Definitive series in Retro Gamer...worst writing/research?

[tom]

To change the subject, (well sort of):

I reckon your Definitive....Lode Runner was excellent (and I am sorry too).

[Rev. Stuart Campbell]

Are you still mad that we won that war?

You won a war?

[idrougge]

Well thanks for dissing in one sentence the hard effort I put into writing the C64, N64 and Vectrex pieces then

I don't think I've read any one of those, except possibly the Vectrex piece, which I can't comment on because it was so long ago. But I have no bad memories of it.

Given obviously you think it's shoddy, why do you still read it, and whereas is actually, in general fact, doing better?

I don't "read" RG. I pick it up when I go by train, because the headlines seem so attractive. Then I give it away because I feel cheated. There is just so little hard content. If the magazine does better, which doesn't really surprise me, it's because your average reader isn't so hard-core, perhaps just looking for a nostalgia kick.

Perhaps we should get you to write something and then hack it pieces in front of your eyes... poor baby can't take the criticism? I've been in this game long enough to let most of it slide and just ignore it, for the only thing that really matters is why the people paying us to write it continue to do so.

I'm a full-time journalist, not some kid off the street. I've been in this game long enough to criticise other writers.

If THEY were unhappy with it, then surely we wouldn't have jobs? :P

Sadly, you can't count me to "them".

[horseboy]

You won a war?

A couple of hundred years ago.

[Rev. Stuart Campbell]

I don't "read" RG. I pick it up when I go by train, because the headlines seem so attractive. Then I give it away because I feel cheated. There is just so little hard content. If the magazine does better, which doesn't really surprise me, it's because your average reader isn't so hard-core, perhaps just looking for a nostalgia kick.

People can not like RG, not enjoy the writing style, be unhappy about the particular games or formats it chooses to cover, think it's biased towards the UK... but "so little hard content" is THE most ridiculously, self-evidently wrong thing I've ever heard anyone say about it. I research the living crap out of the Definitive features, and I'm constantly surprised by what I find out in the other pieces every month, and I've been in the games business professionally for the best part of 20 years. What on Earth do you consider "hard content"?

[idrougge]

I don't have all day to waste with your desperate attempts to cover up the idiocy of your first post. "Threeedeep" IS a stupid affected spelling, and most grown-up magazines wouldn't indulge it. Crappy fanzines written by anal fanboys, maybe, but no respectable newsstand publication.

I agree with Campbell here. If anyone should learn to spell, it's Parker Brothers.

[blue lander]

To change the subject, (well sort of):

I reckon your Definitive....Lode Runner was excellent (and I am sorry too).

Running with the whole "Change the subject" theme, Lode Runner does have a pretty interesting history. An article on how Lode Runner and Bomberman are interrelated would be an interesting read, too.

[Kitsune Sniper]

... Mobygames catches some of the gaps but makes glaring errors of its own (you wouldn't believe the number of games they have me down as co-author of)

If you want to have those errors corrected, then drop us a line (I'm an approver there and a frequent contributor as well). There's lots of people with the same name, and sometimes mistakes are made when credits are contributed. If you let us know, then we'll fix the problem.

I don't really care for the rest of this post, I just don't like to see Moby get bashed.

[Cav]

Do YOU even know what you're talking about?

I don't have all day to waste with your desperate attempts to cover up the idiocy of your first post. "Threeedeep" IS a stupid affected spelling, and most grown-up magazines wouldn't indulge it. Crappy fanzines written by anal fanboys, maybe, but no respectable newsstand publication. And seriously, if one nitpicking spelling quibble is the best evidence you've got to accuse someone of "worst writing/research", then you really do need to fuck off before you embarrass yourself any further.

(After all, you're hardly in a position to hairsplit other people's use of grammar - "worst writing/research"? What does that even mean? Worse than what? Worst since when? Worst out of who?)

