What I found out about GB during E3...and a farewell

Today I am deeply sad. As a gamer for a long time and have been following GB since the first day the site was up, I have experienced a revalation that I could've never imagined.

Let me start off by saying that all the guys who works for GB are all great guys. they're good at what they do and have worked very hard to provide us with this site. Their professionalism and intregrity for this site are unmeasurable. The guys put their heart and soul into this site to make it enjoyable for everyone who is interested in video games.

OK, now that is out of the way, let me state my point.  The main theme for my final blog at GB is the evil word : BIAS.
I never thought I would''ve ever use the words Giantbomb and Bias in the same sentence, but it has happened. i know some of you are going, "who the fuck is this guy and who does he think he is to being calling Giantbomb bias??!!!" I know people tend to go on the defense whenever something that is beloved to them is being attacked. But believe me, I am, or rather was,  one of the most devoted GB users (i know my points and rank doesn't show much of that, but I go on GB literally everday). But today, during the biggest week in the video game industry, I have realized that some guys (not naming any names) working at GB are truly biased.  And for me personally, they have lost all credibility and respect as video game journalists from me.

I don't want to make this blog any longer than it already is so im just going to cut to the chase. During today's podcast when they were disscussing about the Sony's press conference, which I thought was strong and impressive, I did not even sense an ounce of enthusiasm or excitement from any of them. The argument of stuff being leaked beforehand which is the reason why they were so unimpressed is complete bullshit. Even if they already knew half the stuff being shown off before the show, atleast acknowledge the fact that some of the stuff shown at the show was impressive, but instead they made a mockery of everything. Now the Microsoft press conference was impressive as-well. They showed off a lot of games, some good exclusives, and the Natal stuff looked interesting. But I believe Sony's Press Conference equally matched, if not exceeds, Microsoft's press conference and yet if you listen to the podcast they make it sound like it was the worst conferences at E3. I just don't get it. They are professional video game journalists but somehow listening to this podcast doesn't make me feel that way about them. 

Anyway, i know some of you will flame me for making this blog and will send me nasty PM's, but I don't really care. Once I'm done writing this blog, I will log off and never come back to this site ever again. Some of you probably won't give a shit becasue it is only one person out of thousands of users, but I feel like I need to speak out and let people know what think. Who knows, the MOD might lock this thread before it even gets more than 2 comments, but atleast I got this off my shoulder.

So...i guess I'll end this with a farewell to all and I hope you guys keep enjoying the site. But as for me, I'm gonna bounce outta here before I get cyber lynced : )

Today I am deeply sad. As a gamer for a long time and have been following GB since the first day the site was up, I have experienced a revalation that I could've never imagined.

Let me start off by saying that all the guys who works for GB are all great guys. they're good at what they do and have worked very hard to provide us with this site. Their professionalism and intregrity for this site are unmeasurable. The guys put their heart and soul into this site to make it enjoyable for everyone who is interested in video games.

OK, now that is out of the way, let me state my point.  The main theme for my final blog at GB is the evil word : BIAS.
I never thought I would''ve ever use the words Giantbomb and Bias in the same sentence, but it has happened. i know some of you are going, "who the fuck is this guy and who does he think he is to being calling Giantbomb bias??!!!" I know people tend to go on the defense whenever something that is beloved to them is being attacked. But believe me, I am, or rather was,  one of the most devoted GB users (i know my points and rank doesn't show much of that, but I go on GB literally everday). But today, during the biggest week in the video game industry, I have realized that some guys (not naming any names) working at GB are truly biased.  And for me personally, they have lost all credibility and respect as video game journalists from me.

I don't want to make this blog any longer than it already is so im just going to cut to the chase. During today's podcast when they were disscussing about the Sony's press conference, which I thought was strong and impressive, I did not even sense an ounce of enthusiasm or excitement from any of them. The argument of stuff being leaked beforehand which is the reason why they were so unimpressed is complete bullshit. Even if they already knew half the stuff being shown off before the show, atleast acknowledge the fact that some of the stuff shown at the show was impressive, but instead they made a mockery of everything. Now the Microsoft press conference was impressive as-well. They showed off a lot of games, some good exclusives, and the Natal stuff looked interesting. But I believe Sony's Press Conference equally matched, if not exceeds, Microsoft's press conference and yet if you listen to the podcast they make it sound like it was the worst conferences at E3. I just don't get it. They are professional video game journalists but somehow listening to this podcast doesn't make me feel that way about them. 

Anyway, i know some of you will flame me for making this blog and will send me nasty PM's, but I don't really care. Once I'm done writing this blog, I will log off and never come back to this site ever again. Some of you probably won't give a shit becasue it is only one person out of thousands of users, but I feel like I need to speak out and let people know what think. Who knows, the MOD might lock this thread before it even gets more than 2 comments, but atleast I got this off my shoulder.

So...i guess I'll end this with a farewell to all and I hope you guys keep enjoying the site. But as for me, I'm gonna bounce outta here before I get cyber lynced : )

It's impossible to not have a bias.

Also, you take video games pretty seriously.

Poor baby

bye

TONIGHT WE DINE IN HELL!

