From Polygon Ban, to Giant Bomb Fan

I've always taken democracy for granted, never truly knowing how bad it feels to have your voice stripped from you - at least, not until this morning. And in the unlikeliest of places, too.

I've supported Polygon since before their launch in October of 2012. To me, it was a concoction of our industry's best and brightest journalists. And despite our falling out earlier today, they continue to be precisely that in my eyes. What Polygon is not, however, is a safe forum for PlayStation fans to voice their opinions or concerns.

My particular concern with Polygon isn't that they have a tendency to score PS3 exclusives significantly lower than the average (Ni no Kuni and now, The Last of Us). I would be the very definition of a hypocrite if I said otherwise. My problem is that they continually seek to silence those who have differing opinions from their own. You see, today I was banned from Polygon. Not only was I banned, but every single comment I made today was deleted. And because of this, I can't provide you with the exact quotes that got me banned from the site, but I can provide you with the gist of the content:

• I expressed my frustration with Polygon and their seemingly blatant bias when it comes to PS3 exclusives like Ni no Kuni, for which they gave a 6.5/10
• I asked if it was coincidental that Polygon receives money from Microsoft in the form of ad revenue, while scoring PS3 exclusives significantly lower than their average
• I then posted a comment in a Puppeteer article written by Tracy Lien that read something along the lines of "Oh cool! PS3 exclusive? Can't wait to read the sub-6/10 review!"

Admittedly, the last comment was rude. And it deviated too far from the subject of the article. But most of the aforementioned should not have been deleted, let alone been cause for a ban. I think it's legitimate for readers to ask if ad revenue influences product reviews. After all, Microsoft purportedly paid Polygon $750,000 to fund and sponsor their documentary, Press Reset. Skip to the 3:04 mark for the kicker:

And this isn't the first time I've had issues with thread and comment deletion on Polygon. Apparently I have a long list of censored or deleted content. Here's a discussion I had with Shaun McIlroy, Polygon's Community Manager regarding a deleted thread of mine:

As you can see, Shaun is a great guy. And as for me, well, it goes without saying that I've posted some pretty questionable stuff on Polygon. But interestingly enough, none of it was enough to get me banned. So what was the one thing that crossed a line, you ask? Well, according to Shaun, I "have a hard time understanding that one persons opinion about a game in a review doesn't constitute an automatic bias against Sony."

Maybe I'm wrong, but I feel obligated to question the validity of a review for a PS3 exclusive when the page is surrounded by Internet Explorer ads. I'm no conspiracy theorist, just someone who wants to instigate discussion about editorial integrity. After all, it wasn't that long ago when Jeff Gerstmann was fired from GameSpot for giving Kane and Lynch a poor score, much to the dismay of Eidos Interactive. Are we really certain that this industry has moved beyond such practices?

Either way, congratulations to Naughty Dog for another job well done!

UPDATE: I'm not the only one who was banned from Polygon...

UPDATE #2: There are others who seem to be doing some sleuthing as well. I haven't yet confirmed some of what's mentioned in the following video:

I think Polygon is a bad website but it sounds like you deserved it.

I'm not sure what kind of reaction you want from readers of this, especially here.

Firstly;

I entirely disagree with you there - and have personally gone from enjoying some of the things they do to unfollowing all of their editors on twitter, removing polygon from my youtube listings, unsubscribing from their podcast and even deleting them from bookmarks entirely. Heck, in general, I now avoid them like the plague.

Additionally - and I found out about this via Neogaf - they seem to have found some balls today and actually posted legitimate criticism of Microsoft's DRM policies (I think Chris Plante wrote it). I think this proves that no matter how much I don't agree with their opinions or practices, they may well be coming at this industry from a perfectly reasonable, low-bias angle.

On top of that, I'm not sure I disagree with their banning of you - and banning is a perfectly fine practice from the perspective of online communities. Heck, they even left you a note, which is more than a lot of sites do.

...

So whatever dude.

considering you are essentially calling the reviewers corrupt and dismissive of their ability to write a fair and honest review, i'm not surprised you got banned, I have to agree with the polygon guy on this, a review is one persons opinion and because its lower that average does not mean its bought.

welcome to the site, hopefully your stay here will be less eventful.

Meh, their site layout is a fucking mess. Plus they gave Dead Space 3 a 9.5 and I'd really like to have my $60 bucks back on that one.

you should take a break from forum posting

What if I told you that Ni No Kuni deserves a 6.5.

Hmmm?

Another "I got banned from X website so I came to GB" thread. I am thrilled.

Eh, GB ain't that special. But enjoy your stay.

If I dont agree with a game review or think it's off base, I don't read it. I dont work for the game dev, I don't care what one random site gives it. From all the other reviews, The Last of Us is obviously a great game, who cares what one random reviewer thinks of it?

Eh, I don't bother with their scores. I may read the text, but that's just an opinion like any other review online, and not always align with my own. I find the way they actually come up with a "score" ridiculous.

go to gamespot

I don't think you're going to find the support you think you'll find here.

but hi anyways

I've heard plenty of people say Ni No Kuni becomes extremely boring after a point.

So you can get banned and then come here :P?

@hebrewhammer: Frankly, looks like you deserved the ban. Though, it sounds like it's more like a temporary suspension. I'd check back at Polygon in a few days and see if you can post again. Seems like that'll likely be the case.

As you pointed out yourself, you've posted questionable stuff before. Despite that feeling like a reason to be surprised in this case, I'd say that's more reason to understand your banning. Eventually, people cause enough issues that they need to get some kind of warning away from it. Suggesting that their review disagreeing with your assessment of a game means they might be in the can with a game publisher is a serious allegation. On top of everything else you've mentioned, a temporary ban seems rather reasonable.

