It takes a sense of responsibility to be a game reviewer
By Michael Lafferty

Mom used to say, “life isn’t all fun and games.” While that certainly is true, to a large extent, in a corner of the land, it is far from the truth.

Of course, this refers to the thousands that labor so long, and hard to create the games that we pick up, boot up, and play. What a life! What a job!

And then there are the Web sites devoted to reviewing the games, and the folks who work for those Web sites. For some, it is a livelihood. For others, it is a chance to play and write. If you are a writer, or hope to be a writer, or even just have a passion for the written language, it is an opportunity to indulge in something you enjoy.

When I worked for a local daily newspaper, once a week my software reviews and Internet columns would appear alongside my picture. No, I was not enthused about my mug appearing weekly in a publication. I prefer to be on the other side of the camera (and yes, I have worked as a professional photographer as well). But it was always a source of wonder when people would stop me in a store, or at an athletic venue and mention the column. Hey, people were either actually reading it, or at least seeing it.

Well, the years passed, and the job was replaced with another, and I was able to secure the gig writing for GameZone.com, still doing something I rather enjoyed. People have still approached me, wondering what happened to the newspaper job, and I explain it to them  – though I tell them I am much happier now. Besides, I still get to play games without having to buy them.

“Wow! How do you get a job like that?” That’s a question often heard.

Here’s what it takes, in a nutshell: An enjoyment for playing games, the ability to write, the willingness to devote hours to playing and then writing, and a sense of responsibility to do all of this in a timely manner. The latter doesn’t mean whenever you get around to it, it means getting the game, installing it and playing it to get the job done within 7-10 days. Sites (or magazines) are depending on writers to do the work. Advertising revenue can hang on the timeliness of reviews – which is reflected by circulation or hits. And if the revenue drops, so do jobs.

I knew someone (it wasn’t me) who came up with what he thought was a great scheme. He would join CD clubs to get the deal on the CDs. You know the ones, buy 11 for one cent (plus shipping and handling), then buy ‘x’ amount over the next three years. Then he would ‘recommend’ a friend so that he got more free CDs. The ‘friend,’ as it turned out was him using an alias. He would get the free CDs offered the ‘friend’ for joining. In short, he was getting a lot of CDs for very little money.

He called it a great deal. I called it fraud. That was more than 10 years ago, so I’m sure the statue of limitations has expired. But the point is, he was duping someone.

How does that pertain to the software industry? Some unscrupulous individuals have applied for a job reviewing and the good-hearted company has accepted them, sent them a game and never heard from them again. The consequences are that software publishers aren’t as willing to send out more copies of the game, the reviews publisher gets a bad rep, and the company is in jeopardy. And somewhere some goofball is giggling about the free game they got.

Are contracts the answer? Maybe. Enforcing them might be tough though. What it comes down to is people who stand by their word. Sure, there are people whom we expect to say one thing, and then do something else. And a lot of those are elected. It doesn’t speak too highly of us if we allow it to happen, or become so complacent that we think nothing of it if we do the deed ourselves.

I’ve worked, in the past, for other review sites other than GameZone. Now I work exclusively for it. But I have experienced, throughout the three years I’ve been doing this as a freelance writer, the number of times editors have lamented the same problem – reviewers who get games and then disappear. I’m established; my editor knows what I can do, and trusts me. So do publishers within the industry.

But the people who are being hurt the most – aside from those who would like to see a review of a program in or on their favorite publication – are those who would like to get into the business. If editors have developed a healthy mistrust of untested and unknown writers, then it makes it much tougher to become a reviewer.

So how can you become a reviewer? Well, you can try to get someone to give you a shot, or you can start out as a beta tester. Develop your writing and program reviewing skills in those confines. Most of the upper end programs require a minimum of 10 hours of game play per week during the test period. Are you willing to put that much time into a game? Can you effectively communicate bugs and problems you encounter during the test process? If you think you can do that, you might want to start checking the Web sites of some of your favorite game publishers on a frequent basis (or watch GameZone.com for beta test announcements). They sometimes announce a test program, but with a limited amount of room.

And what will you get out of it? Perhaps you will be mentioned in the back of a manual; maybe you’ll get a t-shirt; more than likely you’ll get a full version of the completed game; you’ll definitely get a thank you. And you’ll build a resume of responsibility that may show you what it takes to ensure that life is partially “fun and games.”
 

Share | Digg This | Glink It

---