It's an opinion dude, I am sure they must have great reasons for that (I still haven't listen to the podcast)
Before I go, say something like that again, I'll kill you with my bare hands. Consider yourself warned. /JK.

In my eyes, Giant Bomb makes up for that bias by doing things no other video game websites do, and having so much personality. But its your call, later dude.

I agree with you about what you said about the Podcast talking about Sonys press conference but I wont leave the site because of it

They don't think exactly as you do so you're leaving? Well, peace out.

I think that you might be overreacting just a little bit.

Good riddance you indecisive liberal gray area middle man motherfucker.

• I don't know you.
  
• You seem cool.
• for some reason bullet points wont turn off...
• k bye

I doubt it was down to bias. I think they were just tired from the long day. They said it was good, they just didn't have the energy to say "HOLY SHIT, MAN!!". I also thought Sony had the strongest conference but I think you may be getting a little ahead of yourself.

Wait, so because they didn't think Sony's press conference was anything spectacular you are going to stop coming to this site forever? Might I ask where your bias lies? Judging from your post, it would be Sony. Look, you can't expect any one to have the same opinion about everything you do. If you felt that it was good so be it. It's journalistic integrity when they honestly say how they feel. So if you disagree, that's fine. But your outlook on journalism is skewed. Journalists state the facts. They do that. But most of the podcast is their personal opinions and is not meant to be unbiased or appeal to everyone. You are really making a big deal out of nothing.

Awww...people have preferences.
You have one for Sony
They have one for Microsoft

One day you will learn that everybody is not like you.
Until that time, farewell.

This has pretty much been Giant Bomb's Modus Operandi from day 1. If you're just now figuring out their coverage is more opinion-oriented than elsewhere, I wonder what you've been doing when you're "checking the site every day".

I WILL ABOLISH ALL OPINIONS THAT ARE NOT IN LINE WITH MINE! RARRRGHH!!!

These forums have enough idiots. We certainly don't need you. Okay, see ya.

Yeah, thats nothing new. It wasn't as bad as Listen Up. 

These guys are just dudes expressing their opinions about games. We all know that the crew plays the 360 the most (look at Jeff and Ryan's gamerscores) and, yes, they have a slight bias towards Microsoft. That is no reason to leave the site though, dude. If you really want to give up on the Bombcast, ER and Official Staff Photo Edit Thread because of this, then so long.

It sounds more to me like you and the boys just have differing opinions.

I'm surprized that you are just now figuring out that the Giant Bomb staff members are partial to the 360. I think they've been pretty open about it, as they are with all their opinions. They still give Sony a fair shot, so "bias" is perhaps the wrong word. 

People have different opinions, and I do agree that to a degree the site is more biased towards the 360 over the PS3.  But people form their own opinions.

I've not had a chance to listen to the podcast today and if the guys give solid reasons for not enjoying the PS3 offer at the conference then fair enough.  However if it is just a blanket "it sucked" then that is pretty poor.  Constructive critism of formats is allowed.

Personally I was more impressed at the PS3 line up this year than MS.  As a 360 owner since launch I am slightly disappointed at the lack of first and second party offering from MGS this year.  Where on the flip side Sony have exciting looking games coming out from their studios.  That is my opinion and if the GB guys are disagree and are more excited with MS's offering then fair enough.

Remember that last week Brad reviewed Infamous and awarded it 5 stars.  It is a PS3 game.

Ultimately what is important is that you play the games you enjoy.  Christ I actually enjoyed Eat Lead (don't shoot me), and everyone pissed on that game.  Do I care?  Do I fuck.

Infamous 5 stars
Killzone 2 5 stars
MGS4 5 stars

They don't dislike the PS3, they love a lot of games for it (haven't you seen the video review for inFAMOUS?) they just slightly prefer the 360 (probably because it came out a year ahead of the PS3... and Jeff loves achievements) which is 100% acceptable.

While I agree that I think they were fairly dismissive of the Sony press conference, I have to say that I was pretty disappointed in it too, and that opinion seems to be shared by quite a few people who have been blogging/casting about it.

 Yes, God of War and Uncharted both look amazing, but they're also looking like more of the same kinds of games that we've seen before. Modnation Racers isn't going to set the world on fire, and there is a very niche market that are going to care about Final Fantasy XIV. MAG was the only game that really looked like something I would see as a system seller, but that is also a real niche market, especially for the Sony player base.

The PSP stuff was also kinda meh to me. I'm not a Metal Gear fan or a driving game fan, so there was nothing there to really grok onto. Then PSP Go wad was blown already, which DOES matter, and its price point is way higher than it should be to be competitive. It is a neat piece of hardware and  diskless system does excite me, but honestly, the new "retail games on demand" service that Microsoft presented outside of their press conference really satisified that itch and promise for the future more.

The wand-and-ball tech demo basically broke down to a Wiimote with Motion Plus, only more accurate. I can't really fathom how much hate has been spewed at Nintendo for their motion controller focus, when people can turn around and praise Nintendo for the exact same technology refined. That an iteration on a previous innovation; Natal is something completely different with similar but BROADER connatations.