...but....that's how it's spelled. It has nothing to do with being "affected" or fanboyism. It's how it's spelled and it's not the job of the journalist to change it. It's his or her job to be accurate. Or am I missing something here? Did you make any changes like "Cue Burt" or "Pack, Man" or "Monkey Kong"?

To mods: Please please don't ban this guy. Defensive writers are one of the greatest sources of entertainment in the world.

My advice to the good Reverend would be to grow a thicker skin and let it all roll off.

[Rev. Stuart Campbell]

...but....that's how it's spelled. It has nothing to do with being "affected" or fanboyism. It's how it's spelled and it's not the job of the journalist to change it.

Iiiit isssss iffffffffffffffffffffff thhhhhhhhhhhattttt's wwwhhhatttttt iiiiiitttt saaaaaaaaayssssssssssssss iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinn tthhhhhhhhe sttttyllllllllle guuuuuuuuuiddde.

[Cav]

Iiiit isssss iffffffffffffffffffffff thhhhhhhhhhhattttt's wwwhhhatttttt iiiiiitttt saaaaaaaaayssssssssssssss iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinn tthhhhhhhhe sttttyllllllllle guuuuuuuuuiddde.

Wow! Fantastic reply.

You are arguing two different things. If it's in the publication's style guide or the editor changes it that's one thing. But you are arguing that the word is pretentious and shouldn't even exist to begin with. Sorry, but as a writer that's not your call.

But I can play by your rule. From here on out "Digital Press" will be known as "Electronic Press" because "Digital" sounds too high-tech and is condescending. I decree this because I am a genius and what I say goes. Thank you. Anyone who calls it "Digital" from now on is a fanboy. Carry on.

[Rev. Stuart Campbell]

Wow! Fantastic reply.

You are arguing two different things. If it's in the publication's style guide or the editor changes it that's one thing. But you are arguing that the word is pretentious and shouldn't even exist to begin with. Sorry, but as a writer that's not your call.

What is and isn't my call isn't your call. We didn't tolerate sTupIdWaNKySpeLlIngS in Amiga Power on a point of principle and unfortunately for anyone who used them, they had no control over what we did and didn't print, just like I can't actually stop them from putting "Threeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed eep" on the game box if they want to. But as a professional language user, I'm fucked if I'm going to co-operate in its mangling by marketing dicks. If you don't like it, you're perfectly at liberty to write "ThreEEEeEeEEeEEeeEeEeEEeeeEEEeeeEEEEEEEeEeeeeeEEE eeEEeEdeep" all you want, but I won't be joining in.

[horseboy]

...but....that's how it's spelled. It has nothing to do with being "affected" or fanboyism. It's how it's spelled and it's not the job of the journalist to change it. It's his or her job to be accurate. Or am I missing something here? Did you make any changes like "Cue Burt" or "Pack, Man" or "Monkey Kong"?

To mods: Please please don't ban this guy. Defensive writers are one of the greatest sources of entertainment in the world.

My advice to the good Reverend would be to grow a thicker skin and let it all roll off.

This is the most correct thing that has been written here yet. Either this guy is the biggest dimwit in the entire world and actually thought he was supposed to correct a misspelling in a title, or he didn't do as thorough research as he suggested and he is trying to defend himself. I am leaning towards the latter on this one. Nobody is stupid enough to actually think that you are supposed to correct an intentionally misspelled title, that is just ridiculous.

It was meant to be a witty take on the word threedeep by adding a third "e". Whether you think it is witty or stupid is up to you. Whether or not it is the actual title is not up to you.

But wait, there's more. This next tidbit will, beyond a shadow of a doubt, throw your whole arguement right out the window. I suspect it may land right next to your integrity. You say that you took the third "e" out to correct the spelling, right? This is your whole arguement here, right? Well then why didn't you actually correct it? Threedeep, with 2 e's or 3 e's is not a word. I looked in 5 dictionaries just to make sure because I figured you couldn't be that damn stupid, but, alas, you are that damn stupid. If you wanted to correct it, you should have written it "Three Deep" or "Three-Deep."

