StarChamber
Link: Star Chamber Expansion Theme Announced
Believability Rating: 3 - An expansion isn't that hard to believe, but the LotR references shoot it down.
Cleverness Rating: 4 - A good excuse to get some interesting potential ideas for the game out there.
Favorite Quote: "the original Star Chamber races were designed in early 2001, before I went to see the Lord of the Rings movies. But when I saw how cool that skiing Rambo elf and his silly dwarf sidekick were in those films, I knew we had to have races like that in Star Chamber."
It's April 1, and if you don't know what that means, well, you're just a fool.
Site's all over the internet use this opportunity to let their creativity and humor shine, and video game sites are usually no exception. I'm a big fan of all the fakery that goes on every April, so I'm going to attempt to chronicle all of today's video game related foolery in this post. Consider it a "correction of the record" if you want to gibe it with this site's stated purpose. Expect this post to be updated a few times throughout the day and maybe throughout the week. If you notice something I've missed, please don't hesitate to mail me a link.
Also, since this site is supposedly a serious journalism review, I'll pose a more serious question for discussion on the comments thread: Are April Fools jokes appropriate for news outlets? Do news providers run the danger of readers confusing fake news for real (with potentially serious consequences)? Could readers disregard real news as fake because they've been fooled before (I needed to do a Google search before I believed this AMF Bowling 2004 review was legit)? Or does anyone not paying attention today deserve whatever confusion they get? Discuss!
All ratings are out of a possible 5. Jokes are posted in the order I find them. Big thanks to Blue's News for providing many of the links, Slashdot Games for many others.
Total jokes so far: 33
GameSpot
Links: Rockstar Confirms GTA: Port-Au-Prince, First Look: Godfather 2072, Bowie planning Star Wars Galaxies gig?
Believability Rating: 2 - An E-rated GTA game? Get real!
Cleverness Rating: 4 - Major props for poking fun at the new Seven Samurai remake.
Favorite Quote: "I used to be angry, so very angry," [Rockstar Spokesman Greg Venezuela] told GameSpot. "However, since I started chakra-meditating in the employee incense lounge, the stress just melts away."
GameForms
Links: The Passion of the Christ, Preview, Screen Shots, GBA Screen Shot.
Believability Rating: 3 - Christ is the new Hot Media Property... or so the media tells me.
Cleverness Rating: 4 - It's the "screen shots" that push it above average.
Favorite Quote: "While the movie has been a great success, we want to ensure the message of Christ's love can be experienced in a more interactive way, a way that involves pushing colored buttons at the correct time while Jesus dies."
ThinkFishStick
Link: Doom 3 Source Code Leaked
Believability Rating: 4 - Remember, what happened to Valve can happen to YOU!
Cleverness Rating: 3 - A little obvious, given the proximity to Half-Life 2
Favorite Quote: "Carmack's personal collection of MP3's and AVI's was also nicked from the scene, including some very sensitive footage showing John Romero in women's clothes, parading through the ID offices "
Armchair Empire
Link: Microsoft Cancels Xbox 2, Halo 2 in Jeopardy
Believability Rating: 1 - Microsoft runs out of money? My bones will be dust long before it happens.
Cleverness Rating: 3 - Playing off the wishful thinking of Nintendo/Sony fanboys is never a bad idea.
Favorite Quote: "Do you have any idea how much square-footage a massive inventory of Xboxes occupies? ItÂ’s massive!"
Blizzard
Link: Blizzard Entertainment® Announces .999~ (Repeating) = 1
Believability Rating: 5 - I'm no Math major, but I believe it.
Cleverness Rating: 4 - I'm no Math major, but I still enjoyed the joke
Favorite Quote: "Elaborate and yet crafted with deceptive simplicity and elegance, Blizzard's proof that .999~ = 1 is a true wonder of modern mathematics."
Beyond Unreal
Links: Breaking News: UT2004 Production Suspended, UT2004 LE Released for Free, Download
Believability Rating: 2 - Where did these legal disputes come from? Have I been asleep?
Cleverness Rating: 3 - Props for providing a download link. Has anyone actually tried downloading it?
Favorite Quote: "It's with great sadness that I have to confirm that the rumors are true - as of today, we're suspending production of UT2004 while we clear up a bunch of legal crap that's going on here at Epic HQ."
Gaming Nexus
Link: Interview with Joe Lieberman
Believability Rating: 4 - An interview with Senator lieberman seems perfectly reasonable... until you start reading it.
Cleverness Rating: 4 - References to Kerry's snowboarding, Dean's scream and Bush taking down a virtual Saddam. Well done.
