Gaming Myth #1: Critics are “Paid Off” for Reviews

“Bah, he just got money from the publisher.”

I’ve heard this so many times.  It certainly isn’t exclusive to the video game industry; the idea that critics are “paid off” by those who produce the product being reviewed.

But let me explain why, based on my experience, this is little more than a myth.

I’ve been reviewing games for various websites since the late 90s.  I’ve received games for review from virtually every publisher in existence (and some that are no longer in existence).  I wouldn’t be able to count how many review copies I’ve received, but it has to be well into the hundreds. Granted, not all the sites I wrote for were big enough for a publisher to really care much about the review, but that was not always the case.  Trust me when I say:

“I have never been offered money or any other perk in exchange for a good review.”

This has never happened.  It has never happened to any colleague I know in the industry.  Publishers don’t do this.  Now, I’m not saying they never do it.  I’m not saying there aren’t a few overzealous PR peeps out there who drop a few hints here and there; i.e., “we’re looking forward to your review; can’t wait to read it!”  Sometimes, that can be translated as, “give this game a good review or we won’t be sending any more games your way in the future.”

That can happen but really, it’s very rare.  The only other snafu could arise if a website ran a bunch of ads for a particular game, and then that game wasn’t reviewed so well at the website.  There have been documented cases of this being a problem in the past as well.  Again, though, those are extremely isolated instances, and the idea that publishers are handing out gifts and money to critics just to get good scores…yeah, I know it’s all sorts of sexy in terms of conspiracy theory headlines, but I’m sorry, it just ain’t true.