So, now you have absolutely no arguement left (I see it laying on the curb right next to your credibility). Maybe you could just resort to calling people arseholes or telling them to fuck off. Shit, too late.

[Rev. Stuart Campbell]

This is the most correct thing that has been written here yet. Either this guy is the biggest dimwit in the entire world and actually thought he was supposed to correct a misspelling in a title, or he didn't do as thorough research as he suggested and he is trying to defend himself. I am leaning towards the latter on this one. Nobody is stupid enough to actually think that you are supposed to correct an intentionally misspelled title, that is just ridiculous.

Clearly you never read AP.

I'm pretty sure "Galaga" isn't in the dictionary either. Got any suggestions?

[horseboy]

Clearly you never read AP.

I'm pretty sure "Galaga" isn't in the dictionary either. Got any suggestions?

No you dolt, that is the whole damn point. The title is the title is the title. There is no way around it.

If you were doing a story about how much you love Cheez-it crackers, you wouldn't change it to Cheese-it. That is plain stupid. You screwed up. You know it. We know. God knows it. Everyone knows it, dude.

You are a pure buffoon, and you haven't made one solid point yet. You are sharp as a spoon dude.

[Rev. Stuart Campbell]

No you dolt, that is the whole damn point. The title is the title is the title. There is no way around it.

If you were doing a story about how much you love Cheez-it crackers, you wouldn't change it to Cheese-it.

Clearly you never read AP.

Professional writer, are you?

[Cav]

"If you don't like it, you're perfectly at liberty to write "ThreEEEeEeEEeEEeeEeEeEEeeeEEEeeeEEEEEEEeEeeee eEEE eeEEeEdeep" all you want, but I won't be joining in."

That would be silly. I prefer to remain accurate when I write and that's not the name of the game. I've got some bad news for you. If you ever once wrote "Q*bert" you were "fucked by mangling marketing dicks." The correct spelling would be "Cube-ert." After all, he hops on cubes, right? I pray to god they didn't hoodwink you on that one.

[MR.TI994A]

I am thinking about playing some "Cue Bert's Cubes" or "Hero" on my Coleco Vision tonight. Which one is better?

Then I was thinking of hooking up my Dreamcast to play some "Tokyo Extreme Racer". Is "Tokyo Extreme Racer 2" the better of the two?

I can't wait for the Definitive "Mortal Combat" article.

I suppose a Definitive on the Odyssey 2 game catalog is out of the "question!"

[Mayhem]

I'm a full-time journalist, not some kid off the street. I've been in this game long enough to criticise other writers.

Fair enough, but a lot of time people just go "it's crap" and hardly bother to explain why. Instances like that annoy me to no end, please give some constructive arguments. Given many articles in RG are written using the words straight from the person(s) responsible for item X (be it game, company, hardware or event) then to say there's "little hard content" is a bit bemusing.

As for the Vectrex piece, it was only 4 months ago, surprised it seems so way back to you...

And as for our current spelling diatribe, personally I'd spell it either way as the mood suited me. For sure it's spelt with 3 Es in the C64 rarity guide I manage, but that's the only time I'd make sure it was exact...

[Rev. Stuart Campbell]

"If you don't like it, you're perfectly at liberty to write "ThreEEEeEeEEeEEeeEeEeEEeeeEEEeeeEEEEEEEeEeeee eEEE eeEEeEdeep" all you want, but I won't be joining in."

That would be silly. I prefer to remain accurate when I write and that's not the name of the game. I've got some bad news for you. If you ever once wrote "Q*bert" you were "fucked by mangling marketing dicks." The correct spelling would be "Cube-ert." After all, he hops on cubes, right? I pray to god they didn't hoodwink you on that one.

I refer you back to "Galaga".

The tedious thing about this thread is people too ignorant to read what's being posted.