Favorite Quote: "ThereÂ’s nothing like coming home and relaxing while trying to take over a crime-ridden, drug infested city. ItÂ’s a lot like running for president."
NFS Unlimited
Link: Need for Speed 8 gone GOLD!
Believability Rating: 3 - A game announcement doesn't seem too strange, but the crappy render hurts the package.
Cleverness Rating: 1 - Games go gold every day, and there isn't enough text to the actual story.
Favorite Quote: "What will make the game different to other games in the series is street racing with the first time in NFS series the ability to run over pedestrians!"
(The following links are new as of April 2)
IGN Pocket
Link: New Limited Edition SP
Believability Rating: 5 - This is highly plausible given the recent NES styled Game Boy
Cleverness Rating: 5 - It's just like Nintendo to milk its past for all its worth, even the embarrassing parts
Favorite Quote: "The apocryphal Virtual Boy Game Boy Advance will launch for $199.99. It will quickly drop in price to $99.99, then $49.99, eventually hitting clearance aisles and outlet stores for $29.99 before disappearing into obscurity six months after its release."
IGN PC
Link: PC 2.0
Believability Rating: 1 - PS2 and XBox games on your PC... legally? I don't buy it
Cleverness Rating: 3 - If it weren't so entirely implausbile, it'd be a neat idea
Favorite Quote: "People are tired of dealing with performance issues, drivers, multiple CD installations, crashes, lockups, and other problems that dog PC gaming. A unified solution looks like the obvious choice, and streamlining hardware makes for cheaper development and lower prices for everyone."
IGN PC
Link: Tribe Interview
Believability Rating: 1 - The picture ruins any chance of being fooled
Cleverness Rating: 4 - I'm all for making fun of the obsessiveness of Tribes players
Favorite Quote: "IGNPC: Can I call it Princess? Chris Mahnken: The SkyPony shall not be mocked. Its name is McGuffin.
Nintendojo
Link: Nintendojo to Become First Official Nintendo Fansite
Believability Rating: 4 - The concept seems ludicrous, but the writing is so good I started to believe
Cleverness Rating: 5 - What better way to goad fans of such an independent site by saying you've sold out.
Favorite Quote: "Due to an increasingly dire financial situation, and the publicity it would offer the site, we were both in agreement that this deal could be nothing but a positive change for the future of Nintendojo."
Nintendojo
Link: Breaking: Silicon Knights Developing Realistic Zelda for GameCube
Believability Rating: 3 - The fuzzy picture hurts credibility, but there's definitely a market for the idea
Cleverness Rating: 3 - Entirely too standard. There are plenty of recent Zelda games to be had.
Favorite Quote: "I'd love to do a realistic, mature take on Zelda. Ah, I shouldn't talk about this."
1up
Links: Final Fantasy XXL Announced
Believability Rating: 1 - Pretty obviously a joke as soon as you see the hideous box art.
Cleverness Rating: 1 - See, cuz there's an X... and the X stands for extra. It's funny!
Favorite Quote: "'We always typically try to make our quests larger with each new installment in the Final Fantasy series,' said Kitase. 'This time we decided to focus on the characters.'" (rim shot)
1up
Link: Snake Eater Deemed Phallic Symbol
Believability Rating: 3 - Never say never when it comes to Christian Fundamentalists, but the over-the-top writing does it in.
Cleverness Rating: 3 - These groups seem to find sex corrupting our society everywhere. This was a logical fit.
Favorite Quote: "It's bad enough that our kids are bombarded with penises every single day by Disney and the recording industry, but now they have to ward off Satan's member on their PlayStations, too?"
1up
Link: EA Announces The Sims: Cracked Out
Believability Rating: 2 - EA makes a drug-themed game. Did they buy Rockstar or something?
Cleverness Rating: 4 - Hey, if you're gonna simulate life, you might as well include junkies.
Favorite Quote: "And don't think you can take one or two hits, and give up. If your sim goes too long without a hit, withdrawals set in. "
1up
Link: Mario Gets Sex Change, Becomes Man
Believability Rating: 1 - What? He was a woman. Oh... I get it. Bad joke.
Cleverness Rating: 1 - Mario's games don't let you shoot hookers. He must be a woman!
Favorite Quote: "However, narrow-minded brother Luigi, of staunch Italian-Catholic upbringing, will still refer to Mario as "big sister," and may even publicly ridicule his sibling if embarrassed (possibly a new gameplay innovation)."
