Does Dishonored deal with Game Informer spell the end of the game press’ integrity?

Games Catalyst: "When deals take place which threaten the integrity of analysis, then surely we reach a point when the games press is no longer scrutinising but acting as a conduit through which hype can only grow."

[firemassacre]

Gaming press integrity died along time ago.

[ryhanon]

Agreed.

That said however, what exactly makes this particular exclusive preview with Game Informer any different than the countless other exclusive previews Game Informer and, dare I say, other magazines have had in the past?

I see nothing about this that makes it any different or noteworthy in any way.

What the hell is the big deal? This is common place, it has been happening for decades. It's nothing new. Get over it.

[SilentNegotiator]

Agreed.

Now, if it was all exclusive info forever or something, THAT would be weird and worrisome. If I could ONLY get that info or any info for that game from that source, THAT would suck.

Otherwise, these little short lived exclusive previews aren't a big deal. We see them all of the time.

If you want to talk about game press integrity, or lack therefore of, there are plenty of things to discuss. But I'll leave that for another time.

[joab777]

I dont get it, its a reveal, not a deal to b the only source of info before release. They made a deal to b the first...big deal. It will b scrutinized plenty. In regards to the comment, many are getting tired of the fps genre and are hoping for something refreshing. Yes, it helps sell magazines, and theres more and more competition w sites like n4g.com and a constant stream of news and updates. But, they are gamers too and whats the harm in getting us hyped...we love it. This article will b long forgotten by release.

[PrimordialSoupBase]

Aside from a handful of great writers - who weren't around long enough to cultivate a culture of proper journalism because developers hired them to their own ranks - integrity never really existed.

[tehReaper]

I think the press in general died a long time ago. Don't even get me started on Fox News.

[HereThereBeGamers]

Ha - good point! This is definitely a weird turn up for the books though...

[firemassacre]

you got that right

[Nate-Dog]

I think GameInformer had/have a similar deal going with Bioware and Mass Effect 3 since basically all info around the start that came out about the game came out through their magazine and website, through just magazines, articles, gameplay videos, interviews etc.

[Nitrowolf2]

I think Gameinfo gave the Info first. It wasn't till after that that press releases were sent.

[Darth Stewie]

I was definitely expecting a bigger announcement.

[Software_Lover]

Dishonesty, back door deals, "In Living Color" type shows have made Fox more famous, LOL.

[Urmomlol]

The hilarious thing is if a deal was informed to this small, no name website, they would JUMP at the chance.

Hypocrites.

[telekineticmantis]

next they'll ask does small chimneys hurt santa clause.

[just_sayin]

well do they?

[telekineticmantis]

...

[Ascalon94]

this made my day ahhahaha

[ShadyDevil]

Although I agree with this article. This is nothing new for Game Informer, mostly because it is the most subscribed/bought print video game magazine. This deal is exactly like Saints Row and THQ deals before it and Skyrim. So, nothing new. Although disgusting.

[gcolley]

haha press and integrity in the same sentence

[SoundGamer]

This is nothing new, with any form of business exclusives are a must have to drive up the number of customers/viewers and gain an edge over competitors. Something you can only get from that one source. All forms of journalism have exclusive stories. Nothing new at all.

The author of this article is just mad they didn't get the exclusive story.

[femshep]

psht game informer has been a terrible source of information for years

making up info (bioshock 2, mass effect 3, to name a few)
giving very bad and biased reviews

actually its very rare to see an honest source of info anymore

[Odion]

So what exactly is the problem, game developers want a big showing and Magazines and websites want to have exclusive stuff to make them look different.

Nothing wrong with a nice first preview

[gypsygib]

Gameinformer is actually better than most. Sure, maybe companies can purchse kind words but that's better than automatically getting a luke warm preview/review if a publisher doesn't pay (IGN) or allowing fanboys to write reviews (Edge).

[SmokingMonkey]

Gamestop sells Gameinformer

Gamestop sells games

You will see posters in Gamestops windows advertizing the hell out of this game when it finally comes out.

Expect some sort of exclusive DLC for reserving Dishonored at Gamestop.

It's amazing how a company like Gamestop is actually molding gaming with exclusive DLC, their magazine Gameinformer and of course my favorite.....

...the online pass.

[Otheros00]

Any game that grace the cover of gameinformer gets positive "previews". Like the time the did superman returns on their cover. They gave superman returns a very low score when it came out.

[digitaleraser]

Exactly, GameInformer is one of the few magazines that really remain almost completely honest when it comes to their *reviews,* because the magazine is so widely circulated that a publisher would only be hurting themselves by pulling advertising in retaliation for a low review score.

[BatRastered]

From the story (and the original on GI) "Dishonored is the antithesis of a edge-of-your-seat roller-coaster ride."

I don't think the word antithesis means what they think it means... Lol.