If you don't follow the rules, you can face moderation on Giant Bomb just as easily. For now, I'd say cool down a bit and return to Polygon in a few days.

@fumn: Trying to get through that game right now and i would kind of agree with that score, everything is great about that game except the combat. 28 hours in and it is just mostly hammering "attack" for me....which is a shame cause Level 5 can make good action rpg mechanics ala Dark Cloud and Rouge Galaxy.

But on topic: They did seem to have a decent reason for the banning

As much as i like Justin and Shaun McIlroy and Aurhur Geis i cant stand Polygon, their layout is indeed terrible and they come off as incredibly pretentious to me. That "Press Reset" thing pretty much cemented that opinion i have for the site.

Though, having said that, you're certainly welcome here if you feel you can add something to the community. Perhaps you learned something from this little Polygon tiff and can be an even better commenter in the future. If so, welcome! :)

I dislike it when people get all up and arms about game reviews.

You got off to an immediate good start by advertising a kickstarter on the forums. I do not think you're going to find the warm welcome here you expect. Giant Bomb has come a long way since being the perceived safe haven for those slighted by THE MAN of video game websites.

Sounds like you got what you deserved.

**Looks down at the footer** We are owned by the man!

Review scores are serious business.

Also how is The Last of US lucky you who already got to play it!?

Hi? Don't really know what to say to this...

Do whatever. Welcome!

Polygon frustrates the ever living fuck out of me. I think some of the guys there are pretty okay. Phil Kollar is a pretty cool guy I've chatted with him a few times on twitter and he usually responds back. I generally think the site is pretty awful and has an air of pretentiousness that makes me want to convulse on the floor. But hey enough about that. Welcome to the site. Mind the rules if you don't @sweep will come and kneecap you with a baseball bat.

Shhh shhhh you're in a better place now.

Just went through your images. Are you sure you aren't just a tad biased towards Sony?

@tycobb said:

Just went through your images. Are you sure you aren't just a tad biased towards Sony?

lol

I'll never understand why someone would introduce themselves to a new community by immediately airing their dirty laundry...

Welcome to Giant Bomb I guess? Rule 1 through 1000: Don't be a dick.

Seems like all of the authority at Polygon are totally polite- I like that. Anyway, frequently accusing the staff of corruption and shit is pretty dickish. The golden rule at Giantbomb is "don't be a dick", so play nice.

@mariachimacabre said:

@tycobb said:

Just went through your images. Are you sure you aren't just a tad biased towards Sony?

lol

Yikes.

@mcghee: What are you doing here? You never answered my question about Bjork being K-Pop. Chop, chop! Need an answer.

You might be disappointed. Based on comments I've seen this week, apparently Giant Bomb is on Microsoft's payroll too. I'm just kidding, welcome to the site. Any alleged corruption you see is all part of the greater machine at work, do not be alarmed, just be cool. That's not a joke.

@mcghee said:

@mariachimacabre said:

@tycobb said:

Just went through your images. Are you sure you aren't just a tad biased towards Sony?

lol

Yikes.

ha. Well, can't fault him for being a fan. I think he was one of the people on that Sony promotional show, The Tester.

Are you referring to the crew's continued suggestions that Sony is likely to have similar restrictions in the PS4 as the Xbox One due to pressures from publishers? Because I'd say that's more damning of both of them. ha.

SHE IS NOT AND YOU ARE CRAZY. IS THIS WHAT YOU WANTED? IS THIS WHAT YOU WANTED TO HEAR?

It's the worst. All over a stupid number.

Only the hottest vidya game discussion! Oh Giant Bomb forums. I hope you never change.

@tycobb said:

Just went through your images. Are you sure you aren't just a tad biased towards Sony?

@hebrewhammer Jesus, duder, and Fallout 3 doesn't even run all that well on PS3! Guess this means you're the yin to JDH's yang.

You're going to hate me, I dislike Uncharted and InFamous and... well, most PS3 exclusives. 'Cept for the criminally unloved and surprisingly excellent Resistance 3.

Anyway, I can sympathize with being banned from a site for seemingly trivial reasons. I got banned from The Escapist for too short a post, after several other misbehavings - their penalty system is kinda fucked. However, when someone comes to another website and posts a long bit about getting banned from another website for accusing them of corruption, then you'll find that I have little sympathy for you.

On this The Last of Us thing - ugh, it reeks of fanboys being mad because the game they expect to be the greatest thing ever is only getting mostly perfect scores and not all perfect scores.

Björk is super K-Pop! (^0^)/ 아싸!

Maybe.

I can't speak for how you went about it because it sounds like you were picking a fight with them. Aside from that i kind of agree the site has a biased to Microsoft and they have been much harder on Sony. But knowing this why support them if you feel so strongly about it, there are other sites and other opinions to throw into the well than to just follow Polygon.

Oh are you one of those peoples that complains about a review for a game you haven't played?

TLDR dont care.

Knowing they took money from MS, why in the world would you even want to go there. Seriously? You don't need to question because you already know the facts.

Same with with gamespot, they got pressured by ads and did a stupid thing. The main guy and pretty much all of that staff got fired because GS went into the shitter for a while and now they are back to being a decent site for a younger crowd (in my opinion) with some ok and some just plain bad editors.

I had never even heard of this site until now but knowing they took money from MS tells me all I need to know.

If that rule was enforced, this would be a very empty place.

The only thing I will say here is that the idea that a website is on a company's payroll is ridiculous.