1up
Link: Nintendo Appeals to Adult Gamer
Believability Rating: 3 - Nintendo "growing up" is only a matter of time, but I doubt they'd touch their classic series'
Cleverness Rating: 4 - The picture of possessed Pikmin is so bad that it's good!
Favorite Quote: "In exactly what capacity the DS will expand Pikmin 2, we do not know, but Nintendo officials have hinted that one screen can be used to pinpoint close-up abusive kills on specific Pikmin, much in the same way the DS can zoom in on a soccer player's face, for seemingly useless reasons."
OpenBeer
Link: OpenBSD/game boy advanced sp
Believability Rating: 5 - Hey, they've ported Linux to everything else for no apparent reason.
Cleverness Rating: 2 - I almost missed this joke because I just didn't care about it.
Favorite Quote: "Now you can funny with your OpenBSD box everywhere! In bus, subway, taxy, school, toilette, restaurant, church, cinema, theatre..."
World of Warcraft
Link: Choosing the Two-headed Player Race (Best Joke of the Year Award Winner!)
Believability Rating: 5 - This is actually a good idea. Why didn't I think of that?
Cleverness Rating: 5 - The subtle allusions to marriage and relationships make the joke complete
Favorite Quote: "When the bond between two players is forged within a single Ogre body, that bond is permanent for better or worse."
Battle.net
Link: Goblin Hero Invades Azeroth Bent on Revenge
Believability Rating: 2 - Huh? Where did this guy come from?
Cleverness Rating: 4 - I like the idea of a Goblin out to defend to the honor of his race.
Favorite Quote: "Goblin Merchants, Laboratories, and Goblin Shipyards provide additional services and merchandise. For what reward? It's time to pay the Goblins back! The Goblin Tinker is coming for you!"
LoonyBoi
Link: IF Quake
Believability Rating: 4 - It seems entirely plausible, but as the FAQ page explains, it's not really a joke. Um, OK.
Cleverness Rating: 5 - Read the room descriptions in the screenshots. Funny stuff.
Favorite Quote: "In IF Quake, you walk through the exact same levels you do in the graphical version of the game, only instead of circle-strafing and firing at your enemies, you type commands like 'ATTACK GRUNT WITH SHOTGUN'."
Globe & Mail
Link: must have game
Believability Rating: 5 - Why hasn't anyone seriously reviewed Solitaire. Everyone plays it!
Cleverness Rating: 4 - A nice idea, and it's treated like a real review. Well done.
Favorite Quote: "Addictive gameplay, a great cast of characters and fantastic graphics combine to make Solitaire a standout among PC games."
Bungie
Link: Pimps at Sea
Believability Rating: 2 - The concept seems ludicrous, but I've seen real games based on stupider ideas.
Cleverness Rating: 2 - When every other line is a pimp joke, it begins to grate.
Favorite Quote: "Pimps At Sea: where pimping and poop decks collide! Coming Soon(tm) Arrrrrh, bitch!"
Inside Mac Games
Link: Aspyr Announces New Sims Expansion Pack
Believability Rating: 4 - Everyone who lives in a city probably already owns the game. Why not reach out to the rural population
Cleverness Rating: 5 - Call me a sucker for a bad pun, the "milkin' it" title still makes me grin
Favorite Quote: "'Now that the Sims are no longer trapped in suburbia there are endless possibilities,' Glenda explained to IMG in an exclusive interview this morning. 'Like a 'Sims: Survivor' reality show. Or maybe we'll try to interest hardcore gamers with a World War II expansion, or explore the criminal element with 'The Sims: Underground.' Farms are just the beginning.'"
DoomWorld
Link: Doom 3 GONE GOLD! (APRIL FOOLS)
Believability Rating: 2 - Come on... we all know Doom 3 will never ship. Also, was that (APRIL FOOLS) in the headline on April 1?
Cleverness Rating: 2 - Can't think of a good joke? Just say some game is canceled and/or released early. Instant fooling!
Favorite Quote: "After four grueling years of workmanship we have finally completed Doom 3. It has been a long and arduous process and was the combined effort of many, many people including some of the guys here at id like, uh, that other guy with my name, and that guy with the beard and, does Paul Steed still work here?"
Planet Black & White
Link: Black & White 2 Canceled
Believability Rating: 2 - No market for god games... uh huh... sure. The petition link helps a bit though.
Cleverness Rating: 1 - This looks like it took 5 seconds (combined) to think up and post.
Favorite Quote: "'There is no market for god-games nowadays', EA said in the press release."
Stalker Oblivion-Lost
Link: Microsoft gets exclusive Rights!
Believability Rating: 4 - Who's going to question Microsoft buying someone out?