That isn't to say that Giant Bomb's staff doesn't have any bias; as human beings, we all have biases. But I don't think that their personal biases clouded their opinions as journalists. The most impressive thing at the Sony press conference (for me) was Assassin's Creed 2, and that is a multi-platform release. The lack of Heavy Rain and no real information beyond a logo and bare-ass concept description for Agent really kinda nailed it for me. It was very flashy and well put together, but did nearly nothing to sell me on any of their products. And as I said, they aren't the only journalists underwhelmed by the Sony presentation.

Ha... that's funny. The microsoft conference was full of exciting and new things. The sony conference was known quantities, full of numbers, and pretty boring in comparison. The motion control stuff looked great, but it's the Wiimote, with a camera.

I thought they down-talked Ubisoft's conference more, but that's just me.

I think there were no details about Agent due to R* not attending E3.  Houser has said this in regards to it today.

"We have always enjoyed making action games, and with Agent we are making what we believe will be the ultimate action game," said Sam Houser, Rockstar's founder. "Agent is a game we have wanted to make for a long time. The team in Edinburgh is doing an amazing job combining intense action, atmosphere and story in a great period setting to create something that feels quite unique. We cannot wait for people to experience this game."

The game will take players "on a paranoid journey into the world of counter-intelligence, espionage and political assassinations during the height of the Cold War at the end of the 1970s," according to Rockstar.

Yeah, that's true. Ubisoft got thrown under the train. For good reason.

Grow the fuck up. You can't force someone to be enthusiastic about something they aren't enthusiastic about. Bias? Who gives a fuck, anyone who doesn't have any kind of 'bias' is someone I want to listen to, because he isn't a person he's a fucking robot.

Thats just how they have always been. Even when Jeff was at GS, he was biased too. I remember listening to an, " on the spot" podcasts and a comment by Jeff totally made him sound like a fanboy dick. But I respect them for having , and expressing an opinion even if I dont agree with it.

k bye

I agree, and they've even said that they have received a lot of flak for talking a lot of Xbox. But I wasen't too excited for Sony's conference either. It's just easier to get behind the 360, and they've been pretty open about it.

Also...360 is the "hottest" console to most people. That's what most people care about.

It was always going to be this way. Heck, Ryan even skipped the Sony conference I believe. Now you could argue that's down to timing - but I can guarantee if Microsoft had presented when Sony presented, Ryan would not have skipped the conference.

Alas, it's been the way since the start of GiantBomb. They are not inherently biased as such - they just clearly lean heavily towards the 360. It's not a fanboy thing but it's still clearly very apparent. It might be something to do with the launch periods - they just feel more "invested" in their 360 with "points" and stuff. But it is there.

I haven't heard the Bombcast yet (am saving it for bed time) but, I mean, it's almost predictable these days that Microsoft gets the more "butter side up" coverage from GiantBomb. It's been like that from the start - and Ryan even acknowledged that on Monday's Bombcast.

Sadly, pretty much the whole press has been in the same boat since the PS3 launched. Sony are essentially damned if they do and damned if they don't. Everything Sony and Nintendo do "wrong" is highlighted to nth degree, everything Microsoft do "wrong" is brushed under the carpet.

I have yet to listen to the latest podcast but I was worried the GB staff might be down on Sony's conference.  I do believe beyond any doubt that Sony had the best show.  I personally prefer the 360 over the PS3 as you could tell by reading my posts, but if you were a true fanboy that could easily cloud your perception.

However, I don't listen to the GB podcast or the GB staff for their opinions.  I listen to them because they're FUCKING FUNNY.  Hell most of these guys never played fucking Chrono Trigger, and if you never played that, well I don't even consider you much of a gamer.  That doesn't make me like the site or the podcast any less.  The GB staff even seems to like partying and drinking more than videogames, but who cares?

Do it, you won't.

I think the difference between what should be considered bias and opinion should rest in the manner in which statements are delivered. Even from the video recap of Day 00 no one seemed totally enthused as some may think. Don't forget that each conference lasts a decent amount of time and I am sure that the rest of the expo would be chaotic to say the least. If they were biased, then you could expect to here the average flame bait terms such as "_______ sucks because ______ is just that much more awesome". The absence of intelligent descriptions to support the reasons why someone felt one choice is better than another usually shows a level of bias. However, supporting your reasons for preference reflects your own opinion.

Following up what I said though, even though they were more "up" on Microsoft (although, I think Sony easily had the "equal" to every 360 game) - they did say how they weren't convinved by Natal, Halo and Alan Wake.

Less happens on Day 0 - I think perhaps maybe they were more excited by being at the event. By the end of Day One you're starting to tire. It's an early morning for Nintendo, then two hours of Sony, then a whole day of demos and stuff.

But yeah - I still predicted they'd be down on Sony. In my opinion Sony had the best showing too. Whatever - haven't heard the podcast but a mardy Jeff won't be able to put me off what I saw. A working motion controller and an awesome line-up of exclusives that rival (if not better) anything competitors had. If GiantBomb want to grate on that, fine. Whatever. That's up to them.

Oh, pity.