Gamekult co-founder nanark responded today in the Gamekult forums about the Sony Blacklist. He no longer works for the site.
The ban is considered as a retaliation after GK review. Poischich (Gamekult Editor) gave Heavy Rain a 6.
Here is the translation of nanark comment :
"As a reminder because many do not necessarily know me, I am co-founder of the site and was president of Gamekult until it was sold to CNET in 2007. I am not working there anymore and I therefore consult GK as a simple reader.
Answer :
In fact, many publishers have blacklisted us more or less violently in the past.Canceling ads contracts regularly, stoping sending the games, stupid threats not always followed, etc..During my period, this happened with Ubi Soft, Microsoft, EA, Acclaim, Focus, Eidos, and of course Sony plus a bunch of smaller ones.
But the most ridiculous, it's been Sony who wanted to prevent us from testing an import game (GT4), a game thus commercially available...All the press has accepted the decision of Sony, being afraid of retaliation, which didn't take a long time to actually happen.
I pass the telephone conversation with their amazing PR who even threatened us with a court trial :) In short, we refused of course, we are not their puppy.
He then sent an email threatening quite clear to all amateur and pro sites indicating that they would cut us the ads (etc) and the little that was clever enough just doing his job might just be the second.
The PR guy then acted his threat: he claimed his debug PS2 back (which can run publisher games), no longer sent games, and for the ads, I think it did not have consequences, because the PR guy has no arms as long as that, he is only a PR guy after all :)
Later, he contacted us like "ok guys, let's bury the hatchet, you must come to the presentation of our Sony sponsored car for the 24h du Mans race" or something like that.
We did not go because we don't give a f*** about the car, he did not much appreciated. But from there, we received new games and other debug PS2.
Not from his initiative obviously, but I'm just guessing there ...At the time, we decided to not make the story public because it does not ultimately change much in our business: GameKult testing games for players, and we came to the conclusion to not relate in our columns threats and their applications (very, very regular) from game publishers, because with just this we could make another site ultimately not very interesting.
And we are used to buying the games, so short, nothing special. Anyway, almost 3 years since I'm retired and I see that the practices have not changed.That said, why would they change while there are some sites selling their a** for an exclusivity or ads (Note : Gameblog gave Heavy Rain a 5/5 and hosts the VIP blog of David Cage)"
"Many video games catch not only great commercial attention but remarkable critical attention as well. We have seen games like Heavy Rain, The Last of Us Part II, and even entries in the Metal Gear series described as fantastic interactive experiences, even heralded in the same way as Hollywood's greatest films.
I would suggest that not only is this an unfair comparison but also a harmful one. Video games, by their very nature, are an intricately different medium and should be weighed against one another rather than another form of media," Phillip writes for GF365.
I think Hollywood films will becoming increasingly more like video games in the future, especially as the world embraces the "new normal" from the pandemic. It makes sense, as games like Spider-Man: Miles Morales showcase just how realistically we're reaching in graphical capabilities, as well as showcase extreme action sequences in spectacular ways. And as time goes by, it'll get easier and cheaper to produce such "art", as well as create new star "actors" that never age, never die, never complain, never gets involved in scandals, etc. Technology is amazing and we're only just getting a taste of what it'll eventually be.
No. For the money spent, a quality game provides far more entertainment value than a quality movie. Especially when looking at what is going on in the world, and how a studio can attempt to pilfer from consumers by charging 30 dollars for Mulan via streaming. Ridiculous. There is no comparison....games all day.
What exactly is the David Cage experience, and is it of value? We examine two classics, Fahrenheit and Heavy Rain, to find the answer.
Quantic Dream has announced a new video series to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of Heavy Rain. Check out the first part here.
Have you played Detroit? While it’s my personal favorite, I fully understand many preferring Heavy Rain more. I’m glad you enjoyed Heavy Rain too.
Glad you enjoyed the game! Yes, Detroit is a masterpiece of a game, and their best work to date “in my opinion”
Wow, 10 years...and yet, still one of the best/most emotional/thrilling gaming experiences I’ve ever had.
So grateful to Sony for believing in Quantic Dream’s vision for this game, and giving them a chance. I’ll never forget David Cage saying “We want to challenge the player, but not with the controller, but mentally, with their decisions of “How far would you go to save someone you love” Well, they broke my emotional gamer heart lol.
My teenage son refuses to play this game, because I’ve told him in little detail the emotional impact it had on me all those years ago. Maybe one day he will.
Still have my origami crane they teach you how to make when you're installing for the first time.
it's been 10 years? wow, that was so fast, I feel like this console gen went fast as well although it hasn't. I really look forward to the PS5 this holiday season though.
wow i have to read this
still can't believe how sony could do this over a review
"But the most ridiculous, it's been Sony"
"I pass the telephone conversation with their amazing PR who even threatened us with a court trial :) "
"Gameblog gave Heavy Rain a 5/5 and hosts the VIP blog of David Cage"
wow , is this for real !!!
Sony should blacklist EDGE. Edge's reviews are consistently way below metacritic reviews. Ie: they don't know how to review games properly, and its liabless to consistently say a game is alot worse then everyone else says it is
All I can say is, This is why you need to rely on the smaller sites for accurate reviews. All the big sites are practically bought for most of their reviews. It is Lobbying of the gaming industry and it sucks. IGN and Gamespot are the biggest culprits yet their reviews of big games always hit the front page with 500+ degrees.
Good job Sony
Trash sites like Gamekult should go bankrupt
every man and his dog can have a blog. but what i'm looking for is credibility. i think some sites give games high scores because of pressure from publishers. IGN's review of prince of persia is bogus. 91 for a 5-hour game?
other sites are giving controversial score for hits. and also, sites give hyped up games high score automatically to please the fanboys. see failo odst. no way that game is above 7.
finally, there is no objectivity and consistency in these reviews. how can you not say same old, same old to mw2 (cod6) but say that it's all been done for ratchet and clank acit(r&c6)?
it's really a matter of knowing which reviewer to trust. and, ultimately, following your instincts.