My 2 cents

I’m proud to introduce to you, a brand new reviewing system that will be put in place for future reviews. I believe this system will enable us to bring you the single most unbiased game reviews out there. The system consists of a team of four reviewers per game, although this might slowdown the pace at which we are able to process a review, we believe the system will allow for a more genuine and thorough review. Using these four reviewers, an open discussion will be presented initially in printed form, and eventually in time, we hope to provide them in podcast and or a video format. The review score will be based on the United States coinage system. Each reviewer will be able to assign the game any combination of U.S. coinage he desires, i.e. a penny, a nickel, a dime, or a quarter to make up a maximum of 25 cents per reviewer. Each individual reviewer will make up ¼ of the total review score, the highest review possible being a grand total of $1.00.

We believe this system will enable our reviews to remain fair, balanced, and ultimately more objective than other gaming websites. This system was born out of the extremely sad state of videogame reviews currently in circulation. Both in print as well as the online realm, reviews have become saturated with inflated reviews, unnecessary praise, and what I believe to be gross corruption. Year after year, games that merely receive a face lift are repeatedly billed as triple A quality material, though they are but mere copies of previous versions. On the opposite side of the spectrum, many reviews seek to address the own errors the writer made in his previous assessment of the game in the preview stage, which brings me to my next point.

The process in which videogames are previewed blurs the now virtually non-existent lines between marketing and journalism. The current system allows for very little realistic approaches to the content displayed. I do not personally believe that any game journalist should ever have to water down his initial impressions of a pre-released game to placate his audience. In doing so, he is effectively doing the job of a marketing professional, not the work of a videogame journalist. Marketing professionals have at their disposal a wide distribution network we of course know as, the internet. If they would like to release screenshots and trailers of their product, they can do so at any time without any assistance from videogame journalist. It is unnecessary to preview unfinished and unplayable work to journalists, allowing room for speculative articles covering how the game “might” work in the future, or what the gameplay mechanics the game “could” potentially achieve. It is deceptive and misleading to the customer, and ultimately it results in lost sales once the reader finds out he or she was lied too.

I believe game journalists have a responsibility to report accurately what they really see and hear, unfortunately this accuracy has been corrupted by the everlasting and almighty dollar. Feature covers of games that could never be anything but disastrous continue to grace the covers of our industries most prolific magazines and online media, while hidden gems of creativity dismally fade into the oblivion of apathy. Although many journalists and gamers alike loathe the bland repetition of content that exists in future releases, it is a cycle that journalists have helped create. It is a cycle, which I believe we can change. It is a cycle that we here at Straight Up gaming intend to help stop. If videogames are to truly to evolve to the next level, to become art, to become appreciated on a worldwide main stream scale; then I believe it is a cycle that we must end today, for tomorrow to truly come.

-Ian White