Cleverness Rating: 3 - The actual article isn't written too well, but the hidden bold "april fools" is a nice touch.
Favorite Quote: "Jon A. Shirley, chief operating officer at Microsoft, explains that GSC will receive a nice sum of money. There are no exact information available, however insiders act on the assumption that several million Dollars are involved."
RelicNews
Link: Dawn of War CANCELLED!
Believability Rating: 2 - Over the top writing hurts the chances of anyone believing the full story
Cleverness Rating: 2 - Another cancellation joke. YAWN!
Favorite Quote: "We had to have copyright notices tattooed on our retinas... the pain was intense. Armed Commissars stood behind us, ready to shoot if we disobeyed orders."
Star Wars: Dark Forces
Link: Star Wars: Dark Forces Gold Edition, April Fools page
Believability Rating: 5 - A lot of message boards I've read welcomed the idea, and the page looks pretty authentic
Cleverness Rating: 4 - A neat idea, but one that's sure get people accusing you of selling out.
Favorite Quote: "Mr Turner said 'this is an extremely exciting opportunity for us' and concluded 'with the funding of an established gaming studio like LucasArts, the possibilities for this project just increased ten-fold.'"
StarChamber
Link: Star Chamber Expansion Theme Announced
Believability Rating: 3 - An expansion isn't that hard to believe, but the LotR references shoot it down.
Cleverness Rating: 4 - A good excuse to get some interesting potential ideas for the game out there.
Favorite Quote: "the original Star Chamber races were designed in early 2001, before I went to see the Lord of the Rings movies. But when I saw how cool that skiing Rambo elf and his silly dwarf sidekick were in those films, I knew we had to have races like that in Star Chamber."
An Apology... and a Clarification
I've been doing a lot of thinking about the tone and purpose of this site over the past few days, prompted by my most recent post and the reaction to it by many readers.
I realize now that the extreme tone of that post has no place on this site. While everything I posted there accurately reflects how I feel, it came off as unprofessional and amateurish through the use of CAPS LOCK, exclamation points, and some strong words (directed at the author and, unfortunately, at the readers). It was posted in haste and in anger, a quick reaction to a story that I frankly found unbelievable. The tone only served to distract from the message of the piece, and you readers deserve better. For that, I am sorry.
That being said, it should be clarified that this blog should not be viewed as a totally impartial, balanced take on video game journalism. As I said in my very first post:
This column will mix original reporting in the form of research and interviews with my unapologetic opinions about the industry... I will not sugarcoat the issues at hand; I will call things as I see them. I will give both praise and derision where they are due. But most of all, I will listen to my readers.
Everything on this blog should be taken as editorial comment. I will defend my opinions with fact as much as possible, and I will try my best to at least consider all sides of any issue, but in the end these postings are just one man's opinion and everyone reading this should realize that. Maybe a real "ombudsman" would strive to be more objective and less opinionated (I'm not entirely convinced of that), but for now I will say what I want from my unpaid, unasked-for and largely unrecognized position a the author of as simple blog. I hope you'll all bear with me as I continue to learn how to best fill that position.
Moving on, has anyone seen any good April Fool's jokes on videogame sites today? Send me a link or post them in the comments area.
I realize now that the extreme tone of that post has no place on this site. While everything I posted there accurately reflects how I feel, it came off as unprofessional and amateurish through the use of CAPS LOCK, exclamation points, and some strong words (directed at the author and, unfortunately, at the readers). It was posted in haste and in anger, a quick reaction to a story that I frankly found unbelievable. The tone only served to distract from the message of the piece, and you readers deserve better. For that, I am sorry.
That being said, it should be clarified that this blog should not be viewed as a totally impartial, balanced take on video game journalism. As I said in my very first post:
This column will mix original reporting in the form of research and interviews with my unapologetic opinions about the industry... I will not sugarcoat the issues at hand; I will call things as I see them. I will give both praise and derision where they are due. But most of all, I will listen to my readers.
Everything on this blog should be taken as editorial comment. I will defend my opinions with fact as much as possible, and I will try my best to at least consider all sides of any issue, but in the end these postings are just one man's opinion and everyone reading this should realize that. Maybe a real "ombudsman" would strive to be more objective and less opinionated (I'm not entirely convinced of that), but for now I will say what I want from my unpaid, unasked-for and largely unrecognized position a the author of as simple blog. I hope you'll all bear with me as I continue to learn how to best fill that position.
Moving on, has anyone seen any good April Fool's jokes on videogame sites today? Send me a link or post them in the comments area.
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